Text: VIVAT, VIVAT LEO!
  • Anna_BendiksenAnna_Bendiksen
    Posts: 279
    Christ is risen, everyone!

    I have a new hymn text to the glory of Our Lord and in honor of His Holiness, Pope Leo XIV.

    VIVAT, VIVAT LEO
    (The Lion Who for love was slain)

    Verse 1. The Lion Who for love was slain
    Now rules the earth and sky;
    His pontiffs true shall serve and reign
    With blessings from on high.

    Chorus: Vivat, vivat Leo! Vivat, vivat Leo!
    Jubilate Deo qui vitam dat!

    Verse 2: O sweet Chicago, lead the praise
    From windy, wintry home;
    A nation's fair cathedrals raise
    The song with bells of Rome!

    (Chorus)

    Verse 3: How peerless is the Lion's heart!
    Let kings and peasants rise
    To die to self, and vie for part
    Of Crown beyond all price!

    (Chorus)

    Verse 4: The children leap to hear His voice,
    This Lion never tame;
    In fervent chorus they rejoice
    And magnify His name.

    (Chorus)

    Verse 5: The Lion Who has conquered death
    Shall reign forevermore;
    May all who bear the holy Faith
    Hear Heaven in His roar!

    (Chorus)

    Verse 6: All glory to the Father be,
    The Son, and Spirit blest,
    The undivided Trinity
    From age to age confessed!

    (Chorus)

    (c) 2026 Anna Bendiksen (b. 1969) All rights reserved.
    Thanked by 6CHGiffen wspinnen oldhymns Jehan_Boutte novusgordo probe
  • wspinnenwspinnen
    Posts: 35
    Especially after recent political remarks, this fills me with joy. Thank you for sharing.
    Thanked by 2Anna_Bendiksen CHGiffen
  • Anna_BendiksenAnna_Bendiksen
    Posts: 279
    You are welcome, wspinnen. I am very glad to hear it.
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • novusgordo
    Posts: 8
    Do you have a hymn tune in mind?
    Thanked by 1Anna_Bendiksen
  • Anna_BendiksenAnna_Bendiksen
    Posts: 279
    I've come up with a couple possible tunes but if anyone has any ideas, I'd certainly love to see them.
  • probe
    Posts: 142
    To my ears the 8-syllable verse lines are easy to fit many hymn tunes, the refrain less so because of the 12+10 syllables.
    Would it be awful to make the internal rhyme obvious and make it more like 6,6,5 acclamations:
    Vivat, vivat Leo!
    Jubilate Deo!
    Nobis vitam dat!

    The first tune to fit is naturally the one already in my mind from recently singing it: "Adoro Te"

    The Lion Who for love was slain
    Now rules the earth and sky;
    His pontiffs true shall serve and reign
    With blessings from on high.
    Vivat, vivat, vivat Leo,
    Vi-i-i-i-vat,
    Jubilate Deo qui nobis vitam dat.

    I'm not proud of the stretched word, but first thoughts. And apologies for any Latin grammar faults. And maybe it would be best after all to write an original tune !

    I googled for where Vivat Leo has been used and the search results predominantly refer to Cappella Pratensis & Joshua Rifkin: Vivat Leo! Music for a Medici Pope.

    P.S. Thanks to @CGM I bought the Brompton Oratory 'The Catholic Hymn Book' (1998) , 500 pages melody edition, and there #185 is 'Long live the Pope! His praises sound", sung to Wolverton - though I'd worry about that key change in the third line.
    Thanked by 2novusgordo Anna_Bendiksen
  • Anna_BendiksenAnna_Bendiksen
    Posts: 279
    Here is a tune and harmonization I wrote today. I'm calling the tune COOK COUNTY after His Holiness's place of birth and that of my mother, as well as the hospital where my father did his ER internship in the late 1960's. My parents met at UIC, which was then at Navy Pier, and were married at the Methodist Temple on Washington Street. When people ask whether I'm Irish, I always say, "Sure and I am... from County Cook!"

    Feedback welcome.
    COOKCOUNTY.pdf
    45K
    COOKCOUNTY.mp3
    648K
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • probe
    Posts: 142
    Lovely! A triumphal march and a flourishing jubilate. I had a go at it just for interest and got as far as a melody line. It may be too irregular for congregational use, but have a look anyway.
    (p.s. being Irish is more of a state of mind these days ... all welcome! Were your parents of Nordic extraction, like Benediktsson? We still have the descendants of the Vikings here ( - not that we had much of a choice ;))
    I can't attach a 550K mp3, it just stops at 'uploading...'
    Vivat Leo POB.pdf
    32K
    Thanked by 1Anna_Bendiksen
  • probe
    Posts: 142
    I gave up on uploading the mp3, here is a demo solo rendering by Cantamus in my Google Drive: https://dub.sh/DOBw121
    I'd need a lot more work to get a harmonisation as good as Anna's :)

    Thanked by 1Anna_Bendiksen
  • chonakchonak
    Posts: 9,204
    When users have difficulty in uploading MP3 files, it's usually because of the file name. The file-attachment software is fussy about this: the file name must contain no spaces, apostrophes, or quotation marks. Hyphens are OK.
    Thanked by 3probe CHGiffen Anna_Bendiksen
  • probe
    Posts: 142
    Indeed, thank you @Chonak, it had an apostrophe in the name. I could not rename or delete it in Windows either, so I had to use the cmd prompt to get at it.
    So, this test with just hyphens works.
    Vivat-Leo-Bendiksen-OBeirne.mp3
    549K
    Thanked by 2CHGiffen Anna_Bendiksen
  • Richard MixRichard Mix
    Posts: 2,979
    Yikes! As long as it won't fit a single page it's a good idea to write out the first strain twice, without a repeat sign. But yes, it's an appealing tune.
    Thanked by 1Anna_Bendiksen
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