With each composition I listened carefully to try to make out what text was being sung, which was not always easy to do. Surprisingly, it appeared that not one text existed, for I found a number of variations. It appears that two principal variations exist, with the main difference found in the 19th stanza, with completely different versions. In the table below you will find the two basic versions. In the left column the one which is published in Analecta hymnica mediiaevi 1886-1922, 55 vols, A consolidation of the history and texts of hymns of the Catholic Church 500 - 1400, vol. 54, p.312. In my comments on the compositions I will call this the "Analecta-version".
In the right column I give the version that I think is official nowadays in the church. As far as I know this has become official since 1908. I will refer to it as the "Vatican-version". The differences between the two I have emphasized by using italics. Though I have not yet been able to find out with absolute certainty what text of the Stabat Mater is the original one, strong indications can be found. For instance, it is interesting to notice that an alternative that is used in the Vatican version (the second line in stanza 17, Fac me cruce inebriari), cannot be right: this line has a syllable more than the 8 syllables that are characteristic for this poem! Furthermore, the last words of stanzas 19 and 20 (victoriae, gloria) do not rhyme! The oldest reference to the deviating "Vatican" stanza 19 can be found in the 15th century manuscript Laurenziano Ashburnamiano.
An further indication that the "Analecta"-version could be the original poem
can be found in the existence of a counterpart of the Stabat Mater Dolorosa, the Stabat
Mater Speciosa. This poem has been found in a medieval
handwriting, and it is clearly based on the "Analecta"-version.
In a little book from 1957 by P.Maximilianus O.F.M.Cap. (probably a Dutch catholic
clergyman) called De Middelnederlandse Vertalingen van het Stabat Mater the
author describes a study in which he examines seven mediaeval translations of the poem
into Dutch, found in mediaeval manuscripts. During this study he has met a number of
deviating Latin stanzas (a.o. for the nrs. 10, 14, 16, 17 and 18) which can be found in
the second colum of the table, within parentheses. He blames these on the bad work of
copyists who tried to better the original.
He further states, that the German author C.Blume in his work Stimmen der Zeit
(1915) after an extensive analysis of over 50 manuscripts, also concluded that the
"Analecta"-version must be the original one.
The medieval English composers Ashwell, Brown, Cornysh and Davy all use a text that differs greatly from the original. The first 8 stanzas are the same, but the other 12 are replaced by 6 others, not only with a different content, but also with a different rhyme scheme (aaac, bbbc). These stanzas can be found below, after the original poem.
Finally, it is interesting to note that nowadays almost nobody pays any attention to
the fact that in Latin the letter "J" does not exist! As I try to be as close to
the original as possible, I have replaced every "J" with an "I".
Now (February 2003) Martin Giles mails me that in Latin the letters "u" and
"v" are the same. According to him, consistent would be to use "u" for
lower case (inuentus, in stead of inventus) and "V" for upper
case (Vt, in stead of Ut). He may be right, but I am not going to be as
consistent as that, as it would change the "look" of the text completely!
"Analecta" |
|
"Vatican" |
Stabat Mater dolorosa |
1. At the Cross her station keeping, |
Stabat Mater dolorosa |
Cuius animam gementem |
2. Through her heart, His sorrow sharing, |
Cuius animam gementem |
O quam tristis et afflicta |
3.O how sad and sore distressed |
O quam tristis et afflicta |
Quae moerebat et dolebat, |
4.Christ above in torment hangs, |
Quae moerebat et dolebat, |
Quis est homo qui non fleret, |
5.Is there one who would not weep, |
Quis est homo qui non fleret, |
Quis non posset contristari, |
6.Can the human heart refrain |
Quis non posset contristari, |
Pro peccatis suae gentis |
7.For the sins of His own nation, |
Pro peccatis suae gentis |
Vidit suum dulcem natum |
8.She beheld her tender Child, |
Vidit suum dulcem natum |
Eia Mater, fons amoris |
9. O thou Mother! fount of love! |
Eia Mater, fons amoris |
Fac, ut ardeat cor meum |
10. Make me feel as thou hast felt; |
Fac, ut ardeat cor meum (Ut cor nostrum
exardescat) |
Sancta Mater, istud agas, |
11. Holy Mother! pierce me through, |
Sancta Mater, istud agas, |
Tui nati vulnerati, |
12. Let me share with thee His pain, |
Tui nati vulnerati, |
Fac me vere tecum flere, |
13. Let me mingle tears with thee, |
Fac me tecum, pie, flere, |
Iuxta crucem tecum stare, |
14. By the Cross with thee to stay, |
Iuxta crucem tecum stare, (In me sistat dolor tui) |
Virgo virginum praeclara, |
15. Virgin of all virgins blest!, |
Virgo virginum praeclara, |
Fac, ut portem Christi mortem |
16. Let me, to my latest breath, |
Fac, ut portem Christi mortem |
Fac me plagis vulnerari, |
17.
Wounded with His every wound, |
Fac me plagis vulnerari, (Spinis,
clavis vulnerari) |
Inflammatus et accensus |
18. Be to me, O Virgin, nigh, |
Flammis ne urrar succensus (Virgo dulcis, virgo pia) |
Fac me cruce custodiri |
19. Christ, when Thou shalt call me hence, |
Christe, cum sit hinc exire, |
Quando corpus morietur, |
20. When my body dies, |
Quando corpus morietur, |
Stabat Mater, rubens rosa |
9 |
The Mother stood, a blushing rose |
Et dum stetit generosa |
10 |
And as she stood with full heart |
O quam gravis illa poena |
11 |
O how grievous was the pain |
Color erat non inventus |
12 |
All the life drained from you, Mother, |
Per haec, nata praeamata |
13 |
By these merits, most beloved lady, |
Ut, nostra tergens ingrata |
14 |
That, wiping away all our stain |
E-mail: hvo@dds.nl