Thursday 3 September 2009

Latin and the vernacular

The primacy of Latin does not, of course, exclude appropriate use of the vernacular.

One of my favourite pieces of music is the wonderful piece by Thomas Tallis entitled "If Ye Love Me".


"If ye love Me, keep My commandments and I will pray the Father and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may 'bide with you forever, e'en the spir't of truth."


Marvellous words!

Here it is performed by the Cambridge Singers directed by John Rutter:











Thomas Tallis

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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Cambridge produced heretics. Oxford burnt them. :)

Tribunus said...

Good old Ollie! Full of love and charity for his fellow man...

Tribunus said...

Or didn't you know that Tallis was a Roman Catholic....?

Anita Moore said...

Take that, Oregon "Catholic" Press!

I am proud to say that this piece is part of the Cathedral Choir's repertoire at St. John's Cathedral, Boise, Idaho, and that it's one of my favorites, and I love singing it. (Our arrangement is slightly different, though: I think it must have been our director who revised the words slightly so that "Spirit" wouldn't be one syllable.)

Jackie Parkes MJ said...

Very informative blog..will link..