This edition was prepared by Lewis Jones — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
Exaudi Deus a7
Staff Notation • Sacred, Motets
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Exaudi Deus a7 by Giovanni Gabrieli — Lyrics
In finem, in carminibus. Intellectus David.
Exaudi, Deus, orationem meam, et ne despexeris deprecationem meam:
intende mihi, et exaudi me. Contristatus sum in exercitatione mea, et conturbatus sum
a voce inimici, et a tribulatione peccatoris. Quoniam declinaverunt in me iniquitates,
et in ira molesti erant mihi.
Cor meum conturbatum est in me, et formido mortis cecidit super me.
Timor et tremor venerunt super me, et contexerunt me tenebrae.
Et dixi: Quis dabit mihi pennas sicut columbae, et volabo, et requiescam?
Ecce elongavi fugiens, et mansi in solitudine.
Exspectabam eum qui salvum me fecit a pusillanimitate spiritus, et tempestate.
Praecipita, Domine; divide linguas eorum: quoniam vidi iniquitatem et contradictionem in civitate.
Die ac nocte circumdabit eam super muros ejus iniquitas; et labor in medio ejus,
et injustitia: et non defecit de plateis ejus usura et dolus.
Quoniam si inimicus meus maledixisset mihi, sustinuissem utique.
Et si is qui oderat me super me magna locutus fuisset,
abscondissem me forsitan ab eo.
Tu vero homo unanimis, dux meus, et notus meus:
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About Exaudi Deus a7
This monumental motet by Giovanni Gabrieli calls for an astonishing seven-part choir (BBBBBBB). The Latin text, drawn from Psalm 55, expresses profound distress and a desperate plea for divine intervention. The singer laments being overwhelmed by enemies and sin, experiencing fear and the shadow of death. There is a yearning for escape, for wings like a dove to fly away and find rest. The music reflects this turmoil, with the composer creating a powerful and dramatic setting for the text. This is a significant work from the Venetian composer, originally intended for the grand spaces of St. Mark's Basilica.
