The
Consell de Mallorca
announced recently that the traditional Chant of the "Sibilˇla"
will be declared to be of Cultural Interest (BIC). On December 24,
nearly all the churches on Mallorca hold the "Matines", the Christmas
Eve service to commemorate the birth of Jesus. The chant of the Sibilˇla,
with ancient origins, is one of the most emotional moments of this celebration.
The chant foretells the end of the world and it is a grand ceremony starring,
normally, a young boy with a clear voice, dressed in a tunic, a robe of
embroidered silk, a hat and bearing a large sword.
You can listen to the chant (11:14) in Real Audio from
this
link. This version, sung by Pere Antoni Canyelles Pons from Es Blauets
de Lluc, is part of the record "Els Blavets" (
Blau,
1993) and can be found on the Internet since 1999 thanks to the collaboration
by
Santuari de Lluc in the
Nadal
1999-2000 special, produced by MallorcaWeb.
Another option is to listen to the chant (3:26) from
this
link of the Lluc Santuari, in MP3 format. This version is part of the
"Nadal
Blau" record by els Blauets de Lluc, edited in 2001 by
Ona
Digital.