“O mar serenou” (Clara Nunes, 1975)

Today would have been Clara Nunes’s 83rd birthday. The song I’ve translated below—“O mar serenou”—was written by Candeia in 1975 in her honor and appeared that same year on her album “Claridade” (“clarity” but also “daylight” and “brilliance” or “glare”; given the name of her 1974 album—“Alvorecer”—I’m willing to bet this one is meant to be “daylight”). The title of this song uses the verb “serenar” which, despite its (wonderful) echoes of “serenade,” means to calm down, to relax, to settle. I’ve gone with “relax” here because I think it best fits the context and tone. Speaking of context, here’s a translation of letras.mus.br’s analysis of this song:

"O Mar Serenou," interpreted by Clara Nunes, celebrates the transformative power of women, represented as a mermaid who calms and enchants everything around her. The [two repeating lines of the chorus] show how the presence of this woman is capable of changing the environment, influencing even parts of nature like the sea, the moon, and the stars. The mermaid, a strong symbol in Brazilian mythology, reinforces the idea of allure and seduction, suggesting that a woman has an almost supernatural power to bring peace and harmony.

The song also highlights how people and nature itself react to this magnetism. The fisherman, who normally faces the ocean without fear, submits to the enchantment of the mermaid and would rather admire her dancing than fish. The vain moon feels overshadowed and falls asleep when faced with the woman’s brilliance. Even the cold is beaten by the heat of the samba, showing that female energy can transform the weather and the collective mood. Including on the album "Claridade," the song values Afro-Brazilian culture and female agency, marking an important moment in Clara Nunes’s career and in the history of samba.

This song brings up two significant translating challenges:

• Portuguese uses the same word (“sereia”) for both mermaids and sirens (the mythical kind). So a Portuguese listener would hear echoes of both, meaning that the “mermaid” I’ve chosen here (as clearly the more dominant meaning) would resonate as both the alluring, magical creature from European mythology (a “siren”) and the more enchanting, beautiful representation of the mystery of the seas (a “mermaid”). On top of that, Afro-Brazilian religions often represent the goddess Iemanjá as something of a mermaid, capturing the spiritual, protective, and feminine power of the sea. So there’s a lot more power in the word “sereia” than in my chosen translation of “mermaid.”

• The Brazilian word “morena” refers to a woman with virtually any shade of brown skin. It is an affectionate term, sometimes translated in dictionaries and online sources as “brunette.” That is not what it means (although “morenas” do often have dark brown hair). (There is a masculine version “moreno” which means the same thing but for men.) Sometimes as an adjective, there are English phrases (most notably “brown-skinned”) that work, but nothing that captures both the scope of skin colors that are encompassed in this one word or how it is used culturally (not unlike how “blonde” or “brunette” are used, but for skin tone) and definitely nothing that works as a noun. So I’ve chosen to retain the Portuguese word below after having provided this very explanation.

Listen to the song

“O mar serenou”
O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar é sereia
O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar é sereia

O pescador não tem medo
É segredo se volta ou se fica no fundo do mar
Ao ver a morena bonita sambando
Se explica que não vai pescar
Deixa o mar serenar

O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar é sereia
O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar é sereia

A lua brilhava vaidosa
De si orgulhosa e prosa com que Deus lhe deu
Ao ver a morena sambando
Foi se acabrunhando, então adormeceu
O Sol apareceu

O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar é sereia
O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar é sereia

Um frio danado que vinha
Do lado gelado, que o povo até se intimidou
Morena aceitou o desafio
Sambou, e o frio sentiu seu calor
E o samba se esquentou

O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar é sereia
O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar é sereia

A estrela que estava escondida
Sentiu-se atraída, depois então apareceu
Mas ficou tão enternecida
Indagou a si mesma
A estrela afinal será ela ou sou eu?

O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar (é sereia) e deixa o mar serenar
O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar (é sereia) e deixa o mar serenar

O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar é sereia

“The ocean relaxed”
The ocean relaxed when she stepped on the sand
She who sambas by the ocean’s edge is a mermaid
The ocean relaxed when she stepped on the sand
She who sambas by the ocean’s edge is a mermaid

The fisherman isn’t afraid
It’s a secret whether he’ll return or end up at the bottom of the sea
When he sees the pretty morena sambaing
That explains that he’s not going fishing
Let the ocean relax

The ocean relaxed when she stepped on the sand
She who sambas by the ocean’s edge is a mermaid
The ocean relaxed when she stepped on the sand
She who sambas by the ocean’s edge is a mermaid

The moon shone vainly
Proud of itself and the enchantment God gave it
When it saw the morena sambaing
It got scared, then fell asleep
The sun appeared

The ocean relaxed when she stepped on the sand
She who sambas by the ocean’s edge is a mermaid
The ocean relaxed when she stepped on the sand
She who sambas by the ocean’s edge is a mermaid

A terrible cold was coming
From the frozen place and the people were threatened
The morena accepted the challenge
She danced the samba and the cold felt her heat
And the samba got hotter

The ocean relaxed when she stepped on the sand
She who sambas by the ocean’s edge is a mermaid
The ocean relaxed when she stepped on the sand
She who sambas by the ocean’s edge is a mermaid

A star that was hidden
Felt an attraction, then later it appeared
But it was so smitten
It asked itself
After all is the star her or is it me?

The ocean relaxed when she stepped on the sand
She who sambas by the ocean’s edge (is a mermaid) and let’s the ocean relax
The ocean relaxed when she stepped on the sand
She who sambas by the ocean’s edge (is a mermaid) and let’s the ocean relax

O mar serenou quando ela pisou na areia
Quem samba na beira do mar é sereia