Corpus Christi Watershed

“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)

Views from the Choir Loft

Sing Salve Regina in Your Rosary

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Madonna of the Rosary, Lorenzo Lotto OU FINISH THE FIVE DECADES of the Rosary. You know what comes next: the beautiful prayer Hail Holy Queen. It is a sublime prayer, but the Hail Holy Queen is only a translation of the Latin antiphon Salve Regina.

The Salve Regina is one of the most widely known Latin antiphons. Even Pope Francis is rumored to have sung it on occasion. If you are Catholic, chances are good that one day you will be surrounded by people lifting their minds, hearts and voices in this great prayer. Be ready!

By request I have prepared the chant with running English translations so you can understand as you sing:

    * *  Salve Regina Simple Tone (17th century) 1 page

    * *  Salve Regina Monastic Tune Simple Tone (17th century) 1 page

I put both Roman and Monastic versions as my mother’s choir uses the Monastic version and just about everyone else uses the Roman version. The simple tone only dates back to the 17th century so the differences are tiny. They haven’t had as much time to diverge as you find with the older Solemn Tones. I find the recordings from monasteries usually use the Solemn Tone as it is older and should be the default version. The Monastic is older than the Roman.

    * *  Salve Regina Solemn Tone (medieval) 1 page

    * *  Salve Regina Solemn Monastic Tone (medieval) 1 page

You can find a video of the Simple Salve, vocabulary and even a crossword puzzle at the page for the Salve Regina in A New Book of Old Hymns.

Speaking of my little hymnbook, Lulu currently has a coupon for 30% off print books and calendars expiring midnight on Sunday 26th November (or sometime in the middle of Monday for folks like me in Australia). Use LULU30

If you’re worried why the price for my hymnbook at Lulu has plummeted, it’s because I set the price in Australian dollars rather than US dollars. Lulu has printers all around the world, so time for shipping is usually a week or so. You can find other great publications here at Corpus Christi Watershed printed by Lulu, such as Lalemant Polyphony, Kevin Allen’s Emporium and the Goupil Gradual. With a 30% discount ( LULU30 ) today is a good time to stock up.



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

*   Salve Regina is attributed to Blessed Hermann of Reichenau, a monk so crippled he could hardly move or speak, yet producing works on music, astronomy and history.

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