The Song of the Sibyl in Barcelona 2024
The Song of the Sibyl is performed on the night of 24 December, before Midnight Mass. Here we explain what it is and where you can see it being performed in Barcelona.
The Song of the Sibyl, or Cant de la Sibil·la in Catalan, was one of the Medieval Christmas dramatisations that most took root in the Peninsula and particularly in Catalonia, from where it spread to Majorca and other regions following the conquest of James I. It is one of the most deeply rooted, living oral music traditions in the Catalan-speaking world: a chant which is sung a cappella about the Final Judgement and the prophecy of the coming of the Redeemer, as foretold by the Erythraean Sibyl (the priestess presiding over the Apollonian oracle. She is the fourth Sibyl, and certainly the most well-known of all the Sibyls of Greek legend who prophesied in Erythrae, a city in Ioni).
The Sibyl is a fortune teller from the pagan world who, through her song, foretold the coming of the Messiahs and the end of the world. It is a chant, recorded as a poem, the lyrics of which comprise a prophecy describing the Final Judgement, the iudicii signum, reflecting the prophesies of the Erythraean Sibyl. The song is based on a melody of Mozarabic origin and was translated into Catalan in the 13th century. Initially, the Sibyl was a long oracle headed by the words iudicii signum, in which the coming of Christ the Redeemer was prophesied and which described the terrible events leading to the end of the world. The description could be long, with the procession, or short, with the Song of the Sibyl, which was sung either in Latin or Catalan. The text has clear apocalyptic characteristics, starting with “El jorn del judici, parrà qui haurà fet servici” (On the day of judgement, he will be spared who has done service), and followed by “Gran foc del cel davallarà; mar, fonts i rius, tot cremarà” (Great fire from the heaven will come down; seas, fountains and rivers, all will burn.), and “Ans del Judici l’Anticrist vindrà i tot lo món turment darà” (Before the Judgement the Antichrist will come and will give suffering to everyone).
The chant was a custom that was widespread throughout Medieval Europe, and that gradually started disappearing in the 16th century, on the orders of the Council of Trent which considered it to be a Pagan ritual, and revised its use as part of its liturgical reform. This ban was not followed either in Alghero or in Majorca, where the chant has been used uninterruptedly to the present day, and where this ritual has become one of the indisputable highlights of the Majorcan festive calendar. This Medieval religious theatre piece lasts for five minutes and is performed before Midnight Mass on 24 December. On the island of Majorca, it is performed in all churches on that night. It is also known as Matines (Christmas Mass). In 2010 it was declared an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.
In the more traditional versions, it is performed by a boy or a woman dressed as a prophetess with a silk cloak and a sword in their hand, which is held up in front of their face during the song, and when it ends, they form a cross in the air with the sword. In some celebrations, at the end of the song they use the sword to cut a coca (a baked flat bread or pastry), which is hanging from the abat-son. In the olden days, they would cut the neules (thin rolled wafers) that were used to decorate the church at Christmas time.
There was a resurgence of interest in the Song of the Sibyl in Catalonia in the 19th century and it has also been regaining popularity in Barcelona. It has been sung in Santa Maria del Mar since 1948, and since the 1980s it has been heard in parish churches such as the church of Sant Gervasi i Protasi de la Bonanova, with an interpretation closely linked to that of Maria del Mar Bonet. In 2008, the song made a comeback in Santa Maria de Gràcia, and at Barcelona Cathedral in 2009.
This is the list of places where the Song of the Sibyl can be heard this year in Barcelona:
- Santa Maria del Mar Basilica: 24 December, at 7.30 pm. Pl. de Santa Maria, 1. This is the longest-running performance of the Song of the Sibyl in the city, where it has been sung since 1983, before Midnight Mass, which begins at 8.00 pm.
- Sagrada Família Crypt: 24 December, at 11.00 pm, Sibyl. Admission is free, until capacity at the Crypt is reached (access via C/ de Sardenya). The early mass for families with young children, the missa del Pollet, takes place at 7.00 pm.
- Barcelona Cathedral: 24 December, doors open at 10.00 pm, and from 10.30, Song of the Sibyl. Pla de la Seu, 3. The Midnight Mass will take place after the song has finished.
- Santa Maria del Pi: 24 December, at 11.30 pm. Pl. del Pi, 7.
- Parish church of Santa Maria de Gràcia: 24 December at 11.30 pm. Carrer de Sant Pere Màrtir, 5.
- Church of Sant Gaietà: 24 December, at 11.30 pm. Carrer de Consell de Cent, 293.
- Parish church of Sant Medir: 24 December, at 8.00 pm. Carrer de la Constitució, 17. Sung by the Sant Medir Choir.
- Oratory of Sant Felip Neri (pl. de Sant Felip Neri.): 24 December at 7.00 pm, Song of the Sibyl and Midnight Mass. 22 December at 7.00 pm, at the Oratory, concert by the Sant Jordi Choir. From 19 December until after Three Kings Day, nativity scene with dioramas (from 4.00 pm to 8.00 pm, Monday to Friday).
- Parish church of Santa Maria del Taulat: 24 December at 11.00 pm. Cor Poblenou del Centre. Carrer de Pujades, 189 (to be confirmed)