O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

The Second Sunday of Advent
December 9, 2018



One of the most widely known Advent hymns is "O come, O come, Emmanuel." The hymn has been part of Christian worship for over 1,200 years and transports us to the monasteries of the eighth and ninth centuries. 

The Latin hymn originates from the "O antiphons," which were paired with the Magnificat (The Song of Mary) at vespers on December 17-23, the days leading up to Christmas Eve. These antiphons are rich in imagery and scriptural references from both the Old and New Testaments.

Medieval poets often created hidden meanings and clever "word games" within their work. This hymn is a perfect example. When looking at the first letter of the second word of each antiphon, you see the letters SARCORE.  Read backwards, these form the Latin words ERO CRAS, translated "I shall be present tomorrow." 

   O Sapientia
   O Adonai
   O radix Jesse
   O clavis David
   O Oriens
   O Rex gentium
   O Emmanuel

Only after singing the final antiphon on the day before Christmas Eve is the entire acrostic revealed.

The plainsong chant tune is ancient as well. The earliest known source of the tune was discovered in 1966 in a 15th century collection belonging to French Franciscan nuns. The volume is housed at the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris. Here is the image of the first page:


By singing two stanzas of this hymn on each Sunday of Advent - concluding on the day before Christmas Eve - we remember this ancient practice of early Christians and prepare our hearts and minds for the coming of Emmanuel ("God with us") at Christmas.

It is fascinating to explore the many modern settings of this hymn in a variety of musical styles. Here are a few that I'm listening to this Advent: Rick Lord guitar, The Piano Guys, Pentatonix

Music for The Second Sunday of Advent
December 9, 2018

Hymns
76  On Jordan’s bank the Baptist’s cry (Winchester New)
65  Prepare the way, O Zion (Berenden väg för Herran)
56  O come, O come Emmanuel, stanzas 3-4 (Veni, veni, Emmanuel )
67  Comfort, comfort ye my people (Psalm 42)
66  Come, thou long expected Jesus (Stuttgart)

Service Music
Trisagion S-102  -Alexander Archangelsky
Sanctus S-130  -Franz Peter Schubert/Richard Proulx
Fraction Anthem S-169  My flesh is food indeed  -Ray W. Urwin

Anthems
Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence  -arr. Fred Gramann
Jesus Christ, the Apple Tree  -Elizabeth Poston

Organ Music
Prelude on O Come, O Come Emmanuel  -Robert Lau
Variations on Comfort, Comfort Ye My People  -Robert Lau


Score image from The Hymnal 1982 Companion, Raymond F. Glover, editor. 1994, Church Publishing, Inc.





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Composer Michael McCabe

Image
The Third Sunday of Easter April 15, 2018 Sing to the Lord a new song!    -Psalm 96 Easter - a celebration of new life in Christ - serves as the perfect season for the creation and offering of new music. Our cathedral celebrates Nebraska composers, and we're blessed by a wealth of talent in this state. Today, our Cathedral Choir sings an anthem by Omaha composer and organist Michael McCabe. McCabe began his study of piano and organ as a child. As a student at Creighton University, McCabe was appointed university organist and choir director. During a 20 year military career, various assignments provided McCabe with unique opportunities to study with leaders in the field of Anglican church music, including Leo Sowerby, David McK. Williams, Thomas Matthews, and Dale Wood. McCabe has served numerous churches, including Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. As a published composer, McCabe was elected to ASCAP in 1972, and his ASCAP credits include NBC Television, ...
Read more

Come, Holy Spirit

Image
The Day of Pentecost May 31, 2020 We celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Today, we will hear organ settings of two classic Pentecost hymns. " Nun bitten wir den Heiligen Geist " ("We pray now to the Holy Spirit") is a German hymn. The first stanza dates to the Middle Ages, and additional stanzas were added by Martin Luther in the 16th century. The tune appears in organ chorales (organ compositions based on Lutheran chorale tunes) and cantatas by several Baroque composers, including this setting by Dietrich Buxtehude (1637-1707). Hear the authentic sound in this video recorded on a Silberman pipe organ built in  1721:  Nun bitten wir The organ postlude is a setting of the great plainsong hymn, Veni Creator Spiritus ("Come Holy Ghost, our souls inspire"). This hymn dates from the 9th century and is typically sung on Pentecost and at ordinations. Originally in Latin, the hymn is found in an English translation in The Hymnal 1982...
Read more

"Praying Twice" Says Farewell

Image
Trinity Cathedral's Praying Twice blog has ended. Thank you, faithful readers! I am moving to a new position as Associate Professor of Church Music at Virginia Theological Seminary.  I will be writing more in the future, and I'll share a link when my new blog is up and running. Marty Wheeler Burnett, D.Min.
Read more