Cantate Domino comes from the popular Psalm 97 “Sing to the Lord a New Song,” a text that has been set by dozens of historic and contemporary composers. Composers seem drawn to the psalm given its joyful text that highlights the power of song and music in worship. The Baroque era (1600-1750) is marked by the invention of monody, or solo singing with instrumental accompaniment. Italian composer Claudio Monteverdi represents a critical bridge between the Renaissance and the Baroque eras, as he was one of the first composers to write opera. Like many sacred Baroque works, his piece Cantate Domino, however, is musically conservative and has more in common with Renaissance polyphony than it does with the new style. Nevertheless, this piece is illustrative of Monteverdi’s progressive philosophy that music should be free to express the text, as he criticized the older style of the Renaissance era as being too refined and unable to fully capture the meaning of the words. In Cantate Domino, one can hear the exuberant singing, the loud praise with harp and voice, and the awe-struck wonder of creation.

Cantate Domino canticum novum,
Cantate et benedicite nomini ejus:
Quia mirabilia fecit.
Cantate et exultate et psallite
in cythara et voce psalmi:
Quia mirabilia fecit.

Sing to the Lord a new song,
Sing and give praise to his name:
for he has done marvelous deeds.
Sing and exult and praise
in songs with the harp and the voice:
for he has done marvelous deeds.

The Ave Verum Corpus text and tune originate from a chant that was originally sung during the elevation of the Eucharist, or body of Christ, in the Roman Catholic Mass. The text’s appeal certainly lies in the dramatic description of Jesus’ death and its impact. The Classical era is relatively short, spanning about fifty years from 1750 to 1800, and it is noted by a focus on accessible and beautiful melodies, a codifying
of style and convention, and a shedding away of some of the unpredictable sensibilities of the Baroque era. In contrast to the more complex Renaissance and Baroque polyphony, German composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart crafts his Ave Verum Corpus as a prototypical Classical motet with a beautiful melody in the treble voice supported by conventional harmonies.

Ave, verum corpus natum
de Maria Virgine:
vere passum, immolatum
in cruce pro homine:
cuius latus perforatum
unda fluxit et sanguine:
esto nobis praegustatum,
in mortis examine.

Hail the true body, born
of the Virgin Mary:
You who truly suffered and were sacrificed
on the cross for the sake of man.
From whose pierced flank
flowed water and blood:
Be a foretaste for us
in the trial of death.

Morten Lauridsen is the poster child for contemporary American choral music. Lauridsen has a characteristic sound built on inverted chords, harmonies with added fourths and ninths, and beautiful but simple melodies. While Victoria’s famous O Magnum Mysterium of the late Renaissance was built on independent voices, all voices move together in Lauridsen’s piece, with predominantly the same rhythms.
Such techniques place emphasis not on the busy texture, but on the beautiful harmonies and simple melody. One of his most famous compositions, Lauridsen’s O Magnum Mysterium will likely continue to be sung for hundreds of years as one of the greatest sacred pieces of the late 20th century.

O magnum mysterium
et admirabile sacramentum,
ut animalia viderent Dominum natum
jacentem in praesepio.
O beata Virgo, cujus viscera meruerunt
portare Dominum Jesum Christum.
Ave Maria, gratia plena: Dominus tecum.
O beata Virgo, cujus viscera meruerunt
portare Dominum Jesum Christum.
Alleluia!

O great mystery
and wonderful sacrament,
that animals should see the new-born Lord
lying in a manger!
O blessed is the Virgin, whose womb
was worthy to bear Christ the Lord.
Hail Mary, full of grace: the Lord is with you.
Blessed is the Virgin whose womb
was worthy to bear Christ the Lord.
Alleluia!

Imant Raminsh is a Canadian composer of Latvian descent. His setting of the Ave Verum Corpus text is not as popular as Mozart’s in today’s concert spaces; however, it deserves more performances given its beautiful combination of early music chant-like melodies with modern and expressive harmonies. The dynamic build to the climactic O Clemens is incredibly impactful as the voices reach their high point after
a long, and agonizing build. Raminsh’s setting is inventive and unpredictable yet accessible for modern audiences.

Ave, verum corpus natum
de Maria Virgine:
vere passum, immolatum
in cruce pro homine:
cuius latus perforatum
vero fluxit sanguine:
esto nobis praegustatum,
in mortis examine.
O clemens, O pie, O dulcis
Fili Mariae, Amen.

Hail the true body, born
of the Virgin Mary:
You who truly suffered and were sacrificed
on the cross for the sake of man.
From whose pierced flank
flowed water and blood:
Be a foretaste for us
in the trial of death.
O sweet, O merciful, O Jesus, 
Son of Mary, have mercy on me. Amen.

The Catholic psalm texts were adapted from the Torah, so Andrew Bleckner’s setting of Psalm 42 is appropriately sung in Hebrew. Bleckner’s melodic and harmonic language is similar to Lauridsen’s style, and effectively captures the longing and spiritual alienation inherent in the Psalm 42 text. The beautiful melodies are relatively constrained in range for most of the piece; however, for the final climactic declaration, the voices open up at the line Ki od odenu or “I shall praise the Holy One.” In a culture dominated by sacred Latin texts and Catholic tradition, Bleckner deserves credit not only for his stunning piece but for restoring the Hebrew text closer to its original form.

K’ayal ta’arog al afikei mayim
Kein nafshi ta’arog eilecha, Elohim.
Tsamah nafshi leilohim l’eil chai,
Matai avo v’eira´yeh p’nei Elohim?

Ma tishtochachi, nafshi?
Ooma tehemi alai?
Hochili leilohim!
Ki od odenu,
Yeshuot panav, Elohai.

As a deer longs for flowing streams
So my soul longs for you O Beloved, the living God.
My soul thirsts for you O Beloved, the living God.
When shall we meet face to face?

Why are you so desolate, my soul?
Why so distraught within me?
Hope in the divine source of all!
For I shall praise the Holy One.
My ever present saviour, My God.

Lars Jansson is an award-winning jazz pianist, and his piece To the Mothers in Brazil: Salve Regina was originally an instrumental work arranged for choir by Swedish choral conductor Gunnar Eriksson. Like many jazz pieces, the composition provides a harmonic framework and the ensemble is encouraged to improvise. The editor writes that “Children are not the only ones to cry out for their mothers. . . mothers all around the world travel to the frontlines of war to bring their children home from unnecessary killing in pointless wars fought in the name of patriotism. Mary, mother of Jesus, represents well the loving, mothering qualities, and throughout history, people have cried out to her for comfort and aid.”

Salve Regina, Mater misericordiae,
Ad te clamamus exsules filii Hevae,
Regina coeli laetare, alleluia.
O clemens, O pia, O dulcis virgo Maria.
Et Jesum, benedictum fructum ventris tui.

Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of mercy,
To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve,
Queen of Heaven, rejoice, alleluia.
O merciful, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.
And Jesus, the blessed fruit of thy womb.

Glory, Glory, Hallelujah! is an arrangement of an African-American Spiritual, arranged for choir and piano by Howard Helvey. The tune and text are anonymously written, passed down through generations of black slaves in the United States. The tune was adapted into a hymn and recorded in the early 20th century with the text, “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.” Like Elaine Hagenberg’s piece, the text centers around the
Latin word “Alleluia,” or in this case “Hallelujah,” where both words have their root in Hebrew, hal’lujáh or “praise God [in song].” Helvey elaborates the tune with many rhythmic inventions and an adventurous piano accompaniment. Similar to Hagenberg’s song of praise, the piece is a joyous declaration of trust in God and faith in the afterlife.

Glory, glory, Hallelujah!
Since I laid my burdens down.
I’ve shown courage through the trials,
Since I laid my burdens down.
I am hopeful for the future,
Since I laid my burdens down.
I am thankful for the journey,
Since I laid my burdens down.
Glory, glory, hallelujah!