Bi/Multilingual Stories

"... I was in Spain ... and neither of them could communicate in the same language and both parties were getting really angry. I think I was only a child  then and I went over and asked 'do you want me to help? do you want me to translate?  and I think it really helped and it kind of came to a solution because I was there to help. ... That's when I felt it's so cool that I can speak both, English and Spanish because I just helped the situation."

If you want to tell your story email me at elisabethajtay.at.gmail.com!
Sound by Hernán Giorcelli
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'At a French table conversation happens in a very lively manner, led by constant interruptions and vivid exchange. In the US there is much more respect and space to express yourself. English is a very fluid language with a great rhythm and pulsation and as a musician you want to immediately translate it into music.'

If you want to tell your story email me at elisabethajtay.at.gmail.com!
Sound by Hernán Giorcelli
Thank you for listening, sharing and supporting Bi/Multilingual Stories

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"If I spoke in Nigerian English in Canada, people won't understand me. When I'm more comfortable with people, or I'm having fun, I use Nigerian English. In these situations I don't have to curate myself or feel embarrassed because someone corrects me. As time passes I get more and more comfortable in both spaces, the Nigerian, as well as the Canadian English.
Being a migrant has taught me to question things and understand that there are many ways to live your life and these ways can be equally valuable."

If you want to tell your story email me at elisabethajtay.at.gmail.com!
Sound by Hernán Giorcelli
Thank you for listening, sharing and supporting Bi/Multilingual Stories

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“When we immigrated to the US I was very afraid to speak because I knew that a lot of people can be cruel and make fun of you if you have an accent. So I  started participating in choir or theater so I took on different personas and acted things out and that helped me a lot to come out of my shell. I learned how to control my speech so that my accent wouldn’t come out. …  At school I would participate in theater and the choir and that helped me to take on different personas and act things out.”

If you want to tell your story email me at elisabethajtay.at.gmail.com!
Sound by Hernán Giorcelli
Thank you for listening, sharing and supporting Bi/Multilingual Stories

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I never found Dutch a beautiful language in a way. I feel Dutch people are super modest to the sense they don’t value themselves as much as they should; I can’t relate to people who feel a strong bond to their country. What does it really mean to culturally belong? I’m in the visual box but I don’t think you need that much language to feel culture. Without knowing the language there are ways to understand culture.

If you want to tell your story email me at elisabethajtay.at.gmail.com!
Sound by Hernán Giorcelli
Thank you for listening, sharing and supporting Bi/Multilingual Stories

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There is a difference between languages in a sense that, from an emotional point of view, one language can be more self centered, while another references inward and outward directed emotions. One language is more administrative, the other one is the soul language. 

Translanguaging  is an advantage of multilingual people as it enables them to express themselves in a variety of ways switching between languages, adding words that fit best the meaning and purpose of the conversation. 

The more languages we speak the better we understand the world; knowing languages is a door to the world, it is like knowing how to read and write. 

If you want to tell your story email me at elisabethajtay.at.gmail.com!
Sound by Hernán Giorcelli
Thank you for listening, sharing and supporting Bi/Multilingual Stories

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Sometimes the body and soul feel disconnected when speaking in a language rather foreign to us. At other times we want to hide that we know a special language at the level of a native speaker. Location impacts the feeling of belonging paired with memories that come and go  between two different worlds, different languages. As you switch between languages you switch between different personas.

If you want to tell your story email me at elisabethajtay.at.gmail.com!
Sound by Hernán Giorcelli
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How does dreaming in English for the first time feel? Or having inner dialogs in different languages and working with them? How does a foreign language interfere with one's mind in relation to the mother tongue?
The interview took place during our joint residency at the Vermont Studio Center in Vermont. 

If you want to tell your story email me at elisabethajtay.at.gmail.com!
Sound by Hernán Giorcelli
Thank you for listening, sharing and supporting Bi/Multilingual Stories

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In this episode of Bi/Multilingual Stories we dive into the different notions of migration, about the difficulties of having many homes  and the emotional impact of leaving. There is beauty hidden in the depths of each language, yet the idea of having a unified one goes back many decades.

If you want to tell your story email me at elisabethajtay.at.gmail.com!
Sound by Hernán Giorcelli
Thank you for listening, sharing and supporting Bi/Multilingual Stories

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In the second episode of Bi/Multilingual Stories my guest and I talk about the rhythm of language, the change of of moods when switching to another language, lost languages, music as the language of all languages, the shared sadness and joy of the latin community.

If you want to tell your story email me at elisabethajtay.at.gmail.com!
Sound by Hernán Giorcelli
Thank you for listening, sharing and supporting Bi/Multilingual Stories

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.