On the Feast of the Most Sweet Name of Jesus (Aug 7)

Still filling in my Sarum Office hymn listings!  So here are the hymns for this feast day, from Hymn Melodies for the Whole Year from the Sarum service-books:

On the Feast of the most sweet Name of Jesus ( Aug 7) & during the Octave (when the Service is of the Feast ):

Evensong:  Exultet cor precordiis ... ... ... 25 or 41
Mattins: Jesu, dulcis memoria ... ... ... 26
Lauds: Jesu, Auctor clemencie ... ... ... 27 or 39

This feast day, needless to say, isn't on the Calendar anymore.   According to New Advent, it's the same Feast that's now celebrated in most traditions on January 1 - the Feast of the Holy Name - but as you can see (in the citation below) it has been observed at other times in various traditions.

You can get the full office for this day - Psalms, collect, Chapter, antiphons, etc., although no music is provided - at Breviary Offices, from Lauds to Compline Inclusive (Society of St. Margaret, Boston).    (See also the iFrame peek-in at the bottom of this page.)  Clearly, as late as 1885 - the publish date of that book - at least some Anglican religious orders were still celebrating this August feast.  Here's a link to the SSM website

Here are all five chant scores listed; interestingly, #s 25, 26, and 27 are the same melodies used for the Christmas Office (although some are used at other times as well); melody #41 is used twice at Transfiguration and twice on Ascension Day, as well as for Common of Saints days; and #39 is used during Paschaltide in a variety of ways. 

Sing Exultet cor precordiis to melody #25 or #41.    Here's LLPB's recording of melody #25, as used for the familiar Christmas First Vespers hymn Veni, Redemptor Gentium.   On this feast day, you can sing Exultet cor precordiis to this tune, using the following set of English words for this hymn; they come from Breviary Offices, from Lauds to Compline Inclusive (Society of St. Margaret, Boston). 

Exultet cor precordiis

O LET the heart exulting beat,
"When Jesus' holy Name resounds;
Above all other it is sweet,
And in all gladness it abounds.

Jesus, Who comforteth in woe,
Jesus, Who heals the wounds of sin,
Jesus, Who curbs the fiends below,
Jesus, Who routs Death's arms within.

Jesus! it soundeth sweetest, best,
In every measure, hymn, and song;
And with its comfort soothes the breast,
And lifts us up, and makes us strong.

Let that great Name of Him the Lord,
Jesus, from tongues of all men peal;
And let the voice and heart accord,
That every ill its sound may heal.

Jesus, Who savest sinners lost,
Be present as we kneel in prayer;
Guide Thou the erring, tempest-tost,
And us, Thy guilty servants, spare.

O let Thy Name be our defence,
In every peril guard and stay,
And purging us from sin's offence.
Perfect us in the better way.

O Christ, all glory be to Thee,
Who shinest with this Name above,
Honour, and worship, majesty,
Be Thine, O Jesu, Lord of love.

O Jesu, from the "Virgin sprung,
All glory be ascribed to Thee,
Like praise be to the Father sung,
And Holy Ghost eternally. Amen. 

Or, use hymn tune #41 as an alternative; here's an an mp3 of that tune from LLPB (with the words for "a Hymn for Morning Prayer of the Feast of the Ascension of our Lord")

LLPB also provides a recording of Hymn tune #26;  the cantor is singing the Christmas Evensong hymn "Jesus, the Father's Only Son."    Here are the Latin words - along with Edward Caswall's 19th Century English translation - for Jesu, dulcis memoria, the Matins hymn for the Feast of the Most Sweet Name of Jesus:

Jesu, dulcis memoria

Jesu, dulcis memoria,
dans vera cordis gaudia:
sed super mel et omnia
ejus dulcis praesentia.

Nil canitur suavius,
nil auditur jucundius,
nil cogitatur dulcius,
quam Jesus Dei Filius.

Jesu, spes paenitentibus,
quam pius es petentibus!
quam bonus te quaerentibus!
sed quid invenientibus?

Nec lingua valet dicere,
nec littera exprimere:
expertus potest credere,
quid sit Jesum diligere.

Sis, Jesu, nostrum gaudium,
qui es futurum praemium:
sit nostra in te gloria,
per cuncta semper saecula.
Amen.

Jesus, the very thought of Thee
With sweetness fills the breast;
But sweeter far Thy face to see,
And in Thy presence rest.

Nor voice can sing, nor heart can frame,
Nor can the memory find
A sweeter sound than Thy blest Name,
O Savior of mankind!

O hope of every contrite heart,
O joy of all the meek,
To those who fall, how kind Thou art!
How good to those who seek!

But what to those who find? Ah, this
Nor tongue nor pen can show;
The love of Jesus, what it is,
None but His loved ones know.

Jesus, our only joy be Thou,
As Thou our prize will be;
Jesus be Thou our glory now,
And through eternity.


(More English verses:

O Jesus, King most wonderful
Thou Conqueror renowned,
Thou sweetness most ineffable
In Whom all joys are found!

When once Thou visitest the heart,
Then truth begins to shine,
Then earthly vanities depart,
Then kindles love divine.

O Jesus, light of all below,
Thou fount of living fire,
Surpassing all the joys we know,
And all we can desire.

Jesus, may all confess Thy Name,
Thy wondrous love adore,
And, seeking Thee, themselves inflame
To seek Thee more and more.

Thee, Jesus, may our voices bless,
Thee may we love alone,
And ever in our lives express
The image of Thine own.

O Jesus, Thou the beauty art
Of angel worlds above;
Thy Name is music to the heart,
Inflaming it with love.

Celestial Sweetness unalloyed,
Who eat Thee hunger still;
Who drink of Thee still feel a void
Which only Thou canst fill.

O most sweet Jesus, hear the sighs
Which unto Thee we send;
To Thee our inmost spirit cries;
To Thee our prayers ascend.

Abide with us, and let Thy light
Shine, Lord, on every heart;
Dispel the darkness of our night;
And joy to all impart.

Jesus, our love and joy to Thee,
The virgin’s holy Son,
All might and praise and glory be,
While endless ages run.)

Here's TPL on the famous Jesu, dulcis memoria:

Iesu, Dulcis Memoria is a celebrated 12th century hymn attributed to St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153), Doctor Mellifluus. The entire hymn has some 42 to 53 stanzas depending upon the manuscript. Parts of this hymn were used for the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus, which was formerly celebrated on the Sunday between the Circumcision and Epiphany, or failing such a Sunday, on January 2. The part below was used at Vespers. In the liturgical revisions of Vatican II, the feast was deleted, though a votive Mass to the Holy Name of Jesus had been retained for devotional use. With the release of the revised Roman Missal in March 2002, the feast was restored as an optional memorial on January 3. Similarly the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary was restored as an optional memorial on September 12 in the revised Missal.

The hymn is more often sung to this better-known (and very beautiful) tune:





LLPB has a recording of melody #27;  here's a recording of it sung as "From East to West, from shore to shore" (A solis ortus cardine), the Lauds and 2nd Vespers hymn for Christmas Day.   You can sing Jesu, Auctor clemencie to this tune today; here's a translation, again from the SSM Breviary:

Jesu, auctor clemencie

Jesu, the Beauty Angels see,
The ears' ecstatic minstrelsy.
The nectar of the Heavenly Home,
The lips' delicious honey comb.

Flower of Virgin Mother blest,
Jesu, true sweetness, purest, best,
Of man the honour and the head.
Thy light of lights upon us shed.

More glorious than the sun to see,
More fragrant than the balsam-tree,
My heart's desire, and boast, and mirth.
Jesu, Salvation of the earth.

Jesu, Who highest bounty art,
And wondrous joyaunce of the heart,
Of goodness the infinity,
Constrain us with Thy charity.

0 King of Virtues. King renowned,
With glory and with victory crowned,
Jesu, by Whom all grace Is given,
Thou honour of the courts of heaven t

Let choirs of Angels singThy Name,
And echo all Thy matchless fame,
Jesus on joyful earth hath smiled,
And us with God hath reconciled.

All honour, laud, and glory be,
0 Jesu, Virgin-born to Thee;
All glory, as is ever meet,
To Father and to Paraclete. Amen. 

Here's an mp3 of an example of alternate melody #39;  it's the Easter Mattins hymn, Aurora Lucis Rutilat ("The Day Draws on with Golden Light").

It's interesting to me that the Sarum breviary apparently wanted to recall Christmas on this August 7 Feast Day (although it did provide those alternate hymn melodies as well).
Here's the New Advent citation I mentioned above (keep in mind this is from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia):

This feast is celebrated on the second Sunday after Epiphany (double of the second class). It is the central feast of all the mysteries of Christ the Redeemer; it unites all the other feasts of the Lord, as a burning glass focuses the rays of the sun in one point, to show what Jesus is to us, what He has done, is doing, and will do for mankind. It originated towards the end of the fifteenth century, and was instituted by the private authority of some bishops in Germany, Scotland, England, Spain, and Belgium. The Office and the Mass composed by Bernardine dei Busti (d. 1500) were approved by Sixtus IV. The feast was officially granted to the Franciscans 25 February, 1530, and spread over a great part of the Church. The Franciscans, Carmelites, and Augustinians kept it on 14 Jan.; the Dominicans 15 Jan. At Salisbury, York, and Durham in England, and at Aberdeen in Scotland it was celebrated 7 Aug., at Liège, 31 Jan., at Compostela and Cambrai, 8 Jan. (Grotefend, "Zeitrechnung", II, 2. 89). The Carthusians obtained it for the second Sunday after Epiphany about 1643; for that Sunday it was also extended to Spain, and later, 20 Dec., 1721, to the Universal Church. The Office used at present is nearly identical with the Office of Bernardine dei Busti. The hymns "Jesu dulcis memoria", "Jesu Rex admirabilis", "Jesu decus angelicum", usually ascribed to St. Bernard, are fragments of a very extensive "jubilus" or "cursus de aeterna sapientia" of some unknown author in the thirteenth century. For the beautiful sequence "Dulcis Jesus Nazarenus" (Morel, "Hymnen des Mittelalters", 67) of Bernardine dei Busti the Franciscans substituted a prose sequence of modern origin: "Lauda Sion Salvatoris"; they still celebrate the feast on 14 January.

In the current Catholic Breviary, the feast is observed (optionally) on January 3, and the hymns - quite obviously deliberately! - all contain the name "Jesus" in the title. They are, per TPL:

• Iesu, dulcis memoria
• Iesu, Rex admirabilis
• Iesu, decus angelicum

This is another set of feast-day hymns formed from a single longer hymn/poem - the one by Bernard of Clairvaux.  More about those hymns at the links.

Here's that iframe look-in to the SSM's Breviary page for this feast:

Sarum Compline from Low Sunday to the Vigil of the Ascension

 Sarum-chant.ca has posted English Compline for several seasons:

We are pleased to host on this site beautifully prepared editions of the Sarum Office of Compline in contemporary English.  Thanks go to Emil Salim for assembling these booklets, which cover the following seasons:
   Compline 1: Advent.
   Compline 5: The Octave of Epiphany.
   Compline 6: Ordinary Time.
   Compline 7: The Third Sunday of Lent.
   Compline 9: Ferias in Passion Week.
   Compline 14: From Low Sunday to the Vigil of the Ascension.

Here's a PDF file of "Compline from Low Sunday to the Vigil of the Ascension."   (Linked from the "Annex" page.)  The painting on the cover is Mazzolino's "The Incredulity of St. Thomas," from around 1522.

The Sarum Psalm Tones in Square Notes

I captured these images from "The Canticles at Evensong, Together with the Office Responses and a Table of Psalm-Tones", by Canon Winfred Douglas.  There are some differences between the Sarum tones and the Psalm tones from the Liber Usualis - but I'm not sure what they are yet, exactly.

I wanted to have them posted here, though, and then I can go through them and look.  So, here are those images:

 

On a related note:  I recently picked up a copy of "The Monastic Diurnal Revised" - the book used currently by the Community of St. Mary, and the original of which Canon Douglas put together for the Community.

The Sarum Office Hymns "From the Octave of Corpus Christi until Advent"

I have never posted the Sarum hymns for this long period in Ordinary Time!

So I'll do it now; again the listing is from Hymn Melodies for the Whole Year from the Sarum Service Books.

From the Octave of Corpus Christi until Advent :

Mattins:   Nocte surgentes    (Sundays ... ... ... 16;  Ferias ... ... ... 18)
Lauds:  Ecce iam noctis  (Sundays ... ... ... 16;  Ferias ... ... ... 18)
Evensong:  Daily except Sats. - Lucis Creator optime ... 19
                 On Saturdays - O Lux beata, Trinitas ... 22

Tunes 16, 18, and 22 are not used, according to Hymn Melodies, at any other time during the year - but  Lucis Creator optime, sung to tune 19, is also the Sunday Evensong hymn  "From the Оctave of the Epiphany until the 1st Sunday in Lent," the other part of "Ordinary Time" during the year.

As you can see, the formula is to sing two different hymns to the same hymn tunes at Lauds and Mattins depending on whether it's a Sunday or a Feria; here are chant scores 16 and 18:

The LLPB offers this mp3 file as an example of tune #16 above; it's listed on their "Weekday Propers Sung" page as the hymn for Sunday Morning Prayer, and is called "Father We Praise Thee."  I'm thinking that this is a particular translation of Ecce iam noctis, the Lauds hymn.

Here are the words in Latin and one English translation (not the same as what's on the recording); as you can see, it's the 11-11-11-5 meter, the Sapphic and Adonic one.

ECCE iam noctis tenuatur umbra lucis aurora rutilans coruscat; nisibus totis rogitemus omnes cunctipotentem,1	LO! the dim shadows of the night are waning; radiantly glowing, dawn of day returneth; fervent in spirit, to the mighty Father pray we devoutly.
Ut Deus, nostri miseratus, omnem pellat angorem, tribuat salutem, donet et nobis pietate patris regna polorum.2	So shall our Maker, of His great compassion, banish all sickness, kindly health bestowing; and may He grant us, of a Father's goodness, mansions in heaven.
Praestet hoc nobis Deitas beata Patris ac Nati, pariterque Sancti Spiritus, cuius resonat per omnem gloria mundum. Amen.	This He vouchsafe us, God for ever blessed, Father eternal, Son, and Holy Spirit, Whose is the glory which through all creation ever resoundeth. Amen.

---

Latin from the Liturgia Horarum. Tr. by Rev. Maxwell Julius Blacker (1822-1888). Changes made by Pope Urban VIII in 1632 to the Roman Breviary: 1 ... / lux et aurorae rutilans coruscat:/ supplices rerum Dominum canora voce precemur. 2 Ut reos culpae miseratus omnem/ pellat angorem, tribuat salutem,/ donet et nobis sempiternae munera pacis.

Here's an mp3 of Ecce iam noctis from Liber Hymnarius; the tune used is just about the same as the Sarum chant tune #18 above, except for a few notes in the 3rd and 4th stanzas.

TPL has this, about Ecce iam noctis:

Attributed to Pope St. Gregory the Great (540-604), but some think it may be a later composition by Alcuin (732-804). In the current Liturgia Horarum it is used for Laudes for the Sundays of the second and fourth weeks of the Psalter during Ordinary Time. In the Roman Breviary it is used for Lauds on the fourth and subsequent Sundays after Pentecost until September 27 inclusive.

Here's something from TPL about Nocte Surgentes, the Mattins hymn, including the words in Latin and English; again, you can see that it's in the Sapphic and Adonic, 11-11-11-5, meter.  Sing it to tune #16 as above on Sundays; if I find a recording of it using tune #18, I'll come back and post it.

This hymn is usually attributed to Pope St. Gregory the Great (540-604), though some ascribe the hymn to Alcuin. In the Roman Breviary this hymn is used at Sunday Matins on the fourth and subsequent Sundays after Pentecost through September 27. In the Liturgia Horarum it is used for the Office of the Readings on Tuesdays during the second and fourth weeks of the Psalter during Ordinary Time.

NOCTE surgentes vigilemus omnes, semper in psalmis meditemur atque viribus totis Domino canamus dulciter hymnos,	NOW from the slumbers of the night arising, chant we the holy psalmody of David, hymns to our Master, with a voice concordant, sweetly intoning.
Ut, pio regi pariter canentes, cum suis sanctis mereamur aulam ingredi caeli, simul et beatam ducere vitam.	So may out Monarch pitifully hear us, that we may merit with His Saints to enter mansions eternal, there withal possessing joy beatific.
Praestet hoc nobis Deitas beata Patris ac Nati, pariterque Sancti Spiritus, cuius resonat per omnem gloria mundum. Amen.	This be our portion, God forever blessed, Father eternal, Son, and Holy Spirit, Whose i s the glory, which through all creation ever resoundeth. Amen.

---

Here's an mp3 of Nocte Surgentes, from the website (new to me, and interesting!) Liber Hymnarius (see my post here about the site); and here's their page about the hymn.  This is not the same tune as either #16 or #18 above, though.


And here are the two different Vespers melodies, #19 and 22:

Here again is the mp3 from the LLPB of Lucis Creator optime, sung to tune #19;  it's listed on the LLPB "Weekday Propers Sung" page as the hymn for Sunday Vespers (listed above as "daily except Saturday").  The cantor is using the English translation by J. M. Neale.   

TPL says this about the hymn, and includes the words below in Latin and English:

Attributed to Pope St. Gregory the Great (540-604), this hymn is used in the Roman Breviary at Vespers for Sundays after Epiphany and Sundays after Pentecost. In the Liturgia Horarum it is used for Sunday evening Vespers for Ordinary time for the first and third weeks of the Psalter.

LUCIS Creator optime lucem dierum proferens, primordiis lucis novae, mundi parans originem:	O BLEST Creator of the light, Who mak'st the day with radiance bright, and o'er the forming world didst call the light from chaos first of all;
Qui mane iunctum vesperi diem vocari praecipis: tetrum chaos illabitur,1 audi preces cum fletibus.	Whose wisdom joined in meet array the morn and eve, and named them Day: night comes with all its darkling fears; regard Thy people's prayers and tears.
Ne mens gravata crimine, vitae sit exsul munere, dum nil perenne cogitat, seseque culpis illigat.	Lest, sunk in sin, and whelmed with strife, they lose the gift of endless life; while thinking but the thoughts of time, they weave new chains of woe and crime.
Caeleste pulset ostium:2 vitale tollat praemium: vitemus omne noxium: purgemus omne pessimum.	But grant them grace that they may strain the heavenly gate and prize to gain: each harmful lure aside to cast, and purge away each error past.
Praesta, Pater piissime, Patrique compar Unice, cum Spiritu Paraclito regnans per omne saeculum. Amen.	O Father, that we ask be done, through Jesus Christ, Thine only Son; Who, with the Holy Ghost and Thee, doth live and reign eternally. Amen.

---

From the Roman Breviary, translation by J. M. Neale (1818-1866). Changes made by Pope Urban VIII in 1632 to the Roman Breviary: 1 illabitur tetrum chaos, 2 The Liturgia Horarum has: Caelorum pulset intimum.

This is an mp3 of O Lux beata, Trinitas from Liber Hymnarius; again, the tune used is very similar to the Sarum chant tune, #22, above, with some differences in various flourishes.  This is a well-known tune any case, for a well-known hym.  TPL offers this about it:

This hymn is ascribed to St. Ambrose (340-397) and is used for Sunday Vespers for the second and fourth weeks of the Psalter in the Liturgy of the Hours. The hymn appears in the Roman Breviary under the title of Iam sol recedit igneus, where it is the Vespers hymn for the ferial office on Saturdays and Trinity Sunday.

O LUX beata Trinitas, et principalis Unitas, iam sol recedit igneus, infunde lumen cordibus.	O TRINITY of blessed Light, O Unity of sovereign might, as now the fiery sun departs, shed Thou Thy beams within our hearts.
Te mane laudum carmine, te deprecemur vespere: te nostra supplex gloria per cuncta laudet saecula.	To Thee our morning song of praise, to Thee our evening prayer we raise; Thee may our glory evermore in lowly reverence adore.
Deo Patri sit gloria, eiusque soli Filio, cum Spiritu Paraclito, et nunc, et in perpetuum.	All laud to God the Father be; all praise, Eternal Son, to Thee; all glory, as is ever meet, to God the Holy Paraclete.

---

From the Liturgia Horarum. Translation by J. M. Neale (1818-1866).

Interesting to me that this hymn is sung on Saturdays at Vespers!  Of course, Saturday Vespers is First Vespers of Sunday, so it does make sense.

So, there you have the hymnody for the Hours in the Sarum Use,  for this long stretch between June and November!   I didn't realize I hadn't posted this before - and there are still some missing items in my references.  I'm missing the hymnody for the Little Hours, for instance - and never did get back to that massive 21-count section of hymns for the period between Epiphany and Lent. I'll get there, eventually, though.

I'm excited about the Liber Hymnarius website!   It looks like it aims to be a complete hymn-tune reference for the Hours, which would be fantastic to have at one site.

"The Canticles at Evensong, Together with the Office Responses and a Table of Psalm-Tones"

A nice find at Google Books tonight: "THE CANTICLES AT EVENSONG, TOGETHER WITH THE OFFICE RESPONSES AND A TABLE OF PSALM-TONES: EDITED BY THE REVEREND CHARLES WINFRED DOUGLAS BACHELOR OF MUSIC CANON OF FOND DU LAC." - (The Saint Dunstan Edition)

Here's the link to the book itself, which was published in 1915 (and cost 50 cents).

Below is an iFrame that contains the first page of the Psalm Tone chart; you can scroll through it from this post.



From the Intro:

The following Table of Psalm-tones has been compiled with the purpose of providing greater melodic wealth than is afforded by the Sarum Tonale, while retaining the greater part of the latter in its accustomed order as a basis. To this end, traditional Continental mediations have been added in the forms presented by the Vatican Antiphoner; together with supplementary endings, among which all save the third ending of the fourth Tone are of ancient use, either in England or on the Continent. This exception is a slight modification (made by the Benedictines of Solesmes) of an ancient ending. The additional mediations are distinguished in the Table by the letters B and C; and the solemn mediations for Magnificat by the letter S. Wherever more than a single mediation is given for a Tone, the Sarum form is marked by the letter A. As the numbering of the Sarum endings adopted in recent English Psalters has become widely familiar, it is retained: the additional endings either being substituted for certain of the Sarum set that are practically never used; or else assigned further numbers after the complete enumeration of the Sarum group.

There are more notes at the link. Winfred Douglas is well-known in the Anglican world for his efforts at renewing the chant tradition; here's a bit about him at Cyberhymnal.

While at Syr­a­cuse Un­i­ver­si­ty, Doug­las sang at St. Paul’s Epis­co­pal Ca­thed­ral. He earned his Ba­che­lor of Mu­sic de­gree from Sy­ra­cuse in 1891, then took Ho­ly Or­ders. He moved to Ev­er­green, Col­o­ra­do, for health rea­sons, and be­came an Epis­co­pal priest in 1899. He ed­it­ed the Epis­co­pal New Hymn­al in 1918, and helped de­vel­op the 1940 Epis­co­pal hymn­al as well.

The monastic orders began to revive in England only during the mid-19th Century, fully 300 years after the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII. Winfed Douglas was instrumental in renewing the chant tradition. Here's something about him from the website of the Community of St. Mary East, an Episcopal monastic order from New York:

When the Rev. Canon C. Winfred Douglas became the choirmaster for the Community in 1906, he introduced a new edition of A Manual of Plain Song(4) to the choir, and later his own St. Dunstan Psalter(5). Prior to assuming his new position, he spent time in England, France, and Germany studying early church music. What he always valued most was the course in plainsong given by the Benedictine monks, who, exiled from their home monastery at Solesmes, had taken up residence at Quarr Abbey in the Isle of Wight. In an article for The Catholic Choirmaster published in March 1926, Canon Douglas explained his reasoning for welcoming the opportunity to be choirmaster for the Community of St. Mary.

"Parish Churches are too subject to changing policies with changing rectors for much hope of permanent stability in a musical tradition. It seemed to the writer that seminaries and schools, with their comparatively fixed policies, and above all, religious orders, offered the best field for constructive work... St. Mary's Convent and the group of institutions clustered around it seemed an admirable field for the establishment of a Plainsong tradition."(6)

The transition from modern notation, measured rhythm and polyphonic settings tothe Solesmes method of unison, equi-measured square notation chant presented quite an adjustment for the Sisters. Canon Douglas' patience and skill had them singing

Compline in ten days and the other simple offices over the next weeks. The school girls also learned the chant with the Sisters. Over the years many alumnae returned to Peekskill to sing at major liturgical feasts in St. Mary's Chapel.

The Night Office was first recited in May 1874 from the Neale edition of the Sarum Office(7). On March 12, 1916, a shortened form of the Benedictine Night Hours was introduced(8), and a revision of this came into use Pentecost, June 13, 1943. At Tenebrae and on great feasts such as Christmas, Purification, and Easter, the Night Office was sung in full, adapted from monastic melodies in use in the Latin with local variances since at least the tenth century.

Trinity Wall Street - Webcasts - Videos - Music & Arts - The Trinity Choir - Music from the Sarum Rite 02.03.11

Trinity Wall Street - Webcasts - Videos - Music & Arts - The Trinity Choir - Music from the Sarum Rite 02.03.11

Just found this on the Trinity website! It's one of two videos from a concert performed in February of this year.



Here's the blurb on this concert:

The Trinity Choir, along with Guest Conductor George Steel, General Manager and Artistic Director of New York City Opera, perform Music from the Sarum Rite. These gorgeous compositions – taken from the elaborate and theatrical liturgy of pre-Reformation England – feature soaring soprano lines and rich choral textures by masters such as Robert Wylkinson, William Byrd, Thomas Tallis, and John Sheppard. Although rarely performed today, the Sarum Rite includes some of the most exquisite music of any age. Purchase tickets online here. Tickets can also be purchased at the Trinity Gift Shop, inside Trinity Church. Watch a video of George Steel on the "music that speaks to us with an emotional clarity you wouldn't expect from...such a far away time.

Here's a PDF of the program. And below is the video of the George Steel discussion.

Sarum: The Reconciliation of Penitents

Here's a video of a lovely rite, via Derek. I know very little about it at the moment - and still find it extremely affecting. There is a bit of brief explanation in the first few seconds, and then the rite begins.



"Venite, venite, venite, filii; audite me : timorem Domini docebo vos." ("Come, children, hearken to me: I will teach you the fear of the Lord.") The movement and the words are beautiful, I think - as is the chant. Derek also points to a PDF about it; I'll post again as I learn more.

The Advent Sequence: Salus Aeterna

This is an 11th-Century sequence hymn for Advent, found in the Sarum Gradual. Here it is in Hymn Melodies for the Whole Year, from the Sarum Service Books:

SALUS aeterna indeficiens mundi vita,
Lux sempiterna et redemptio vera nostra,
Condolens humana perire saecula
per tentantis numina,
Non linquens excelsa,
adisti ima propria clementia.
Mox tua spontanea gratia assumens humana,
Que fuerant perdita omnia salvasti terrea,
Ferens mundo gaudia.
Tu animas et corpora
Nostra Christe, expia
Ut possidemus lucida
Nosmet habitacula.
Adventu primo justifica,
In secundo nosque libera,
Ut cum, facta luce magna, judicabis omnia,
Compti stola incorrupta,
nosmet tua subsequamur
mox vestigia quocumque visa.

Saviour eternal, health and life of the world unfailing,
light everlasting, and in verity our redeemer.
Grieving that the ages of men
must perish through the tempter’s subtlety,
still in heaven abiding,
thou camest earthward of thine own great clemency.
Then freely and graciously deigning to assume humanity,
to lost ones and perishing gavest thou thy free
deliverance, filling all the world with joy.
O Christ, our souls and bodies cleanse
by thy perfect sacrifice, that we as temples
pure and bright fit for thine abode may be.
By thy former advent justify,
by thy second grant us liberty,
that when in the might of glory thou descendest,
judge of all,
we in raiment undefiled bright may shine,
thy footsteps blest,
where’er they lead us.

Here's the score from that publication:



Oremus Hymnal offers a midi of this tune, here. I cannot find any other version of this online; most of the Sequence hymns (with a few exceptions) have fallen out of use and favor now.

But here is Gabriel Jackson's (b. 1962) gorgeous polyphonic 20th Century setting, masterfully rendered by the BYU Singers:



You can also listen to the St. Thomas Choir of Men & Boys sing this Jackson setting as the Offertory on Advent 1 2010 here (service leaflet here).