CANTENDI SA PASCHIXEDDA: Traditional Sardinian Christmas Carols
«“Glory! Glory!” they sing in chelu
lughidos angels pro s'altu King;
“Pays victory!” s'as bonu zelu,
poor soul, they sing for you.»
(Naschid'est / Pietro Casu)
“It's nadu, it's nadu, it's nadu on Bambinu.
Enide, enide tottus admiring it,
Enide to adore him,
enide to adore, to love.”
(Notte de chelu / Pietro Casu)
Among the many holidays, Christmas is perhaps the most anticipated and heartfelt, both then and now. In Sardinia, Christmas celebrations are still accompanied, in many villages and with many expressive varieties, by traditional and evocative songs sung in limba. Until 1965, the year the Second Vatican Council concluded, liturgical celebrations were all in Latin. The Council established, among other things, openness to dialects and popular languages, which encouraged the faithful to draw closer to the church, enabling them to sing and pray in forms more familiar to them.
But local linguistic variants were already used in Sardinia before the Council. For example, nine songs in Logudorese Sardinian, one for each day of the Christmas novena, were composed in 1927 by the priest Pietro Casu, known as Babbai Casu, of Berchidda. The curate Agostino Sanna of Ozieri wrote the music, drawing inspiration from pre-existing Sardinian melodies and contributing, thanks to their pleasantness, simplicity, and catchiness, to their enduring success. The songs are: Acculzu a Betlemme, Andhemus a sa grutta, A sos primos rigores, Candh' est nadu Gesus, Duos isposos a s'iscurigada, Glòria: it'est custa armonia?, In sa notte profundha, Naschid'est in sa cabanna, and Notte de chelu. Don Pietro Casu used the Sardinian language to bring the Christian faith closer to the common people, and these compositions in particular struck a chord with the faithful, who sang them over the years not only during the Novena but also at Christmas Eve Mass and the Mass on December 25th. The simple and catchy songs have been passed down over the years, becoming part of the Sardinian Christmas tradition. They represent the genuine faith of our grandparents.
We offer some of these magnificent songs, all written by Pietro Casu and set to music by Agostino Sanna, the text (in one of the many variations) and a listening session.
For those who wish to delve deeper into the topic, we also present a small bibliography of texts available in our libraries, which deal not only with chants but also with coggius or gosos and pregadorias.
Songs:
- Aculzu in Bethlehem: In this song the cave of Bethlehem, damp, bare and dirty, becomes a royal palace, a palace of marble and gold.
- Let's go to his cave: This song, together with the other eight, was presented for the first time in berchidda by a small orchestra and a choir.
- Cand'est nadu Gesus: Traditional Sardinian Christmas carol taken from the collection Cantones de Nadale, edited by the P. Casu heirs' association and published in 1998.
- Duos isposos: The song “Duos isposos a s'iscurigada chilcant in Betlem alloggiu invanu” (two spouses at dusk search in vain for lodging in Bethlehem) recounts the adventures of Mary and Joseph as they search for lodging in the small Judean village.
- In his deep night: It is one of the best-known Christmas songs in the Sardinian language, a very sweet song and melody.
- Hide away: "Naschid'est in sa cabanna" (also known simply as "Naschid'est") is part of the choral repertoire of Christmas carols, but also of the solo repertoire. The lyrics speak of the birth of Jesus, describing the scene as if it were a nativity scene. The shining angels sing, and the shepherds hurry to the hut to take part in the event.
- Notte de chelu (also known as Es nadu su Bambinu): This song uses the word "Bambinu," which doesn't exist in the Sardinian language. Pietro Casu includes it in his well-known Vocabolario Sardo Logudorese – Italiano (Sardinian Logudorese Vocabulary) and refers exclusively to the Baby Jesus.
Bibliography:
Let's go : Songbook of Sardinia : Songs and Songs from the Sardinian Repertoire (with CD) / Emanuele Garau, Pietro Collu ; drawings and illustrations by Massimo Congiu. – Cagliari : Condaghes, 2008.
"A s'andira" is a sort of Sardinian songbook with lyrics, scores, and introductory notes for a selection of the most popular Sardinian songs. It also includes a CD with the songs and their accompanying backing tracks. The idea for this project arose from the ever-growing demand for teaching aids from teachers who love Sardinian music and want to share it with their students.
Sardinian Poetic Devotionary: A Collection of Anti-Gas Pregadorias / Luigi Cherchi. – Cagliari: Tipografia Tea, 1987.
In 1987, Monsignor Luigi Cherchi collected a series of “anti-gas prayers” that had already been published in the “Voce Serafica della Sardegna” of the Capuchin Fathers of Cagliari in 1965, 1969, and in some issues of 1976.
Gosos: Popular Religious Poetry of Central-Northern Sardinia / Edited by Raimondo Turtas and Giancarlo Zichi; edited by Salvatore Tola. – Cagliari: Edizioni Della Torre, 2004.
A volume edited by Raimondo Turtas, Giancarlo Zichi, and Salvatore Tola, who drew on ancient collections and anthologies, manuscripts, loose sheets, and pamphlets produced in parishes. The most beautiful and oldest were selected, a collection of 110 texts written in Logudorese, Sassarese, Gallurese, and Alghero Catalan.
Gosos and Ternuras Sardinian popular religious texts and music according to the ancient and uninterrupted tradition of praying while singing. Vols. 1, 2, 3 / Giovanni Dore. – Nuoro: Istituto Superiore Regionale Etnografico, 1983, 1986.
Praises and prayers in the Logudorese, Campidanese, and Gallurese languages, in honor of the Virgin, the Lord, the Trinity, and for various anniversaries.
Is coggius in su Sulcis / edited by Efisio Sanna. – Giba: ISMEA Lithotypography, printed 1993.
“This collection aims to contribute to the defense and recovery of our language, to the continuity of our traditions, to the strengthening of our faith.” Efisio Sanna.
Is Goccius: Research on Sardinian Popular Poetry and Religious Traditions / edited by Pino Caboni. – Cagliari: E. Gasperini, 1980.
“Is goccius are popular religious poems, inherent, that is, in the nature of man, with a broad religious background: manifestations of theological intentions expressed in various uncodified anthropological stratifications and according to an almost infinite range of linguistic-ritual mediations.” Pino Caboni.
Is Pregadorias Antigas / Efisio Sanna. – Giba : Tip. Ismea, 1994.
It is a collection written "so as not to forget our past." A past made of living and sincere faith, of complete trust, of abandonment and resignation to divine Providence and His will. Efisio Sanna.
Is pregadorias antigas : su signu de sa devotzioni / edited by Nicoletta Rossi and Stefano Meloni ; orthographic revision of is textus, Mario Puddu. – Dolianova : Grafica del Parteolla, 2011.
Worship, Sardinian traditions, and popular faith are revived in the passionate collection of ancient prayers from the municipalities of Arbus, Barumini, Collinas, Furtei, Genuri, Gesturi, Gonnosfanadiga, Guspini, Las Plassas, Lunamatrona, Pabillonis, Pauli Arbarei, Samassi, San Gavino, Sanluri, Sardara, Segariu, Serramanna, Serrenti, Setzu, Siddi, Tuili, Turri, Ussaramanna, Villacidro, Villamar, Villanovaforru, and Villanovafranca.
Praying in Sardinian: writings on church and language in Sardinia / Raimondo Turtas; edited by Giovanni Lupinu; preface by Mons. Duilio Corgnali. – Cagliari: CUEC, 2006.
In Praying in Sardinian, Raimondo Turtas traces a sort of history of the Sardinian Church sub specie linguae, or, if you prefer, a history of the Sardinian language sub specie ecclesiae. Specifically, he examines the history of Sardinian from the perspective of its use, both past and present, as the language of liturgy, catechesis, popular evangelization, and individual and collective piety and devotion. The historian's perspective, however, goes beyond simply describing what has happened; the purpose of the work is to pose a question: why has the Sardinian Church not yet reached the determination to fully commit to liturgy in the Sardinian language? Why hasn't a decision been made on this matter, after a recent survey commissioned by the Sardinia Region found that 68% of Sardinians claim to speak a local variety?
The antigas prayers: their sign of devotion: compositions in the Sardinian language / edited by Nicoletta Rossi and Stefano Meloni; text analysis and revision by Francesco Casula; archival research by Annalisa Caboni. – Dolianova: Grafica del Parteolla, 2010.
Worship, Sardinian traditions, and popular faith are revived in the Municipality of Monserrato's passionate collection of ancient prayers.
Su rosariu cantadu: cantigos et pregadorias / edited by Battista Saiu Pinna. – Biella: Sardinian cultural club Su Nuraghe, printed 2000.
This booklet was published in the Jubilee Year 2000, with the authorization of the chaplain of Su Nuraghe, Father Ferdinando Gallu, and the ecclesiastical approval of Msgr. Fernando Marchi, then Vicar General of the Diocese of Biella.
Sa Novena de Pascha 'e Nadale. (with CD) – Cagliari: Basilica of San Saturnino.
The Novena, entirely in Sardinian, was celebrated for the first time in the Parish of St. Eulalia in 2008. This “booklet” is a re-edition of the resource used last year, with changes to the translation and enriched texts and music.
Traces of the Sacred: Musical Journeys in Sardinian Religious Songs (with CD) / Emanuale Garau, Paolo Bravi, and Marco Lutzu. – Cagliari: Condaghes, 2003. A richly informative and beautifully presented book on Sardinian religious song, it serves as an effective guide to discovering this fascinating musical genre. The book includes a companion CD of approximately 80 minutes.
Easter Christmas / Maria Giovanna Cherchi. – Cagliari: L'Unione Sarda, 2008. – 1 CD. (media library)
A CD containing the most beautiful Christmas songs from the Sardinian folk tradition, performed by singer Maria Giovanna Cherchi.
Further Reading:
- Seraphic Voice: Pietro Casu's Christmas Songs
- Notte de chelu and other Sardinian Christmas carols
- Cantones de nadale
- Peter Casu
- Pietro Casu (1878-1954): highly successful poet and novelist
- Sardinian language: Perdu Casu 1878-1954
- The birth of Christmas songs: Notte de chelu, cand'es nadu Gesus in sa grutta
- Pietro Casu: a priest who was a protagonist of the cultural reality of his time
- Christmas in Sardinia: history, ritual, and tradition
- Christmas in Sardinia as told by Grazia Deledda
