O gloriosa Virginum/O Queen of all the Virgin choir
  • WJA
    Posts: 237
    We're going to have a public novena leading up to the Feast of the Assumption (our parish's patronal feast), and part of the novena is the singing of O gloriosa Virginum/O Queen of all the Virgin choir, in English.

    This is the translation I've found:

    O Queen of all the Virgin choir,
    Enthroned above the starry sky;
    Who with pure milk from thy own breast
    Thy own Creator didst supply.

    What man hath lost in hapless Eve,
    Thy sacred womb to man restores;
    Thou to the sorr'wing here beneath
    Hast open’d Heav'n’s eternal doors.

    Hail, O refulgent Hall of light!
    Hail, Gate sublime of Heav'n’s high King!
    Through thee redeem’d to endless life,
    Thy praise let all the nations sing.

    O Jesu! born of Virgin bright,
    Immortal glory be to Thee;
    Praise to the Father infinite,
    And Holy Ghost eternally.

    ***

    As you can see, the meter is 8888. The chant melody from the LU is lovely but not well-known to the congregation. I was hoping to get some suggestions for other melodies (I've thought of Conditor alme siderum [would it be wrong to use such a well-known Advent tune?] and Old One Hundredth) that people will know and quickly sing with gusto. Suggestions?

    WJA
  • Charles in CenCA
    Posts: 2,416
    "(I've thought of Conditor alme siderum [would it be wrong to use such a well-known Advent tune?] "

    Why would you think that would be wrong? It'd be wonderful, IMO.
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    BROMLEY

    http://www.ccel.org/cceh//0006/x000600.htm

    Listen to the tune here...www.sjnmusic/evening_prayer.html
  • WJA
    Posts: 237
    >"(I've thought of Conditor alme siderum [would it be wrong to use such a well-known Advent tune?] "
    >
    >Why would you think that would be wrong? It'd be wonderful, IMO.

    Oh, I think it works wonderfully too, I was just afraid it might be a faux pas, like singing Christmas melodies in July.


    >BROMLEY
    >
    >http://www.ccel.org/cceh//0006/x000600.htm
    >
    >Listen to the tune here...www.sjnmusic/evening_prayer.html

    I don't think I know that melody. Is it one you've found people to know and sing well?

    WJA
  • gregpgregp
    Posts: 632
    >"(I've thought of Conditor alme siderum [would it be wrong to use such a well-known Advent tune?] "
    >
    >Why would you think that would be wrong? It'd be wonderful, IMO.
    >
    >Oh, I think it works wonderfully too, I was just afraid it might be a faux pas, like singing Christmas melodies in July."

    Would that we had that problem - the congregation being scandalized by the idea of using "Conditor" in other seasons! What's next? Popular composers ripping off "Rorate Coeli" or "Parce Domine"?
  • WJA
    Posts: 237
    >Would that we had that problem - the congregation being scandalized by the idea of using "Conditor" in other seasons! >What's next? Popular composers ripping off "Rorate Coeli" or "Parce Domine"?

    I see your point!

    WJA
  • mjballoumjballou
    Posts: 993
    "Jesu dulcis memoria" is another handy tune.
  • Charles in CenCA
    Posts: 2,416
    Ditto that. Multi seasonal already.
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    No, the people do not know BROMLEY. If I have to rely on the tunes they know....it's not pretty. For example, Sunday we sang a hymn to DIX. During the third line something strange began to happen. A tenor began beating time with his hymnal to my right, in opposition to my tempo.

    These cantors have learned it with the dotted quarter being shortened and the following quarter notes accellerando. And transferred that to the choir an congregation.

    It's sort of an attempt to sing the dotted quarter as a quarter.

    Now, I normally would work with this and fix it later, but we had a guest trumpeter who was not innoculated in the musical traditions of the parish....

    It wasn't pretty. It wasn't metrical.

    We also practiced singing a chant after Mass singing two beats to the punctum mora, one beat pause and one beat long inhale...it's a new concept, replacing fast catch breaths...

    Jesu dulci WOULD be lovely with this text.
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