Help me find this rousing European folk song

June 26, 2014 9:24 AM

A few years ago I saw a video of a slow, solemn folk song sung in a European language (sorry I can't be more specific!). It begins quietly and builds up to a louder, epic sound. The choir was made up of hundreds of people, or perhaps it was a football stadium singing? It was possibly about thunder and lightning. My youtube-fu is failing me, maybe you can help?
posted by Naanwhal to Media & Arts (5 answers total)

The first song that came to my mind was Björk's "Thunderbolt" .
posted by Seeking Direction at 10:00 AM on June 26, 2014

Could you be thinking of the O Fortuna chorus from Carmina Burana?
posted by ottereroticist at 10:02 AM on June 26, 2014

Best answer: Is it the astonishing and beautiful Latvian Saule, Perkons, Daugava (Sun, Thunder, Daugava)?

This song is guaranteed to bring tears to any Latvian's eye.
posted by quince at 10:22 AM on June 26, 2014 [11 favorites]

Response by poster: That's it quince! Thankyou thankyou thankyou! I'm not even Latvian and it brought a tear to my eye!
posted by Naanwhal at 10:42 AM on June 26, 2014 [2 favorites]

You should check out anything related to the Latvian Song Festival. It is awesome. (I thought there was a post about it here on MetaFilter, but I can't find it.)
posted by ocherdraco at 1:57 PM on June 26, 2014 [2 favorites]