Praying for Rain. Music for Rogation Days from Silesia

The musical culture of 17th-century Silesia abounds in phenomena of confessional meaning, concerning not only predominant there Protestant circles, but also Catholic milieu, favoured by imperial authorities. Those are often connected with extra-liturgical repertoire, used in various circumstances and feasts celebrated in post-Trent era, and promoted by various monastic families. Except for the repertoire of this type performed during the church services, some has been sung extra urbem, during the so-called dies rogationum. This feast fell regularly during the week before Ascension Day and was associated with the spatial sacralisation rite celebrated to ensure the community sense of its existential security. But the rite of rogation days could be also announced in case of natural disasters, especially prolonged drought, during which there was sung Litany to All Saints, associated with the procession for their intercession. The evidence of such event is small paper card with the prayer beseeching for the rain found in the partbooks of Litaniae de omnibus Sanctis pro diebus Rogationum score. The copy of this composition comes from Wrocław canonesses regular monastery (PL-Wu RM 6140) and has been composed by Silesian Jesuit Joannes Faber (1599–1667). The piece is not only unique source of rare music production of the Jesuits of this time; it could be also examined in the context of studies on climate changes of the past. The Litany setting by Faber was most probably performed in occasion of very big drougt, which took place in the year of 1684. The confirmation of this fact one can find in some archival sources of catholic provenance from Silesia (i. e. chronicles of Jesuit centres), but it has been also predicted by prognostics and calendars printed in protestant circles of this region. Both kind of sources are giving an interesting insight into the social strategies of different confessional environments, and revealing its anthropology and world values.