This edition was prepared by Richard Quesnel — free to download, print, rehearse and perform.
By the rivers of Babylon
Staff Notation • Sacred, Motets
Preview
0
0
Subscribed as
Want Sunday picks sent to another address too?
Free weekly email
Your choir should not be left out in what's trending
Sunday mass selections, psalms, and trending songs in your area — straight to your inbox.
By the rivers of Babylon by Richard Quesnel — Lyrics
Psalmus David, Jeremiae. Super flumina Babylonis illic sedimus et flevimus, dum recordaremur Sion.
In salicibus in medio ejus suspendimus organa nostra:
quia illic interrogaverunt nos, qui captivos duxerunt nos, verba cantionum; et qui abduxerunt nos: Hymnum cantate nobis de canticis Sion.
Quomodo cantabimus canticum Domini in terra aliena?
Si oblitus fuero tui, Jerusalem, oblivioni detur dextera mea.
Adhaereat lingua mea faucibus meis, si non meminero tui; si non proposuero Jerusalem in principio laetitiae meae.
Read full lyrics
About By the rivers of Babylon
This motet offers a powerful setting of Psalm 137, a poignant lament from the Babylonian exile. The text speaks of the sorrow of the Israelites, forced to weep in a foreign land and asked to sing the songs of Zion. The composer Richard Quesnel has set this deeply emotional text for SATTB choir, with the Latin interspersed with English translations. Its sacred nature makes it ideal for services during Lent or times of reflection, evoking a profound sense of longing and remembrance for Jerusalem, the holy city. The work powerfully captures the essence of exile and the enduring hope for a return.
