Legio III Gallica - Epic Roman Music

Vocals & music by Farya Faraji, lyrics by Giuseppe Régimbeau. Legio III Gallica (Third Gallic Legion) was a Roman legion founded by Julius Caesar around 49–48 BC, probably recruited largely in Gaul, hence Gallica. The Epic Roman Music series presents the epic repertoire of Ancient Roman poetry, narrative epics and stories through the usage of their instruments and modes. The series' goal is to reshape public perceptions of how Ancient Rome is imagined sonically, moving toward a more accurate representation which uses their instrumentation and repertoire of modes. While I also maintain a separate series dedicated to historically informed approximations of Roman music, the Epic Roman Series approaches the question through an ethnomusicological methodology. The living traditions of the modern Balkans, as well as Medieval European music and other living traditions preserve sound worlds closer to what we can plausibly imagine for ancient Roman music than the cinematic conventions of film soundtracks. Thus, we can explore the unavoidable gaps in our limited knowledge of Roman music through living musical practices preserved in the Balkans, in attested Medieval European music, and in other regions connected to the Roman world. This allows the attested sounds of their instruments and modal languages to be heard in a culturally realistic way, while remaining distinct from modern cinematic soundscapes. It became one of Rome’s most enduring eastern legions, serving for centuries with a particularly strong association with Syria and the eastern frontier, specifically being based in Raphanaea. Sources describe them having a tradition of saluting the sun, most probably a local Syrian custom they adopted. Antōnī signa tulit, Gallōrum virtūs adest per Syriam miles stat, Euphrātēs limes tenet. Sub sōle surgit legiō, Aurōram miles salūtat; ad arma clāmat Oriēns, occāsum signa petunt. Vitellī turba cadit, Vespāsiānus imperat; Tertia victrīx redit, Syrōs ad agrōs properat. Parthus ultrā flūmen stat, Rōmānus hāc vigil manet; ferrum servat terminōs, aquila caelum intuētur. Tum Varius ad purpuram Tertiae vōce tollitur; Sōlis sacerdōs venit, nova Rōma numina fert. Rēgēs cadunt, Caesarēs; manent signa, manet fīdēs. Saecula trānsit legiō: Tertia Gallica manet. Translation: At Antony’s signal, the courage of the Gauls is present; the soldier stands throughout Syria, the Euphrates holds the frontier. Beneath the sun the legion rises, the soldier greets the dawn; the East calls it to arms, its standards seek the sunset. Vitellius’ host falls, Vespasian commands; the victorious Third returns, hastening through Syria to the fields. The Parthian stands beyond the river, the Roman keeps watch here; the sword guards the borders, the eagle gazes into the sky. Then Varius raises his voice for the Third to take up the purple; the priest of the Sun comes, bringing new divinities to Rome. Kings and Caesars fall; the standards remain, loyalty remains. The legion passes through the ages: the Third Gallica remains.