O Sacrum Convivium
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O Sacrum Convivium is a Latin prose text honoring the Blessed Sacrament. It was written by Saint Thomas Aquinas. It was included in the Latin Catholic liturgy as an antiphon on the feast of Corpus Christi. Its sentiments express the profound mystery of the Eucharistic miracle: "O sacred banquet at which Christ is consumed, the memory of his Passion is recalled, our souls are filled with grace, and the pledge of future glory is given to us."[1]
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[edit] Text
- Original Latin (punctuation from Liber Usualis)
- O sacrum convivium!
- in quo Christus sumitur:
- recolitur memoria passionis ejus:
- mens impletur gratia:
- et futurae gloriae nobis pignus datur.
- Alleluia.
- Translation of original Latin
- O sacred banquet!
- in which Christ is received,
- the memory of his Passion is renewed,
- the mind is filled with grace,
- and a pledge of future glory to us is given.
- Alleluia.
[edit] Various settings
O Sacrum Convivium exists in Gregorian and Ambrosian chant forms. Some of the many composers who have set the text are as follows:
- Ludovico da Viadana
- Gregor Aichinger
- Jason Bahr
- William Byrd
- Luca Marenzio
- Tomas Luis de Victoria
- Francisco Guerrero
- Giuseppe Antonio Bernabei
- Andrea Gabrieli
- Giovanni Battista Pergolesi
- Giovanni Croce
- Douglas Brooks-Davies
- Thomas Tallis
- Giovanni Paolo Cima
- Lorenzo Perosi
- Francisco Valls[2]
- Javier Busto
- Olivier Messiaen
- Noel Goemanne
- Matthew Harris
- Kenneth Leighton
- Peter Mathews
- Francisco J. Nunez
- Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
- Hendrik Andriessen
- Don Michael Dice
- Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck[citation needed]
- Roberto Remondi[3]
[edit] James Biery
James Biery's setting of O Sacrum Convivium was written for the Cathedral of St. Joseph Parish, Hartford, Connecticut, the Reverend Christie A. Macaluso, Pastor. It is for an a cappella, SATB choir and features a new English text by Marilyn Biery:
- O Christ, come and dwell within
- through this sacred mystery;
- we celebrate the memory of your holy Passion!
- Jesus' love enfolds our hearts.
- We receive your covenant of eternal glory.
- Alleluia.[4]
[edit] Eugene E. Englert
Eugene Englert, an American composer living in Cincinnati, Ohio, has set the text in his own traditional and slightly chromatic style. Beginning quietly, the SATB motet builds with each phrase, reaching a climax on the word "gloriae" before a series of "Alleluias" and a calm pianissimo ending.[1]
[edit] Don Lorenzo Perosi
The SATB arrangement by Perosi (1872-1956) was arguably the most commonly performed setting in the Roman Catholic church prior to Vatican II.[5]
[edit] Roger T. Petrich
Petrich's setting of O Sacrum Convivium is a cappella communion motet. It is cast in a serious contemporary idiom, but its restrained dissonances are carefully controlled and voiced to keep the work within the reach of practically any four-part choir.[6]
[edit] References
- ^ a b Englert's O Sacrum Convivium. Retrieved on December 13, 2006.
- ^ O Sacrum Convivium at cpdl. Retrieved on March 24, 2007.
- ^ Remondi's O Sacrum Convivium. Retrieved on March 24, 2007.
- ^ (1995) in James Biery: O Sacrum Convivium. Morning Star Music Publishers.
- ^ Perosi's O Sacrum Convivium. Retrieved on February 19, 2008.
- ^ Petrich's O Sacrum Convivium. Retrieved on December 13, 2006.
