Domine ad adjuvandum me

This powerful SATB motet by Orlando di Lasso sets a text from Psalm 39(40). The words implore divine assistance: "Lord, make haste to help me, let them be confounded who seek after my soul to destroy it." Lasso’s setting captures the urgency and desperation of the plea. It is a stirring example of Renaissance sacred polyphony, a motet that would serve well as an offertory hymn, with its fervent call for aid and its assured confidence in God’s eventual triumph over adversaries. The Latin text is treated with gravitas and dramatic flair, typical of Lasso’s mastery of motet composition.