Omnis mundus jocundetur

For Christmas Day

Words and Music: Anonymous Latin Hymn, circa. 14^th Century.

See: Theodoric Petri, ed., Piae Cantiones Ecclesiasticæ Et Scholasticae Et Scholasticae Vetervm Episcoporum. (Gyphisuualdiæ: Augustinum Ferberum, 1582).

Source: Rev. George R. Woodward, ed., Piæ Cantiones. A Collection of Church & School Song. (London: Printed at the Chiswick Press for the Plainsong & Medieval Music Society, 1910) , #8, pp. 10-11. See: Christmas Songs in Woodward's Piæ Cantiones (1910).

Omnis mundus iucundetur
Nato salvatore,
Casta mater quæ concepit
Gabrielis ore.

Synceris vocibus,
Synceris mentibus
Exsultemus & lætemur
Hodie, hodie, hodie,
Christus natus ex Maria virgine,
Virgine, virgine, virgine,
Christus natus ex Maria virgine,
Gaudete, gaudete, gaudete &
Lætemur itaque, itaque, itaque,
Gaudemus & lætemur itaque.

The following version is found in Volume 1, #CCCCLXXIII [#473], p. 329, of Herman Adalbert Daniel, Thesaurus Hymnologicus. Hallis. MDCCCXLI-MDCCCLVI. 5 Volumes. With Latin notes in Vol. 1, p. 329, and Vol. 4, p. 260.

Omnis mundus incandetur
Nato Salvatore,
Casta mater quem concepit
Gabrielis ore.

Sonoris vocilbus,
Sinceris mentibus
Exultemus et laetemar
Hodie, hodie, hodie.

Christus natus ex Maria,
Virgine, virgine, virgine
Gaudeamus et laetemur
Itaque, itaque, itaque.

The following version is found in Volume 1, No. 358, p. 215 of Carl Eduard Philipp Wackernagel, ed., Das deutsche Kirchenlied von der ältesten Zeit bis zu Anfang des XVII Jahrhunderts, etc. 5 Bde. Leipzig. 1862-1877. According to Woodward, this is the same as Christ. Adolf's version (1542) and that of J. Spangenberg (1544).

1. Omnis mundus iocundelur
nato salvalore,
Casta mater quem concepit
Gabrielis ore.

2 Sonoris vocibus.
sinceris menlibus
Exultemus et latemur
hodie, hodie, hodie.

3. Christus natus ex Maria
virgine, virgine, virgine:
gaudete, gaudete.(1)

Note 1. Gaudeamus et laetemur
itaque, itaque, itaque !

Theodoric Petri, ed., Piæ Cantiones Ecclesiasticae et Scholasticae Veterum Episcoporum. (Gyphisuualdiæ: Augustinum Ferberum, 1582)

 

Sheet Music and Notes from Rev. George R. Woodward, ed., Piæ Cantiones. A Collection of Church & School Song, chiefly Ancient Swedish, originally Published in A. D. 1582 by Theodoric Petri of Nyland. (London: Printed at the Chiswick Press for the Plainsong & Medieval Music Society, 1910), Carol #8, pp. 10-11, Notes p. 214.

See: The Christmas Songs in Woodward's Piæ Cantiones (1910)

Sheet Music from Richard R. Terry, Old Christmas Carols. Part One. (London: Burns, Oates & Washbourne Ltd., n.d., ca. 1923), Carol #33, p. 45.

Sheet Music to Earthly Friends Will Change And Falter from George Ratcliffe Woodward, ed., The Cowley Carol Book for Christmas, Easter, and Ascensiontide, First Series (London: A. R. Mowbray & Co., Ltd, 1902, Revised and Expanded Edition 1929), Carol #28.

Sheet Music Let The Earth Rejoice In Chorus from Richard Runciman Terry, Two Hundred Folk Carols (London: Burns Oates & Washbourne Limited, 1933), Carol #167, pp. 16-17.

Notes by Rev. Woodward, pp. 214-215.

VIII. Omnis mundus iucundetur. Considered by Daniel, Wackernagel, and Koch, to be fourteenth century work. With a German translation beginning Alle werlet freuet sich, its first known appearance is in a Breslau MS., I, 8, f. 113, of the latter part of the fifteenth century. See Daniel, I, p. 329, and IV, p. 260. Wackernagel, I, No. 358, p. 215, reprints Christ. Adolf's version (1542) and that of J. Spangenberg (1544) [See Text Above]. Chevalier, II, p. 264, mentions several other books where it may be found.

Omnis mundus iucundetur reappears in the vernacular as Seydt frölich und jubilieret, and Alle Welt springe und lobsinge; see Kehrein, 'Katholische Kirchenlieder' (1859), I, Nos. 116 and 117.

For the earliest forms of the Melody see Zahn, V, No. 8581, a and b; and for later variations, in triple and common time, see Meister, I, No. 29 (Bäumker, I, No. 49).

Sheet Music to "Omnis mundus iucundetur" from Johannes Zahn, Die Melodien der Deutschen. V. (Gutersloh, 1892),#8581 a & b, pp. 257-8.

Sheet Music to "Omnis mundus iucundetur" from Wilhelm Bäumker, Das Katholische Deutsche Kirchenlied. Erster Band. (Freiburg, 1886), #49, pp. 306-7.

For settings in four-part harmony, see Mich. Prætorius, 'Mus. Sion.' (1607), Nos. xciii and xciv. See also M. Prætorius' Polyhymnia Panegyrica (Wolfenbüttel, 1618-1619), No. xv, where it is arranged for many voices and stringed instruments. M. Prætorius' No. xciv is evidently the descant to an older setting of the Piæ Cantiones melody, treated as a fresh air. See 'The Cowley Carol Book' (1908), No. 28 (i and ii), in which collection, as well as in 'Carols for Christmas-tide' (1853), No. II, will be found harmonies of this fourteenth or fifteenth century melody, set to Dr. Neale's carol beginning Earthly Friends Will Change And Falter.

Probably, at the first, in the Mixo-Lydian mode, but later on treated as a Lydian or Ionian melody. Piæ Cantiones has apparently adopted Cyriac Spangenberg's form of the tune (1568), but with a few trifling variations.

Editor's Note:

For additional German versions of Seydt frölich und jubilieret, and Alle Welt springe und lobsinge — citing Nicolaus Hermann, Die Sonntagsevangelia über das Jahr in Gesänge verfasset für die Kinder und christlichen Hausväter (Wittenb. 1560), plus the following Latin text in a footnote — see August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben, Geschichte des deutschen Kirchenliedes bis auf Luthers Zeit (1832, 1854, 1861-3rd Edition), p. 327-328.

§ 9. 53)

Omnis mundus iocundetur
nato salvatore,
casta mater quem concepit
Gabrielis ore.
sonoris vocibus,
sinceris mentibus
gaudeamus et letemur:
hodie hodie hodie
Christus natus est a Maria virgine,
virgine, vir- vir- vir- vir- vir- vir- vir- vir- virgine.
gaudete, gaudete! gaudeamus et letemur,
itaque, itaque, ita, ita, ita, ita, itaque.

Aus dem Mainzer GB. 1631. bei Wekn. Nr. 49. (Daniel Thes. 1, 329.)

The following graphic is from an 1895 reprint of Nicolaus Hermann's 1561 songbook

Source: Dr. Rudolf Wolkan, ed., Die Sonntags-Evangelia von Nicolaus Herman 1561 (Prague: F. Kempsky, 1895), No. 11, p. 34.

Resources mentioned by Rev Woodward include:

• Chevalier II refers to volume II of Chevalier, Ulysse, Repertorium Hymnologicum. Three Volumes. (Louvain, 1892-1904).

• Daniel I and IV, refers to volumes 1 and IV of Herman Adalbert Daniel, ed., Thesaurus Hymnologicus. 5 Volumes. Hallis. 1846-1856.

• Kehrein, 'Katholische Kirchenlieder' (1859) refers to Joseph Kehrein, Katholische Kirchenlieder, Hymnen, Psalmen aus den ältesten deutschen gedruckten Gesant-und Gebetbuchern. 4 Bde. Wurzburg. 1859-1865.

• Meister I, (Bäumker I) refers to volume I of Meister, Karl Severin, Das katholische deutsche Kirchenlied in seinen Singweisen von den frühesten Zeiten bis gegen Ende des siebzehnten Jahrhunderts. Erster Band. Freiburg im Breisgau. Herder. 1862. Zweiter Band begonnen von K. S. Meister, und bearbeitet von Wilhelm Bäumker. Freiburg. 1883. Dritter (Schlusz = ) Band. W. Baumker. Ibid. 1891.

• Wackernagel I refers to volume I of Carl Eduard Philipp Wackernagel, ed., Das deutsche Kirchenlied von der ältesten Zeit bis zu Anfang des XVII Jahrhunderts, etc. 5 Bde. Leipzig. 1862-1877.

• Zahn V refers to volume V of Zahn, Johannes. Die Melodien der deutschen evangelischen Kirchenlieder, aus den Quellen geschöpft und mitgeteilt von J. Zahn. 6 Bde. Gütersloh. 1889-93.

Editor's Notes:

Two additional verses were added in 1893 by Dankó, Vetus Hymnarium Ecclesiasticum Hungaricae (1893) 22; they can be seen in the New Oxford Book of Carols, #22, p. 69, which gives an adaptation of the arrangement by Michael Prætorius.

Another translation is Let The Earth Rejoice In Chorus from Richard Runciman Terry, Two Hundred Folk Carols (London: Burns Oates & Washbourne Limited, 1933), Carol #167, pp. 16-17, also from Piae Cantiones, 1582.

The Michael Praetorius arrangement is widely found. A copy of his arrangement is found in David Willcocks, ed., Carols for Choirs 3. A copy is also available at the Choral Public Domain Library (CPDL), Omnis Mundus Jocundetur.  Musical arrangements by Leonhard Paminger are available at CPDL.

There is this new translation by Matt Carver of Omnis mundus jocundetur at the web site Hymnoglypt (Let all earth ring out with gladness). There is also a translation of Omnis mundus jocundetur by the San Francisco Bach Choir (The whole world is rejoicing). A Latin and an English translation of Omnis mundus jocundetur-texts (All the world rejoices) is available at the CPDL.

There are 2 versions at the International Music Score Library Project:

1. Omnis mundus jocundetur (Paminger, Leonhard); Free public domain sheet music from IMSLP / Petrucci Music Library. 1963 edition found ("Christmas Motet. [Based on] Resonet in laudibus. In dulci jubilo and Omnis mundis jocundetur.> For five-part chorus of mixed voices a cappella ... Edited by David Pizarro. Lat. & Eng." (n.d.1963, Schirmer; n.d.1965, Chappell)

2. Omnis mundus jocundetur (Michael Praetorius); For 4 voices; SATB or TTBB

This is one of a number of carols found in the 1582 Finnish collection, Piae Cantiones.

Sources of Latin hymns found in Piae Cantiones:

• Guido Maria Dreves and Clemens Blume, eds., Analecta Hymnica Medii Aevi, Vol. 1.  Cantiones Bohemicae. (Leipzig: O. R. Reisland, 1886).

• Guido Maria Dreves and Clemens Blume, eds., Analecta Hymnica Medii Aevi, Vol. 45b. Cantiones et Motetten des Mittelalters. (Leipzig: O. R. Reisland, 1904).

• G. E. Klemming, ed., Piae Cantiones. S. Trinitas. Iesus Christus. S. Spiritus. S Maria. (1886). Primary source for many scholars, including Dreves, Woodward and others.

• George Ratcliffe Woodward, Piae Cantiones: A Collection of Church & School Song, chiefly Ancient Swedish, originally published in A.D. 1582 by Theodoric Petri of Hyland. (London: Chiswick Press for the Plainsong & Medieval Music Society, 1910).

• Sheet music for some hymns can be found in George Ratcliffe Woodward, The Cowley Carol Book, First & Second Series. Table Of Contents. (London: A. R. Mowbray & Co., Ltd., ca. 1902, 1912).

• Translations of some carols can be found in John Mason Neale and Thomas Helmore, eds., Carols for Christmas-tide (London: Novello, 1853). By the same authors was Carols for Easter-tide (1854).

• Translations and sheet music for some hymns can be found in Charles L. Hutchins, ed., Carols Old and Carols New (Boston: Parish Choir, 1916).

• Scans of individual pages from Piæ Cantiones (in the Adobe PDF format) can be downloaded from Facsimiles Piae Cantiones (http://www.spielleut.de/facs_piae_cantiones.htm; accessed June 15, 2009).

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