Julianna Massielo

Dr. Jennifer Jones-Wilson

Music Historiography I

21 November 2018

Sicut Cervus: Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina was born in 1525, on the 3rd of February and died 2

February 1594 (aged 68) in Palestrina, Citta Metropolitana di Roma Capitale, Lazio, Italy. At the

time Palestrina lived, the Roman Catholic church was at the height of power. In addition, artists

such as Leonardo di Vinci and Michelangelo were prospering, creating some of their most

famous work during this time, The Last Supper and the Sistine Chapel ceiling respectively. As a

child, Palestrina served as a choirboy at the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome, receiving

his musical education there. There is an old legend saying that the Bishop of Palestrina heard a

young boy singing in the streets. So enchanted by his singing, the Bishop invited the boy to join

the choir Santa Maria Maggiore of in Rome. When considering his future music, palestrina was

clearly inspired by the architecture that surrounded him while we was growing up.. Arches in the

buildings that surrounded him are evident in his music with arching musical phrases. After

serving seven years as organist and choirmaster in Palestrina (1544-51), he returned back to

Rome under Pope Julius III. He ended up spending most of his career at the Julian Chapel at St.

Peter’s. Palestrina is considered the “Prince of Music.” His music, “...captured the essence of the

Catholic response to the Reformation in a polyphony of utter purity.” 1 “The polyphonic school

of composition, which began about 1400, reached its climax 160 years afterwards in Palestrina”2

1
Grout, Burkholder, and Palisca, ​A History of Western Music, ​229
2
Davey, “Giovanni,” 47
He was one of the most influential composers of polyphonic music. Palestrina is so influential on

music because of how many works he composed and his unique style of composition, and his

motet, “Sicut Cervus,” is proof of why his music remains well known among musicians today.

Palestrina wrote 104 masses, over 300 motets, 35 Magnificats, 70 hymns, and over 100

madrigals. His music is appealing to many listeners because of his sensitivity to the text. Many

composers tend to stick to the same ideas in their compositions, but Palestrina’s music was

varied in melodies, rhythms, textures, and sonorities. Because the text was so important to his

music, it is very satisfying to listen to. In his music, Palestrina used the cambiata (changed)

often. This is defined by, “..a voice skipping down a third from a dissanance to a consonance

instead of resolving by a step.”3

Palestrina wrote so much music and held positions of power that allowed his music to be

influential to composers that followed after him. For example, Anton Bruckner (1824-1896),

wrote unaccompanied, religious, choral motets as part of the Cecilian movement, promoting the

sixteenth-century a cappella style. His motet, ​Os justi ​(1879), is modal and references Palestrina

in its text sensitivity and harmonic structure. Palestrina’s work, ​Sicut Cervus​ is one of his most

well known and widely performed pieces.

Written in 1584, ​Sicut Cervus ​is a fairly simple piece, but well-loved for its text setting

and beautiful polyphony. This motet depicts the ideal of Renaissance counterpoint. When

listening to the piece, one can hear the rise of fall of the individual melodic lines, as the parts

intertwine with one another. Because the piece is polyphonic, the harmony is complex, but all

3
Grout, Burkholder, and Palisca, ​A History of Western Music, ​229
works together smoothly to form a stunning piece of music. Because notated dynamic contrast

did not exist in the Renaissance period, the contour of the melodic line was used to increase or

decrease volume. In measure 17, when listening to the sopranos and altos, one can hear their duet

stick out of the music due to the reduced texture at that moment. This is the first moment in the

piece where two parts seem to line up almost perfectly. By doing this, Palestrina catches the

listener's ear and forces them to listen closer. In measures 55-58, as the piece ends, the sopranos

sustain a G while the other parts continue to move underneath them. By sustaining the highest

note in the final chord for three measures, the sopranos could be representing a heavenly place,

while the other parts continue to provide a grounded melodic idea until the end when all parts

come together homophonically to end the piece on two final chords.

The form of the piece is ABC. Each section of the form starts with the next section of

text. Section A starts, “Sicut cervus…” section B starts, “ita desiderat…” and section C begins

with “anima mea…” When the sections change, so does the harmony. Each voice part starts each

section at a different time, further emphasizing Palestrina’s genius polyphony. In this piece,

Palestrina uses a type of polyphony called imitation quite a bit. The melody set by the tenors in

measure one is repeated throughout the whole A section by many different parts. This imitation

also recursn throughout the rest of the piece as well. When listening to this piece, it is interesting

to try and hear this imitation in each voice part. This piece is modernly voiced for SATB, but,

would have been performed in its time by choirs made up of only boys and men. Because it is

only in four parts, performance of this piece is very accessible. It is simple, but the moving,

polyphonic lines allow for a more complex harmonic structure to shine through.
 The sacred text used in this motet is from Psalm 42:1, and it is a good example of

parallelismus membrorum​, defined as “...the characteristic poetry of the psalms which consists in

neither rhyme nor meter, but rather in two compete statements (members) which are

complementary.”4

Psalm 42:15

Sicut cervus desiderat ad fontes aquarum, As a hart longs for the flowing streams,

ita desiderat anima mea ad te, Deus. so longs my soul for thee, O God.

The first statement, “As a hart longs for the flowing streams,” is expressed by a primarily

rising melodic contour, while the second “so longs my soul for thee, O God,” makes a statement

of heaven versus earth in its line with a primarily descending contour.6 Palestrina was an artist

when it came to word painting and this piece exemplifies that talent. When considering the

contour of the line with the text surrounding them, one can see that the first line of text uses an

earthly occurrence, a deer drinking from a stream, to express something that is other-worldly,

yearning for God. By using an ascending contour in the melodic line, Palestrina takes the action

of the deer and turns it into a person’s longing to be heard by their God. Contrastingly, the line

begins to descend once the text changes. Palestrina brings the piece back from its heavenly

ascension and begins to ground it in the humanness of longing for God. This text references a

person’s longing to be with God, and ending the piece in a place of foundational grounding

allows for the listener to have hope for the future and what is to come.

4
​Mahrt, "Palestrina’s Sicut Cervus,”​ 34
5
​"Motet Translations." Emmanuel Music.
6
​Mahrt, "Palestrina’s Sicut Cervus,”​ 34
 Interestingly, the piece does not actually end where it so often does in performances

around the world. Palestrina continued to write, and there is a second “half” of ​Sicut Cervus​ that

is rarely performed. Though this analysis is focused on the more widely performed first half of

Palestrina’s motet, it woud not be fair to ignore the third part. This section of the motet is rarely

performed, and it is very difficult to find scores for it online. Contrastingly, it is very easy to find

the first half. It is interesting to think why the second half of a piece that is so well loved, would

so often be ignored. The second part doesn't possess near the infectious charm and intellectual

purity displayed in the first part, but it is odd that it is not included in performances as it

continues on with Psalm 42. Because it is not perceived to be up to the same standard as the first

half of the piece, it is often left out and not recognized. The text translation of the second part is

rather interesting, as the feeling of the text is fairly different than the first part.

Sitivit anima mea ad Deum fontem vivum: My soul has thirsted for the living God:

quando veniam et apparebo ante faciem Dei? When shall I come and appear before the face
of my God?
fuerunt mihi la crymæ mæ panes die ac nocte, My tears have been my bread by day and by
night,
dum dicitur mihi quotidie:
While it is said to me daily:
Ubi est deus tuus?
Where is your God?7

This text includes the questioning that the first part does not. The speaker wonders when they

will see God. This questioning allows for an expansion of the text from part one, but no

resolution. Ending of the question, “Where is your God?” is powerful and references the doubt of

others versus the unwavering faith of the speaker. The text “Ubi est deus tuus?” is presented is

7
Translation taken from Westminster Kantorei program notes
the music in short declamatory line in the last system of the music. Each voice part has the

rhythmic and melodic contour of this text. The similarity references the strength of the singer’s

faith. The final two measures of the piece are peaceful. The speaker knows their God exists, even

if they do not always seem to be present, but those who may not be as faithful cannot see that

their God is always there. In the end the singer realizes that others opinions do not matter, as

long as their faith remains strong and united.

Overall, Palestrina's title as the leader of polyphonic music will follow him forever. His

music, especially ​Sicut Cervus​ presents an honestly and wholesomeness that is attractive to the

ear. His leadership in the Renaissance allowed for many compers after him to follow in his

footsteps and forge the music we know and love today.

 Works Cited

Davey, Henry. "Giovanni Pierluigi, Da Palestrina." ​Proceedings of the Musical Association​ 25

(1898): 47-69. ​http://www.jstor.org/stable/765152​.

Grout, Donald Jay, J. Peter Burkholder, and Claude V. Palisca. ​A History of Western Music.​ 9th

ed. New York: W. W. Norton, 2014.

Mahrt, William. "Palestrina’s Sicut Cervus: A Motet Upon a Parallelismus Membrorum." ​Sacred

Music 1​ 41, no. 1 (2014): 34-42. ​https://media.musicasacra.com/publications/sacredmusic/pdf/sm141-1.pdf​.

"Motet Translations." Emmanuel Music. Accessed December 15, 2018.

http://www.emmanuelmusic.org/notes_translations/translations_motets/t_palestrina_sicut_cervus.htm​.

Voices of Ascention. "Sicut Cervus." Conducted by Dennis Keene. In ​Beyond Chant - Mysteries

Of The Renaissance.​ Delos, 1994, CD.

Score: ​http://www3.cpdl.org/wiki/images/f/f1/Sicut_Cervus_three_page.pdf