O Magnum Mysterium – TTB a cappella

Description

New to the BriLee Choral Catalog, Evan Ramos' arrangement of a well-known Latin text, is haunting, rich, and gorgeous. Whatever the level of your male ensemble, this well-constructed piece is certain to showcase their voices. A lovely addition to any concert or festival program.

O Magnum Mysterium is a setting of a Latin sacred text written for Christmas. The text depicts the extraordinary occurring among the ordinary: God coming to earth as a tiny baby, animals in a lowly stable being the first to witness his arrival. Adding dynamic contrast (crescendo/decrescendo) on every phrase and singing legato (smoothly) with a gentle choral tone will reflect the wonder and awe the original text and this setting attempt to communicate.

Original Latin Text: English Translation:

O magnum mysterium, O great mystery, Et admirabile sacramentum, And wonderful sacrament, Ut animalia viderunt That animals should see Dominum natum the newborn Lord jacentem in praesepio. Lying in a manger. O magnum mysterium. Amen. O great mystery. Amen.

General Latin Pronunciation Guidelines:

1. There are only five pure vowel sounds in Latin: A = AH E=EH I = EE O = AW U = OO

2. Strive to flip all Rs as if singing in Italian.

Latin Pronunciation (accented syllables are UPPER CASE): aw MAH-nyoom mee-STEHR-yoom,* eht ahd-mee-RAH-bee-leh sah-krah-MEHN-toom, oot ah-nee-MAH-lee-ah vee-DEHR-oont DAW-mee-noom NAH-toom, yah-CHEHN-tehm een preh-SEH-pee-aw. aw MAH-nyoom mee-STEHR-yoom. AH-mehn.

*The word mysterium in this piece is a three-syllable rather than a four-syllable word. This can be accomplished by pronouncing the last syllable ium as yoom rather than ee-oom.

At the end of the piece there are a few pitches in parentheses. These pitches are alternative options and can be sung in place of what is originally written. Feel free to mix and match to find a three-part chord that sounds good. My first performance of this piece ended in an open-fifth chord (Baritone singing Bb, Tenor 2 singing F, and Tenor 1 singing Bb).