Canticum Calamitatis Maritimae ("Song of Maritime Calamity") is an eight-part, a cappella classical choral composition by the Finnish composer Jaakko Mäntyjärvi. Completed in 1997, [1] the piece was inspired by the MS Estonia disaster of 1994. It won third prize in the European composition competition for cathedral choirs in 1997. [2] The piece is approximately 12 minutes in duration.
The text of the piece is taken from three sources: the Catholic Requiem Mass, Psalm 107: "They that go down to the sea in ships...", and the report of the disaster from the weekly Latin-language Finnish news service, Nuntii Latini.
The piece opens with a sigh followed by the female singers whispering, individually, a line of text from the Requiem Mass:
"Lux aeterna luceat eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis."
In English:
"May eternal light shine upon them, Lord, and may perpetual light shine upon them."
After a lamenting, wordless soprano solo, the piece continues with the Nuntii Latini report, recited by a baritone or tenor cantor. The soloist announces the disaster and the initial casualty figures. After this, the piece moves into the text of Psalm 107, in Latin:
Qui descendunt mare in navibus, facientes operationem in aquis multis: 24 ipsi viderunt opera Domini, et mirabilia ejus in profundo. 25 Dixit, et stetit spiritus procellæ, et exaltati sunt fluctus ejus. 26 Ascendunt usque ad cælos, et descendunt usque ad abyssos; anima eorum in malis tabescebat. 27 Turbati sunt, et moti sunt sicut ebrius, et omnis sapientia eorum devorata est. 28 Et clamaverunt ad Dominum cum tribularentur; et de necessitatibus eorum eduxit eos. 29 Et statuit procellam ejus in auram, et siluerunt fluctus ejus. 30 Et lætati sunt quia siluerunt; et deduxit eos in portum voluntatis eorum. 31
In English translation:
They that go down to the sea in ships, doing business in the great waters: 24 These have seen the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep. 25 He said the word, and there arose a storm of wind: and the waves thereof were lifted up. 26 They mount up to the heavens, and they go down to the depths: their soul pined away with evils. 27 They were troubled, and reeled like a drunken man; and all their wisdom was swallowed up. 28 And they cried to the Lord in their affliction: and he brought them out of their distresses. 29 And he turned the storm into a breeze: and its waves were still. 30 And they rejoiced because they were still: and he brought them to the haven which they wished for. [3]
The piece ends with the words "requiem aeternam": "eternal rest".
The piece uses vocalized effects to mimic a number of sounds associated with the disaster. The whispering voices at the beginning of the work suggest the hiss of sea-spray or radio static; the tune sung by the soprano soloist suggests the hymn " Nearer, My God, to Thee", which folk legend identifies as the tune played by the band on the deck of the RMS Titanic as it went down; the tenor soloist who initially reports on the disaster mimics a cantor from a Catholic requiem mass; humming in the bass part suggests the hum of the ship's engine. Later in the piece, Jaakko Mäntyjärvi uses a tight chord to suggest the shriek of shearing metal. The rhythm of the "anima eorum" section mimics the transmission of an " SOS" signal in Morse Code. Chords that occur late in the piece—set to the text "...et clamaverunt ad Dominum / cum tribularentur..." are sung in open, parallel fourths, suggesting funerary bagpipes. The final words of the piece-- "requiem aeternam"—are voiced in the bass and soprano registers, suggesting foghorns and marine bells, respectively.
Canticum Calamitatis Maritimae ("Song of Maritime Calamity") is an eight-part, a cappella classical choral composition by the Finnish composer Jaakko Mäntyjärvi. Completed in 1997, [1] the piece was inspired by the MS Estonia disaster of 1994. It won third prize in the European composition competition for cathedral choirs in 1997. [2] The piece is approximately 12 minutes in duration.
The text of the piece is taken from three sources: the Catholic Requiem Mass, Psalm 107: "They that go down to the sea in ships...", and the report of the disaster from the weekly Latin-language Finnish news service, Nuntii Latini.
The piece opens with a sigh followed by the female singers whispering, individually, a line of text from the Requiem Mass:
"Lux aeterna luceat eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis."
In English:
"May eternal light shine upon them, Lord, and may perpetual light shine upon them."
After a lamenting, wordless soprano solo, the piece continues with the Nuntii Latini report, recited by a baritone or tenor cantor. The soloist announces the disaster and the initial casualty figures. After this, the piece moves into the text of Psalm 107, in Latin:
Qui descendunt mare in navibus, facientes operationem in aquis multis: 24 ipsi viderunt opera Domini, et mirabilia ejus in profundo. 25 Dixit, et stetit spiritus procellæ, et exaltati sunt fluctus ejus. 26 Ascendunt usque ad cælos, et descendunt usque ad abyssos; anima eorum in malis tabescebat. 27 Turbati sunt, et moti sunt sicut ebrius, et omnis sapientia eorum devorata est. 28 Et clamaverunt ad Dominum cum tribularentur; et de necessitatibus eorum eduxit eos. 29 Et statuit procellam ejus in auram, et siluerunt fluctus ejus. 30 Et lætati sunt quia siluerunt; et deduxit eos in portum voluntatis eorum. 31
In English translation:
They that go down to the sea in ships, doing business in the great waters: 24 These have seen the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep. 25 He said the word, and there arose a storm of wind: and the waves thereof were lifted up. 26 They mount up to the heavens, and they go down to the depths: their soul pined away with evils. 27 They were troubled, and reeled like a drunken man; and all their wisdom was swallowed up. 28 And they cried to the Lord in their affliction: and he brought them out of their distresses. 29 And he turned the storm into a breeze: and its waves were still. 30 And they rejoiced because they were still: and he brought them to the haven which they wished for. [3]
The piece ends with the words "requiem aeternam": "eternal rest".
The piece uses vocalized effects to mimic a number of sounds associated with the disaster. The whispering voices at the beginning of the work suggest the hiss of sea-spray or radio static; the tune sung by the soprano soloist suggests the hymn " Nearer, My God, to Thee", which folk legend identifies as the tune played by the band on the deck of the RMS Titanic as it went down; the tenor soloist who initially reports on the disaster mimics a cantor from a Catholic requiem mass; humming in the bass part suggests the hum of the ship's engine. Later in the piece, Jaakko Mäntyjärvi uses a tight chord to suggest the shriek of shearing metal. The rhythm of the "anima eorum" section mimics the transmission of an " SOS" signal in Morse Code. Chords that occur late in the piece—set to the text "...et clamaverunt ad Dominum / cum tribularentur..." are sung in open, parallel fourths, suggesting funerary bagpipes. The final words of the piece-- "requiem aeternam"—are voiced in the bass and soprano registers, suggesting foghorns and marine bells, respectively.