21. Hydra（Water Serpent）

 Hydra

Water Snake

Timelessness

The Hydra Cluster of Galaxies

　Hydra is the largest of the 88 constellations. It is said to take about seven hours for the entire constellation to rise, from the moment its head appears above the eastern horizon until the tip of its tail comes into view. Despite its enormous size, however, it contains few conspicuous stars. In Estonia, two of the stars that make up Hydra never rise above the horizon and therefore cannot be seen. This can be clearly seen in Sisask’s handwritten constellation chart (below, from the first edition of the score).

　Hidden in the direction of Hydra lies the Hydra Cluster, a cluster of galaxies said to span about ten million light-years. In the NASA image shown at the beginning, countless beautiful galaxies shine as though they were gently floating in space.

M83: The Thousand-Ruby Galaxy

　This is M83, a spiral galaxy located in the region of Hydra. Nicknamed the “Thousand Rubies” and the “Southern Pinwheel,” it truly resembles a gigantic firework with countless ruby-like jewels scattered in a spiral pattern.

　Sisask’s image of Hydra is “Timelessness.”

　Within Hydra, the largest of all the constellations, there must surely be endless unknown worlds waiting to be discovered.

　When the motion comes to rest, you may feel yourself wandering through a silent universe, as though you had emerged from the galactic whirlpool into a realm where only stardust drifts through space, and where time seems to have stood still. The sudden use of inside-the-piano technique—plucking the lower strings, found nowhere else in this cycle—creates a moment of tension.

　Hydra is a constellation of spring. As Orion begins to sink toward the horizon, its enormous form gradually rises into view. This also helps explain why Sisask placed Hydra immediately after Orion.