Spem in Alium

In Queene Elizabeths time there was a songe sent into England of 30 parts (whence the Italians obteyned the name to be called the Apices of the world) which beeinge songe mad[e] a heavenly Harmony. The Duke of ______ bearing a great love to Musicke asked whether none of our English men could sett as good a songe, & Tallice beinge very skillfull was felt to try whether he would undertake the Matter, which he did and mad[e] one of 40 p[ar]ts which was songe in the longe gallery at Arundell house which so farre surpassed the other th[a]t the Duke hearinge of the songe tooke his chayne of gold from of his necke & putt yt about Tallice his necke & gave yt him.

Tallis This is the little we know about the history of Spem in Alium, the motet in 40 parts, written by Thomas Tallis (image on the left) around 1570 for 8 groups of 5 voices each.
The only manuscript of this piece has come down to us only because, in 1610, it was used during the investiture ceremony as Prince of Wales of Henry Stuart, son of James I of England (he was James VI of Scotland), with the text reworked and translated into English (it became Sing and Glorify, from praise to God to praise to the sovereign; fortunately the original text is given at the end of the score).
The piece did not bring luck to Henry Stuart, who died of typhus at the age of 18, but the fact that it was used on this occasion testifies to its consideration in the culture of the time.
The Duke in question could be Thomas Howard, fourth Duke of Norfolk who ended up on the scaffold in 1572.

According to scholars, the 30-part work alluded to in the text is actually “Ecce beatam lucem” by the Italian Alessandro Striggio, which, however, is for 40 voices (the 30 could be a mistake). In fact, Striggio came to London in 1567 and although no reference has been found to a performance of Ecce beatam lucem, Tallis may have encountered it on this occasion. This date, cross-referenced with that of the Duke’s performance above, leads to the dating of Tallis’s work.
Striggio’s piece was for 10 4-part choirs and made extensive use of homophony, in the Venetian style. Tallis's, on the other hand, is for 8 choirs of 5, following the configuration of the English choir (soprano, mezzo-alto, countertenor, tenor, bass) and uses imitation extensively so that, in the first 39 bars, the theme passes through all 40 voices, up to the powerful "tutti" that sends shivers down your spine and begins at bar 40.
Notice the numerical coincidence? There is another: the score is 69 brevi long and the sum of the letters TALLIS in the Latin alphabet is 69.

The piece, however, is a tour de force on various levels, not least the environmental one. If the choirs are placed in a circle, following the numbering of the score, then at various points in the piece the sound literally rotates around the audience clockwise at the beginning and counterclockwise towards the middle.
Tallis also exploits the distribution of the choirs by using them in an antiphonal sense, divided into 4 groups of 2 and 2 groups of 4, with both east-west and north-south movement.
In the finale, then, after a short pause, the choirs all enter together on the word “respice” to concentrate again in the center and re-expand in an intricate polyphony that underlines in the least humble way possible the “humilitas” of the final verse.

The variety and quantity of musical ideas that Spem in Alium contains, but above all the atmosphere that is created in the performance, with the audience completely surrounded by the choirs, make it a timeless work that has inspired many contemporary authors, including Ligeti, Penderecky and Arvo Part.

Download the score from the Choral Public Domain Library (All – Parts)
Listen to “Spem in Alium”
MIDI File

Latin original text	English Translation	Remake of 1611 in English
Spem in alium numquam habui praeter in te Deus Israel qui irasceris et propitius eris et omnia peccata hominum in tribulatione dimittis Domine Deus Creator coeli et terrae respice humilitatem nostram	I have never had hope in anyone else but you God of Israel who will be angry and will be merciful and forgive all the sins of men in tribulation Lord God Creator of heaven and earth regard our humility	Sing and glorify heaven’s high Majesty, Author of this blessed harmony; Sound divine praises With melodious graces; This is the day, holy day, happy day, For ever give it greeting, Love and joy, heart and voice meeting: Live Henry princely and mighty, Harry live in thy creation happy.

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