Now THIS Is What Coldness Sounds Like!

An onomatopoeia is a word that sounds like the thing it’s describing, right?

But what do you call an entire musical piece that does the same thing?

Well, I call it “What Power Art Thou Who From Below.” And it comes from Henry Purcell’s opera, “King Arthur: The British Worthy.”

What power art thou, who from below
Hast made me rise unwillingly and slow
From beds of everlasting snow?
See’st thou not how stiff and wondrous old,
Far unfit to bear the bitter cold,
I can scarcely move or draw my breath?
Let me, let me freeze again to death.

The character who sings this song is called the Cold Genius. Yes, really. And doesn’t he just sound cold? There’s legitimate shivering going on there. I love it!

Also, it’s a surprisingly popular piece, even now. See?

Side Note: This piece is on my mind today because of the amazing trailer for Son of Saul I saw last week. (That produced a whole ‘nother kind of shivering, though. Yikes!)

Attribution(s): “Jack Frost” by Polylerus is licensed under Public Domain via Wiki Commons.