Chants of the Vatican Graduale - MusicaSacra

374 St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Confessor
The first phrase of the corpus ascends majestically when telling of
the blessing which surpasses all understanding. The distribution of notes
over benedictionibus is striking. Principal as well as secondary accents
have each only one note, whereas in each case the syllable following has
2, 5, and 5 notes respectively. The motive over (praeve)-nisti eum is repeated
in practically the same form over pretioso and in accordantly extended
form over -bus dulcedinis and ejus coronam. Over -(tu)-dinem in
the verse, this motive assumes the form fdec c. In place of the descending
fourth g-d, posuisti and Vitam have the fourth a-e. The melody over
posuisti repeats itself over Idpide. The last three groups of neums over
-(6)-so form the jubilus in the typical Alleluia of the fourth mode which
is sung, for example, on the third Sunday of Advent. The pressus, however,
is missing here before the last note.
The high c over vitam should be sustained rather than abbreviated.
The tempo is gradually accelerated; the last three notes, however, are
retarded. The Alleluia of the Tuesday after Easter greets the risen Saviour
(Surrexit) with the same melisma. The melody over et tribuisti ei
recurs over dierum in saeculum. An attempt at tone-painting reveals
itself in the retarded notes over (longi)-tudinem. The Gradual of the
twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost, and with minor variations the
Alleluia-verse of the fourth Sunday of Advent and the twentieth Sunday
after Pentecost, close with the melody over saeculum. This verse is
written in the first mode, which also prevails in the corpus. The final
comes somewhat as a surprise.
TRACT (Ps. Ill: 1-3)
l.Beatus vir, qui timet Dominum: 1. Blessed is the man that feareth
t in mandatis ejus cupit nimis. the Lord: f he shall delight exceed-
2. Potens in terra erit semen ejus: ingly in his commandments. 2. His
generatio rectorum benedicetur. 3. seed shall be mighty upon earth:
Gloria et divitiae in domo ejus: et the generation of the righteous shall
justitia ejus manet in saeculum be blessed. 3. Glory and wealth shall
saeculi. be in his house: and his justice remaineth
forever and ever.
In its second half each verse has the same formula which, descending
to the tonic, sets in one syllable before the word-accent: -Us ejus,
rec-tdrum, -a ejus. The first and second verse have the same final cadence,
a change from 6 to 6b being introduced. The melodies of the second and
third verse are identical up to the florid close over saeculum saeculi.
Happy St. Joseph, who in the fear of the Lord, even at the cost of
great sacrifice, promptly and joyfully carried out every commandment