Cantiga    
 

CSM Cantiga 1 Lyrics: Des hoge mais quér' éu trobar

Standard spelling
Des hoge mais quér' éu trobar
Cantiga 1: Des hoge mais quér' éu trobar
Please read the notes on using the texts and the IPA transcriptions Please read the notes on using the music transcriptions
   
Standard spelling
Epigraph  

Esta é a primeira cantiga de loor de Santa María, ementando os séte goios que houve de séu Fillo.

Line Stanza I  Metrics  
1 Des hoge mais quér' éu trobar †CSM 1:1If you're looking at this line and thinking, what is that h doing there, please have a look at the 6th October 2019 entry on the What's new page. 8  a
2 pola Sennor honrrada, 6' b
3 en que Déus quis carne fillar 8  a
4 bẽeita e sagrada, 6' b
5 por nos dar gran soldada 6' b
6 no séu reino e nos herdar 8  a
7 por séus de sa masnada 6' b
8 de vida perlongada, 6' b
9 sen havermos pois a passar 8  a
10 per mórt' outra vegada. 6' b
 
  Stanza II     
11 E porên quéro começar 8  a
12 como foi saüdada 6' b
13 de Gabrïél, u lle chamar 8  a
14 foi: “Benaventurada 6' b
15 Virgen, de Déus amada: 6' b
16 do que o mund' há de salvar 8  a
17 ficas óra prennada; 6' b
18 e demais ta cunnada 6' b
19 Elisabét, que foi dultar, 8  a
20 é end' envergonnada”. 6' b
 
  Stanza III     
21 E demais quéro-ll' enmentar 8  a
22 como chegou canssada 6' b
23 a Beleên e foi pousar 8  a
24 no portal da entrada, 6' b
25 u pariu sen tardada 6' b
26 Jesú-Crist', e foi-o deitar, 8  a
27 como mollér menguada, 6' b
28 u deitan a cevada, 6' b
29 no presév', e apousentar 8  a
30 ontre bestias d' arada. 6' b
Cantigas de Santa Maria for Singers ©2013 by Andrew Casson
www.cantigasdesantamaria.com/csm/1
 
  Stanza IV     
31 E non ar quéro obridar 8  a
32 com' ángeos cantada 6' b
33 loor a Déus foron cantar 8  a
34 e “paz en térra dada”; 6' b
35 nen como a contrada 6' b
36 aos tres Reis en Ultramar †CSM 1:36The word reis (= "kings") has two syllables (= re•is) in at least six of its 15 appearances in the Cantigas de Santa Maria (see the Concordance), and it is difficult to be sure whether these are poetic exceptions or represent the normal pronunciation of the period (cf. mod. Sp. "reyes", whereas the mod. Gal. word is "reis" with one syllable). I have assumed reis with one syllable to be the normal form, however, and write reïs when diaeresis is required. In this line, as it happens, reis falls on a two-note ligature .ra, and therefore comes out naturally as two syllables when sung, so there is nothing to be gained from (for example) compressing aos by synaeresis and expanding reis even further by diaeresis. 8  a
37 houv' a strela mostrada, 6' b
38 por que sen demorada 6' b
39 vẽéron sa oférta dar 8  a
40 estranna e preçada. 6' b
 
  Stanza V     
41 Outra razôn quéro contar 8  a
42 que ll' houve pois contada 6' b
43 a Madalena: com' estar 8  a
44 viu a pédr' entornada 6' b
45 do sepulcr' e guardada 6' b
46 do ángeo, que lle falar 8  a
47 foi e disse: “Coitada 6' b
48 mollér, sei confortada, 6' b
49 ca Jesú, que vẽes buscar, 8  a
50 resurgiu madurgada.” 6' b
 
  Stanza VI     
51 E ar quéro-vos demostrar 8  a
52 gran lediç' aficada 6' b
53 que houv' ela, u viu alçar 8  a
54 a nuv' enlumẽada 6' b
55 séu Fill'; e pois alçada 6' b
56 foi, viron ángeos andar 8  a
57 ontr' a gent' assũada, 6' b
58 mui desaconsellada, 6' b
59 dizend': “Assí verrá julgar, †CSM 1:59Mett. juygar; [To] julgar; [E] juygar; [T] juigar (corrected from julgar). 8  a
60 est' é cousa provada.” 6' b
Cantigas de Santa Maria for Singers ©2013 by Andrew Casson
www.cantigasdesantamaria.com/csm/1
 
  Stanza VII     
61 Nen quéro de dizer leixar 8  a
62 de como foi chegada 6' b
63 a graça que Déus envïar 8  a
64 lle quis, atán grãada, 6' b
65 que por el' esforçada †CSM 1:65Mettmann has por el esforçada in this line, but the sense requires ela referring to the Virgin. Both [JMMS] and the draft PDF version at the Oxford CSM database (as of June 2013) therefore transcribe el' with elision, and [JFV] clearly assumes this reading in his translation. 6' b
66 foi a companna que juntar 8  a
67 fez Déus, e enssinada, 6' b
68 de Spírit' avondada, 6' b
69 por que soubéron preegar 8  a
70 lógo sen alongada. 6' b
 
  Stanza VIII     
71 E, par Déus, non é de calar 8  a
72 como foi corõada, 6' b
73 quando séu Fillo a levar 8  a
74 quis, des que foi passada 6' b
75 deste mund' e juntada 6' b
76 con el no céo, par a par, 8  a
77 e Reínna chamada, 6' b
78 Filla, Madr' e Crïada; 6' b
79 e porên nos dev' ajudar, 8  a
80 ca x' é nóss' avogada. 6' b
 

Footnotes

Line 1:

If you're looking at this line and thinking, what is that h doing there, please have a look at the 6th October 2019 entry on the What's new page.
Line 36:

The word reis (= "kings") has two syllables (= re•is) in at least six of its 15 appearances in the Cantigas de Santa Maria (see the Concordance), and it is difficult to be sure whether these are poetic exceptions or represent the normal pronunciation of the period (cf. mod. Sp. "reyes", whereas the mod. Gal. word is "reis" with one syllable). I have assumed reis with one syllable to be the normal form, however, and write reïs when diaeresis is required. In this line, as it happens, reis falls on a two-note ligature .ra, and therefore comes out naturally as two syllables when sung, so there is nothing to be gained from (for example) compressing aos by synaeresis and expanding reis even further by diaeresis.
Line 59:

Mett. juygar; [To] julgar; [E] juygar; [T] juigar (corrected from julgar).
Line 65:

Mettmann has por el esforçada in this line, but the sense requires ela referring to the Virgin. Both [JMMS] and the draft PDF version at the Oxford CSM database (as of June 2013) therefore transcribe el' with elision, and [JFV] clearly assumes this reading in his translation.
Standard spelling  
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Footnotes

E1:

Although [E] only has the flat on the fourth stave of this cantiga (... Déus quis carne fillar bẽeita...), and [To] has no flats at all, [T] has the flat on every stave and it seems to be required melodically. The editions of Anglés and Cunningham each have a B flat key signature, and Elmes observes that most Bs are between As anyway, where medieval performance practice would typically flatten them. I have therefore added flats here on every stave where they have an effect, but the performer is, of course, free to disregard them.

E2:

The stem on this note is very faint, but it seems justified, rhythmically.

Manuscript references

External links marked are to facsimiles on Greg Lindahl's Cantigas de Santa Maria website.

[E]1viewhttp://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/cantigas/facsimiles/E/054small.htmlExternal link
[T]1 
[To]1view p1http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/cantigas/facsimiles/To/bob001small.gifExternal link
view p2http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/cantigas/facsimiles/To/bob002small.gifExternal link

Oxford CSM Database record

External link to poem data:  CSM 1http://csm.mml.ox.ac.uk/index.php?p=poemdata_view&rec=1

Links to the Oxford database are provided with the kind permission of the project team. When planning a concert or recording, I would recommend that you use (and credit) my more pragmatic texts and supporting materials in the preparation of your performance, but that you request permission from the Oxford database team to reproduce (and credit) their own critically edited texts in your programme or liner notes, as these adhere to stricter criteria that keep them closer to the original sources, and undoubtedly have the greater academic authority.

Metrical summary

Stanzas

8  6'  8  6'  6'  8  6'  6'  8  6'

Rhyme

ababbabbab
 IIIIIIIVVVIVIIVIII
aaɾ
bada

Estimated performance times

Average syllables / min. Time
Very slow5011:50
Slow1005:55
Medium1503:56
Fast2002:57
Very fast2502:22

These are very approximate total times for a full sung (or spoken) performance of all stanzas with all repeats of the refrain. Note that the speed is in average syllables per minute, and no particular mensural interpretation is assumed. More ornamented music will reduce the syllabic speed considerably. Remember also to add time for instrumental preludes, interludes and postludes.

Total syllables: 592

Cantigas de Santa Maria for Singers © 2024 by Andrew Casson Terms of use Database built 2019-10-06 at 18:32 UTC