Encounters and Collisions

by Sara Serpa

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	Labor 00:00 / 05:01

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Experience the album Encounters and Collisions, through this book of hand drawn comic strip-style illustrations made by Sara Serpa herself. Each book will have a download code to listen to Sara's narrations and music. Softcover, 50 page, color.

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1.	Story 1 02:30		buy track
2.	Language 05:34	lyrics	buy track
The first story is about language How can I translate myself? Be sad, or mad, or funny in english What is language other than your home? Speaking, gesturing, and translating myself.
3.	Story 2 02:44		buy track
4.	Visa 04:46	lyrics	buy track
Alien. Non-citizen. Alien. Non-resident. I20. OPT. O1. O3 Foreigner. Student. Worker. Visa. Visiting. Studying. Arrived. Homesick. Loneliness. Cold Winters. Babysitter. Usher. Music teacher. Babysitter. Temporary. Mother. Caregiver. Full time. Musician. Lawyers. Immigrants. Don’t belong. Taking space. Non citizen. Alien, Extraordinary abilities. Alien. Expiration. 17 years. Naturalization. Passport. Citizen. Homesick. Loneliness. Warm Winters.
5.	Story 3 01:41		buy track
6.	Things Must Move Quickly 03:47	lyrics	buy track
Things must move quickly No time to cook Busy is good No time
7.	Story 4 01:39		buy track
8.	Between Worlds 05:03	lyrics	buy track
One day you wake up alone Wandering between worlds The people on the streets keep going on Our worlds as distant as the sun Will we ever speak Look each other in the eye? Those of us who left/ Once you leave, (you) will never belong anywhere Your roots vanishing like fog Wandering between worlds That are too old and new to live in Belonging is a mere illusion To belong is an illusion
9.	Story 5 03:12		buy track
10.	Labor 05:01	lyrics	buy track
What is this life coming from inside The sensations are fresh in my mind This power I have now is so scary The sensations are fresh in my mind The pain, the tears, and the courage (to push) to bring life to this world, I will never forget What is this life that’s coming from inside The sensations are fresh in my mind From the contractions to the final push The relief, the true start of motherhood
11.	Story 6 01:39		buy track
12.	A Mother's Heart 05:28	lyrics	buy track
My heart has grown into the size of the world To contain all the love and the fear I find in you the strength I never thought I have Time will not go back, savoring every moment How sad that we forget where it all began Where would we be without our mothers My heart has grown into the size of the world Time will not go back, savoring every moment
13.	Story 7 02:07		buy track
14.	Phone Call 06:27	lyrics	buy track
For one year For one year of grief I could not wake up Without thinking of him Why did my father Die so early, without any warning? Why is this pain so difficult to bear? Every special day was painful Birthdays and holidays Or just memories of happiness For four years I could not look at his photograph For it only meant That he Was no longer with us Why is grief so painful Can somebody help me When will I feel normal again? Then one day…. I realize the pain has become part of me.
15.	Story 8 03:07		buy track
16.	Music Makes Me Who I Am 02:12	lyrics	buy track
My story mirrors years of transformation It doesn’t follow a straight line It moves back and forward Unpredictable and unexpectedly The thread that unites all is Music makes me who I am Music makes me who I am. It’s me, Sara, it is you as well.
17.	Story 9 02:59		buy track
18.	Two Cities, Many Homes 04:29	lyrics	buy track
Today 18 years later My city has me in its dreams The light, the sounds, the faces Bright and warm, pale and cold I am many people at different times A foreigner searching for clarity Confronted with different truths What is real, what’s on my mind? I have nothing left to give other than my soul In all the encounters and collisions We have nothing left to give other that our souls In all the encounters and collisions Each time I get a call from motherland I am fulfilled by a sense of lovingness

about

"I think so many times about how we deal with change and loss. From moving to another country, to giving birth or grieving a loved one, my different reactions have often surprised me. And yet, life is change in itself. Sometimes drastic, most of the times subtle, we all go and move through constant change. We lose ourselves, countries, landscapes and cities, loved ones, thoughts and emotions. I wrote this music for someone else’s story only to realize I was writing my own story. Encounters and Collisions portrays episodes from my life since moving from Portugal to the US."

-Sara Serpa

credits

released November 15, 2024

Sara Serpa- voice + compositions + lyrics + stories + drawings
Ingrid Laubrock- saxophone
Angelica Sanchez- piano
Erik Friedlander-cello

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about

Sara Serpa New York, New York

Singer | Composer
Lisboa | Harlem

saraserpa.com

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