Aniara is a poem of Swede Harry Martinson in 1956. It consists of 103 cantos and relates the drama of a space ship which, originally bound for Mars, shoots off into the solar system and into an existential struggle. The style is symbolic, sweeping and innovative for its time:

We listen daily to the sonic coins

provided every one of us and played

through the Finger_singer worn on the left hand.

We trade coins of diverse denominations:

and all of them play all that they contain

and though a dyma 1 scarcely weighs one grain

it plays out like a cricket on each hand

blanching here in this distraction_land.

Some of Aniara had previously been published in Martinson's Cikada (1953).

An opera by Karl_Birger Blomdahl also called Aniara premiered in 1959 with a libretto by Erik Lindegren based on Martinson's poem of the same name. Controlled by the Mima, the space ship Aniara leaves the poisoned Earth, heading for Mars. The vessel is thrown off course, forcing a journey to the constellation Lyra which will last for the rest of the lives of crew and passengers. Mima, the computer, destroys the Earth and cannot continue, while the commander deals as best he can with the increased despair and moral deterioration of those aboard . The 20th anniversary of the voyage is celebrated and death is near, as the journey comes to its end.

The score is varied and makes full use of a range of musical idioms, including jazz, serial writing and an electronic tape. The narrative is sung primarily by Mimaroben, a bass baritone, who operates the electronic tape, Mima, the computer, and by the chorus. In essence the opera (and poem) deal with the relationship between the individual and the group through time.