"¡Ay, ay, ay!", subtitled "Reminiscencias cuyanas", is a song composed in 1913 by the Chilean-born composer, pianist, singer and publisher Osmán Pérez Freire."Ay-Ay-Ay ...Osman Perez Freire", in J.J. Fuld, ''The Book of World-Famous Music: Classical, Popular, and Folk'', 5th, Revised and Enlarged Edition (Dover Publications, Inc., New York 2000)
at p. 121
(Google). Freire (born in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

in 1880), who emigrated to

Mendoza, Argentina Mendoza (), officially the City of Mendoza (), is the capital of the Provinces of Argentina, province of Mendoza Province, Mendoza in Argentina. It is located in the northern-central part of the province, in a region of foothills and high plain ...

in c.1886-1890, was a figure of some note in the evolution of

Tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries from a combination of Arge ...

. This song, however, known worldwide, is his most famous composition, and has never fallen out of fashion. It is equally suited to intimate performance with guitar or piano accompaniment, or to large-scale concert delivery with orchestral accompaniment, and has been sung by almost everyone, and especially favoured by some of the most famous tenors, since it was first written (see below). "Ay, ay, ay" is a Hispanic expression signifying dismay at a bad situation or state of affairs, rather more immediate and acute than the English "alas". Purely instrumental versions include arrangements for dance orchestras, jazz combinations and salon musicians. The autograph manuscript of the song is at PAU. This song should not be confused with the Mexican '' Cielito Lindo'', the chorus of which begins, "Ay, ay, ay, ay". In what may be the earliest publication (by Breyer Hermanos, 414 Florida), the song is subtitled "Reminiscencias Cuyanas". Although often mistakenly called a "Chilean" song, perhaps because of the place of birth of the composer, the style is in fact that of a traditional ''canción cuyana'' of the Cuyo region of north-west Argentina. In publication it acquired subtitles as "Canción Criolla" or "Argentine Song", and (in Schott's edition) "Kreolisches Wiegenlied" or "Argentine Lullaby". The spelling ''Ay-Ay-Ay'', though incorrect, occurs commonly in English sources.

Lyrics

''Si alguna vez en tu pecho,
'' :''¡ay ay ay!'' ''mi cariño no lo abrigas,
'' ''engáñalo como un niño,
'' :''¡ay ay ay!'' ''pero nunca se lo digas...''

Recordings (examples)

Enrico Caruso Enrico Caruso (, , ; 25 February 1873 – 2 August 1921) was an Italian operatic first lyric tenor then dramatic tenor. He sang to great acclaim at the major opera houses of Europe and the Americas, appearing in a wide variety of roles that r ...

for HMV *

Miguel Fleta Miguel Burro Fleta (28 December 1897, in Albalate de Cinca, Province of Huesca, Aragon – 29 May 1938, in A Coruña) was a Spanish operatic lyric tenor. Despite his short stage career, lasting from 1919 to 1935, Fleta has been described as one ...

for HMV (1930) * José Mardones for Columbia-Rena (1920) * Tito Schipa for HMV (1922 and 1926) *

Umberto Urbano Umberto Urbano (16 October 1885 in Livorno – 16 June 1969), was an Italian baritone opera singer. He made his debut in 1907 in Trieste. His career really picked up momentum in 1920, beginning as the Herald in '' Lohengrin'' at La Scala. H ...

* Conchita Supervia for Parlophone * Dmitri Smirnoff for Parlophone (1929) *

Richard Tauber Richard Tauber (16 May 1891, Linz – 8 January 1948, London) was an Austrian lyric tenor and film actor. He performed the tenor role in numerous operas, including ''Don Giovanni'' by Mozart and Lorenzo Da Ponte. Early life Richard Tauber was b ...

for

Odeon Records Odeon Records is a record label founded in 1903 by Max Straus and Heinrich Zuntz of the International Talking Machine Company in Berlin, Germany. The label's name and logo come from the Odéon-Théâtre de l'Europe in Paris. History Straus a ...

Jussi Björling Johan Jonatan "Jussi" Björling ( , ; 5 February 19119 September 1960) was a Swedish tenor. One of the leading operatic singers of the 20th century, Björling appeared for many years at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City and less frequentl ...

Giuseppe di Stefano Giuseppe Di Stefano (24 July 19213 March 2008) was an Italian operatic tenor who sang professionally from the mid-1940s until the early 1990s. Called "Pippo" by both fans and friends, he was known as the "Golden Voice" or "The Most Beautiful Vo ...

(1952) *

Mario Lanza Mario Lanza ( , ; born Alfredo Arnold Cocozza ; January 31, 1921 – October 7, 1959) was an American tenor and actor. He was a Hollywood film star popular in the late 1940s and the 1950s. Lanza began studying to be a professional singer a ...

Alfredo Kraus Alfredo Kraus Trujillo (; 24 November 192710 September 1999) was a distinguished Spanish tenor from the Canary Islands (known professionally as Alfredo Kraus), particularly known for the artistry he brought to opera's bel canto roles. He was ...

The Three Tenors The Three Tenors were an operatic singing trio, active between 1990 and 2003, and termed a supergroup (a title normally reserved for rock and pop groups) consisting of Italian Luciano Pavarotti and Spaniards Plácido Domingo and José Carreras ...

Julio Iglesias Julio José Iglesias de la Cueva (; born 23 September 1943) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. Iglesias is recognized as the most commercially successful Spanish singer in the world and one of the top List of best-selling music artists, reco ...

*In 1956,

Les Baxter Leslie Thompson Baxter (March 14, 1922 – January 15, 1996) was an American composer, conductor, and musician. After working as an arranger and composer for swing bands, he developed his own style of easy listening music, known as exotica and s ...

, included a version on his "Caribbean Moonlight" LP.

References

{{authority control Songs in Spanish 1913 songs Argentine songs