The Abelard Hymnal
Available on:
Melody for †184: O quanta qualia sunt illa sabbata
Switzerland: Rheinau (12th century) [Zürich, Zentralbibliothek, Rh 18]
Melody for †40: Pange, lingua
Italy: Gaeta (12th century) [Roma, Biblioteca Casanatense 1574]
Melody for †145: Iesu, corona virginum
England: Worcester (circa 1230) [Worcester, Cathedral Library F 160]
Melody for †101: Ave, maris stella
France: Bayeux (ca. 1234) [Paris, Bibliothèque de l’ Arsenal 279]
Listen to all of the melodies here.
The Abelard Hymnal: Medieval Christian Songs Translated Into English
Edited by Ryan B. Jawad
Excerpt from the Introduction:
“This hymnal is a collection of early Christian poems translated into English and set to melodies from the medieval period. The 56 poems are selected from 'One Hundred Latin Hymns: Ambrose to Aquinas' (OHLH), edited by Peter G. Walsh and Christopher Husch. OHLH is number 18 in the Dumbarton Oaks Medieval Library series and is a critical edition of early Christian poems written between the 4th and 13th centuries. The 183 melodies for the poems are taken from 'Die mittelalterlichen Hymnenmelodien des Abendlandes' (HA), volume 1 in Bärenreiter’s Monumenta Monodica Medii Aevi series. HA, written by Bruno Stäblein, is a catalogue of hymns from medieval Europe and contains well over 1000 different melodies. The melodies that I selected come from manuscripts that date between the 11th and 15th centuries. The translations for the poems are taken from a variety of sources, though most are from 19th-century England.”
Product details
— ISBN-10: 1734944307
— ISBN-13: 978-1734944303
— Title: The Abelard Hymnal
— Subtitle: Medieval Christian Songs Translated Into English
— Editor: Ryan B. Jawad
— Publisher: Deus in omnibus (2020)
— Hardcover: 589 pages
— Language: English
— Type: Musical Scores and Accompanying Text
— Instrument: Voice (Monophonic)
For questions or comments, please complete the contact form here.
Reviews
Guido of Arezzo — Top Music Theorist
Music from the good old days.
Reviewed in Italy on September 5th, 1032.
“I wish I would have had this hymnal when I was appointed teacher at the cathedral school in Arezzo. It would have made my job a lot easier — hymns for the whole year, melodies just like I remember them, and music beautifully laid out on each page using the staff notation that I created. My only complaint is that Ut queant laxis was not included in the collection.”
Héloïse — Top Medieval Scholar
Five Stars!
Reviewed in France on April 21st, 1157.
“Yay! O quanta qualia — that's one of my favorite hymns! I'm glad to see it here. I know my husband was a little outspoken at times, but he really was a great hymn writer. If only I would have made more of an effort to preserve his music. … Like, bury it in the ground or save it to a USB or something.”
J. S. Bach — Top Pretty Good Composer
Where is my music?
Reviewed in Germany on July 28th, 1745.
“I can't find a single piece written by me in this hymnal. My music is in every hymnal; why should this one be any different? I just don't understand what's going on here.”