THIS piece seems to have taken off in different choir circles in Australia passing along terrible photocopies of bunched up clusters of notes. I can’t find the exact image, but here is a similar one to give you an idea:
The above copy is available on Scribd uploaded by Josh Jerry. If that works for you, then that is fantastic! My preference is for something like the following:
Feel free to DOWNLOAD and print for your choir!
Fortunately, it is an easy one to sing, once you can hear it or decode it. The top two lines are consistently a third apart. I have seen some variations between different copies, but I like the variation where the bottom line splits in two for the last chord. I have credited the Summit Choirbook in my PDF, though I do not have a copy of the hymnbook, which is now out of print. You can read the story of the rise and fall of the Choirbook thanks to the Hymn Society. If you have any advice on a better credit line, I’m all ears.
The origins of this piece trace back through the Dominican collection of hymns and motets known as The Summit Choirbook, 1983. It brings together a Slavonic tune, possibly Ukrainian, with our beloved Latin text of the second oldest known hymn to Our Lady. The Ave Maria makes a claim to be the oldest with Gabriel beating everyone to the punch.
Here is a very lovely rendition from Sydney:
Click here in case the Soundcloud widget fails to load.
Different variations crop up here and there, such as this version using English words interspersed with psalm toned verses by Dominican students at the New Liturgical Movement.
