The Nativity of Saint John the Baptist
ORISON: Comfort, comfort ye my people (Tune: GENEVAN 42) – Claude Goudimel (c. 1514-1572)
PSALM 85:7-13 – Jason A. Anderson (b. 1976)
HYMN: The great forerunner of the morn (Tune: THE TRUTH FROM ABOVE – Herefordshire carol; arr. Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
NUNC DIMITTIS – Plainsong, Tonus peregrinus; harm. Lodovico Grossi da Viadana (ca. 1560 – 1627)
ANTHEM: Fuit homo missus a Deo – Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1525-1594)
Jason Anderson, director • Bill Turnipseed, reader • Fred McIlroy, cantor
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Who wrote the lovely arrangement of the Goudimel “Comfort Ye”
Choir member Gregory Bloch made the edition and added the English text, but all the notes are Goudimel’s own — his collection “Les cent cinquante Pseaumes de David” (published in various editions between 1660 and 1680) contains both homophonic harmonizations as well as these delightful polyphonic “motets,” in which the hymn tune is presented unchanged in the soprano or tenor voice. A modern edition exists for some of them, but I think I had to transcribe this one directly from the partbooks. We’re so glad you liked it! If you search for “Goudimel” in the podcast archive you’ll find several other Huguenot hymn tunes arranged in the same fashion.