CONCERTS

77TH SEASON OF

national gallery of art | october 21, 2018
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PROGRAM

Henry Purcell

O dive custos — An elegy on the death of Queen Mary 

Henry Purcell

Funeral Sentences

Man that is born of a woman 

In the midst of life 

Thou knowest, Lord

Vox Luminis 

Twelve singers and continuo (organ and viola da gamba) 

October 21, 2018 | 3:30

West Building, West Garden Court

Martin Luther (1483 – 1546)

Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin (Chorale, verses 1 & 4) 

Heinrich Schütz (1585 – 1672)

Musikalische Exequien 

Concert in Form einer teutschen Begräbnis-Missa, SWV 279 

Motette: Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe, SWV 280 

Canticum B. Simeonis: Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener in Friede fahren —

Selig sind die Toten, SWV 281

Intermission

Henry Purcell (1659 – 1695)

Hear my Prayer, O Lord 

Music for the Funeral of Queen Elizabeth, 21 February 1695 

Thomas Morley (1557 / 1558 – 1602)

The First Dirge Anthem

I am the resurrection and the life 

I know that my Redeemer liveth 

We brought nothing into this world 

The Second Dirge Anthem 

Man that is born of a woman 

In the midst of life 

Thou knowest, Lord 

The Third Dirge Anthem 

I heard a voice from heaven 
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THE ENSEMBLE Currently, the ensemble is recording the Dixit Dominus by Handel and the 

Magnificat by J. S. Bach. Vox Luminis also works with other renowned ensembles and 

orchestras, including the Franco-Canadian ensemble Masques and the Freiburger 

Barockorchester.

Sopranos

Zsuzsi Tóth

Stefanie True

Caroline Weynants

Victoria Cassano

Altos

Barnabas Hegyi

Jan Kullmann

Tenors

Robert Buckland

Philippe Froeliger

Olivier Berten

David Lee

Basses

Sebastian Myrus

Lionel Meunier, artistic director

Organ

Anthony Romaniuk

Viola da Gamba

Ricardo Rodriguez Miranda

One project, one objective, one path: introduce today’s audiences to early vocal music, 

passionately convey its quintessence, and touch the light through the voice. Vox Luminis.

Vox Luminis is a Belgian early music ensemble created in 2004 by its artistic director 

Lionel Meunier. Today, the ensemble performs over sixty concerts a year, appearing on 

stages in Belgium, across Europe, and around the world.

The size and composition of the group depends on the repertoire being performed, 

but the core soloists — mostly from the Royal Conservatory of The Hague — are joined 

by a continuo and additional instrumental performers. Its repertoire is essentially Italian, 

English, and German and spans from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century.

Since its inception, the ensemble has been defined by its unity and how it engages 

its audiences through the personality of each timbre and the color and uniformity of 

the voices. Its music goes beyond a fixed repertoire by communicating the group’s 

passion for early music and love for the audience.

Vox Luminis has performed at many international festivals and in leading 

concert halls. It has also held many residencies for performing and perfecting its 

work, including at the Abbey of Sainte-Marie-des-Dames in France, the Centre for 

Fine Arts in Brussels, the Concertgebouw in Bruges, the Festival of Early Music in 

Utrecht, the Musique et Mémoire Festival in France, and the Aldeburgh Festival in 

England, founded by Benjamin Britten.

Most recently, the ensemble participated in major international events, including 

concerts at the Berlin and Köln Philharmonic Orchestras, Arnstadt’s Bachkirche, 

the Thüringer Bachwochen, and the Bachfest Leipzig. The season also included debuts 

in the grand Salle Henry Leboeuf in Brussels to inaugurate the beginning of a fiveyear residency. 
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The composition was intended for an ensemble of six to eight voices plus ripieno 

singers, with basso continuo accompaniment provided by the organ and a violone 

(in this case a bass string instrument). Schütz’s work is divided into three parts that 

correspond to the three sections of the liturgy. We know that the funeral procession 

was accompanied at the start of Luther’s chorale Mit Fried und Freud, this being sung 

by all present. 

The word “concert” was much employed by Schütz and his contemporaries and 

was clearly derived from the term “concerto,” which was used by seventeenth-century 

Italian composers (above all by Monteverdi in his Vespers and other works) to describe 

sacred compositions for solo voices accompanied by basso continuo. Schütz developed 

this style of composition in his two volumes of Kleine geistliche Konzerte and in other 

works in the difficult period of the Thirty Years’ War. The composer here uses a 

systematic alternation of sections intended for solo voices (ranging between one and 

six) with sections for six-part Capella (chorus), recommending that at certain points 

the voices be doubled. 

This first section is by far the longest of the three and is made up of two sections 

that Schütz (following Reuss) would have associated with two sections of the Deutsche 

Messe: the Kyrie and the Gloria. The texts used here are not those of the Mass as used 

by Lutherans, but a series of scriptural texts thematically related. The two sections are 

easily recognizable, each one being introduced with a plainsong incipit. It is not possible 

to mistake the origins of the Kyrie: the verses sung by the Capella are closely related 

to those of the Kyrie proper, with invocations to the three members of the Holy Trinity. 

“Lord God the Father who art in heaven, have mercy on us  / Jesus Christ, Son of God, 

have mercy on us  /  Lord God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us.” This triple invocation by 

the Capella is also linked to the Latin Kyrie, in that the same music is used for the first 

and also for the third invocation. 

The relationship of the Gloria to the original Mass text is less straightforward: here 

Schütz sets a succession of texts that are not only intended to glorify God, but also to 

present a call for hope and redemption for the deceased. The settings of the verses for 

the solo voices are highly active in character, making frequent use of imitation between 

the vocal parts. This contrasts with the settings of the verses intended for the Capella, 

which are largely homophonic (comprised of block chords), although in the Gloria 

Schütz provides music for verses sung by the larger ensemble that are much more 

varied in style, also employing imitation and setting passages antiphonally between the 

upper and lower voices. Among the texts chosen by Reuss is one of the verses of the 

chorale Mit Fried und Freud; Schütz employs Luther’s chorale melody in imitative basis. 

In contrast to his contemporaries and colleagues Schein, Scheidt, and Praetorius, such a 

practice is extremely rare in Schütz’s work. 

Martin Luther — Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin

“With peace and joy I go on my way, in accordance with God’s will.” Thus opens Martin 

Luther’s German paraphrase of the “Nunc Dimittis,” the canticle sung by the aged 

Simeon on witnessing the presentation of the infant Christ in the Temple. Luther’s 

setting, Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin, was published in the first Lutheran hymnal, 

Eyn geystlich Gesangk Buchleyn (Wittenberg, 1524), and later included in the Christliche 

Geseng zum Begrebniss (1542), a collection of chants and chorales for Lutheran funerals. 

Combined with a simple yet haunting melody reminiscent of Gregorian chants, Luther’s 

words capture the serenity of the believer whose faith in Christ is firm and for whom 

death is nothing to be feared. 

One of the seminal features of the Lutheran Reformation was its abandonment 

of purgatory — the middle estate between heaven and hell. Luther taught that human 

life was akin to a pilgrimage and that good works did not guarantee entry to heaven; 

man could attain salvation through faith alone. Luther’s doctrine exerted significant 

influence on Anglican theology from the mid-sixteenth century on, with both churches 

upholding the importance of living a life grounded in faith, in order to be resurrected 

with Christ on the day of judgment. For early Protestants, death was as important as 

birth, for it was the point at which a person discovered his or her fate. The strength 

of this belief is articulated by the texts chosen for settings of seventeenth-century 

funeral music, which provoked profound artistic responses from German and English 

composers alike. 

Heinrich Schütz — Musicalische Exequien 

Heinrich Schütz’s Musicalische Exequien was commissioned for the funeral of Prince 

Heinrich Posthumus von Reuss. Under Reuss’s jurisdiction, the town of Gera had been 

virtually sheltered from almost all conflict during the Thirty Years’ War (1618 – 1648). 

Reuss was considered a skilled diplomat. A deeply religious man, he planned every detail 

of his own funeral, including what texts should be read. He had ordered a copper coffin, 

the surfaces of which were to be painted with texts he had chosen. This sarcophagus 

was rediscovered in Gera in 1995. Schütz and Reuss had known each other for many 

years, as Reuss had employed Schütz to reorganize the musical affairs of the court, 

town, and school in 1617. Reuss died in early December 1635 and his funeral was held 

two months later. Schütz had little time to compose this score, unless, as we assume, 

the prince had commissioned the work before his death. 

PROGRAM NOTES
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The first anthem was intended to be sung at the churchyard entrance, before 

the procession moved into the church or towards the grave. The second was to be 

sung at the graveside, and the third as the earth was cast onto the coffin. Morley’s 

music beautifully conveys the sense of grief at the inevitability of death mingled with 

the hope of the resurrection — the very apposition of light and shadow. 

Henry Purcell — O dive custos — An elegy on the death of Queen Mary 

Despite the unclear circumstances surrounding Purcell’s Funeral Sentences, we know 

that he did compose at least one tribute in memory of Queen Mary. In May 1695, Henry 

Playford published Three Elegies upon the Much Lamented Loss of Our Late Most 

Gracious Queen Mary. The texts were by a “Mr Herbert,” and the print included settings 

by both Purcell and his teacher John Blow. Taken from the collection, Purcell’s O dive 

custos is a florid, Italianate duet, invoking the rivers of both Oxford and Cambridge in 

grief for Mary.

Even though Schütz, Morley, and Purcell came from different doctrinal backgrounds and were professionally active at opposite ends of the seventeenth century, 

their music unites them. Each composer demonstrates intensely focused attention 

to his texts and displays a unique ability to capture and distill the effects latent in the 

scriptural and liturgical texts. Together, the three exemplify the increasing power music 

acquired from the Renaissance period to the Baroque, which allowed music to function 

as a means of connection between individuals, as well as a means for personal meditation on the powerful emotions associated with grief and loss.

Program notes by Jérôme Lejeune and David Lee 

Henry Purcell — Funeral Sentences and Hear my Prayer, O Lord 

While Schütz was at the forefront of German music in the seventeenth century, Henry 

Purcell’s output marks the high point of the Anglican tradition following the English Civil 

War (1642 – 1651) and the restoration of the monarchy in 1660. As one of the organists 

of the Chapel Royal, Purcell contributed music for several royal funerals. According to 

recent research, however, it appears that the Funeral Sentences composed by Purcell — 

formally believed to be part of the funeral music for Queen Mary — may have been 

composed for another occasion. Purcell set three of the Anglican funeral sentences — 

Man that is born of a woman, In the midst of life, and Thou knowest, Lord (from the 

1660 Book of Common Prayer and the Bible, Job 14:1-2) — to be spoken or sung at the 

graveside. Purcell’s funeral music is therefore incomplete, and he does not seem to 

have produced any other settings of the remaining sentences. 

These three pieces and the anthem Hear my Prayer for eight voices are thought 

to date from the same period. Two main types of anthem had been in use in England 

from the beginning of the seventeenth century: the so-called full anthem and the 

verse anthem. The full anthem was for vocal ensemble, with organ (and sometimes 

wind instruments or viols) doubling the vocal lines and, by Purcell’s time, providing 

basso continuo. In contrast, the verse anthem alternated polyphonic passages with 

sections for one or more solo voices accompanied by the organ or instruments. 

Following the Restoration and the increasing influence of French music on the Chapel 

Royal composers, this accompaniment was performed by violins and violas, supported 

by the basso continuo. As an inheritor of the great English polyphonic tradition, Purcell 

brought together the two styles in a perfect synthesis, with his unique talent for using 

chromatic harmonies to render the intensity of emotion in the texts. 

Music for the Funeral of Queen Elizabeth — 21 February 1695 

Thomas Morley — Three Dirge Anthems 

Much of the literature and music composed during the later years of Queen Elizabeth I’s 

reign (1558 – 1603) makes reference to “melancholia”— one of the four humors that 

had been believed to regulate the human body by the ancient Greeks. Thought to have 

corresponded with the levels of black bile in the body, melancholy was associated with 

autumn. It found expression in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, in the poetry of John Donne, 

and in music. For the Elizabethans, musing on death and grief was seen as one of the 

marks of a profound and sincere artist. 

When Queen Elizabeth died in 1603, England entered a period of intense mourning. 

Thomas Morley’s setting of the Funeral Sentences was sung at her funeral (although 

Morley had in fact died the previous year). The Three Dirge Anthems set the words 

appointed in the Book of Common Prayer to be read at the burial service. In its austere 

beauty, the language of this liturgy promises to endure. Morley’s setting was to prove 

popular, being performed at many subsequent state funerals and used as a model for 

future settings by composers, notably William Croft. 
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TRANSLATIONS

Martin Luther, Mit Fried und Freud 

ich fahr dahin 

Choral, Strophe 1 & 4 

Mit Fried und Freud ich fahr dahin 

In Gottes Wille. 

Getrost ist mir mein Herz und Sinn, 

Sanft und stille. 

Wie Gott mir verheißen hat, 

Der Tod ist mein Schlaf worden. 

Er ist das Heil und seelge Licht 

Für die Heiden, 

Zu erleuchten, die dich kennen nicht, 

Und zu weiden. 

Es ist deins Volks Israel 

Der Preis, Ehr, Freud, und Wonne. 

Heinrich Schütz, Musicalische Exequien

I. Concert in Form einer teutschen 

Begräbnis-Missa, SWV 279 

Nacket bin ich von Mutterleibe kommen 

1. Intonatio 

Nacket bin ich von Mutterleibe kommen. 

2. Soli 

Nacket werde ich wiederum dahinfahren. Der 

Herr hat‘s gegeben, der Herr hat‘s genommen, 

der Name des Herren sei gelobet. 

3. Cappella 

Herr Gott Vater im Himmel, erbarm dich über 

uns. 

4. Soli 

Christus ist mein Leben, Sterben ist mein 

Gewinn. Siehe, das ist Gottes Lamm, das der 

Welt Sünde tragt. 

5. Cappella 

Jesu Christe, Gottes Sohn, erbarm dich über uns. 

Martin Luther, With peace and joy 

I now depart 

Chorale, verses 1 & 4

With peace and joy I now depart 

according to God’s will. 

My heart and mind are comforted, 

peaceful and calm. 

As God promised me 

death has become my sleep. 

He is salvation and a blessed light 

unto the Gentiles, 

to enlighten those who do not know you, 

and to give them pasture. 

For your people Israel He is 

their reward, honor, joy, and delight. 

Heinrich Schütz, Musicalische Exequien 

I. Concert in the form of a German 

burial mass, SWV 279 

Naked came I from my mother’s womb 

1. Intonation 

Naked came I from my mother’s womb. 

2. Soli 

Naked shall I return thither. The Lord hath given 

and the Lord hath taken away. Blessed be the 

name of the Lord. 

3. Cappella 

Lord God, Father in Heaven, have mercy upon 

us. 

4. Soli 

Christ is my life and to die is to gain. Behold the 

Lamb of God who beareth the sins of the world. 

5. Cappella 

Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon us. 

6. Soli 

Leben wir, so leben wir dem Herren. Sterben

wir, so sterben wir dem Herren, darum wir 

leben oder sterben, so sind wir des Herren. 

7. Cappella 

Herr Gott, heiliger Geist, erbarm dich über uns. 

8. Intonatio 

Also hat Gott die Welt geliebt, daß er seinen 

eingebornen Sohn gab. 

9. Soli 

Auf daß alle, die an ihn gläuben, nicht verloren 

werden, sondern das ewige Leben haben. 

10. Cappella 

Er sprach zu seinem lieben Sohn: die Zeit ist hie 

zu erbarmen, fahr hin, mein‘s Herzens werte Kron 

und hilf ihn aus der Sünden Not, erwürg für sie 

den bittern Tod und laß sie mit dir leben. 

11. Soli 

Das Blut Jesu Christi, des Sohnes Gottes, machet 

uns rein von allen Sünden. 

12. Cappella 

Durch ihn ist uns vergeben die Sünd, geschenkt 

das Leben, im Himmel soll‘n wir haben, O Gott, 

wie große Gaben. 

13. Soli 

Unser Wandel ist im Himmel, von dannen wir 

auch warten des Heilandes Jesu Christi, des 

Herren, welcher unsern nichtigen Leib verklären 

wird, daß er ähnlich werde seinem verklärten 

Leibe. 

14. Cappella 

Es ist allhier ein Jammertal, Angst, Not und 

Trübsal überall, des Bleibens ist ein kleine Zeit, 

voller Mühseligkeit, und wer‘s bedenkt, ist immer 

im Streit. 

6. Soli 

If we 1ive, we 1ive unto the Lord; if we die, we die 

unto the Lord: whether we live, therefore, or die, 

we are unto the Lord. 

7. Cappella 

Lord God, Holy Ghost, have mercy upon us. 

8. Intonation 

God so loved the world that he gave his only 

begotten Son.

9. Soli 

That whosoever believeth in him should not 

perish but have everlasting life.

10. Cappella 

He spake to his beloved Son: the time to be 

merciful has come; go forth, my heart’s precious 

crown and redeem them from the dangers of sin; 

destroy for them bitter death and let them abide 

with thee. 

11. Soli 

The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanseth 

us from all sin. 

12. Cappella 

Through him our sins are forgiven, life is restored 

to us. What happy retribution shall be ours, O 

God, in Heaven! 

13. Soli 

Our future lieth in Heaven, where we shall await 

our Savior, Jesus Christ, who will transfigure 

our corruptible bodies, that they may be like his 

transfigured body. 

14. Cappella 

This life is but a vale of tears: fear, misery, and 

affliction everywhere. Our brief stay upon this 

earth is but woe, and whosoever thinketh on it is 

in constant strife. 
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15. Soli 

Wenn eure Sünde gleich blutrot wäre, so soll sie 

doch schneeweiß werden. Wenn sie gleich ist wie 

rosinfarb, soll sie doch wie Wolle werden. 

16. Cappella 

Sein Wort, sein Tauf, sein Nachtmahl dient wider 

allen Unfall, der Heilge Geist im Glauben lehrt 

uns darauf vertrauen. 

17. Soli 

Gehe hin, mein Volk, in eine Kammer und 

schleuß die Tür nach dir zu, verbirge dich einen 

kleinen Augenblick, bis der Zorn vorrübergehe. 

18. Soli 

Der Gerechten Seelen sind in Gottes Hand und 

keine Qual rühret sie an, aber sie sind in Frieden. 

19. Soli 

Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe, so frage ich nichts 

nach Himmel und Erden. 

20. Soli 

Wenn mir gleich Leib und Seele verschmacht, so 

bist du Gott allzeit meines Herzens Trost und 

mein Teil. 

21. Cappella 

Er ist das Heil und selig Licht für die Heiden, zu 

erleuchten, die dich kennen nicht und zu weiden. 

Er ist seines Volkes Israel der Preis, Ehr, Freud 

und Wonne. 

22. Soli 

Unser Leben währet siebenzig Jahr, und wenn‘s 

hoch kommt, so sind‘s achtzig Jahr, und wenn es 

köstlich gewesen ist, so ist es Müh und Arbeit 

gewesen. 

23. Cappella 

Ach, wie elend ist unser Zeit allhier auf dieser 

Erden, gar bald der Mensch darniederleit, wir 

müssen alle sterben, allhier in diesem Jammertal, 

auch wenn dirs wohl gelinget. 

15. Soli 

Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall become 

as white as snow. Though they be red like crimson, 

they shall become as white as purest wool. 

16. Cappella 

His Word, his Baptism, his Communion serve 

against all misfortune; belief in the Holy Ghost 

teacheth us to set our trust therein. 

17. Soli 

Go hence my people into a chamber and bolt the 

door behind you; hide yourselves for a brief while 

until the wrath hath passed. 

18. Soli 

The souls of the righteous are in God’s hand and 

no torment shall touch them, but they are in peace. 

19. Soli 

Lord, if I have none but thee, so shall I ask 

nothing of Heaven or Earth. 

20. Soli 

And if my body and my soul should perish, yet 

thou art God everlasting, my heart’s comfort and 

my portion. 

21. Cappella 

He is the Salvation and the Blessed Light unto 

the Gentiles, to enlighten them who know thee 

not and delight not in thee. He is the praise, the 

honor, the joy, and the delight of his people Israel. 

22. Soli 

The duration of our lives is of threescore years 

and ten, though some men be so strong that they 

come to fourscore years, and though it be their 

delight, yet is it but labor and sorrow.

23. Cappella 

O how wretched is our time upon this earth; man 

is soon overthrown and we all must die. Here in 

this vale of tears all is but toil and labor, though 

ye be prosperous. 

24. Soli 

Ich weiß, daß mein Erlöser lebt, und er wird mich 

hernach aus der Erden auferwecken, und werde 

darnach mit dieser meiner Haut umgeben werden, 

und werde in meinem Fleisch Gott sehen. 

25. Cappella 

Weil du vom Tod erstanden bist, werd ich im 

Grab nicht bleiben, mein höchster Trost dein 

Auffahrt ist, Todsfurcht kannst du vertreiben, 

denn wo du bist, da komm ich hin, daß ich 

stets bei dir leb und bin, drum fahr ich hin mit 

Freuden. 

26. Soli 

Herr, ich lasse dich nicht, du segnest mich denn. 

27. Cappella 

Er sprach zu mir: halt dich an mich, es soll dir itzt 

gelingen, ich geb mich selber ganz für dich, da will 

ich für dich ringen, den Tod verschlingt das Leben 

mein, da bist du selig worden. 

II. Motette: Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe, 

SWV 280 

Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe, so frage ich nichts 

nach Himmel und Erden. Wenn mir gleich Leib 

und Seele verschmacht, so bist du doch, Gott, 

allezeit meines Herzens Trost, und mein Teil. 

III. Canticum B. Simeonis: Herr, nun lässest 

du deinen Diener in Frieden fahren — Selig 

sind die Toten, SWV 281 

Intonatio 

Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener 

Cappella 

In Friede fahren, wie du gesagt hast. Denn meine 

Augen haben deinen Heiland gesehen, welchen 

du bereitet hast für allen Völkern, ein Licht, zu 

erleuchten die Heiden und zum Preis deines 

Volks Israel. 

24. Soli 

I know that my Redeemer liveth. Hereafter shall 

he awaken me from out of the earth, then, in this 

my skin and in my flesh shall I see God. 

25. Cappella 

Since thou hast risen from the dead, I shall not 

tarry in the grave. Thine Ascension is my greatest 

comfort. Thou canst drive out the fear of death, 

for where thou art there shall I be also, that I may 

be with thee and live forever, therefore I depart 

in joy. 

26. Soli 

Lord, I shall not forsake thee, for thou wilt bless me. 

27. Cappella 

He spake unto me: Cleave to me and thou shalt 

now accomplish it; I give myself wholly to thee 

and for thee shall I struggle. Death will devour 

my life: thou shalt be blessed. 

II. Lord, if I have none but thee, 

SWV 280 

Lord, if I have none but thee, I shall ask nothing 

of Heaven or Earth; and if my body and my soul 

should perish, yet thou art God everlasting, my 

heart’s comfort and my portion. 

III. Lord, now lettest thou thy 

servant depart — Blessed are the dead, 

SWV 281 

Intonation 

Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart. 

Cappella 

In peace, according to thy word. For mine eyes 

have seen thy salvation which thou hast prepared 

before the face of all people; a light to lighten the 

Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel. 
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Seraphim 1 et 2, Beata anima 

Selig sind die Toten, die in dem Herren sterben. 

Sie ruhen von ihrer Arbeit und ihre Werke folgen 

ihnen nach. Sie sind in der Hand des Herren und 

keine Qual rührt sie. Selig sind die Toten, die in 

dem Herren sterben. 

Henry Purcell, Hear my Prayer, O Lord 

Hear my prayer, O Lord, 

And let my crying come unto thee! 

Music for the Funeral of Queen Elizabeth, 

21 February 1695 

Thomas Morley, Three Dirge Anthems 

The First Dirge Anthem 

I am the resurrection and the life, saith the 

Lord: he that believeth in me, though he were 

dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth 

and believeth in me shall never die.

I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he 

shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. 

And though after my skin worms destroy this 

body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: whom 

I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall 

behold, and not another. 

We brought nothing into this world, and it is 

certain we can carry nothing out. The Lord 

gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed 

be the name of the Lord. 

The Second Dirge Anthem 

Man that is born of a woman hath but a short 

time to live, and is full of misery. He cometh up, 

and is cut down, like a flower; he fleeth as it were 

a shadow, and never continueth in one stay. 

In the midst of life we are in death: of whom 

may we seek for succor, but of thee, O Lord, 

who for our sins art justly displeased? Yet, O 

Lord God most holy, O Lord most mighty, O 

holy and most merciful Savior, deliver us not 

into the bitter pains of eternal death. 

Seraphim 1 et 2, Beata anima 

Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord, they 

may rest from their labors; and their works do 

follow them. They are in the hand of God and 

there shall no torment touch them. Blessed are 

the dead which die in the Lord. 

Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our 

hearts; shut not thy merciful ears to our 

prayer; but spare us, Lord most holy, O God 

most mighty, O holy and merciful Savior, 

thou most worthy Judge eternal, suffer us not, 

at our last hour, for any pains of death, to fall 

from thee...

The Third Dirge Anthem 

I heard a voice from heaven, saying unto me, 

Write, from henceforth blessed are the dead 

which die in the Lord: Even so, saith the 

Spirit, for they rest from their labors. Amen.

Henry Purcell — O dive custos — An elegy 

on the death of Queen Mary 

O dive custos auriacae domus 

Et spes labantis certior imperi; 

O rebus adversis vocande, 

O superum decus in secundis! 

Seu te fluentem pronus ad Isida 

In vota fervens Oxonidum chorus, 

Seu te precantur, quos remoti 

Unda lavat properata Cami. 

Descende caelo non ita creditas 

Visurus aedes praesidiis tuis, 

Descende visurus penates 

Caesaris, et penetrale [reere penetrate] sacrum. 

Maria musis flebilis occidit, 

Maria, gentis deliciae breves; 

O flete Mariam! Flete Camoenae! 

O flete, Divae, dea moriente. 

Henry Purcell — Funeral sentences

1. Man that is born of a woman hath but a 

short time to live, and is full of misery. He 

cometh up, and is cut down, like a flower; 

he fleeth as it were a shadow, and never 

continueth in one stay. 

2. In the midst of life we are in death: of 

whom may we seek for succor, but of 

thee, O Lord, who for our sins art justly 

displeased? Yet, O Lord God most holy, O 

Lord most mighty, O holy and most merciful 

Savior, deliver us not into the bitter pains 

of eternal death. 

3. Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our 

hearts; shut not thy merciful ears to our 

prayer; but spare us, Lord most holy, O God 

most mighty, O holy and merciful Savior, 

thou most worthy Judge eternal, suffer us 

not, at our last hour, for any pains of death, 

to fall from thee. 
Upcoming Events of the SeventySeventh Season of The William Nelson 

Cromwell and F. Lammot Belin Concerts

Unless otherwise noted, concerts 

are held in the West Building, West 

Garden Court.

Trio Sefardi

Sound Sketches

October 26, 12:10

West Building Lecture Hall

PUBLIQuartet 

With Ian Rosenbaum

Celebrating Rachel Whiteread

MIND /  THE  /  GAP

October 28, 3:30

Flophouse Crew

Celebrating Gordon Parks: The New Tide,

Early Work 1940 – 1950

November 4, 4:00

East Building Auditorium

Tapestry

Lessons of Darkness: Armistice Day 1918

November 11, 3:30

Nobuntu

Featuring traditional Zimbabwean songs, 

Afro jazz, and gospel

November 18, 3:30

PROJECT Trio

November 23 at 12:10 

Location will be posted 

the day of the concert.

General Information

Admission to the National Gallery of Art 

and all of its programs is free of charge, 

except as noted.

The use of cameras or recording 

equipment during the performance 

is not allowed.

Please be sure that all portable electronic 

devices are turned off.

—

Concerts are made possible in part 

through the generosity of donors to the 

National Gallery of Art through The Circle. 

Reserved seating is available in recognition 

of their support. Please contact the 

development office at (202) 842-6450 or 

circle@nga.gov for more information.

—

The department of music produced 

these program notes. Copyright © 2018 

Board of Trustees, National Gallery of Art, 

Washington

Cover Jan van Kessel, Vanitas Still Life

(detail), c. 1665  / 1670, National Gallery 

of Art, Washington, Gift of Maida and 

George Abrams 

NGA.GOV/MUSIC