The Voces8 U.S. Scholars, the U.S.-based training ensemble of the acclaimed British vocal group Voces8, perform Melissa Dunphy’s exquisite “O Oriens” — recorded exclusively for Minnesota Public Radio at its flagship studio in St. Paul.
When asked to set one of the Advent-based “O Antiphons,” Dunphy says she chose “O Oriens” because of its universality. “I hear the text as relevant far beyond its liturgical purpose,” she says. “It becomes a plaintive call for light in the form of love, knowledge and peace both in the world and within each of us personally, particularly for those of us who have suffered from depression or grief.”
Text:
O Oriens,
splendor lucis aeternae, et sol justitiae:
veni, et illumina sedentes in tenebris, et umbra mortis.
O Morning Star,
splendor of light eternal and sun of righteousness:
Come and enlighten those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death.
Music ©2015 by Mormolyke Press. All rights reserved. Used with kind permission of the publisher and composer. Find out more at www.melissadunphy.com.
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