Sonho Meu

Dona Ivone Lara's song 'Sonho Meu' is a poignant exploration of longing and melancholy, wrapped in the soothing rhythms of samba. The repeated phrase 'Sonho meu' (My dream) serves as a mantra, a call to a distant love or a cherished memory that resides far away. The dream is personified, tasked with the mission of seeking out this distant entity, highlighting the deep sense of saudade—a Portuguese word that encapsulates a profound sense of longing and nostalgia. This feeling is further emphasized by the imagery of a lost guiding star and the cold dawn that brings only melancholy.

The lyrics paint a vivid picture of the night, with the wind carrying the song of the night and the dance of flowers in the singer's thoughts. This imagery evokes a sense of natural beauty and tranquility, yet it is tinged with sadness. The mention of a samba that is 'marked by the sorrows of love' adds another layer of emotional depth. Samba, a genre known for its rhythmic and often joyful nature, is here described as a vessel for expressing deep emotional pain and longing. The dance and the music become a means of coping with and expressing these complex emotions.

Dona Ivone Lara, a pioneering figure in samba, infuses 'Sonho Meu' with her unique ability to blend personal emotion with cultural expression. The song's melancholic tone is a testament to her skill in conveying the bittersweet nature of love and loss. The wind, described as 'vadio' (vagabond), cradles the flower, symbolizing the fleeting and transient nature of happiness and dreams. Through 'Sonho Meu,' Lara invites listeners to embrace their own feelings of longing and to find solace in the beauty of samba, even when it is marked by sorrow.