Quatre motets pour le temps de Noël

Song Cycle by Francis Poulenc (1899 - 1963)

Translated to:

German (Deutsch) — Vier Motetten für die Weihnachtszeit (Bertram Kottmann)
English — Four motets for Christmastime (Laura Prichard)

1. O magnum mysterium
 (Sung text)

Language: Latin 
O magnum mysterium
et admirabile sacramentum
ut animalia viderent Dominum natum
jacentem in praesepio.
Beata Virgo cujus viscera 
meruerunt portare Dominum Christum.

Text Authorship:

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • DUT Dutch (Nederlands) (Lau Kanen) , "O groot mysterie", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • DUT Dutch (Nederlands) (Ton Rooijmans) , "O, groot mysterie", copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Joelle Wallach) , "O great mystery", copyright ©, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Laura Prichard) , "O great mystery", copyright © 2021, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FIN Finnish (Suomi) (Erkki Pullinen) , copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Marianne Zanettin) , copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "O großes Mysterium", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ITA Italian (Italiano) (Paolo Montanari) , "O grande mistero", copyright © 2007, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

2. Quem vidistis pastores
 (Sung text)

Language: Latin 
Quem vidistis pastores dicite:
annuntiate pro nobis in terris quis apparuit.
Natum vidimus, 
et choros Angelorum collaudantes Dominum.
Dicite quidnam vidistis,
et annuntiate Christi nativitatem.

Text Authorship:

  • by Anonymous / Unidentified Author

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • ENG English (Laura Prichard) , "Whom did you see, shepherds, speak", copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FIN Finnish (Suomi) (Erkki Pullinen) , copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Was habt ihr gesehen, Hirten?", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

3. Videntes stellam
 (Sung text)

Language: Latin 
Videntes stellam Magi 
gavisi sunt gaudio magno: 
et intrantes domum 
obtulerunt Domino aurum, 
thus et myrrham.

Text Authorship:

  • by Anonymous / Unidentified Author

Go to the general single-text view

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • ENG English (Laura Prichard) , "Upon seeing the star", copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FIN Finnish (Suomi) (Erkki Pullinen) , copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Als sie den Stern erblickten", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

4. Hodie Christus natus est
 (Sung text)

Language: Latin 
Hodie Christus natus est
Hodie Salvator apparuit,
Hodie in terra canunt angeli,
Laetantur archangeli,
Hodie exultant justi, dicentes:
Gloria in excelsis Deo,
Et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntatis.

Text Authorship:

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Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • DUT Dutch (Nederlands) (Lau Kanen) , "Vandaag is Christus geboren", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Laura Prichard) , copyright © 2021, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FIN Finnish (Suomi) (Erkki Pullinen) , copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Aujourd'hui le Christ est né", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , "Heute ist Christus geboren", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Note: in the Gabrieli version, "alleluia" is added at the end of lines 1,2,4, and 7; in the Sweelinck version, "alleluia" is added at the end of line 2, and "Noe!" is added at the end of lines 1 and 4.
Researcher for this page: Thomas Jaenicke
Total word count: 97