Friday, October 4, 2013

Anglican Chant XXX: Psalm 115, Not unto us O Lord (G Knight)



Here are the words from the Coverdale Psalter:
1  Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy Name give the praise *
 for thy loving mercy, and for thy truth’s sake.
2  Wherefore shall the heathen say *
 Where is now their God?
3  As for our God, he is in heaven *
 he hath done whatsoever pleased him.
4  Their idols are silver and gold *
 even the work of men’s hands.
5  They have mouths, and speak not *
 eyes have they, and see not.
6  They have ears, and hear not *
 noses have they, and smell not.
7  They have hands, and handle not; feet have they, and walk not *
 neither speak they through their throat.
8  They that make them are like unto them *
 and so are all such as put their trust in them.
9  But thou, house of Israel, trust thou in the Lord *
 he is their succour and defence.
10  Ye house of Aaron, put your trust in the Lord *
 he is their helper and defender.
11  Ye that fear the Lord, put your trust in the Lord *
 he is their helper and defender.
12  The Lord hath been mindful of us, and he shall bless us *
 even he shall bless the house of Israel, he shall bless the house of Aaron.
13  He shall bless them that fear the Lord *
 both small and great.
14  The Lord shall increase you more and more *
 you and your children.
15  Ye are the blessed of the Lord *
 who made heaven and earth.
16  All the whole heavens are the Lord’s *
 the earth hath he given to the children of men.
17  The dead praise not thee, O Lord *
 neither all they that go down into silence.
18  But we will praise the Lord *
 from this time forth for evermore. Praise the Lord.

The incipit of this Psalm in Latin is Non nobis, domine - which became a hymn in its own right at some point during the middle ages:
Non nobis is a short Latin hymn used as a prayer of thanksgiving and expression of humility. The Latin text derives from Psalm 113:9 (according to the Vulgate numbering), which corresponds to Psalm 115:1 in the King James Version. It reads,
Non nobis, non nobis, Domine
Sed nomini tuo da gloriam.

Not to us, not to us, O Lord,
But to thy name give glory.
....

As part of Psalm 115 (In exitu Israel) it was also recited liturgically as part of the Paschal vigil, the celebrants kneeling in a gesture of self-abasement when this verse was reached. According to legend Henry V ordered it to be recited along with the Te Deum in thanksgiving for the English victory at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415 (see below). Jean Mouton (c. 1459-1522) composed a motet to a text beginning with the Non nobis to celebrate the birth of a daughter to Louis XII and Anne of Brittany in 1510.

Here's the song as sung in the 1989 film, Henry V; no idea if this is the original melody or not, though:


About the composer of this Anglican Chant:
Gerald Hocken Knight CBE (1908–1979) was a cathedral organist, who served at Canterbury Cathedral.

Gerald Hocken Knight was born on 27 July 1908 in Par, Cornwall, and was educated at Truro Cathedral School and Peterhouse, Cambridge.[2] He was an articled organ pupil of Hubert Stanley Middleton at Truro Cathedral.

He was appointed a Fellow of the Royal School of Church Music in 1964.

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