Cant de la Senyera
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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 of Barcelona. It debuted at Montserrat in 1896, in a ceremony in honor of the Senyera, the historical flag of Catalonia.
Prohibition
The song was prohibited from 1939 to 1960 under the regime of Spanish caudillo Francisco Franco, as part of Franco's ban on Catalan 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 centennial 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 its 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.
Lyrics
Catalan | English (unofficial translation) |
References
- ^ Manuel Vigil y Vázquez (1981). Entre el Franquismo y el Catalanismo: Con Picasso en Medio. Plaza y Janés. p. 95. ISBN 978-84-01-33197-8. - 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 (2000). Freedom for Catalonia?: Catalan Nationalism, Spanish Identity and the Barcelona Olympic Games. Cambridge University Press. p. 136. ISBN 978-0-521-58615-3.
- ^ Donald McNeill (1999). Urban Change and the European Left: Tales from the New Barcelona. Taylor & Francis. p. 61. ISBN 978-0-203-98191-7.
- ^ Michael Eaude (2008). Barcelona: the city that re-invented itself. Five Leaves. p. 131. ISBN 978-1-905512-14-0.