Que nadie sepa mi sufrir

This vals criollo or Peruvian waltz is so-called because it refers to the waltz form created by European immigrants (criollos) in the Viceroyalty of Perú, the Spanish colony which traced a serpentine route from today's Panama, through Perú, to the mouth of the Rio del Plata. That part included Buenos Aires and became its own viceroyalty in 1776. Vals evolved as an important genre in the tango repertory, and both the composer, Angél Cabral, and the lyricist, Enrique Dizeo, were from Buenos Aires. John presented his translation at Falucho Chelsea; then the Spanish lyrics were sung by Carmen Currasco as a birthday vals for several attendees. Currasco also deejayed.

Que nadie sepa mi sufrir (Amor de mis amores) Vals criollo (1936) Letra de Enrique Dizeo Música de Ángel Cabral	That Nobody Knows of My Suffering (Love of My Loves) Peruvian waltz (1936) Lyrics by Enrique Dizeo, trans. J. Osburn Music by Ángel Cabral
No te asombres si te digo lo que fuiste, Una ingrata con mi pobre corazón, Porque el brillo de tus lindos ojos negros Alumbraron el cariño de otro amor.	Don’t be astonished if I tell you how you hurt me, Taking advantage of my vulnerable heart, Because your eyes that are so bright and black and brilliant Lit the fire beneath that other impassioned affair.
Y pensar que te adoraba tiernamente, Que a tu lado como nunca me sentí. Y por esas cosas raras de la vida Sin el beso de tu boca yo me vi.	To think that I had adored you oh so gently, That only with you could I ever have felt like this. And those several special crucial of life’s lessons Made me see I was without your lips to kiss.
Amor de mis amores, Reina mía, qué me hiciste Que no puedo consolarme Sin poderte contemplar. Ya que pagaste mal A mi cariño tan sincero, Lo que conseguirás Que no te nombre nunca más.	O lover of all my lovers, My empress, for what you did to me There’s no way I can console me But by thinking about you. Now that you’ve done me wrong To my sincerity and kindness, You’ll find from this day fore Your name will pass my lips no more.
Amor de mis amores Si dejaste de quererme, No hay cuidado que la gente De eso no se enterará. Que gano con decir Que una mujer cambió mi suerte, Se burlarán de mi, Qué nadie sepa mi sufrir.	O lover of all my lovers If now you no longer love me, There is no reason then to worry That anyone will see that it’s so. What good comes from saying A woman made me in my life unlucky, They will make fun of me, May nobody know of my suffering.

A classic version from Dante and de Angelis:

The tune was internationally successful, including in a French re-write (not a translation) for Édith Piaf:

Notes

Vals, like milonga, has a pronounced and less malleable rhythm than tango, at least to the casual ear, and I found it essential to pay attention to accent and emphasis in this translation. Bugs surely remain, but this scans to a greater extent than my straight tango translations, particularly if recited or, perhaps, sung (some syllables can be spoken flatly without violating the natural accents). I kept to the end rhymes, as well as playing with English equivalents to the alliterative phrases lindos ojos negros and esas cosas raras.
—John Osburn