From one Hear my prayer, we go to another Hear my prayer. This one written by Henry Purcell was completed in 1682, nearly 160 years prior to the Mendelssohn piece bearing the same title. Although the titles are the same the text is very different.
Factoids:
- This piece is an anthem, essentially the Anglican response to the Latin motet.
- Text taken from Psalm 102.
- Based on the original manuscripts it looks as though this piece may have been a part of a larger unfinished work.
- There were several blank pages after the final bar
- Typically the last measure of a work is marked with a line extended through the spaces
- The final barline was drawn through the stave, making scholars wonder if it may be a part of another work.
- The text of this piece "Hear my prayer, Oh Lord, and let my crying come unto thee" describes the sorrow and pain of sin.
- Purcell depicts this stress musically by writing with extreme dissonance and frequent suspension.
- Colorful dissonances and a cappella music are not generally associated with Purcell, so some scholars question the authorship of this work.
I should add that the ultimate moment of tension is never relieved as the piece ends on an incomplete chord, meaning a chord that lacks a third.
ReplyDeleteAs many of you know, the third of the chord determines whether it is major or minor.
By leaving this chord incomplete, the listener wonders if forgiveness is granted.