woensdag 30 november 2016

In Dulci Jubilo (1328) / Good Christian Men Rejoice (1853)


The original song text, a macaronic alternation of Medieval German and Latin, is thought to have been written by the German mystic and Dominican monk Heinrich Suso (or Seuse) circa 1328
One night in 1328 Suso had a vision in which he joined angels dancing as the angels sang to him "Nun singet und seid froh" or "In Dulci Jubilo".


The tune first appears in Codex 1305, a manuscript in Leipzig University Library dating from c.1400,
 

It's on page 116r on the next link:



Here below are the German/ Latin words from Codex No. 1305 as quoted by Philipp Wackernagel  in Das Deutsche Lirchenlied from 1867 (#640)

1. In dulci iubilo
singet und sit vro.
Aller unser wonne
layt in presepio,
Sy leuchtet vor dy sonne
matris in gremio
qui alpha est & o.

2. O Jhesu paruule
noch dir ist mir so we:
troste mir myn gemute
O puce optime,
durch aller iuncfrawen gute
princeps glorie,
trahe me post te.

3. Ubi sunt gaudia?
nyndert me wen da,
do dy vogelin singen
noua cantica,
und do dy schelchen klingen
in regis curia
Eya qualia.

4. Mater et lilia
ist iuncfraw Maria
Wir woren gar vertorben
per nostra crimina
Nu het fy uns erworben
celorum gaudia
O quanta gracia.



Around 1910 the German Choir Thomanerchor recorded "In Dulci Jubilo" for the Homokord-label

Here below a version they recorded in 1930 for the Grammophon-label



Listen here:




It has been suggested that the melody may have existed in Europe prior to this date.

Later on, the tune was included in Geistliche Lieder, a 1533 Lutheran hymnal by Joseph Klug.




The melody also appears in the 1582 Finnish songbook Piae Cantiones, a collection of sacred and secular medieval songs, in which the original German/ Latin lyrics are changed for Swedish/ Latin



Here are the Swedish/ Latin lyrics of the 2 pages above:

In dulci iubilo,
Nu siunge wij io io
Then all tingh för oss förmo
ligger in praesepio
Och som Solen skijner
matris in gremio:
Alpha es et o,
Alpha es et o.

O Iesu paruule
för tigh är migh so we
Tröst migh i mitt sinne
O puer optime
Lätt migh tin godheet finne
O princeps gloriae,
Trahe me post te,
trahe me post te.

O Patris charitas,
O Nati lenitas,
Wij wore plat förderffuadh
per nostra crimina,
Nu haffuer hä oss förwärffuad
coeloru gaudia,
Eya wore wij thär
Eya wore wij thär.

Ubi sunt gaudia
Ther siunger man "Eya"
Hwar Englanar siunga
noua cantica,
Och sielanar springa
in regis curia,
Eya wore wij thär
Eya wore wij thär.


A copy of the rare 1582 edition of Piae Cantiones was acquired by Thomas Helmore and John Mason Neale in 1853 from G. J. R. Gordon, Her Majesty's Envoy and Minister at Stockholm. Helmore adapted the carol melodies and Neale either paraphrased the carol lyrics into English or wrote entirely new lines.

So five hundred years later, this carol "In Dulci Jubilo" became the inspiration for the 1853 English paraphrase by John Mason Neale, He retitled it "Good Christian Men, Rejoice".

The song was subsequently published in Carols for Christmas-tide (London: Novello) in 1853.

Regrettably, this collection lacked Helmore's musical scores. Fortunately, Neale and Helmore published The Condensed Vocal Parts to the Carols for Christmas-tide in 1854, which contains all of Rev. Helmore's musical settings, plus all of the lyrics and settings to Carols for Easter-tide!

 




In 1619 Michael Praetorius (1571-1621) made his own arrangement of the song in his song-book Polyhymnia Caduceatrix et Panegyrica
 


Listen here:




Bach, Liszt and Pearsall also made their own arrangement of "In Dulci Jubilo".

Johann Sebastian Bach set this melody several times: as a chorale in BWV 368; and then for organ in BWV 608 as a double canon in his Orgelbüchlein and in BWV 729 and BWV 751 as a chorale prelude.

Here below is an autograph manuscript of "In Dulci Jubilo", BWV 608, from the Orgelbüchlein, composed during the period 1708–1717, while Bach was court organist at the ducal court in Weimar.


Listen here




Franz Liszt included the carol in his piano suite Weihnachtsbaum in the movement entitled "Die Hirten an der Krippe" (The Shepherds at the Manger). written in 1875 and published in 1882


Listen here





Whereas John Mason Neale wrote (almost) new lyrics in 1853, some years earlier in 1837 Robert Lucas de Pearsall kept the macaronic structure of the song by retaining the Latin phrases and substituting the English for German.


Listen here:





English composer Gustav Holst had produced his fantasy, "Christmas Day", in 1910 for chorus and orchestra which was based on the interaction of four carol melodies. Holst’s work was essentially constructed on four readily available published carols ("Good Christian men rejoice", "God rest ye merry gentlemen", "The First Nowell" and an old Breton melody set to the words "Come, ye lofty, come, ye lowly")


Listen here:





The first recorded version of this song I could find:

(o) Choir Band and Organ (1906) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")
Released on Sterling cylinder #706




Or here:





(c) St Paul's Cathedral Choir (1912) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")
Released on the Marathon-label (#187)





(c) The Temple Carol Singers (1915) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")
Released December 1915 on Regal G 7191




The same release-number Regal G-7191 was used for 2 other releases:

(c) The Cloister Quartette (1924) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")
Recorded around July 1924 in London
Matrix A 1199
 



(c) New Temple Quartette (1926) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")
Matrix A 3558
Recorded around July 1926 in London
 



And the same New Temple Quartette recording here above, was also released in the USA on the Columbia-label

(c) Temple Quartet (1927) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")
Matrix A 3558
Recorded around July 1926 in London
Released in 1927 on Columbia 1125-D (in the USA)





(c) The Cloister Choir (1928) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")
Recorded October 16, 1928 in the UK
Released on The Victory #22
 

The Cloister Choir is probably the same as St Stephen's Choir ?





(c) The English Singers (1928) (as "In Dulci Jubilo")
Recorded between October1927 and April 1928 
Matrix 3465 
Released as part of 12 record album on the Roycroft-label (Roycroft # 161)







(c) BBC Chorus conducted by Joseph Lewis (1934) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")
Released on Columbia DB-1452 (UK)
Also released on Columbia 245-M (USA)



























(c) Victor Chapel Choir (1941)  (as "We Three Kings Of Orient Are / Good Christian Men, Rejoice")
Recorded August 14, 1941 in New York
Released on Victor 27645 as part of "Carols For Christmas" album set.







(c) Louvin Brothers (1960) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")


Listen here:




(c) The Reapers (1986) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")
In 1986 former member of the English prog rock band Gentle Giant, Kerry Minnear recorded a Christmas-album with the band The Reapers. "Good Christian Men Rejoice" was one of the songs, with that Gentle Giant feel.



Listen here:





(c) Michael Hedges (1990) (as "In Dulci Jubilo (Good Christian Men Rejoice)")


Listen here





(c) John Fahey (1991) (as "Good Christian Men, Rejoice, Rejoice")


Listen here:





In 1974 and 1975 Mike Oldfield recorded 2 versions of the song.
The 1st version from 1974 credit it to J.S. Bach, arr. Oldfield.
The second version from 1975 credit it to R. L. Pearsall, arr. Oldfield.
As we saw above Bach and Pearsall both wrote arrangements of it, but as we saw too the song dates further back than either composer.

Mike Oldfield had recorded the first version of this song in late 1974 as the B-side to his single, "Don Alfonso", which did not chart, playing all instruments himself.
It was in memory of his mother (Maureen) after she died in late 1974

(c) Mike Oldfield (1974) (as "In Dulci Jubilo (For Maureen)")


Mike Oldfield - Don Alfonso (Vinyl) at Discogs

Listen here:


Or here:



In 1975 Mike felt a better version could be done, and re-recorded it in October 1975 at the Manor, but incorporating some of the previous version's backing tracks recorded November 1974 at the Beacon, his home studio.

(c) Mike Oldfield (1975) (as "In Dulci Jubilo")


Listen here:




(c) Smalltown Poets (2011) (as "Good Christian Men Rejoice")


Listen here:





(c) Mediæval Bæbes (2003) (as "In Dulci Jubilo")

Listen here:




Furder reading: 

op

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