MCE 05-03 Salve virgo virginum

Edition

Motet

See the general ‘Evaluation of the sourcesʼ at the level of the cycle.

Text (ed. by Eva Ferro)

Edition

Translation

Salve, virgo virginum,
Salve, lumen luminum,
Ave, salus hominum.

Hail, virgin of virgins,
hail, light of lights,
hail, salvation of humankind.

Mater Christi, peperisti
Regem regum hominum.
Gaude, pura, spes futura
Sperantium mortis hora,
Dominum exora
Ne damnemur[i] in aeternum.

Mother of Christ, you bore
the king of kings of men.
Rejoice, o pure, hope
of the hopeful in the coming hour of the death;
pray to the Lord
that we be not damned for eternity.

Speciosa[ii] dux errantium,
Gloriosa vox laetantium[1],
In hac valle[iii] sis te laudantium
Consolatrix[iv] apud[v] patrem et filium.

Beautiful leader of the lost,
glorious voice of the joyous,
in this valley be the solace of those who praise
you before the Father and the Son.


[1] laetantium] lactantium Librone 1, C A T  B


[i] damnemur] dampnemur Librone 1, C A T B

[ii] speciosa] spetiosa Librone 1, C A T B

[iii] valle] vale Librone 1, C A T B

[iv] consolatrix] consolatris Librone 1, C A T

[v] apud] aput Librone 1, C A T B

The third motet of the cycle Ave mundi domina is transmitted only in Librone 1, ff. 128v–129r, by the same hand as in the previous motets (Scribe A) and was thus edited on the basis of this source. Only one semantic variant is present in the text, namely in stanza 3 (in all voices): the substitution of the word ‘lactantium’ (‘of those who are breastfeeding’) for laetantium (‘of those who rejoice’). This misunderstanding is probably due to the Marian topic of the text, in which Mary is praised among other things as mother of Christ, who bore the King of Kings of men (stanza 2: ‘Mater Christi, peperisti / Regem regum hominum’). Relevant phonetic variants are for instance the disregard for double consonants (for instance in ‘vale’ instead of valle, C A T B) and the substitution of x with s, as in ‘consolatris’ for consolatrix (C A T).

In the motet Mary is praised and appealed to for help in equal measure: lines in which she is greeted and praised (as light, salvation of men, hope for sinners, leader of those who are lost and so on) alternate with requests for intercession (Mary is asked to act as intercessor in front of God at the hour of death and as consoler).

A similar text arrangement can be found in only two other manuscript sources,[1] namely a fourteenth-century manuscript preserved in Bamberg (Staatsbibliothek, lit 155 olim Ed.IV.6) and another one (Munich, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Clm 5539) that alongside with various Marian and liturgical material also contains a substantial portion of music theory treatises. This manuscript has been connected to Regensburg.[2]

Librone 1, ff. 128v–129r

MONE 2, no. 493

Salve, virgo virginum,
Salve, lumen luminum,


Ave, salus hominum.

1. Salve virgo virginum,
salve lumen luminum,
vale dulce lilium,
dulce dans consilium,
ave salus hominum!

Mater Christi, peperisti
Regem regum hominum.
Gaude, pura, spes futura
Sperantium mortis hora,
Dominum exora
Ne damnemur in aeternum.

2. Mater Christi, peperisti
regem omnium:
gaude pura spes futura
desperantium; tu in hora mortis
ora Christum dominum,
ne damnemur in opprobrium.

Speciosa dux errantium,
Gloriosa vox laetantium,
In hac valle sis te laudantium
Consolatrix apud patrem et filium.

3. Speciosa pretiosa dux errantium,
generosa, gloriosa vox laetantium
sis in hac valle te laudantium.
4. Consolatrix et gaudium
apud patrem et filium,
o clemens, o pia,
o dulcis Maria!

Just as Mone suggested with his title (‘Super Salve regina’) and Gasser adopted in his interpretation (also referring to the composition as a ‘hymn’),[3] it is possible that these pieces were intended as decorative accretions (Tropierungen) to the Salve regina. The last two verses, borrowed from the final verses of the Salve regina, seem to point in this same direction.


[1] See MONE 2, no. 493, p. 213.

[2] See Dominicus Mettenleiter, Musikgeschichte der Stadt Regensburg (Regensburg: Bössenecker, 1866), 70–78.

[3] See Nolan Ira Gasser, ‘The Marian Motet Cycles of the Gaffurius Codices: A Musical and Liturgico-Devotional Study’ (Ph.D. diss., Stanford University, 2001), 271.

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Measure Voice Source Category Comment Image
I-Mfd1 designation of voices -, Contra Altus, Tenor, Contra bassus
I-Mfd1 clefs original clefs: c1, c3, c4, f4
14-20 4 I-Mfd1 text underlay luminum (lumi-num, separated by a rest)
29-30 2 I-Mfd1 ligatures tie is editorial
36-43 3 I-Mfd1 text underlay spes futura
61 2 I-Mfd1 pitch and rhythm additional black Sb d' written below Sb f
64 1 I-Mfd1 pitch and rhythm black Mi f' instead of g' (error)
69 1 2 3 4 I-Mfd1 pitch and rhythm all final notes are Mx
Text
EditionTranslation

Salve, virgo virginum,
Salve, lumen luminum,
Ave, salus hominum.

Hail, virgin of virgins,
hail, light of lights,
hail, salvation of humankind.

Mater Christi, peperisti
Regem regum hominum.
Gaude, pura, spes futura
Sperantium mortis hora,
Dominum exora
Ne damnemur in aeternum.

Mother of Christ, you bore
the king of kings of men.
Rejoice, o pure, hope
of the hopeful in the coming hour of the death;
pray to the Lord
that we be not damned for eternity.

Speciosa dux errantium,
Gloriosa vox laetantium,
In hac valle sis te laudantium
Consolatrix apud patrem et filium.

Beautiful leader of the lost,
glorious voice of the joyous,
in this valley be the solace of those who praise
you before the Father and the Son.