Introduction

In his 1981 article “Prince Henry as Absalom in David’s Lamentations” Irving Godt examined a group of seventeenth-century English settings based on King David’s laments for his son Absalom and his friend Jonathan.¹ On the basis of the information available to him, Godt was unable to establish whether there was any historical precedent for these works and treated them as an isolated phenomenon exclusive to England. My recent research demonstrates that there was a group of musical works based on the same topic that predated the English settings. The repertoire of works based on Davidic laments, which began in the ninth century and continues today, spread across temporal, geographic, and religious boundaries in Europe during the sixteenth century.² For the scope of this article, the examples are limited exclusively to settings of David’s lament for Absalom; however, there were also musical works from the sixteenth century based on David’s lament for Jonathan, and those could also be used to illustrate the points offered in this article. Scholars have generally viewed well-known settings within this repertoire as commemorative of a specific person’s death for whom the setting was composed. Based on my investigation of the text variants used by sixteenth-century composers, I argue that this sacred Latin text transcended its original biblical roots, serving a variety of possible functions.

Sources of Texts

Biblical Texts

The texts of David’s lamentation for Absalom ultimately derive from two biblical passages in the Second Book of Samuel.

Absalom Text #1: 2 Samuel 18:33

Latin Vulgate	Douay-Rheims Translation
Contristatus itaque rex ascendit cenaculum portae et flevit et sic loquebatur vadens: fili mi Absalom fili mi Absalom quis mihi tribuat ut ego moriar pro te Absalom fili mi fili mi.3	The king therefore being much moved, went up to the high chamber over the gate, and wept. And as he went he spoke in this manner: My son Absalom, Absalom my son: would to God that I might die for thee, Absalom my son, my son Absalom

 

Absalom Text #2: 2 Samuel 19:4

 

Latin Vulgate	Douay-Rheims Translation
porro rex operuit caput suum, et clamabat voce magna: fili mi Absalon fili mi fili mi.	And the king covered his head, and cried with a loud voice: O my son Absalom, O Absalom my son, O my son.

 

 

Antiphon Text

The earliest known musical setting of David’s lament, Rex autem David, is found in European medieval antiphonals.⁴ A list of the known manuscript sources for the antiphon is included in Table 1. The function of this musical setting was liturgical, occurring among the readings of the Old Testament histories that occupy the summer months in the Catholic liturgical year. In addition to providing music, the plainchant antiphon also presents a third text of David’s lament for Absalom.

Absalom Text #3: Rex autem David

Rex autem David cooperto capite
incedens lugebat filium dicens:
Absalon, fili mi, fili mi Absalon,
quis michi det ut ego moriar pro te, fili mi Absalon.

But King David, walking with covered head,
mourned for his son, saying:
Absalon, my son, my son Absalon.
Would it had been given to me that I had died for thee, my son, Absalon.⁵

The antiphon text appears to be derived from both biblical accounts, because it contains information that is specific to each. For example, the first line of the antiphon text is based on 2 Samuel 19:4, which notes that David covered his head, and the last line of the antiphon text, “would it had been given to me that I had died for thee,” is based on the text from 2 Samuel 18:33.

Table 1: Sources of Rex autem David antiphon⁶

Bamberg Antiphoner	Bamberg, Staatliche Bibliothek, Cod. lit. 23
Compiegne Antiphoner	Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale, MS lat. 17436
Antipyoner of Saint-Denis	Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale, MS 17296
Ivrea Antiphoner	Ivrea, Chapter Library, MS 106
Antiphoner of Saint-Maur-les-Fosses	Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale, MS lat. 12584
Antiphoner of Hartker	Saint-Gallen, Stiftsbibliothek MSS 390 & 391
Monza Antiphoner	Monaza, Chapter Library, Cod. c. 12.75
Rheinau Antiphoner	Zurich, Zentrabibliothek, MS s.n., formerly Rheinau, Abbey Library MS 28
Antiphoner of Silos	London, British Library, MS Add. 30850
Verona Antiphoner	Verona, Chapter Library, Cod. XCVIII
Breviary	Rouen, Bibliogheque Municipale, MS 205 (Y46)
Antiphonaire monastique	Lucques, Chapter Library, Cod. 601
Antiphonaire monastique	Worchester, Cathedral Library, Cod. F. 160
Antiphonale Sarisburiense	Cambridge, University Library, MS Mm 2 G

 

Musical Settings Based On Antiphon Texts

This survey of Renaissance settings begins with six motets that share the Rex autem David antiphon text. The timeline in Table 2 demonstrates that composers wrote polyphonic settings of the antiphon text throughout the course of the sixteenth century. The motets were written by Catholic composers. However, the anonymous 1506 setting of Rex autem David also appears in the Symphoniae jucundae, a Protestant anthology for home devotional use compiled by Georg Rhau in 1538 in Wittenberg. These six polyphonic motets would not have been used as a substitute for the liturgical plainchant antiphon, Rex autem David. However, since they all use the antiphon text, it is likely that the motets may have served some para-liturgical function. Although these settings all use the text from the antiphon, none of the composers utilized the antiphon melody as a cantus firmus.

Table 2: Sixteenth-Century Motets Based on Rex autem David Antiphon Text

Date	Title	Composer	Genre	Source(s)
c.1506	Rex autem David7	Anonymous	4 vv. motet	Florence, MS Panciatichi 27 Basel, Universität, MS FX 5-9 Regensburg, Proske, MS AR 940/41 Regensburg, Ebenda MS B 220-222 München, Universität MS 326 Symphoniae Jucundae St Gall, Stiftsbibliothek, MS 463
1521	Rex autem David8	Mathieu Gascogne (fl. 1517-1518)	4 vv. motet	Königsberg MS 1740 Padua A 17 Regensburg, Proske, MS AR 940/41 RISM 1521.5, Venice RISM 1521.6, Rome RISM 1539.11, Lyon RISM 1535. 3, Paris
1549	Rex autem David9       Pt. 1: Rex autem David      Pt. 2: Planxit autem	Jacobus Clemens non Papa (b. c1510-15, d. 1555/6)	4 vv. motet	Aachen, Domarchiv, Magnon-Codex Regensburg, Proske, AR 891 RISM 1564.1, Nürnberg
before 1571/2	Rex autem David10	Bernardo de Ribera (b. c1510-q15, d. 1555/6)	5 vv. motet	E-Tc 6, Toledo
pub. 1574	Rex autem David11      Pt. 1: Rex autem David      Pt. 2: Planxit autem	Jean de Castro (b. 15407?, d. 1600?)	3 vv. motet	Triciniorum sacrorum, liber units
pub. 1596	Rex autem David12	Giovanni de Macque (b. 1548-50, d. 1614)	6 vv. motet incomplete—only five parts survive	Motectorum, 5, 6, 8vv, liber primus

In addition to spanning much of the sixteenth century, these musical settings extended through several Catholic countries in mainland Europe. The composers of the Rex autem David motets held positions in Spain, France, Italy, Belgium, and the Netherlands. The earliest surviving polyphonic motet based on the antiphon text is an anonymous setting found in the Florentine source Panciatichi MS 27, which Gioia Filocamo dates around 1506.¹³ The 1521 setting of Rex autem David was composed by Mathieu Gascogne, who worked the Royal Chapel of François I in France.¹⁴ Gascogne’s motet was published by Andrea Antico in Rome and can also be found in sources from Königsberg, Padua, Regensburg, Venice, Lyon, and Paris. The next composer to set this text was Jacobus Clemens non Papa, who worked at the cathedral in Bruges, and his motet appears in manuscripts from Aachen, Regensburg, and Nürnberg.¹⁵ Bernardino de Ribera spent most of his career at the cathedral in Toledo, which is also the location of the manuscript that contains his motet.¹⁶ Jean de Castro worked in Antwerp, Düsseldorf, Cologne, and several unnamed cities in France.¹⁷ His motet was published in 1574 in a collection of his sacred works, titled Triciniorum sacrorum liber unus. Finally, Giovanni de Macque worked at churches in Rome and Naples, and his motet was included in the Motectorum, liber primus, which was published in Rome in 1596.¹⁸ The 1506 Rex autem David setting contained in the Symphoniae jucundae provides a link outside of the Catholic repertoire and suggests a Protestant affinity for this Latin text. 

Musical Settings With Multiple Antiphon Text

Two motets combine the Rex autem David text with Doleo super te, an antiphon text based on King David’s lament for this friend Jonathan, providing a clear musical link between these two similar lament texts. Clemens non Papa’s setting of Rex autem David consists of laments for both Absalom and Jonathan arranged in two separate parts. The union of David’s lamentations was previously found in an anonymous fourteenth-century polytextual motet Doleo super te/Absalon fili mi. Though Clemens non Papa was probably not aware of any medieval precedent, for some reason he chose to connect both of these texts in his motet. Jean de Castro also combined them in his three-voice motet, Rex autem David. Both composers used the same text for the secunda pars of their motets.

Text and Translation of Planxit autem David

Planxit autem David super Jonathan dicens:
Doleo super te, frater mi Jonatha,
amabilis valde super amorem mulierum.
Sicut mater unicum amat filium suum, ita ego te diligebam.
Incliti Israel flete.

Thus David mourned over Jonathan, saying:
I grieve for you, my brother Jonathan;
with a love greater than the love of women,
Like a mother loves her only son, I delighted in you.
Weep for the glory of Israel.¹⁹

The first line of the text, “Planxit autem David,” and the last line, “Incliti Israel flete” are both non-liturgical but derive from the biblical account of David’s lament for Jonathan (found in 2 Samuel 1:17 & 19). The Doleo super te text is both a liturgical antiphon text and a biblical scripture (2 Samuel 1:26). These two motets by Clemens non Papa and Castro not only join the Absalom and Jonathan laments, but they also combine two different liturgical antiphon texts with biblical texts (2 Samuel 1:17&19).

 

Musical Settings Utilizing Biblical Texts

In addition to the six polyphonic motets utilizing the Rex autem David antiphon text, there are also seven musical settings that use other types of texts, notably biblical texts and poetic adaptations based on the scriptural account of David’s lament. Table 3 provides a timeline of the musical settings that are based on biblical texts or poetic adaptations. Since these polyphonic settings do not use texts from monophonic liturgical music, there are two possibilities for their function. They may have been used in church services in addition to the liturgical readings from the second book of Samuel, which occurred at Matins on the Saturday before the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost.²⁰ It is also possible that these settings could have been used for non-liturgical purposes.

Table 3: Other Sixteenth-Century Musical Settings Based on David’s Lament for Absalom

 

Date	Title	Composer	Genre	Source(s)
before c1513	Absalon, fili mi21	Josquin des Prez? (b. 1450/55, d. 1521) OR Pierre de la Rue? (b. 1452, d. 1518)	4 vv. motet	London, Brit. Lib., MS Royal 8 G VII RISM 1540.7, Augsburg RISM 1559.2, Nürnberg
pub. 1538	Absalon, fili mi22	Anonymous	4 vv. motet	Symphoniae Jucundae
pub. 1546	Triste estaba el rey David23	Alonso Mudarra (b. 1510, d. 1580)	solo voice and vihuela	Tres libros de musica en cifras para vihuela
1559	Doleo super te Absalon24	Benedictus Appenzeller (b. 1480-88, d. after 1558)	4 vv. motet	RISM 1559.2, Nürnberg RISM 1540.7, Augsburg25
pub. 1564	Lugebat David Absalon26      Pt. 1: Lugebat David Absalon      Pt. 2: Porro rex operuit	Josquin des Prez? OR Nicholas Gombert? (b. 1495, d. 1560)	8 vv. motet	RISM 1564.1, Nürnberg London, Brit. Lib., Royal Appendix 49-54 RISM 1552.35 Verona, Accademia Filarmonica, MS 218
c1580	Cum audisset David rex27	Rodrigo de Ceballos (b. 1525/50, d. 1581)	4 vv. motet	Granada. Capilla Real, MS 3 Toledo, Cath. Lib., MS Mus B 7
pub. 1587	Planxit David rex Absalon28	Jacobus Gallus (b. 1550, d. 1591)	8 vv. motet	Opus musicum III

 

The well-known motet Absalon, fili mi (c. 1513), which was attributed in one source to Josquin des Prez and has been ascribed by modern scholars to Pierre de la Rue, conflates portions from three different biblical texts.²⁹

Text and Transaltion of Absalon, fili mi

Absalon, fili mi, fili mi, Absalon,  quis det ut moriar pro te, fili mi Absalon,  Non vivam ultra,  sed descendam infernum plorans.

Absalon, my son, my son, Absalon, would that I could die for you, my son, Absalon, Let me live no longer, but descend into hell, weeping.30

 

 

 

The initial text of the motet is a portion of David’s lament taken from 2 Samuel 18:33.

contristatus itaque rex ascendit cenaculum portae et flevit et sic loquebatur vadens: fili mi Absalom fili mi Absalom quis mihi tribuat ut ego moriar pro te Absalom fili mi fili mi³¹

The king therefore being much moved, went up to the high chamber over the gate, and wept. And as he went he spoke in this manner: My son Absalom, Absalom my son: would to God that I might die for thee, Absalom my son, my son Absalom.³²

Next, the composer adds the text “non vivam ultra” (“let me live no longer”), taken from Job’s lament in Job 7:16.

desperavi nequaquam ultra iam vivam
parce mihi nihil enim sunt dies mei

I have done with hope, I shall now live no longer:
spare me, for my days are nothing.

Finally, the phrase “sed descendam infernum plorans” (“but descend into hell, weeping”), is from Jacob’s lament for his son Joseph in Genesis 37:35.

congregatis autem cunctis liberis eius ut lenirent dolorem patris noluit consolationem recipere et ait descendam ad filium meum lugens in infernum et illo perseverante in fletu

And all his children being gathered together to comfort their father in his sorrow,
he would not receive comfort, but said: I will go down to my son into hell, mourning and whilst he continued weeping.

The three different biblical accounts all share a common theme of fathers lamenting. The excerpts from Job and Genesis that have been appended to the Absalom text intensify the human drama of David’s lament for his son.

The text of Doleo super te Absalon (1559) by Benedictus Appenzeller represents an amalgamation of the Absalom and Jonathan texts, again reinforcing a musical connection between David’s two similar laments. However, this piece also calls attention to the individual character of David’s two laments.

Text and Translation of Doleo super te Absalon

Doleo super te, Absalon, fili mi,
amabilis super amorem mulierum.
Sicut mater unicum amat filium, ita te diligebam

I grieve for you, Absalon, my son,
with a love greater than the love of women.
Like a mother loves her only son, I delighted in you.³³

The composer used the Doleo super te text (2 Samuel 1:26) as a starting point, inserting “Absalon, fili mi” in place of “frater mi Jonatha.” Since the name is changed, David is now lamenting for his son Absalom. The lines of text that follow could possibly work as part of a father’s lament for his son. However, the phrase “amabilis super amorem mulierum” (“with a love greater than the love of women”) is a distinctive and integral part of David’s expression of love for his best friend in his lament for Jonathan. Thus, even though the name has been changed in the first line from Jonathan to Absalom, the remaining text certainly carries the character of its original context as a lament for his best friend.

Lugebat David Absalon (pub. 1564), attributed to Josquin and Gombert, unites a poetic description of David’s lament with both biblical texts and the antiphon text of David’s lament for Absalom.

Text and Translation of Lugebat David Absalon

Prima Pars:	[source]	First Part:
1. Lugebat David Absalon, pius pater filium, tristis senex puerum:	[poetic description]	1. David mourned for Absalom, the loving father for his son, the old man for a youth:
2. “Heu me, fili mi Absalon, heu me, fili mi Absalon,		2. “Alas, my son Absalom, Alas my son Absalom,
3. quis mihi det ut ego pro te moriar,	[2 Samuel 18:33]	3. would that I could die for you,
4. O fili mi, fili mi Absalon?		4. O my son, my son, Absalom?
5. Rex autem David filium dixit cooperto flebat capite:	[antiphon text]	5. King David wept for his son with covered head,
6. “Quis mihi det ut ego moriar pro te, O fili mi?”		6. “Would that I could die for you, o my son!”
Secunda Pars:		Second Part:
7. Porro Rex operuit caput suum, et clamabat voce magna:	[2 Samuel 19:4]	7. Later, the king covered his head and cried with a loud voice:
8. “O fili mi Absalon.”		8. “O my son Absalom.”34

 

The prima pars begins with a poetic introduction in lines 1 & 2, describing David’s lament for his son. This is followed in lines 3 and 4 by a text based on 2 Samuel 18:33 and then the complete Rex autem David antiphon text in lines 5 and 6. Finally, the text for the secunda pars in lines 7 and 8 is taken exactly from 2 Samuel 19:4.

Poetic Adaptions

Two Latin motets and one Spanish song utilize poetic adaptations of the story of David’s lament. The entire text of Cum audisset autem David rex (c 1580), by Spanish composer Rodrigo de Ceballos, is a poetic interpretation of David’s lament.

Text and Translation of Cum audisset autem David rex

Cum audisset autem David rex, filium occissum, valde contristatus est;
Et cooperto capite, lacrimas fundebat et gemebat dicens:
“Absalom, fili mi, quis te perdit et occidit?”

However, when David the King had heard that his son was slain, he was very moved;
And covering his head, he poured forth tears and groaned, saying:
“Absalom, my son, why are you lost/destroyed and slain?”³⁵

 

This poetic rendering of David’s lament retains much of the original literary character of the scriptural account. For example, the text contains certain words specific to the biblical source and antiphon text; the term “contristatus” is only found in 2 Samuel 18:33, and the phrase “cooperto capite” comes from the Rex autem David antiphon text.

The Slovenian composer Jacobus Gallus composed a motet for double choir titled Planxit David Rex Absalon that uses a poetic rendering of the Absalom text. This work was included in Gallus’s collection of motets for the liturgical year titled Opus musicum, in the section for the season after Pentecost and prior to advent, suggesting a liturgical function.

Text and Translation of Planxit David rex Absalon

Prima pars:	First part:
Planxit David rex Absalon natum suum:  O nate mi, cur non licet pro te mori?  Fili parentum nobilis sanguis, iaces,  spes alta regni,  cura divorum potens!  Eheu, dolor.	King David mourned for his son Absalon: O my child, why could I not die for you? Son of parents of noble blood, you sleep, the high hope of the kingdom, the powerful concern of the angels! Alas, grief.
Secunda pars:	Second part:
Diadema, sceptrum, regium nomen vale; Natus meorum ille dux fortis iacet.  Fili, fili, fili quid istud? Corde confosso impie? O Absalon, dilecte mi fili, vale. Eheu dolor.	Diadem, scepter, royal name, farewell; My son, that strong leader of my [people], sleeps. O son, what [is] that? With a pierced heart, impious? O Absalon, my beloved son, farewell. Alas, grief.36

The song Triste estava el rey David by Alonso Mudarra was published in 1546 as a set of three romances. The other songs in this set were based on biblical texts, one being David’s lament for Jonathan from Second Samuel, the other, the story of Jesus quieting the tempest in Matthew 8: 23-27. Mudarra’s setting of the Absalom text also presents a completely poetic interpretation of David’s lament for Absalom.

Text and Translation of Triste estava el Rey David³⁷

 

Triste estava el rey David;  Triste y con gran passión,  Quando le vinieron nuevas  De la muerte de Absalom.  Palabras tristes dezía  Salidas del coraçón.	King David was sad; Sad and with great passion. When the news was brought to him Of the death of Absalom. The sad words he uttered Came forth from his heart.
Ellos mismos fueron causa De tu muerte y mi passión.  No te quisiera ver muerto, Sino vivo en mi prisión, Que aunque me eras desobediente Yo te otorgara perdón. Fili mi.	They themselves were the cause Of your death and my passion; I would not like to see you dead. But alive in my prison, Even though you disobeyed me, I granted you forgiveness. My son.

This song differs from the other musical settings in two ways—the use of a vernacular text and a secular genre. This is the first musical setting of David’s lament written in a vernacular language. However, during the later sixteenth century, Spanish composers such as Bernardino de Ribera and Rodrigo de Ceballos continued to follow the trend of setting the Latin texts. The next vernacular settings of David’s lamentations are the early seventeenth-century British anthems utilizing the text When David Heard. Also, this Spanish song is not a polyphonic motet, but rather is scored for solo voice and vihuela, which along with the vernacular language connotes a more secular function for the piece.

 

Puposes For The Non-Liturgical Settings

Since the polyphonic settings based on biblical and poetic texts could have been composed for non-liturgical purposes, scholars have speculated—based on circumstantial evidence – as to the reason why certain well-known settings were composed. For example, Jeremy Noble has posited that Absalon fili mi was written either by La Rue for the death of Philip the Fair in 1506 or by Josquin for the death of Giovanni Borgia, son of Pope Alexander VI, in 1497.³⁸ Both of these events fit the biographical information known about the respective composers and also the timeline for the work, since we know that it was copied in 1513. However, these suggestions are problematic, because there is no actual evidence that links this musical work (or any of the other sixteenth-century settings) to the death of a prominent historical figure’s son. While this is certainly one option, the presence of such a variety of texts and different functions among the fourteen musical works suggests that there could also be other reasons why these pieces were composed. For example, these compositions could have been written to lament the death of any patron’s son or they may not have been written to commemorate a specific death at all. A more pragmatic explanation is also probable; a sixteenth-century composer could have come across the passages about David’s lamentation while reading in the second book of Samuel and simply chosen to set that text to music. Based on Zarlino’s writings in Le istitutione harmoniche, a modern perception of Renaissance musical aesthetics includes the idea that the music was influenced by the text and should express the meaning of the words. Therefore, in setting the text a Renaissance composer would have chosen music that would underscore the meaning of David’s affective lament.

 

Conclusion

Throughout the sixteenth century composers across Europe, who may not have known one another’s works, chose to set a variety of texts depicting the same biblical story, David’s lament for Absalom, thus establishing a musical repertoire. The sources for these motet texts ranged from antiphon texts, suggesting a potential para-liturgical function, to biblical scriptures and poetic interpretations, suggesting either a possible sacred connection or some secular purpose for the composition of the pieces. Since many different Renaissance composers were using the Absalom text in their compositions, it naturally raises questions as to why they did so. While I acknowledge that some of these settings may have been written to commemorate the death of someone’s son, as previous scholars have suggested, the different texts used by composers suggest a variety of possible functions for these musical works within liturgical, non-liturgical, and secular contexts. Therefore, I would argue that it is not necessary to contrive connections between any given piece in this repertoire and a specific historical event in order to understand how the Absalom settings may have functioned in Renaissance society. Instead, as the texts and music of these works demonstrate, there are a variety of possibilities that may have brought them into existence.

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Swing, Peter Gram. “Mathieu Gascogne.” In Grove Music Online. Edited by Laura Macy. http://www.grovemusic.com (accessed January 22, 2006).

Weber, Robert, ed. Biblia Sacra Iuxta Vulgatem versionem. Stuttgart: Württembergische Bibelanstalt, 1969.

 

APPENDIX: TIMELINE OF DAVID’S LAMENTATIONS—9th-21st CENTURIES

Table A.1: Musical Settings from Ninth-Sixteenth centuries

Date	Title	Composer	Genre	Source(s)
9th century39	Rex autem David	Anonymous	plainchant antiphon	Paris, Bibl. Nat., MS lat. 17436 (earliest source)
11th century	Montes Gelboe nec ros	Anonymous	plainchant antiphon	Ivrea, Chapter Lib., MS 106 Monza, Chapter Lib., Cod. c. 12.75 (earliest sources)
11th century	Saul et Jonathas amabiles	Anonymous	plainchant antiphon	Ivrea, Chapter Lib., MS 106 Monza, Chapter Lib., Cod. c. 12.75 (earliest sources)
11th century	Doleo super te	Anonymous	plainchant antiphon	Ivrea, Chapter Lib., MS 106 Monza, Chapter Lib., Cod. c. 12.75 (earliest sources)
after c1130	Planctus David super Saul et Ionatha;   Pt. I: Dolorum solatium   Pt. II: Amalech involuit   Pt. III: Saul regum fortissime   Pt. IV: Ve, ve, tibi madida   Pt. V: Heu cur consilio   Pt. VI: Do quietem fidibus	Peter Abelard (b. 1079, d. 1142)	monophonic planctus	Vatican City, Bib. Apost., Cod. Regin lat 288 Oxford, Univ. Lib., MS Bodl. 79 Paris, Bib. Nat., MS NAL 3126
14th century	Doleo super te/ Absalon fili mi	Anonymous	Polytextual motet	Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College, MS 512/543
before 1492?	Triste esta el rey David	Anonymous	Traditional Sephardic song	?
pub. 1506	Rex autem David,	Anonymous	4 vv. motet	Florence, MS Panciatichi 27 Basel, Universität, MS FX 5-9 Regensburg, Proske, MA AR 940-41 Regensburg, Ebenda MS B220-222 München, Universität MS 36 Symphoniae Jucundae
before c1513	Absalom, fili mi	Josquin des Prez? (b. 1450/55, d. 1521) OR Pierre de la Rue? (b. 1452, d.1518)	4 vv. motet	London, Brit. Lib., MS Royal 8 G VII RISM 1540 7, Augsburg RISM 1559.2, Nurnberg
before c1513	Consideraa Israel;   Pt. 1: Considera Israel   Pt. 2: Sagitta Jonathae   Pt. 3: Filiae Israel   Pt. 4: Doleo super	Pierre de la Rue (b. 1452, d. 1518)	4 vv. motet	Florence, Bib. Natl., MS II.I.232 Vatican City, Bib Apost., MS Palatini Latini 1976-79 Brussels, Bibl. Royal, MS 228 London, British Library, MS Royal 8 G VII
before 1521	Planxit autem David;   Pt. 1: Planxit autem David   Pt. 2: Montes Gelboe   Pt. 3: Sagitta Jonathae   Pt. 4: Doleo super te	Josquin des Prez (b. 1450/55, d. 1521)	4 vv. motet	Florence, Bib. Natl., MS II.I.232
1521	Rex autem David	Mathieu Gascogne (fl. 1517-1518)	4 vv. motet	Königsberg MS 1740 Padua A 17 Regensburg, Proske, MS AR 940/41 RISM 1521.5, Venice RISM 1521.6, Rome RISM 1539.11, Lyon RISM 1535.3 Paris
1527	Klingender Ton	Hans Sachs (1494-1576)	monophonic Meisterton	Göttingen, Niedersächsischen Staats- und Universitätsbib., 4 Mus. V, 3050
pub. 1538	Absalon, fili mi	Anonymous	4 vv. motet	Symphoniae Juncundae
pub. 1546	Triste estaba el rey David	Alonso Mudarra (b. 1510, d. 1580)	solo voice and vihuela	Tres libros de musica en cifras para vihuela
pub. 1546	Israel, mira tua montes	Alonso Mudarra (b. 1510, d. 1580)	solo voice and vihuela	Tres libros de musica en cifras para vihuela
1549	Rex autem David;   Pt. 1: Rex autem David   Pt. 2: Planxit autem	Jacobus Clemns non Papa (b. c1510-15, d.1555/6)	4 vv. motet	Aachen, Domarchiv, Magnon-Codex Regensburg, Proske, AR 891 RISM 1564.1, Nurnberg
before 1553	Doleo super te	Matheo Flecha (b. 1481?, d.1553?)	motet	lost
before 1571	Rex autem David	Bernardino de Ribera (b. 1520, d. 1571/2)	5 vv. motet	Toledo, Cath. Lib., MS Mus 6
pub. 1574	Rex autem David;   Pt. 1: Rex autem David   Pt. 2: Planxit autem	Jean de Castro (b. 1540?, d. 1600?)	3 vv. motet	Triciniorum sacrorum, liber unus
c1580	Cum audisset David rex	Rodrigo de Ceballos (b. 1525/50, d. 1581)	4 vv. motet	Granada, Capilla Real, MS 3 Toledo, Cath.Lib., MS Mus B 7
pub. 1587	Planxit David rex Absalon	Jacobus Gallus (b. 1550, d. 1591)	8 vv. motet	Opus musicum III
pub. 1596	Rex autem David	Giovanni de Macque (b. 1548-50, d. 1614)	6 vv. motet incomplete—only five parts survive	Motectorum, 5, 6, 8vv, liber primus

 

 Table A.2: Seventeenth-century English settings⁴⁰

 

Date	Title	Composer	Genre	Source(s)
before 1616	When David Heard;   Pt. 1: When David Heard   Pt. 2: O My Son	Thomas Weelkes (b. c1576, d. 1623)	6 vv. anthem	London, Brit. Lib., MS 29366-68 London, Brit. Lib., MS 29372-77 London, Brit. Lib., MS 29427 Oxford, Bodleian, MS 807-11 Oxford, Bodleian, MS 1162-7 Oxford, Bodleian, MS 389 Oxford, Christ Church, 56-60 NY pub. Lib., Drexel MS 4302 Washington D.C, Folger Lib., MS V.a.412 San Marino, CA, Huntington Lib. MS HM 461
before 1616	O Jonathan	Thomas Weelkes (b. c1576, d. 1623)	6 vv. anthem	London, Brit. Lib., MS 29366-68 London, Brit. Lib., MS 29372-77 London, Brit. Lib., MS 29427 San Marino, CA, Huntington Lib., MS EL 25 A 46-51 Oxford, Bodleian, MS 1162-67 Washington D.C., Folger Lib., MS V.a.412
before 1616	And the King Was Moved	Richard Dering (b. c1580, d. 1630)	5 vv. anthem	London, Brit. Lib., MS 29372-77 London, Brit. Lib., MS 29427 York, Minster, MS M 29 Brussels MS II.4109 Washington D.C, Folger Lib., MS V.a.412
before 1616	When David Heard that Absalom	John Milton, Sr. (b. c1563, d. 1647)	5 vv. anthem	London, Brit. Lib., MS 29372-77 London, Brit. Lib., MS 29427
before 1616	O woe is me for thee	John Milton, Sr. (b. c1563, d. 1647)	5 vv. anthem	London, Brit. Lib., MS 29372-77 London, Brit. Lib., MS 29427
before 1616	When David Heard that Absalom	Robert Ramsey (d. 1644)	6 vv. anthem	London, Brit. Lib., MS 29427 Oxford, Bodleian MS 1162-7
before 1616	O my Son Absalom;   Pt. 1: O my son Absalom   Pt. 2: Saul and Jonathan	Giles Farnaby (b. c1563, d. 1640)	5 vv. anthem; incomplete—alto part only	London, Brit. Lib., MS 29427
before 1616	When David Heard that Absalom	William Bearsley	5 vv. anthem; incomplete—no quintus	London, Brit. Lib., MS 29427 London, Brit., Lib. MS 29366-8 Oxford, Bodleian, MS f. 20-24
pub. 1617	Contristatus est Rex David	Richard Dering (b. c1580, d. 1630)	5 vv. motet	Oxford, Christ Church, MS 881-86, Cantiones Sacrae
pub. 1618	When David Heard that Absalom	Michael East (b. c1580, d. 1648)	6 vv. anthem	Fourth Set of Bookes
c1618, pub. 1622	When David Heard that Absalom	Thomas Tomkins (b. 1572, d. 1656)	5 vv. anthem	London Brit. Lib., MS 29372-77 NY Pub Lib., Drexel MS 4180-85 Songs of 3. 4. 5. & 6. Parts Musica Deo sacra
c1620	O my son Absolon	Anon. 321; also attributed to Weelkes (doubtful)	4 vv. anthem	London, Brit. Lib., R.M. 23.1.4 Oxford, Bodleian, MS f. 17-19 Washington D.C, Folger, MS V.a.412
c1622	When David Heard	“Mr. Smith” Elias Smith?	5 vv. anthem	New York Public Lib., Drexel MS 4180-855
early 17th century	When David Heard that Jonathan	William Bearsley	5 vv. anthem; incomplete	London, Brit. Lib., MS 29366-68
before 1625	O Jonathan, how wert thou slain	Anon. 276	anthem; incomplete—tenor part only	Washington D.C., Folger Lib., MS V.a.412
before 1641	O Jonathan, thou wast slain   Pt 1: O Jonathan thou wert slain   Pt. 2: How are the mighty fallen	Anon. 167	anthem, incomplete	Litchfield, Cathedral Lub., manuscript additions in John Barnard, The First Book of Selected Church Musick
before 1641	O Jonathan, thou wast slain   Pt. 1: O Jonathan, thou wast slain   Pt. 2: How are the Mighty Fallen   Pt. 3: Ye daughters of Israel	Anon. 277	anthem, incomplete	Litchfield, Cathedral Lib., additions to Barnard partbooks
before 1644	How are the Mighty Fall’n	Robert Ramsey (d. 1644)	6 vv. anthem	Glasgow, Euing Lib. MS R.d.91
pub. 1652	O Absolon, my Son	Henry Lawes (b. 1596, d. 1662)	3 vv. canon	Catch that Catch Can, London: John Hilton, 1652.
c1650s	When David heard that Absalom	Anon. 410	anthem; incomplete—bass part only	San Marino, CA, Huntington, Lib. MS HM 461
pub. 1668	Then David Mourned	Thomas Tomkins (b. 1572, d. 1656)	5 vv. anthem	Musica Deo sacra Deo, London, 1668
c. 1670s	How Are the Mighty Fallen	Michael Wise (b. 1647, d. 1687)	3 vv. anthem	London, Brit. Lib., MS 17784 Oxford, Christ Church MS 1246
c. 1670-85	When David Heard	Anon. 411	3 vv. anthem	London, Brit. Lib., MS 33235 Oxford, Christ Church MS623-25
c. 1690	Thy Beauty, O Israel	Henry Aldrich (b. 1648, d. 1710)	arrangement of Wise’s anthem; 4 vv. & continuo	Oxford, Christ Church, MSS Mus. 12, 16, & 614
late 1600s	O Absalom, my son	Anon. 253	6 vv. anthem; incomplete	London, Brit. Lib., manuscript insertions in John Barnard, The First Book of Selected Church Musick
late 1600’s	The Beauty of Israel is slain	John Walter (b. c1660, d. 1708)	anthem	London, Brit. Lib. MS 22100; the piece is only mentioned in index, no music.

Table A.3: Musical Settings, 17th-21st centuries

 

Date	Title	Composer	Genre/Instrumentation	Source(s)/Comments
pub.1602	“Fili mi, Absalon”	Lodovico Viadana (b. 1560, d. 1627)	2 mezzo-sopranos, baritone, & organ	Cento Concerti Ecclesiastici
pub. 1602	“Doleo Super te”	Lodovico Viadana (b. 1560, d. 1627)	2 basses & organ	Cento Concerti Ecclesiastici
1629	“Fili mi, Absalon”	Schütz, Heinrich (b. 1585, d. 1672)	Bass, 4 trombones, continuo	Symphoniae Sacrae
pub. 1655	Lagrime di Davide sparse nel miserere	Biagio Marini (b. 1594, d. 1663)	2-4 vv, 2 vlns, organ	?
before 1674	Historia Davidis et Jonathae	Giacomo Carissimi (?) (b. 1605, d. 1674	SSATB, 2 vlns, & basso continuo	Paris, Natl. Lib., MSS Vm1 1473 (Brossard)
1674	Assalone punito	Pietro Andrea Ziani (b. 1616, d. 1684)	oratorio	Vienna, Natl. Lib.
before 1678	Assalone	Paolo Petti (d. 1678)	oratorio; 5 vv. & instr.	Paris, Conservatory Lib.
1681	Doleo super te	Henry Du Mont (b. 1610, d. 1684)	petit motet; Ct, T, B, continuo	Motets a II. III. et IV. parties
early 1680’s	Mors Saulis et Jonathae	Marc-Antoine Charpentier (b. 1643, d. 1704)	oratorio	Paris, Natl. Lib., MS Rés Vm 259, iv
1686	Absalone (L’Assalone)	Giovanni Paolo Colonna (b. 1637, d. 1695)	oratorio	Vienna, Natl. Lib. Paris, Conservatory Lib.
1688	David et Jonathas	Marc-Antoine Charpentier (b. 1643, d. 1704)	tragédie mise en musique; (incomplete)	Paris, Natl. Lib., MS Rés F924
before c. 1690	Geistliche Konzerte aus dem Evangelien-Jahrgang:   57. “Mein Sohn, woll’t Gott, ich müßte vor          dir sterben”	Augustin Pfleger (b. c1635, d. c1690)	2 sopranos, 1 bass, 3 violas, & continuo	Universitätsbibliothek Upsala
1691	L’Absalone ribello	Flavio Lanciani (b. 1661, d. 1706)	oratorio	lost
before 1700?	La cetra piangente de Davide nella morte de Gionata	Giuseppe Pacieri (d. 1700 or later)	oratorio	Naples, Bib. Oratoriana dei Filippini
1704	Assalon punito	Antonio Veracini (b. 1659-1733)	oratorio	?
1705	La superbia punita in Absalone	Giuseppe Valentini (b. 1681, d. 1753)	drama sacro	lost
1715	La ribellione d’Assalonne	Antonio Caldara (b. 1671, d. 1736)	oratorio	Münster, Santini Bib.
1720	Assalonne	Antonio Caldara (b. 1671, d. 1736)	oratorio	Vienna, Natl. Lib., MS HS 17058
1721	Davide	Francesco Pistocchi (b. 1659, d. 1726)	oratorio	lost
1724	David	Francesco Conti (b. 1681/2, d. 1732)	oratorio	Vienna, Natl. Lib.
1726	Assalone nemico del padre amante	Giuseppe Porsile (b. 1680, d. 1750)	oratorio	Vienna, Natl. Lib. Vienna, Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde    (Wgm)
1728	Gionata	Antonio Caldara (b. 1671, d. 1736)	oratorio	Vienna, Gesellschaft (Wgm) Vienna, Natl. Lib.
1733	Gionata	Pietro Torri (b. 1650, d. 1737)	oratorio	?
1736  (rev. 1744)	David’s Lamentation Over Saul and Jonathan	William Boyce (b. 1711, d. 1779)	sacred cantata; 4 vv, & orch	Oxford, Bodleian Lib. London, Royal College of Music
pub. 1738	The Beauty of Israel is slain	William Knapp (b. 1698/99, d. 1768)	4 vv. anthem	A Sett of New Psalm-tunes and Anthems,    Knapp Sixteen Anthems, by Josiah Flagg
1738-39	Saul, Act 3 Scene V: “Elegy for Saul and Jonathan”	George F. Handel (b. 1685, d. 1759)	oratorio	oratorio
1739	Assalonne	Antonio Pampani (b. 1705, d. 1775)	oratorio	?
1739	L’obbedienza di Gionata	Antonio Pampani (b. 1705, d. 1775)	oratorio	Munich, Bayerische Staatsbib.
1738-40	David’s Lamentation Over Saul and Jonathan	John Christopher Smith (b. 1712, d. 1795)	oratorio	lost
1743	Der so true als heyllos wider seinen sanfftmüthigen Vatter David rebellierende Sohn Absolon	Gregor Joseph Werner (b. 1693, d. 1766)	oratorio	Budapest, Natl. Lib.
1745	Davide e Gionata	Jean-Noël Hamal (b. 1709, d. 1778)	oratorio	Liege, Bib. Conserv. Royal de musique
1747	Jonathas	Andrea Bernasconi (b. 1706, d. 1784)	drama sacrum	?
1751	David	Andrea Bernasconi (b. 1706, d. 1784)	drama sacrum	?
1751	Davide	Gennaro Manna (b. 1715, d. 1779)	oratorio	Naples, Bib. Oratoriana dei Filippini
1752	Gionata figliuol di Saule	Lorenzo Gibelli (b. 1718, d. 1812)	oratorio	music lost, libretto extant
1756	L’obbedienza di Gionata	Ferdinando Bertoni (b. 1725, d. 1813)	oratorio	Darmstadt, Hessische Bib. Venice, Bib. Nat. Pavia, S. Michele
1761	Absalon	Adolph Carl Kunzen (b. 1720, d. 1781)	oratorio	Lübeck, Bib. Hansestadt
1761	David and Jonathan	Charles Barbandt (d. c1775)	oratorio	lost
pub. 1763	O Absalom, my son	Charles King (b. 1687, d. 1748)	3 vv. canon	A Collection of Canons, Catches, and Glees
pub. 1765	The Beauty of Israel	Anonymous Thomas Pitt?	4 vv. anthem	An Introduction to Singing, by James Hewitt
1766	David und Jonathan	Johann Heinrich Rolle (b. 1716, d. 1785)	musikalisches Eligie	pub. 1773, Leipzig
before 1769	Gionata	Giovanni Pescetti (b. 1704, d. 1766)	oratorio	Padova, Capella Antoniana
1771	Jonathas	Ferdinando Bertoni (b. 1725, d. 1813)	oratorio; solo voice & female choir	?
1771	Davide e Gionathan	Carl von Dittersdorf (b. 1739, d. 1799)	oratorio	DK-Kk
1774	David und Jonathas	Johann Demmler (b. 1748, d. 1785)	cantata	music lost, text in Augsburg, Staatsbibl.
c. 1774	Saul et Gionata	Leonardo Leo (b. 1694, d. 1744) attribution doubtful	oratorio	lost
1775	Interitus Absalon	Ferdinando Bertoni (b. 1725, d. 1813)	oratorio; solo voices & female chorus	?
pub. 1778	The Beauty of Israel is Slain	John Arnold (b. 1715, d. 1792)	4 vv. anthem	Select Harmony, by Andrew Law
pub. 1778	David’s Lamentation	William Billings (b. 1746, d. 1800)	4 vv. anthem	The Singing Master’s Assistant, Boston
1779	Victoria militum David contra Absalon filium Regis	Ferdinando Bertoni (b. 1725, d. 1813)	oratorio; solo voices & female chorus	?
1780	Per la morte di Gionata e di Saulle	Gian Francesco de Majo (b. 1732, d. 1770)	oratorio	?
1781	Jonathas	Bonaventura Furlanetto (b. 1738, d. 1817)	oratorio	Venice, Bibl. del Cons.
1781	The Beauty of Israel	William Billings (b. 1746, d. 1800)	4 vv. anthem	Psalm Singer’s Amusement
1782	Absalon	Domenico Cimarosa (b. 1749, d. 1801)	“action sacra” (oratorio)	Dresden, Sächsiche Bib. Münster, Santini Bib. Paris, Natl. Lib. London, British Lib. Naples, Conserv. Lib. Rome, Archivio Filippini
1785	Absalonis rebellio	Bonaventura Furlanetto (b. 1738, d. 1817)	oratorio	Venice, Bibl. del Cons.
1786	Absalon (La mort d’Absalon)	Henri-Montan Berton (b. 1767, d. 1844)	cantata	?
1787	Davide	Angelo DeAngelis (d. c1825)	oratorio	Podova, Bib. capitolare
1789	O Absolom	William Savage (b. 1720, d. 1789)	catch	Glasgow, Euing Mus. Lib.
1789	Assalone	Angelo Baldan (b. 1753, d. 1803)	oratorio	Venice, Bibl. del Cons. Venice, Bib. Naz. Marciana Naples, Conserv. Lib.
1792	Gionata	Niccolò Piccinni (b. 1728, d. 1800)	oratorio	Florence, Conserv. Lib. Naples, Conserv. Lib.
1793	Davids Klage am Hermon	Johann Königslöw (b. 1745, d. 1833)	oratorio	Lübeck, Bib. Hansestadt undated,
before 1797	Doleo super te	Juan Manuel Olivares (b. 1760, d. 1797)	2 vv. motet	?
1797	Davide e Assalonne	Antonio Brunetti (b? 1767, d? after 1845)	oratorio	Urbino, Cappella del Sacramento undated,
before 1798	The Beauty of Israel is slain	Robert Shenton (b. 1730, d. 1798)	anthem	?
1800	Saul und David im Kriege	Johann Königslöw (b. 1745, d. 1833)	oratorio	lost
1819	Assalonne	Domenico Cimarosa (b. 1749, d. 1801)	oratorio	Brussells, Bib. Conserv. Royal de musique
1830	David, op. 34	Bernhard Klein (b. 1793, d. 1832)	oratorio	?
1831	Absalon	Friedrich Schneider (b. 1756, d. 1853)	oratorio	?
1834	David	Sigismund Neukomm (b. 1778, d. 1858)	oratorio	Paris, Natl. Lib. Undated,
before 1840	The Lamentation	Edward James Loder (b. 1813, d. 1865)	sacred song	Sacred Songs and Ballads
1842	Assalomne	Gaetano Capocci (b. 1811, d. 1898)	oratorio	?
1844	Absalom	Geo. H. Curtis	scena religiosa	Washington, D.C., Lib. of Congress
1848	David’s Lament for Absalom	L. H. Southard	sacred song	Washington, D.C., Lib. of Congress
1849	Absalom	Isaac Baker Woodbury (b. 1819, d. 1858)	oratorio	Washington, D.C., Lib. of Congress The Dulcimer
pub. 1850	David	Charles Horsley (b. 1822, d. 1876)	oratorio
1852	Oratorio of Absalom	George Nelson Allen (b. 1812, d. 1877)
1856	David	Georges Bizet (b. 1838, d. 1875)	cantata	lost
before 1859	David	Carl Reissiger (b. 1798, d. 1859)	oratorio
1865	O Absalom, my son!	Dudley M. Taylor	sacred song, voice & piano	“Dedicated by permission to J. C. Baron Lethbridge”
1875	Absalon	Achille D. Campisiano	opérette bouffe
1884	King David’s Lament	Francis W. Swift	voice & piano
1888	David	E. C. Essex	oratorio
1891	David and Saul	David Jenkins (b. 1848, d. 1915)	oratorio
1896	Absalom	Johann Stehle (b. 1839, d. 1915)	chorus and orchestra
1901	Saul and David	Carl Nielsen (b. 1865, d. 1931)	opera
1902	David’s Lament, Op. 15	Angelo Read (b. 1854, d. 1926)	cantata
1911	David’s Lament from Two Bible Lyrics, op. 29	Blair Fairchild (b. 1877, d. 1933)	soprano & alto soli, chorus, & orchestra	“To Gabriel Dupont”
1919	David und Absalom, op.70	Georg Schumann (b. 1866, d. 1952)	soli and orchestra
1921, (rev. 1923)	Lamentations de Guilboa from Le roi David	Arthur Honegger (b. 1892, d. 1955)	oratorio
1921 (rev. 1923)	La chanson d’Ephraim from Le roi David	Arthur Honegger (b. 1892, d. 1955)	oratorio
1922	Absalom	Joseph Lincoln Hall (b. 1866, d. 1930)	dramatic cantata
1925	O Absalom, my son	F. Melius Christiansen (b. 1871, d. 1955)	SATB chorus	“for my friend Stanley R. Avery…”
1928	David’s Lament	Ross Lee Finney (b. 1906, d. 1997)	choir & keyboard
1932	David’s Lament for Jonathan from Eight Canons for Equal Voices	Gustav Holst (b. 1874, d. 1934)	3-9 voices (sopranos & altos or tenors & basses)	“for S.P.G.S.”
1936	David	Maurice Jacobsen (b. 1896, d. 1976)	ballet
pub. 1937, (rev. 1988)	David mourneth for Absalom	Normand Lockwood (b. 1906, d. 2002)	SSAATTBB chorus	“Written at the suggestion of my wife”
1941	King David’s Lament for Jonathan	Lou Harrison (b. 1917, d. 2003)	solo tenor & piano
1946	David Mourns for Absalom	David Diamond (b. 1915, d. 2005)	solo voice & piano	“To Hildegard Watson”
1946	Absalom	Ned Rorem (b. 1923)	solo voice & piano
1947	Mourning Scene (from Samuel)	Ned Rorem (b. 1923)	solo voice & string quartet	“To Lee Hoiby”
1950	Triste estaba el Rey David from Tres canciones sefardíes	Joaquin Rodrigo (b. 1901, d. 1999)	SATB chorus	“A Domenico de Paoli”
1951	David’s Lament for Jonathan from Seven Songs for Countertenor and Piano	Michael Howard (b. 1922, d. 2002)	countertenor and piano
1952-53	David;   Act II Scene 3   Act IV Scene 4	Darius Milhaud (b. 1892, d. 1974)	opera
1953	Lament of David, op. 169	Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Mario (b. 1895, d. 1968)	T, double chorus
1953	Alilot ha Gilboa (Tales of Mt. Gilboa)	Shlomo Joffe (b. 1909, d. 1995)	cantata
1956	David’s Lament	Mátyás Seiber (b. 1905, d. 1960)	SATB chorus & harp or piano
1961	My son, my son, Absalom	Anna Gallos (b. 1920)	SATB chorus	“To Donald F. White”
1961-62	David’s Lament Over Jonathan from Six songs from the Hebrew	Stefan Wolpe (b. 1902, d. 1972)	voice & piano	“to Hilda”
1962	Planctus	Malcolm Williamson (b. 1931, d. 2003)	Men’s chorus	“In memoriam Edward Clark”
1963	Lament for Absalom	George F. McKay (b. 1899, d. 1970)	organ
1968	David	Bob Burroughs (b. 1937)	musical drama for children’s chorus
1968	David’s Lament for Saul and Jonathan	Philip Hagemann (b. 1942)	SATB
1970	And David Wept	Ezra Laderman (b. 1924)	cantata/opera
1971	Absalom, Absalom	Carl Johnson (b. 1935)	motet, 8 part chorus
1972	Absalom My Son	Ethan Haimo (b. 1950)	chorus
1973	David wept for slain Absalom, Opus 246, No. 1	Alan Hovhaness (b. 1911, d. 2000)	SSATBB chorus	“for Richard Westenburg”
1973	David’s Lamentation	Lloyd Pfautsch (b. 1921, d. 2003)	SATB chorus	“To Howard Swan”
1974	When David Heard	John Chorbajian (b. 1936)	SATB chorus
1974	O my son Absalom from Glorious	Abraham Kaplan (b. 1931)	SATB chorus & orchestra
1975	When David Heard	Norman Dinerstein (b. 1937, d. 1982)	SATB chorus	“dedicated to the memory of Cantor Joseph Cohn”
1977	O Absalom	Elisabeth Lutyens (b. 1906, d. 1983)	oboe, English horn, violin, viola, & cello
1977	Absalom	Eugene W. Hancock (b. 1929, d. 1994)	sacred song, baritone & piano
1979	Absalom, from Five Sacred Songs	Richard L. DeLong (b. 1951, d. 1994)	voice & keyboard	“for John Hanby”
1980	When David Heard, from Three Motets	David Cohen (b. 1927)	SATB chorus	“Written for the Bach & Madrigal Society”
before 1982	Absalom, My Son	George Kleinsinger (b. 1914, d. 1982)	SATB chorus
1982	David’s Lament for Jonathan	Alan Ridout (b. 1934, d. 1996)	SSAATBB chorus
1982	When David Heard	Jennifer Fowler (b. 1939)	SATB chorus & piano
1983	David’s Lament	Shlomo Joffe (b. 1909, d. 1995)	SATB chorus
1983	“Triste Estaba el Rey David” from Romancero	Mario Davidovsky (b. 1934)	voice & chamber ensemble
1984	David’s Lament	Rick Sowash (b. 1950)	SATB	“for Bill, Carol, and Amy Goldman”
1985	King David’s Lament for Jonathan from Three Songs	Lou Harrison (b. 1917, d. 2003)	male chorus & chamber ensemble
1986	Absalom	Timothy Whitworth Smith	SATB chorus	“To Dr. Gordon Paine and the University Choir of Cal. State Fullerton”
1988	When David Heard	Colin Mawby (b. 1936)	SATB chorus & piano
1993	When David Heard	Brett Terry (b. 1968)	SATB chorus
1994	When David Heard	Benjamin Broening (b. 1964)	Men’s Chorus	“Commissioned by Virginia Glee Club”
1995	Absalom	Robert Christensen	chorus and orchestra
1995	The Lament of Absalom	Francis Wong	“Asian Improv” saxophone
1996	Absalom, Absalom	Pierce Pettis	folk song; solo voice & guitar
1996	Absalom	León Schidlowsky (b. 1931)	orchestra
1997	“Absalom, My Absalom” from King David	Tim Rice (b. 1944)	Broadway musical
1997	“How Mighty Are the Fallen” from King David	Tim Rice (b. 1944)	Broadway musical
1997	David and Absalom	Justin H. Rubin (b. 1971)	cantata
1998	Absalom	Dale Jergenson (b. 1935)	SATB double choir, tympani, & piano
1998	David’s Lament from David and Saul	Jan Roosendael (b. 1960, d. 2005)	harp & chamber orchestra
1998	Lamentatio David filii sui Absalom	Jacob Werner (b. 1938)	baritone, chamber ensemble, & organ
1999	When David Heard	Eric Whitacre (b. 1970)	SSAATTBB chorus	“for Dr. Ronald Staheli”
1999, rev. 2005	When David Heard	Richard Burchard (b. 1960)	TTTBBB divisi
2000	David Mourns for Absalom	Bern Herbolsheimer (b. 1948)	SATB chorus	“to Fujio Matayoshi”
2001	Absalom	Alexandra Du Bois (b. 1981)	violin & prepared piano
2002	Jonathan and David	David York (b. 1958)	opera
2002	King David, the Musical	Eyal Bitton (b. 1970)	musical
2002	Absalom	Adam Jones	guitar and jazz ensemble
2002	Absalom	Jeff Buser (b. 1963)	solo voice & guitar
2003	Absolon, my son	Jonathan Rathbone	SSAATTBB chorus	“For Dr. Martin Ennis and the Chapel Choir of Girton College, Cambridge”
2004	When David Heard from Three Sacred Songs	Paul Crabtree (b. 1960)	SATB chorus	“for Magen Solomon and the San Francisco Choral Artists”
2004	Absalom	Jeffrey Cobb (b. 1967)	SSAATTBB chorus & piano
2005	When David Heard	Patricia Alessandrini	percussion, contrabass, and electronics
2005	When David Heard	Richard Burchard (b. 1960)	SSATTB divisi	“for Dr. Greg Detweiler”
2005	When David Heard	Tom Wiggall (b. 1978)	SATB chorus
2006	When David Heard, op. 10, no. 1	Tom O’ Driscoll (b. 1986)	SSAATB chorus
2006	Absalom, FIli Mi	Nathanael Pangrazio (b. 1985)	chorus

 

Endnotes 

¹Godt, “Prince Henry as Absalom,” 318-30. A timeline of the seventeenth-century English musical settings is located in Table A.2 of the appendix.
²A timeline spanning the ninth through twenty-first centuries of the known musical works based on David’s laments for Absalom and Jonathan is located in tables A.1 – A.3 in the appendix.
³Note that the Latin Vulgate version of this text does not include the words “to God” that appear in the Douay-Rheims English translation. However the Latin text “quis mihi tribuat ut ego moriar pro te” translates to “who would grant to me that I might die for you.” So, even though the word “Deus” does not occur in the Vulgate translation of King David’s utterance, it is implied, since God would most likely be the authority figure whom King David would ask to be given permission to die for his son.
⁴A transcription of the Rex autem David chant is located in Harrison, Motets of English Provenance, 171.
⁵English translation found in Picker, Motet Books of Andrea Antico, 64.

⁶The information in this table came from three sources: Bryden and Hughes, Index of Gregorian Chant; Frere, Antiphonale Sarisburiense; and Chadd and Cummings, CURSUS. For other concordances see Bailey, CANTUS.
⁷See Albrecht, Symphoniae Jucundae, 151-52. Gioia Filocamo is preparing a critical edition of MS Panciatichi 27, which she dates around 1506. The discantus and altus parts of Rex autem David are found in St Gall, Stiftsbibliothek, MS 463, where they are attributed to “Adrianus Villaert.” However, this attribution is unlikely, especially in view of Filocamo’s dating of Panciatichi 27.
⁸See Picker, Motet Books of Andrea Antico, 424-27.
⁹See Bernet Kempers, Opera omnia, 123-30.
¹⁰See Ribera, Rex autem David.
¹¹See Bossuyt, Triciniorum sacrorum, 115-21.
¹²See Spilker, “King David’s Lamentations,” 79-84.
¹³Many thanks to Bonnie Blackburn, who pointed this out me at the 2007 International Medieval and Renaissance Music Conference in Vienna. Filocamo’s edition of Panciatichi MS 27 is forthcoming in the Monumenta Musica Europea series.
¹⁴Swing, “Mathieu Gascogne.”
¹⁵Elders and Forney, “Jacobus Clemens non Papa.”
¹⁶Stevenson, “Bernardino de Ribera.”.
¹⁷Bossuyt, Derde, and Willaert, “Jean de Castro.”
¹⁸Shindle, “Giovanni de Macque.”
¹⁹This English translation was provided by Lyndsey Thornton-Woods in an email to the author.
²⁰Breviarium Romanum, 1923. The verses read include: 2 Samuel 18: 6-12, 14-17.

²¹See Davidson and Kreider, Pierre de la Rue Motets, 204-207 and Smijers, Werken Van Josquin, 22-25.
²²See Albrecht, Symphoniae Jucundae, 55-57.
²³See Pujol, Tres libros, 86 and Binkley and Frenk, Spanish Romances, 59-62.
²⁴See Spilker, “King David’s Lamentations,” 76-78.
²⁵Doleo super te Absalon may be a contrafactum of Doleo super te Jesu, attributed to Appenzeller in RISM 1540.7.
²⁶See Gardner and Harris, A capella, 17-33. This work is not contained in the complete works for either Josquin or Gombert. RISM 1564.1 is the only source that contains both parts of Lugebat David Absalon together in the same source, and it is attributed to Josquin. Both parts appear in other sources as separate pieces with different texts. In fact, Garner and Harris question whether or not the two parts of Lugebat David Absalon actually belong together as one piece. See Gardner and Harris, A capella, 136-7.
²⁷See Snow, Rodrigo de Ceballos, 149-55.
²⁸See Skulj, Opus Musicum, 31-39.
²⁹Atlas, Renaissance Music, 271.
³⁰The English translation is found in Atlas, Renaissance Music, 271.
³¹The Latin texts are taken from Weber, Biblia Sacra.
³²English biblical texts are taken from Gibbons, The Holy Bible.
³³The English translation was provided by Lyndsey Thornton-Woods in an email to the author.
³⁴The Latin text and translation is from Gardner and Harris, A capella, 137.
³⁵The English translation was provided by Lyndsey Thornton-Woods in an email to the author.
³⁶The English translation was provided by Dr. Charles E. Brewer in an email to the author.
³⁷The two stanzas of the Spanish text are found in Pujol, Tres libros, 76. I have adapted the English translation for the first stanza from Davidovsky, Romancero, ii. The English translation for the second stanza was provided by Leon Garcia in an email to the author.
³⁸Noble, “Josquin des Prez.”
³⁹The dating of the four plainchant antiphons above is based on the earliest source for each antiphon. The information for dating the sources came from Bailey, CANTUS.
⁴⁰This list of compositions is based on Godt, “Prince Henry as Absalom,” 328-330. The numbers assigned to the anonymous composers are taken from Daniel and Le Huray, English Church Music.