Cant de la Senyera
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"Cant de la Senyera"
 Cant de la Senyera of Lluís Millet recorded in a phonograph cylinder during a play of the Orfeó Català between 1898 and 1918. This copy is from the National Library of Catalonia. |
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Cant de la Senyera ("Song of The Senyera [flag]") is a composition for mixed chorus with music by Lluís Millet, lyrics based on a poem by Joan Maragall, composed expressly to be the hymn of the Orfeó Català choral group in the Catalonia community of Spain. It debuted at Montserrat in 1896, in a ceremony in honor of the Senyera, a traditional flag of the crown of Aragon which serves as the basis for other regional flags, including that of Catalonia.
Prohibition
The song was prohibited 1939-1960 under the regime of Spanish dictator Fracisco Franco, as part of Franco's ban on Catalonian language and culture. In 1960, while Franco was on a rare visit to Barcelona, four of his ministers, including Minister of the Interior Camilo Alonso Vega, attended the centernary ceremony for Maragall at the Palace of Catalan Music. The Civil Governor of Barcelona, Felipe Acedo, had authorized the concert, but forbade the playing of the Cant despite it being based on Maragall's work.[1] The orchestra played a musical arrangement of Cant de la Senyera, upon which a number of Catalan nationalists stood up and sang along,[2][3] marking a key turning point in the history of Catalan nationalism, a happening known as the Fets del Palau de la Música ("Events of the Palace of Music"). Several people were arrested for singing along, and one, Jordi Pujol, who would later become President of Catalonia, was arrested, tortured, and sentenced to seven years in prison.[4]
Role
The song served as a de facto Catalan anthem, alongside Els Segadors though the latter was only made official in 1993.[5]
Lyrics
Refrain:
Al damunt dels nostres cants
aixequem una Senyera
que els farà més triomfants.
Au, companys, enarborem-la
en senyal de germandat!
Au, germans, al vent desfem-la
en senyal de llibertat.
Que voleï! Contemplem-la
en sa dolça majestat!
Refrain
Oh bandera catalana!,
nostre cor t'és ben fidel:
volaràs com au galana
pel damunt del nostre anhel:
per mirar-te sobirana
alçarem els ulls al cel.
Refrain
I et durem arreu enlaire,
et durem, i tu ens duràs:
voleiant al grat de l'aire,
el camí assenyalaràs.
Dóna veu al teu cantaire,
llum als ulls i força al braç.
Refrain
References
- ↑ Manuel Vigil y Vázquez (1 January 1981). Entre el Franquismo y el Catalanismo: Con Picasso en Medio. Plaza y Janés. p. 95. ISBN 978-84-01-33197-8. Retrieved 6 July 2013. - Don Felipe Acedo concluyó por autorizar el concierto, pero manteniendo la prohibición expresa y terminante de interpretar el Cant de la Senyera, prohibición mantenida no obstante advertírsele que- bastaba esa prohibición para que se
- ↑ John Hargreaves (23 March 2000). Freedom for Catalonia?: Catalan Nationalism, Spanish Identity and the Barcelona Olympic Games. Cambridge University Press. pp. 136–. ISBN 978-0-521-58615-3. Retrieved 6 July 2013.
- ↑ Donald McNeill (24 June 1999). Urban Change and the European Left: Tales from the New Barcelona. Taylor & Francis. pp. 61–. ISBN 978-0-203-98191-7. Retrieved 6 July 2013.
- ↑ Michael Eaude (29 April 2008). Barcelona: the city that re-invented itself. Five Leaves. p. 131. ISBN 978-1-905512-14-0. Retrieved 6 July 2013.
- ↑ http://www.gencat.cat/catalunya/eng/coneixer-simbolsnacionals.htm