Ça Ira

"Ça ira" (French: "it'll be fine") is an emblematic song of the French Revolution, first heard in May 1790. It underwent several changes in wording, all of which used the title words as part of the refrain.

Original version

The author of the original words "Ah! ça ira, ça ira, ça ira", Ladré, was a former soldier who made a living as a street singer.

The music is a popular contredanse air called le Carillon national, and was composed by Bécourt, a violinist (according to other sources: side drum player) of the théâtre Beaujolais. The queen Marie Antoinette herself is said to have often played the music on her harpsichord.

The title and theme of the refrain were inspired by Benjamin Franklin, in France as a representative of the Continental Congress, who was very popular among the French people. When asked about the American Revolutionary War, he would reportedly reply, in somewhat broken French, "Ça ira, ça ira" ("It'll be fine, it'll be fine").

The song first became popular as a worksong during the preparation for the Fête de la Fédération of 1790 and eventually became recognized as an unofficial anthem of revolutionaries.

Ça Ira (review)

Ça ira was the Belgian monthly magazine that featured avant-garde art, literature and politics.

History and profile

Ça Ira was founded by a group of young artists, who came out of the smoking war-wrecked world of 1919 with a new élan. The title Ça ira comes from a song of the French Revolution (article in French, translated as: “We will win!”). Twenty editions were published in Antwerp from April 1920 to January 1923.

The members (many of whom later achieved great fame and notoriety) included Paul Colin, Theo van Doesburg, the young artist Maurice van Essche who was the leader of the group, Abel Lurkin, Paul Neuhuys, Arthur Pétronio, Charles Plisnier, Han Ryner, while very appealing dada and expressionist woodcuts and linos were added by Floris Jespers, Paul Joostens, Frans Masereel, Jan Cockx, Jozef Cantré, Karel Maes and Jozef Peeters. One finds incidental contributions by Paul Van Ostaijen, Paul Éluard, Francis Picabia, Pound, Iwan Goll, Blaise Cendrars and Kassak.

See also

Ça Ira (opera)

Ça Ira (French for "It'll be fine", subtitled "There is Hope") is the fourth studio album by Roger Waters. It is an opera in three acts and a concept album. The album is based on the French libretto co-written by Étienne and Nadine Roda-Gil on the historical subject of the early French Revolution. Ça Ira was released 26 September 2005, as a double CD album featuring baritone Bryn Terfel, soprano Ying Huang, and tenor Paul Groves. The album received middling, yet indecisive reviews, with critics praising the composition, but dividing the latter with a hard-to-follow plot, as well as its simplicity.

History

Waters, known for his work in the English rock band Pink Floyd, was approached by friends Étienne Roda-Gil and his wife Nadine Delahaye in 1987, and asked to set their libretto to music. The initial version was completed and recorded by the end of 1988. After hearing it, François Mitterrand was suitably impressed and urged the Paris Opera to stage it for the bicentennial of the revolution the following July. The opera directors, however, were resistant, according to Waters, because "I was English, and I had been in a rock group." Starting in 1989, Waters rewrote the libretto in English.