- Jacob Hándl (diminutive of “Hahn”(cock) – Latin: Gallus) 1551-1591, flourished as composer at the Habsburg Court (Graz, Praag), native from Carniola (Kranjska – Slovenia). S
- Quite sofisticated music. Published a multivolume book with church music (Opus Musicum), and also four books (one posthumous) with secular music, entitled Moral harmonies, on Latin texts1 In these musical miniatures, he puts to music Latin poems, proverbs (hence Moralia): Horatius, Ovidius, but also from popular collections (Anthologia Latina, Carmina proverbalia). Three books with 53 compositions appeared in print in 1589-1590 (Prague). His brother Johan posthumously published 47 pieces: Moralia (1596). These are for 8, 6 and 5 voices. Sum total : 100 moralia. Below the title page, index and beginning of af a partbook from the 1596 book:
‘Singer Pur’ made a complete recording and published a selection on CD. Below a song from book IV (nr. 43): a bell song: Tintinabulo clango…
En ego campana, numquam denuntio vana,
laudo Deum verum, tintinabulo clango
plebem voco, tintinabulo clango
congrego clerum, tintinabulo clango
funera plango, tintinabulo clango
fulgura frango, tintinabulo clango
sabbatha pango, tintinabulo clango
excito lentos, tintinabulo clango
dissipo ventos, tintinabulo clango
paco cruentos, tintinabulo clango
Behold me, the bell — I never proclaim in vain.
I praise the true God, with ding-a-dong I resound
I call the people (i.e., to gather),
I gather the clergy (for the divine office)
I mourn the dead (at funerals)
I break the lightning (bells were believed to ward off lightning)
I announce the Sabbath (i.e., sunday services, beginning with saturday vespers).
I rouse the lazy (no explanation needed)
I scatter the winds (bells were believed to disperse storms)
I pacify the bloodthirsty (by proclaiming the peace)
- Quatuor vocum Liber I. Harmoniarum Moralium quibus heroica, facetiae, naturalia, quotlibetica, tum facta fictaque poetica, &c. admixta sunt: nunc primum in lucent editus, Authore Iacobo Hándl (“For four voices, the first book of Moral Harmonies, to which are added things heroic, humorous, natural, quodlibets, as well as poetic facts and fictions, etc., now first published, the author being Jacob Handl”).