Ut Phoebi radiis soror obvia sidera luna;
Ut regis Salomon sapientis nomine cunctos;
Ut remi ponthum quaerentum velleris aurum;
Ut remi faber instar habens super aera pennas;
Ut remi fas solvaces traducere merces;
Ut remi fas sola Petri currere prora;
Sic super omne quod est regnas, o Virgo Maria.

Latius in numerum canit id quoque caelica turba
Lasso lege ferens eterna munera mundo:
La sol fa ta mina clara praelustris in umbra,
La sol fa mi ta na de Matre recentior ortus
La sol fa mi re ta quidem na non violata,
La sol fa mi re ut rore ta na Gedeon quo.
Rex, o Christe Jesu, nostri Deus, alte memento.

Animata flos clara praelustris in umbra,
A lana (ul)tima flos de Matre recentior ortus
A lana te rima flos quidem non violata,
A lana te (p)rima flos ut rore Gedeon quo

Like Phoebus' sister the moon with her light reigns over the stars opposing her;
Like Solomon, over all others for the title of wise king;
Like the oars of those seeking the gold of the Fleece, over the sea;
Like the inventor of wings having the size of an oar, over the air;
As it is right for oared ships to carry saleable goods;
As it is right that Peter's ship should run alone under oar,
So you, o Virgin Mary, rule over everything that there is.

Far and wide the heavenly throng sing this also in great numbers,
As it brings eternal gifts to his world, tired from the Law,
(la la la) smooth and bright gifts, shining out in the dark;
(la la la) more recently born of the Mother,
(la la la) she who remains indeed unblemished,
(la la la) like Gideon with the dew,
O king Jesus Christ, remember us on high, our God.

Translator's notes: The lines of the poem gradually sound out the tonic sol-fa; note that in Continental Europe this goes ut-re-mi, not do-re-mi (as in the Sound of Music!). In the second verse the process is reversed, but the poet (a different poet?) gives up after 2 lines and his lines become a mix of sol-fa, Latin, and nonsense syllables.

If the changes suggested to the left are applied, this is the new translation of lines 3-6 of stanza 2:

Bright and animated (like) a flower which shines out in the dark,
A flower from the Mother, grown freshly from the last fleece,
A flower from a fleece you are, a fleece indeed unblemished by any tear,
A flower from the first fleece you are, (wetted) like Gideon's with the dew...

Stanza 1, line 3 refers to Jason and the Argonauts, seeking the Golden Fleece over the Black Sea
Stanza 1, line 4 refers to Daedalus, who invented wings to escape Crete; his son Icarus flew too near the sun and fell to his death
Stanza 1, line 6: Perhaps a reference to St Peter's ship being driven by a storm without sail for two weeks before wrecking on Malta: Acts 27 & 28
Stanza 2, line 6: Gideon sought God's direction with a fleece which was to be covered in dew (or not) - see Judges 6:36-40

Text Authorship:

• Translation from Latin to English copyright © 2012 by David Wyatt, (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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Based on:

• a text in Latin by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist
  • Go to the text page.

 

This text was added to the website: 2012-10-25
Line count: 14
Word count: 158