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Ave maris stella

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Ave maris stella in a 14th-century antiphonary

"Ave maris stella" (Latin for 'Hail, star of the sea') is a medieval Marian hymn, usually sung at Vespers. It was especially popular in the Middle Ages and has been used by many composers, as the basis of other compositions.

Background

Authorship of the original hymn has been attributed to several people, including Bernard of Clairvaux (12th century), Venantius Fortunatus (6th century)[1] and Hermannus Contractus (11th century).[2] Probably originating in the 9th century,[3] it appears as a 10th century addition in two 9th-century manuscripts, one from Salzburg (now in Vienna)[4] and the other still at the Abbey of Saint Gall.[5] Its frequent occurrence in the Divine Office made it popular in the Middle Ages, other hymns being founded upon it.[1] "Ave maris stella" was highly influential in presenting the Blessed Virgin Mary as a merciful and loving Mother.[6] "Much of its charm is due to its simplicity".[7] The title "Star of the Sea" is one of the oldest and most widespread titles applied to Mary. This hymn is frequently used as a prayer for the safe conduct of travelers.[8]

The melody is found in the Irish plainsong "Gabhaim Molta Bríde", a piece in praise of Saint Brigid of Kildaire.[9] The popular modern hymn Hail Queen of Heaven, the Ocean Star, is loosely based on this plainsong original.

Latin lyrics

The Latin text of the hymn as authorized for use in the Liturgy of the Hours of the Roman Rite (Ordinary Form) is as follows:[10]

Ave, maris stella,
Dei mater alma,
atque semper virgo,
Felix cæli porta.

Sumens illud Ave
Gabrielis ore,
funda nos in pace,
mutans Evæ[11] nomen.

Solve vincla reis,
profer lumen cæcis,
mala nostra pelle,
bona cuncta posce.

Monstra te esse matrem,
sumat per te precem [12]
qui pro nobis natus
tulit esse tuus.

Virgo singularis,
inter omnes mitis,
nos culpis solutos
mites fac et castos.

Vitam præsta puram,
iter para tutum,
ut videntes Jesum
semper collætemur.

Sit laus Deo Patri,
summo Christo decus,
Spiritui Sancto
tribus honor unus. Amen.[13]

Hail, star of the sea,
Nurturing Mother of God,
And ever Virgin
Happy gate of Heaven

Receiving that "Ave" (hail)
From the mouth of Gabriel,
Establish us in peace,
Transforming the name of "Eva" (Eve).[14]

Loosen the chains of the guilty,
Send forth light to the blind,
Our evil do thou dispel,
Entreat (for us) all good things.

Show thyself to be a Mother:
Through thee may he receive prayer
Who, being born for us,
Undertook to be thine own.

O unique Virgin,
Meek above all others,
Make us, set free from (our) sins,
Meek and chaste.

Bestow a pure life,
Prepare a safe way:
That seeing Jesus,
We may ever rejoice.

Praise be to God the Father,
To the Most High Christ (be) glory,
To the Holy Spirit
(Be) honour, to the Three equally. Amen.

Musical settings

The plainchant hymn has been developed by many composers from pre-Baroque to the present day. The Roman Rite employs four different plainchant tunes for "Ave maris stella"; the first three are designated for solemnities, feasts, and memorials of the Blessed Virgin Mary;[10] a fourth is given in the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary as an alternative to the memorial tone. The tunes have been used as the cantus firmus for some polyphonic settings of the Mass, including those by Josquin and Victoria.[15]

Renaissance settings include those by Hans Leo Hassler, Felice Anerio, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Guillaume Dufay, John Sheppard, and William Byrd. Baroque settings include Monteverdi's Vespro della Beata Vergine 1610, one by Emperor Leopold I, one by Louis Couperin in 1658, four settings by Marc-Antoine Charpentier (H.60, H.63, H.65, H.67 1670–1680s), and Sébastien de Brossard. Romantic settings include those by Dvorak, Grieg, Liszt, and Elgar. Modern composers who have either set the text or used the hymn as an inspiration include Marcel Dupré, Flor Peeters, Abel Decaux, Peter Maxwell Davies, Grace Williams, James MacMillan, Jean Langlais, Cecilia McDowall and others.

Acadian National Anthem

In 1884, the second Acadian National Convention at Miscouche, Prince Edward Island, adopted "Ave maris stella" as the anthem of Acadia.[16]

See also

  • Our Lady, Star of the Sea
  • Our Lady Star of the Sea Church (disambiguation)

From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

Ave Maris Stella — (Hail, thou Star of Ocean.)

The first verse of an unrhymed, accentual hymn, of seven stropes of four lines each, assigned in Roman Breviary to Vespers in the Common office, the Office of Saturdays, and the Little Office (as well as for Feasts) of the Blessed Virgin. It has been ascribed wrongly to St. Bernard, but antedates him, being found in a St. Gall manuscript of the ninth century; and also, without sufficient authority, to St. Venantius Fortunatus (d. 609). Its frequent occurence in the Divine Office made it most popular in the Middle Ages, many other hymns being founded upon it.

References

  1. Back to citation occurrence 1.0 Back to citation occurrence 1.1 Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Ave Maris Stella". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
  2. Back to citation Frauenlob's song of songs by Frauenlob, Barbara Newman, Karl Stackmann 2007 ISBN 0-271-02925-0 page 100
  3. Back to citation Fassler, Margot Elsbeth (2014). Music in the Medieval West (First ed.). New York. pp. 3–12. ISBN 978-0-393-92915-7.
  4. Back to citation Cod. Vindob. 387, fol. 3v, has a fragmentary version written by a later hand (10th/11th century) in originally blank space
  5. Back to citation Codex Sangallensis 95, p. 2, has a full version written by a later hand (10th/11th century) on originally blank space
  6. Back to citation Reynolds, Brian. Gateway to heaven, New City Press, 2012, ISBN 9781565484498, p. 194
  7. Back to citation Brittain, F., Mediaeval Latin and Romance Lyric to A, Cambridge University Press, 1951, p. 79
  8. Back to citation "Ave Maris Stella Prayer", International Marian Research Institute, University of Dayton
  9. Back to citation Wood, David (2014-02-01). "Gabhaim molta Bríde". Song of the Isles. Retrieved 2019-10-24.
  10. Back to citation occurrence 10.0 Back to citation occurrence 10.1 Liber Hymnarius, Solesmes, 1983.
  11. Back to citation Also spelled Hevæ.
  12. Back to citation Thus in the original, see Te Decet Hymnus, Typis Polyglottis Vaticanis, 1984, p. 255 and Liber Hymnarius, Solesmes, 1983; Pope Urban VIII's 17th-century revision has preces here.
  13. Back to citation Thus in Liber Hymnarius, Solesmes, 1983. Pope Urban VIII's text has Spiritui Sancto, Tribus honor unus.
  14. Back to citation The word "Hail" in Latin [Ave] is the reverse spelling of the Latin for "Eve" [Eva].
  15. Back to citation The Josquin companion: Volume 1 by Richard Sherr 2001 ISBN 0-19-816335-5 Page 110
  16. Back to citation "A Productive Dykeland and the Birth of a Symbol 1806–1907: The Acadian Renaissance". Landscape of Grand Pré - A World Heritage Site. Section: The Acadian Renaissance. UNESCO. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
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