Benedictus

Posted on by stmaggiep

“Benedictus” is a Latin word which translates literally to “blessed”. Very often in communion settings – indeed in the one we use at St Margaret’s – the Benedictus is bundled up with the “Sanctus” (see last month’s magazine), which is Latin for “holy”. Originally, they were separate paragraphs in the eucharist, and therefore treated separately by composers.

There are just two short sentences to the Benedictus, and the words are :

Benedictus qui venit in nominee Domini. Osanna in excelsis. This means “blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest”.

The combined Sanctus and Benedictus that we use in our sung services at St Margaret’s is available for you to listen to here: https://stmargaretsprestwich.com/music-at-st-margarets/

Elsewhere, there are many arrangements and settings, some fully orchestrated, some using folk tunes, some ancient, some contemporary. As I mentioned above, not all mass settings include a separate Sanctus (especially if it’s a Missa Brevis, as it would lengthen the service), but here are a few examples:

  • The Armed Man: a mass for peace (Karl Jenkins) I have been fortunate enough to sing this a number of times with the Manchester Chorale in the Bridgewater Hall, under the baton of the composer himself. This movement features a sublime cello solo at the beginning, which is picked up and developed by the voices. There are no videos of these live performances, but here is the London Philharmonic Orchestra with the National Youth Choir of Great Britain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_ggAE91YFs
  • Five-part Mass (William Byrd) In this recording by the Tallis Scholars the Sanctus takes the first 2:21, and then runs into the Benedictus – which I conducted two years ago in London. My daughter was in the choir – and she conducted the Sanctus ahead of me. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RO5ClZu52Dc
  • Mass in Blue (Will Todd) Beginning with a jazzy solo ‘walking bass’, this is one of my favourite movements of this mass setting. The four voice parts sing totally different syncopated melodies that blend perfectly, building in energy to sing in unison for the second sentence. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qqfpyFGEFQ
  • Missa Brevis (Jonathan Dove) In this setting the Sanctus and Benedictus are combined into one movement: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gG49acn5m8
  • Jazz Mass (Don Gillthorpe) Here is the composer conducting this combined Sanctus and Benedictus. If you look hard, you’ll see me in the massed Sing for Pleasure choir in Cambridge. The soloists are Don’s fellow SfP tutors, Ula Weber and Stuart Overington. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wA9LrNxWRGk
  • Missa Brevis in D (Mozart) In this mass setting, the entire first sentence is sung by a quartet of soloists. The choir only joins in for the second sentence, which is a recap of the Sanctus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTl1NDGSxiQ
  • Little Organ Mass (Haydn) Arguably, this movement is a bit of an indulgence, as it contains a lengthy organ solo – which to be fair is how the mass setting got its nickname – that goes on for almost 6 minutes! A solo voice then sings the first sentence, with the choir joining in at the end, for the second sentence, which is a recap of the Sanctus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KydhRsSZVH0
  • Taizé chants: unsurprisingly, there are many of these to choose from. Here are a few:

This series of articles on mass settings will conclude next month with the Agnus Dei.

Carol P

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