Cantantibus organis

Julije Skjavetić's motet Cantantibus organis is a rich SAATB setting of a Latin text. The music opens with a declamatory unison melody before unfolding into imitative polyphony. The text recounts the story of Saint Cecilia, the patron saint of music, praying to God for purity of heart and body, a plea sung devoutly in her heart as she played the organ. This prayer is repeated in the latter part of the motet, interspersed with references to her devotional fasting. The piece, a Magnificat antiphon, offers a devotional expression of faith, heightened by the intricate vocal writing characteristic of the motet tradition.