O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig
"O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig" | |
---|---|
Lutheran hymn | |
Text | by Nikolaus Decius |
Language | German |
Based on | "Agnus Dei" |
Melody | by Decius on an older model |
Published | 1531 |
"O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig" (O Lamb of God, innocent) is an early Lutheran hymn, with text and melody attributed to Nikolaus Decius. Originally intended as a German hymn instead of the Latin Agnus Dei, it was used rather as a hymn for Passiontide. In both meanings, the hymn has often been set to music, prominently as the cantus firmus in the opening chorus of Bach's St Matthew Passion. It is included in most German hymnals, and was translated, for example by Catherine Winkworth.
History
Until the 18th century, the hymn "O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig" was printed in hymnals without mentioning an author. Philipp Julius Rehtmeyer presented in his historical Braunschweigische Kirchen-Historie a Latin report from 1600, which called Decius as the author of text and melody of ""O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig" and "Allein Gott in der Höh sei Ehr".[1] A medieval melody may have been the model for the tune.[2] The creation of hymns by Decius is dated 1522/23,[1] in the early Reformation, before Martin Luther's first hymns, published in 1524 in the first Lutheran hymnal.
The song was first printed in Low German in Joachim Slüter 's Geystlyke leder in Rostock in 1531.[1][2] The first print in High German appeared in a hymnal in Leipzig in 1539.[1][2] It was distributed in German-speaking regions. The melody appeared with the text first in Johann Spangenberg s hymnal Kirchengesenge Deudtsch, published in Magdeburg in 1545,[1] but it had appeared in a slightly different version a few years earlier in a Strasbourg hymnal.
Text
Like in the Latin model, the Lamb of God is called three times, twice asking for mercy, the third time for peace. The text is given as in the current German hymnals, with the translation of Catherine Winkworth, published in 1863 as No. 46 in her Chorale Book for England.[3]
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Hymnals
In all early prints, "O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig" is titled Das Agnus Dei Deutsch (The Agnus Dei in German), indicating that it was supposed to take the position of the Agnus Dei during the Abendmahl (communion).[1][4] This function was soon taken by Luther's "Christe, du Lamm Gottes", while "O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig", which adds the memory of Christ's Passion, was used as a hymn for Passiontide.[5]
The hymn was included in the Evangelisches Kirchengesangbuch (EKG) of 1950 as a Passion song, EKG 55, with two slightly different melodies, called northern ("norddeutsche") and southern ("süddeutsche") version.[5][6]
The hymn appeared in 1616 first in a Catholic hymnal, in Paderborn, then in the Groß Catholisch Gesangbuch by David Gregor Corner.[5] It was included in 1938 as "O du Lamm Gottes unschuldig" in the collection Kirchenlied as the only Agnus Dei song.[5]
An ecumenical group, Arbeitsgemeinschaft für ökumenisches Liedgut , worked in 1973 on a common version, which appeared in the Catholic Gotteslob in 1975 and in the Protestant Evangelisches Gesangbuch (EG 190.1). In the current Gotteslob the song is GL 203. In all these hymnals, the song was again grouped as an Agnus Dei song.[6]
Melody and musical settings
Johann Sebastian Bach used the hymn as a cantus firmus in the opening movement Kommt, ihr Töchter, helft mir klagen of his St Matthew Passion.[7] He wrote it, without words, in red ink in the middle between the first choir on top of the page and the second at the bottom.[7] Bach also composed chorale preludes on the hymn, one part of the Great Eighteen Chorale Preludes as BWV 656, and BWV 1085, found in the Neumeister Collection. He wrote a four-part setting, BWV 401.[8]
Max Reger composed a chorale prelude as No. 32 of his 52 Chorale Preludes, Op. 67 in 1902. Sigfrid Karg-Elert included a setting as No. 20 of his 66 Chorale improvisations for organ, published in 1909.[9]
Literature
- Alex Stock: O Lamm Gottes unschuldig. In: Hansjakob Becker among others (ed.): Geistliches Wunderhorn. Große deutsche Kirchenlieder. München 2/2003, pp. 104–110.
- Ludger Stühlmeyer: Die Kirchenlieder des Hofers Nicolaus Decius. In: Curia sonans. Die Musikgeschichte der Stadt Hof. Eine Studie zur Kultur Oberfrankens. Von der Gründung des Bistums Bamberg bis zur Gegenwart. (dissertation.) Bayerische Verlagsanstalt, Heinrichs-Verlag Bamberg 2010, ISBN 978-3-89889-155-4, pp. 110–112, 135–137, 357–358.
Notes
References
- ^ a b c d e f Leahy 2011, p. 91.
- ^ a b c Terry 1915, p. XVII.
- ^ Hymnary 2017.
- ^ Bach-Cantatas 2008.
- ^ a b c d Beck 2009, p. 109.
- ^ a b Grub 2012, p. 77.
- ^ a b Leahy 2011, pp. 91–92.
- ^ CPDL 2017.
- ^ Choral Improvisations for Organ, Op. 65: Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
Bibliography
- Hartmann, Richard, ed. (2003). Wer singt, betet doppelt: Liedpredigten und Betrachtungen zum "Geistlichen Wunderhorn" (in German). Münster: LIT Verlag. p. 36. ISBN 9783825862565.
{{cite book}}
:|work=
ignored (help) - Becker, Hansjakob, ed. (2009). Geistliches Wunderhorn: Große deutsche Kirchenlieder (in German). C. H. Beck. pp. 108–110. ISBN 9783406592478.
- Grub, Udo (2012). Evangelische Spuren im katholischen Einheitsgesangbuch "Gotteslob" von 1975 (in German). LIT Verlag Münster. pp. 77, 80. ISBN 9783643116635.
{{cite book}}
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(help) - Leahy, Anne (2011). J. S. Bach's "Leipzig" Chorale Preludes: Music, Text, Theology. Scarecrow Press. pp. 91–107. ISBN 9780810881815.
{{cite book}}
: Invalid|ref=harv
(help) - Terry, Charles Sanford (1915). "Johann Sebastian Bach, Bach's Chorals, vol. 1 The Hymns and Hymn Melodies of the "Passions" and Oratorios". oll.libertyfund.org. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
{{cite web}}
: Invalid|ref=harv
(help) - "Chorale Melodies used in Bach's Vocal Works / Herr Christ, der einge Gottessohn". Bach-Cantatas. 2008. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
- "O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig, BWV 401 (Johann Sebastian Bach)". cpdl.org. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
- "O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig". hymnary.org. Retrieved 15 December 2014.
External links
- O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology
- Gotteslobvideo (GL 203): O Lamm Gottes unschuldig katholisch.de
- O Lamm Gottes unschuldig, BWV 656 (Bach, Johann Sebastian): Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
- O Lamm Gottes unschuldig, BWV 1085 (Bach, Johann Sebastian): Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
- Choral-Improvisationen für Orgel, Op.65 (Karg-Elert, Sigfrid): Scores at the International Music Score Library Project
- Derek Remes: Textual Illustration in J. S. Bach's Settings of O Lamm Gottes, unschuldig derekremes.com 2015