Asho Chela

This song is a lament of a ploughman trudging behind his two bulls, Chela and Buska. It is in Mingrelian, a South Caucasian language related to Georgian and spoken in the Samegrelo region in the north west of Georgia. This is an arrangement for three voices, which I have collated from various different arrangements I have found, as many slightly different versions of this song exist. The bass part could also be sung by tenors an octave above. In the audio tracks below I have just sung the first verse, but the lyrics to the whole song are below.

Translation:

Here Chela, there Buska,
ou nana, you poor thing
You are used to being enslaved.
ou nana, you poor thing

Your neck is sore,
ou nana, you poor thing
You are meek and tired.
ou nana, you poor thing

Chela, where are you going? To Darcheli,
ou nana, you poor thing
You won't be back till midnight.
ou nana, you poor thing

Asho chela, visho busk'a,
ou nana sk'ani tsoda, nanina
si monobas gegapili
ou nana sk'ani tsoda, nanina

chorus

ou, ou nana nanina

nanina nanina nanina (x2)

si k'iseri elapiri,
ou nana sk'ani tsoda, nanina
si uchkhonchkhe si sergela.
ou nana sk'ani tsoda, nanina

chorus

chela so ul, darchelisha,
ou nana sk'ani tsoda, nanina
ash vamgarte shk'a serisha.
ou nana sk'ani tsoda, nanina

chorus