"" (O Saviour, tear open the heavens)
is a Christian
Advent song. The text was first printed in 1622, attributed to
Friedrich Spee; the melody was first printed in 1666.
History
"" was first published in Würzburg in the collection ''Das Allerschönste Kind in der Welt'' (The most beautiful child in the world).
Its author is not named, but is thought to be
Friedrich Spee, due to similarities to his later collection ''Trutznachtigall''. The text was written in the context of the
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...
, the
plague and
witch trials.
The text was first sung to the melody of
Conditor alme siderum.
The melody known today appeared first in the ''
Rheinfelsisches Gesangbuch'' of 1666.
The song is focused on the longing for the arrival of a Saviour. It has been included in both Catholic and Protestant hymnals; in Protestant hymnals sometimes with an added seventh stanza of unknown authorship. It is part of the Catholic ''
Gotteslob'' as GL 231, of the ''
Evangelisches Gesangbuch'' as EG 7, in the ' as RG 361,.
in the ' as EM 141, in the hymnal ' as FL 189, and in the ' as MG 244.
Theme and text
The song is based on a verse in the
Book of Isaiah, in the Latin text from the
Vulgate
The Vulgate () is a late-4th-century Bible translations into Latin, Latin translation of the Bible. It is largely the work of Saint Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels used by the Diocese of ...
that the author knew "Rorate coeli de super, et nubes pluant justum: aperiatur terra, et germinet Salvatorem" which was set in the
Gregorian chant ''
Rorate caeli''.
The beginning is related to another verse by Isaiah: "Ach dass du den Himmel zerrissest und führest herab, dass die Berge vor dir zerflössen" From the fourth stanza on, the believers appear as a "we" (wir), describing the miserable conditions that need to change.
Added later and first appeared in
David Gregor Corner's collection in 1631:
Melody and settings
The melody in
Dorian mode appears first in the Rheinfelsisches Gesangbuch of 1666. It may have been composed especially for the text.
:
\header
% Source: https://musescore.com/user/1081191/scores/1409031
\layout
global =
soprano = \relative c'
alto = \relative c'
tenor = \relative c'
bass = \relative c
verse = \lyricmode
\score
The hymn was set to music by composers such as
Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms (; ; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period (music), Romantic period. His music is noted for its rhythmic vitality and freer treatment of dissonance, oft ...
,
,
Hugo Distler and
Johannes Weyrauch.
Richard Wetz used it in his .
References
Further reading
* Michael Fischer
" 'O JESV mein du schöner Held'. Das Motiv von der Schönheit Christi im 17. Jahrhundert" ''Spee-Jahrbuch''. Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Friedrich-Spee-Gesellschaften Düsseldorf und Trier 13 (2006), , pp. 145–158.
* (2010) ''Kirchenlied und Kultur. Studien und Standortbestimmungen''. Tübingen:Francke. ,
pp. 210 ff.
* Joachim Pritzkat: "O Heiland, reiß die Himmel auf. Zur 374-jährigen Geschichte eines Liedes von Friedrich von Spee". Hermann Kurzke, Hermann Ühlein (eds.): ''Kirchenlied interdisziplinär: Hymnologische Beiträge aus Germanistik, Theologie und Musikwissenschaft''. 2nd ed. Peter Lang, Frankfurt 2002, , pp. 131–172.
* Joachim Pritzkat
"Wo bleibstu Trost der gantzen Welt? Zur Spannung zwischen Diesseitsangst und Jenseitshoffnung bei Friedrich von Spee und Andreas Gryphius" ''Spee-Jahrbuch'' 5 (1998), , pp. 107–116.
External links
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:O Heiland, reiss die Himmel auf
1622 songs
17th-century hymns in German
Advent songs
Thirty Years' War in popular culture
Works based on the Book of Isaiah