‘Hai Corona’ ( Woe to you Corona) & ‘Corona Bhiyenaka’ ( Corona! Don’t Panic)- Two Meaningful and Catchy Awareness Konkani Songs on the Covid-19 Virus by Fr Nelson Dalmeida, the Professor in the Department of Philosophy at St Joseph Seminary, Jeppu-Mangaluru
Mangaluru: Health officials identified the first case of Covid-19 just over four months ago. Before then, most had never heard the term “Coronavirus or Covid-19,” which is what causes the disease. Now, it has spread around the world, killing thousands of people, and become a worldwide subject of conversation. In the recent past, it would have been difficult for a musician to instantly respond to an event like this and reach a large audience. Releasing a song to the public involved booking time in a studio, recording live instrumentation, and then packaging that recording into a tape, CD, or record. Finally, the recording would have to be shipped to a retail store for sale.
Not anymore. After composing a song, today’s artists can record and edit it on their personal computer. And to reach the masses, they can then upload the song to a popular streaming application, like Spotify, Apple Music or YouTube. The ease of producing tracks means artists or budding musicians can now more quickly react to current events. And with the spread of coronavirus, they are doing just that. As of March 2020, there might have been over hundred songs, that include “coronavirus” in the title, and few more with “covid-19” in the title.
As per Spotify, the most popular coronavirus song these days in the globe is “La Cumbia Del Coronavirus” by Mister Cumbia, which nearly 100,000 people have streamed so far. Mister Cumbia’s song implores listeners to wash their hands and avoid friends if they have the virus. Then there is Argentinian comedian Ramses Hatem, who says that he was nervous about writing a song about coronavirus because so many have died, but recorded one anyway. His song, “cORoNAviRUs,” had about 3000 streams. It uses coronavirus as an analogy for toxicity in relationships.
This has become the need of the hour. When the entire world is struggling because of the pandemic, pro-singers and budding singers have come together to make life’s journey a little smoother for everyone else, by spreading the message of hope and peace throughout the world, about the pandemic through their awareness tunes. Although many bands and choirs across the world have been showcasing virtual concerts and songs, and just recently, Mangaluru origin D’souza Twin Sisters-Coreen and Maureen D’souza & Brother Adrian D’souza, now settled in Bengaluru, sang for ‘Global Concert of Hope 2020’, which featured 33 performances by the “Garden City”- Bengaluru artistes raising their voices to dispel the lingering gloom of the pandemic, thereby created a one-of-a-kind virtual choir experience during the pandemic. (Ref: ‘Count Your Blessings’ at Time of Pandemic! Mlorean D’souza Twin Sisters & Brother Sing for ‘Global Concert of Hope‘ ).
When the country was under lockdown, so many people were anxious – about their health, their jobs, and lack of basic supplies. And the poor and migrant populations are struggling for their lives. During such a grim time, music by these artists/singers brought peace and meaning to many lives. And while the rapid spread of the novel coronavirus has governments and healthcare officials scrambling to educate people on the best practices to follow to restrict the spread of the infection, and the concerned authorities have been issuing public service announcement (PSA) videos to combat it. But, what’s interesting is that many are turning to catchy tunes and peppy dance moves to drive home the message about keeping one safe from the virus, by pro-artists and budding artists, who are playing a vital role in bringing awareness on Covid-19 through their songs.
And for that matter, locally here in Kodiyal aka Kudla aka Mangaluru, we have that singing talents in Rev Fr Nelson Dalmeida, professor in the department of philosophy at St Joseph Seminary, Jeppu,Mangaluru, who has until now brought out two very meaningful and catchy konkani songs on the Çoronavirus’titles- “Hai Corona” and “Corona Bhiyenaka”. Fr Nelson had served as Director at Sandesha Foundation for Culture & Education, Mangaluru. He has also brought out two Konkani devotional Albums. Also composed many Konkani and other languages songs. He has scripted and directed five value based short films and one Konkani Drama
In “Hai Corona”, which means Woe to you Corona, Fr Nelson has narrated how corona brought misery in the life of the people. How it devastated the life of people. The song describes the helplessness and the hopelessness of the people. It narrates how Corona caused fear in the people. How they became panicky and tried their best to resist it. There is a narration that because of corona many became jobless. It also commends the daring service of the ‘Covid Warriors’ like doctors, nurses, ambulance drivers/staff, media, and so on. It also brought out a sad situation of those who were affected and struggled to survive and those died due to its effect.
In his second song “Corona Bhiyenaka”, which means Corona! Don’t Panic., Fr Nelson has brought out how we can challenge ourselves for the situation. We need not panic and need not doubt about God. All those who work for it, will give us hope. Do not worry about what others say and what you hear about it but you take caution and keep yourself safe. Do not bring in God into the picture and never make Him responsible. But do not lose your hope in God. Place your entire trust in him.
In conclusion, music is often called the universal language. Artists have found out that, when trying to spread lifesaving information about the coronavirus pandemic, it helps to have a catchy beat. Musicians have been recording songs about social distancing, spotting symptoms and, of course, washing hands. It’s all part of an effort to get vital information about disease prevention to people who might not get it otherwise- and we should appreciate and applaud all the pro and evn budding musicians/singers, including our own son of the soil, Rev Fr Nelson Dalmeida, for spreading the awareness message on the deadly disease of the present time-‘CORONAVIRUS’ aka ‘COVID-19’!
For More On Fr Nelson Dalmeida’s Creations click on the link : https://www.youtube.com/
