Aspice Domine

Derrick Gerarde's Aspice Domine is a motet for SATTBB voices setting a poignant Latin text. The opening words, 'Aspice, Domine, quia facta est desolata civitas plena divitiis,' paint a stark picture of a once-prosperous city now desolate and sitting in sorrow, its ruler humbled. The text laments that there is no one to comfort her but God. The variant section continues this sorrowful plea, describing weeping in the night, with tears on her cheeks, again highlighting the absence of earthly consolation and the sole reliance on divine comfort. This motet would offer profound expression for a choir.