Pentecost Tuesday 2017

This introit is one of the very few pieces of the traditional Gregorian repertoire taken from an apocryphal book, that which in the Vulgate is called the Fourth Book of Esdras. The verses from which it is taken, chapter 2, 36-37, read in full: “Fugite umbram saeculi hujus, accipite jucunditatem gloriae vestrae. Ego testor palam salvatorem meum. Commendatum Domini accipite, et jucundamini, gratias agentes ei qui vos ad caelestia regna vocavit. – Flee ye the shadow of this age, receive the delight of your glory. I bear witness openly to my savior; receive him as one commended to ye by the Lord, and delight, giving thanks to him who has called ye to the heavenly kingdoms.” (The verses which immediately precede these are noted in post-Tridentine Missals as the source of the Introit Requiem aeternam, but the citation is much broader.) The Italian composer Giuseppe Tricarico (1623-97) composed the following version for vocal ensemble.