The Psalter is the book of all saints, and everyone, whatever his situation
may be, finds psalms and words in it that fit his situation. . .
may be, finds psalms and words in it that fit his situation. . .
— Martin Luther
With this Ash Wednesday installment of “Lifted Voice,” I am pleased to introduce my occasional series, “On Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs” (from Col. 3:16), which will explore the church’s vast treasury of Psalm settings for choir and congregation. We begin our journey with one of the most famous works in the a cappella repertoire, Miserere (“Have mercy,” i.e., Psalm 51) by the Italian composer, Gregorio Allegri.
John Mason Neale (1816-1866) summarized the significance of Psalm 51 in his commentary on the Psalms: “We have now reached the Psalm of all Psalms; that which of all inspired compositions has, with the one exception of the Lord’s Prayer, been repeated oftenest by the Church” (Commentary on the Psalms II:181). It is difficult to test the validity of how often Psalm 51 has been repeated in the church since Neale penned these words in the mid-1800’s, but it is certainly difficult to find a prayer that has encompassed more situations, comforted more saints, or been more frequently set to music than Psalm 51. St. Augustine (354-430), who had the text of all of the penitential Psalms posted around his room just before his death, wrote of this Psalm, “O most blessed sin of David, so gloriously atoned for! O most happy fault, which has brought in so many straying sheep to the Good Shepherd!” (Commentary on the Psalms II:181). Martin Luther, who closely studied St. Augustine’s celebrated exposition of the Psalms, also saw it as a prayer of full-strength Law and the full consolation of the Gospel: “Psalm 51 is one of the foremost of the psalms of instruction. In it David truly teaches what sin is, where it comes from, what damage it does—and how one may be freed from it” (Reading the Psalms with Luther, p. 124).
Considering the prominence of Psalm 51 in both the public and prayer lives of thousands of penitents, perhaps it should not surprise us that many theological terms that shape our vocabulary have their first origin in this Psalm. Neale notes that the Kyrie Eleison is at the beginning of the Psalm (Miserere mei Deus in Latin); the “clean heart”; the “broken and contrite heart”; the sinner “shall be converted”; and of course, what Neale describes as “the first faint foreshadowing of one of the foundation truths of the Catholic faith,” the Holy Spirit. Neale also identifies the incarnation, the calling of the Gentiles, original and actual sin, the nature and effect of preaching, justifying and sanctifying grace, the atonement, the Institution of the Church, and the Mission of the Holy Ghost (Commentary on the Psalms, II:182). In short, here you have a remarkable compendium of the entire Christian faith so comprehensive that, according to Neale, a certain Alfonso de Tostado (dates uncertain) published a commentary devoted exclusively to Psalm 51 that embraces some 1,200 pages!
The history of Allegri’s setting of Psalm 51 is almost as intriguing as the liturgical heritage of Psalm 51. Allegri wrote the work for the Good Friday service of Tenebrae, the Good Friday service of darkness, adorned with gradually extinguishing candles. The Papacy, recognizing the exceptional quality of the music, treated the choral folio the same way they treat their finances and their innumerable scandals— in absolute secrecy and extreme paranoia, even forbidding the score to leave the confines of the Sistine Chapel, supported by threats of severe punishments. So how did the music that you are about to hear escape the notorious secrecy and security of the Vatican? As the story goes, a fourteen-year-old boy named Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) worshipped in the Vatican and was so captivated by the following music that he transcribed it from memory:
Considering the prominence of Psalm 51 in both the public and prayer lives of thousands of penitents, perhaps it should not surprise us that many theological terms that shape our vocabulary have their first origin in this Psalm. Neale notes that the Kyrie Eleison is at the beginning of the Psalm (Miserere mei Deus in Latin); the “clean heart”; the “broken and contrite heart”; the sinner “shall be converted”; and of course, what Neale describes as “the first faint foreshadowing of one of the foundation truths of the Catholic faith,” the Holy Spirit. Neale also identifies the incarnation, the calling of the Gentiles, original and actual sin, the nature and effect of preaching, justifying and sanctifying grace, the atonement, the Institution of the Church, and the Mission of the Holy Ghost (Commentary on the Psalms, II:182). In short, here you have a remarkable compendium of the entire Christian faith so comprehensive that, according to Neale, a certain Alfonso de Tostado (dates uncertain) published a commentary devoted exclusively to Psalm 51 that embraces some 1,200 pages!
The history of Allegri’s setting of Psalm 51 is almost as intriguing as the liturgical heritage of Psalm 51. Allegri wrote the work for the Good Friday service of Tenebrae, the Good Friday service of darkness, adorned with gradually extinguishing candles. The Papacy, recognizing the exceptional quality of the music, treated the choral folio the same way they treat their finances and their innumerable scandals— in absolute secrecy and extreme paranoia, even forbidding the score to leave the confines of the Sistine Chapel, supported by threats of severe punishments. So how did the music that you are about to hear escape the notorious secrecy and security of the Vatican? As the story goes, a fourteen-year-old boy named Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) worshipped in the Vatican and was so captivated by the following music that he transcribed it from memory:
To be sure, scholars still debate the validity of this anecdote, but the authenticity of Mozart’s family letters seems to support the historicity of this tale. And no one has ever argued over whether or not the young Mozart had the musical genius to transcribe a twelve-minute work after only one hearing! After escaping from the Vatican, several copies were in circulation by the mid-18th century, and the number has multiplied exponentially since then, although scholars still debate which modern edition accurately reflects Allegri’s autograph score. It is also interesting to note that the Vatican Choir released its first CD of this work in 2015, some 245 years after young Mozart “smuggled” it out of the Vatican, with nothing more than his tonal memory.
The structure Allegri’s Miserere is probably easier to follow in the next video, which includes the score. A five-part choir sings the first verse in 12 measures of music (00:00—1:00 in the following video). A small group of men sing the next Psalm verse as a single line of chant (1:00—1:15). Then a small choir, usually placed at a distance from the larger choir, sings 12 more measures of music (1:15—2:07). This alternation between five-part choir (SSATB), four-part choir (SSAB, “Choir II”), and a simple chant (usually sung by 2-3 men) continues throughout the Psalm, following the Latin versification of the Psalm. The pattern is briefly broken at the end of the Psalm (“then bulls will be offered on your altar”) when both choirs join together, usually singing from opposite ends of the church (11:25—12:03). There is no Gloria Patri, which might have been intentionally omitted for a day of repentance.
The structure Allegri’s Miserere is probably easier to follow in the next video, which includes the score. A five-part choir sings the first verse in 12 measures of music (00:00—1:00 in the following video). A small group of men sing the next Psalm verse as a single line of chant (1:00—1:15). Then a small choir, usually placed at a distance from the larger choir, sings 12 more measures of music (1:15—2:07). This alternation between five-part choir (SSATB), four-part choir (SSAB, “Choir II”), and a simple chant (usually sung by 2-3 men) continues throughout the Psalm, following the Latin versification of the Psalm. The pattern is briefly broken at the end of the Psalm (“then bulls will be offered on your altar”) when both choirs join together, usually singing from opposite ends of the church (11:25—12:03). There is no Gloria Patri, which might have been intentionally omitted for a day of repentance.
A number of musical features stand out in this, Allegri’s only regularly-performed composition. Sopranos who read this column undoubtedly noticed that the soprano in Choir II lingers on a high C each time Choir II sings. The voicing is also creative, with no tenor in Choir II, although the history of choral music in the Vatican is almost exclusively male, with countertenors or boys singing the parts normally sung by women today, including the high C in choir II. The plain chant (“cantus planus” in this video) is remarkably simple, and yet the themes heard in the plain chant carry naturally into the more elaborate settings sung by Choir I and Choir II. The use of a technique known as falsobordone (look for the rectangular note at 1:15 in this video) is prominent in Choir I and II. Here the text is accommodated to the music by singing several syllables on one chant tone before returning to traditional, rhythmic music. And one might also be struck by the brevity of each Psalm verse, with Choir I generally singing about one minute of music, Choir II about 45 seconds of music, and the chant group signing about 15-18 seconds of music per Psalm verse.
Allegri’s Miserere is fitting for Ash Wednesday and the subsequent season of Lent, for any service of corporate confession and absolution, and for any occasion for individual confession, especially as preparation for confession. Those who are fortunate enough to live in metropolitan areas with rich musical resources will no doubt have the periodic opportunity to hear a professional performance in a vibrant acoustic, as demonstrated in the videos in this column. If nothing else, the Miserere by Gregorio Allegri is an absolute must for one’s personal music listening library. In penitential reflection on this Psalm, the faithful learn both what sin is and how they are freed from it in Christ alone. The following Psalm-prayer, attributed to the Mozarabic liturgy, summarizes the petitions of the all saints, in whatever situation they may be:
Allegri’s Miserere is fitting for Ash Wednesday and the subsequent season of Lent, for any service of corporate confession and absolution, and for any occasion for individual confession, especially as preparation for confession. Those who are fortunate enough to live in metropolitan areas with rich musical resources will no doubt have the periodic opportunity to hear a professional performance in a vibrant acoustic, as demonstrated in the videos in this column. If nothing else, the Miserere by Gregorio Allegri is an absolute must for one’s personal music listening library. In penitential reflection on this Psalm, the faithful learn both what sin is and how they are freed from it in Christ alone. The following Psalm-prayer, attributed to the Mozarabic liturgy, summarizes the petitions of the all saints, in whatever situation they may be:
| O Lord Jesus Christ, God of our salvation, who by Thy salutary Passion dost extinguish all our evil passions; give to us Thy servants forgiveness of sins and remission of our guilt, to the end that from Thee, O Lord, we may one day receive eternal life; who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen. (The Brotherhood Prayer Book, p. 208) |
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Addendum: The following 1980 recording by the Tallis Scholars (from Gimell CD 454 939-2), while by no means the first recording of Miserere, is certainly the recording that put this work “on the map” in the era of digital recordings. Listen for the vibrant acoustic, the purity of tone, and the placement of the second choir at a distance from the main choir.
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