"" (The morning star is risen) is an

Advent song Advent songs (german: Adventslieder, link=no) are songs and hymns intended for Advent, the four weeks of preparation for Christmas. Topics of the time of expectation are the hope for a Messiah, prophecies, and the symbolism of light, among others. S ...

and

Christmas carol A Christmas carol is a carol (a song or hymn) on the theme of Christmas, traditionally sung at Christmas itself or during the surrounding Christmas holiday season. The term noel has sometimes been used, especially for carols of French ori ...

with lyrics by

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

minister Daniel Rumpius (or Rump), published first in 1587. The common melody by

Michael Praetorius Michael Praetorius (probably 28 September 1571 – 15 February 1621) was a German composer, organist, and music theorist. He was one of the most versatile composers of his age, being particularly significant in the development of musical forms ba ...

appeared later in 1609. It was reprinted, slightly revised by

Otto Riethmüller Otto Riethmüller (26 February 1889 – 19 November 1938) was a German Lutheran minister, writer, and hymnwriter. He was the president of Protestant youth organisations from 1928, published songbooks, and was a leading member of the Confessing Ch ...

in 1932, and is part of the current Protestant hymnal '' Evangelisches Gesangbuch'' and other song books.

History

Rumpius, a Lutheran minister in Stepenitz, published the song in seven stanzas in 1587 in his (Song booklet, containing doctrine, consolation, admonition, confession, request, prayers, intercessions, thanksgiving etc.). He placed it in a section for Advent, titled , which indicates that he understood Advent as a time of repentance in preparation of Christmas, and that he wrote it as an occasional song for a sick widow in distress ("''kranckn betrübten Witwe''"). Rump adapted the song from a secular song in Low German,

Ludwig Uhland Johann Ludwig Uhland (26 April 1787 – 13 November 1862) was a German poet, philologist and literary historian. Biography He was born in Tübingen, Württemberg, and studied jurisprudence at the university there, but also took an interest in ...

(ed.): ''Alte hoch- und niederdeutsche Volkslieder. Liedersammlung in 5 Büchern.'' vol. 1 (Buch 1–3). Cotta, Stuttgart und Tübingen 1844, S. 171
Digitalisat
. a ''

Tagelied The Tagelied (''dawn song'') is a particular form of mediaeval German-language lyric, taken and adapted from the Provençal troubadour tradition (in which it was known as the alba) by the German Minnesinger. Often in three verses, it depicts the ...

'', or wake-up-call for lovers after a night spent together. He followed the model closely in the first two stanzas. Rump introduced

angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles inclu ...

s in the first stanza, to connect the call to Christmas. It is closed with a praise of the morning star as a symbol of

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...

. The song appeared in 1925 in a collection by Wilhelm Witzke, (Sixty selected German folk songs). Otto Riethmüller published it in 1932 as an Advent song, changing the last line of the second stanza to connect the song to the metaphoric equation of Jesus as the Bridegroom, found in "" based on the Song of Songs. The song was included, using four stanzas, in the Protestant hymnal '' Evangelisches Kirchengesangbuch'' in the regional part for Hesse and Nassau. This version was made part of the current hymnal '' Evangelisches Gesangbuch'' in the common section as EG 69. It is associated with Epiphany, understanding the morning star as the

star of Bethlehem The Star of Bethlehem, or Christmas Star, appears in the nativity story of the Gospel of Matthew chapter 2 where "wise men from the East" (Magi) are inspired by the star to travel to Jerusalem. There, they meet King Herod of Judea, and ask hi ...

. The hymn is contained in several other song books.

Text

Rump took a folk song in Low German as a model. He wrote his lyrics in six stanzas of four lines each. Four of them became part of the hymnal '' Evangelisches Gesangbuch'':

Melody

The melody in use today appeared in the collection ''Musae Sioniae'' by

in 1609. It has been set by composers such as

Siegfried Strohbach Siegfried Strohbach (27 November 1929 – 11 July 2019) was a German composer and conductor. He founded and directed choirs and the vocal ensemble Collegium Cantorum and is notable for the composition of choral music. He was a conductor of major t ...

. who composed a choral setting in 2015.

References

External links

Der Morgenstern ist aufgedrungen
Liederdatenbank
11.01.2013 / Lied der Woche / "Der Morgenstern ist aufgedrungen"
ERF 2013 {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgenstern Ist Aufgedrungen Advent songs German-language Christmas carols 1587 works Lutheran hymns 16th-century hymns in German

History

Text

Melody

See also

References

External links