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[Adam lay ybounden]1, Bounden in a bond, Four thousand winter Thought he not too long; And all was for an apple, An apple that he took, As clerkës finden Written in their book. Né had [one]2 apple taken been, The apple taken been, Né had never Our Lady A been Heaven's Queen. Blessèd be the time That apple takèn was. Therefore we moun singen: Deo gratias!
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)1 Britten: "Deo gracias! Deo gracias!/ Adam lay ybounden"
2 Ireland: "the"
Authorship
- by Anonymous / Unidentified Author ( 15th century )  [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)
- by Henk Badings (1907 - 1987), "Adam lay ybounden", from Drie geestelijke liederen, no. 3 [ sung text not yet checked against a primary source]
- by (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976), "Deo gracias", op. 28 no. 10 (1942) [treble chorus, solo voices, and harp], from A Ceremony of Carols, no. 10 [ sung text checked 1 time]
- by John (Nicholson) Ireland (1879 - 1962), "Adam lay ybounden", 1956 [SATB chorus a cappella] [ sung text checked 1 time]
- by Peter Warlock (1894 - 1930), "Adam lay ybounden", 1922, published 1923 [ sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) [singable] (Bertram Kottmann) , copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 66
Adam était lié, Lié par un lien, Quatre mille hivers Qu'il n'a pas pensé être trop longs. Et tout vint d'une pomme, Une pomme qu'il prit, Comme les clercs ont trouvé Écrit dans leurs livres. Si jamais cette pomme n'avait pas été prise, Si la pomme n'avait pas été prise, Jamais Notre Dame n'aurait Été reine des cieux. Bénie soit l'heure où cette pomme fut prise, Donc nous pouvons chanter : Grâces soient rendues à Dieu !
About the headline (FAQ)
Translation of title "Deo gracias" = "Grâces soient rendues à Dieu"Authorship
- Translation from English to French (Français) copyright © 2015 by Guy Laffaille, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
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- a text in English by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist
This text was added to the website: 2015-08-16
Line count: 16
Word count: 77