O admirabile commercium - Germinavit radix Jesse (Loyset Compère)

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• (Posted 2022-01-09)  CPDL #67474:     

Editor: Adrian Wall (submitted 2022-01-09).   Score information: A4, 4 pages, 394 kB   Copyright: Personal

Edition notes: Note values halved. Transposed down a tone.

General Information

Title: O admirabile commercium - Germinavit radix Jesse
Composer: Loyset Compère
Lyricist:
Number of voices: 4vv   Voicing: SATB
Genre: Sacred, Motet

Language: Latin
Instruments: A cappella

    Manuscript  MS 2269 (Librone 1), Archivo della Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo, Sezione Musicale, Milan
    Manuscript  MS 2266 (Librone 4), Archivo della Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo, Sezione Musicale, Milan

Description: Lynn Halpern Ward (The "Motetti Missales" Repertory Reconsidered, Journal of the American Musicological Society, Vol. 39, No. 3 - Autumn 1986) has suggested that this piece may be part of a motetti musicali cycle: a Milanese practice of substituting the movements of a mass with motets. In its two sources, it is grouped with the other extant motets of this conjectural cycle: In Librone 1, it follows Ave virgo gloriosa and Ave regina caelorum; in the fire-damaged Librone 4, it is followed by Sanctus and Suscipe verbum. Whether or not all the components of Ward's proposed cycle were ever performed as a unit, it seems likely that they were used in the groupings in which they appear in the Libroni.

See O admirabile commercium - Tu lumen for another setting by Compère of a similar text.

Original text and translations

Original text and translations may be found at O admirabile commercium.

Latin text

O admirabile commercium, creator generis humani animatum corpus sumens de virgine nasci dignatus est et procedens homo sine semine largitus est nobis suam deitatem.

Germinavit radix Jesse, orta est stella ex Jacob, virgo peperit salvatorem, te laudamus deus noster.

English translation

O admirable exchange: The creator of the human race, assuming a living body was worthy to be born of a virgin, and coming forth as a man without
seed, has granted us his deity.

The root of Jesse has sprouted, a star has risen out of Jacob; a virgin has borne for us a saviour. We praise you, our God.