Brébeuf #182 • “Creator Alme Siderum” (Advent)

E COULD EASILY SPEND HOURS giving an account of the fascinating history of the hymn “Cónditor alme síderum,” which (beginning in 1631AD) was known as “Creátor alme síderum.” I could briefly summarize: (a) it’s an ancient and beautiful hymn that eventually came to be associated strongly with Advent, since in former times Advent closed the liturgical year—which meant a major theme was Judgment; (b) the Jesuit reformers under Pope Urban VIII left only about 6% of the original words, in their zeal; (c) there have been many Catholic translations into English, and many of them mix Pre-Urbanite with Urbanite.

Anyway, here’s an arrangement found in the Saint Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal:

You can hear the individual tracks if you visit the Brébeuf website and scroll to #182.