Performed by the Rocky Mountain Chamber Choir, gratitude to Clifford King for producing it, to my mentor Rodney Sherman for his support and Allegra Martin for her suggestions.
Labor for the Months takes its inspiration from Medieval textual and visual representations of the months and seasons. Ideas of time and cycles in life from early Western culture took several centuries to develop into the common forms of expression we find today. The Latin text used for this work is mostly derived from the Church father Venerable Bede’s writing on the calendar months. His text depicting peasant seasonal activity is most notable in its influence and widespread use. These mottos were often associated with imagery of everyday peasant activities found in illuminated manuscripts such as the Book of Hours, as well as being sculpted onto cathedral decoration. These depicted such cyclical activities as harvesting, plowing, and wine growing. Such decoration can be found in many Gothic Cathedrals throughout Europe.
While most of the words are taken from Venerable Bede's Latin mottos on the seasons, the text for November is different as Bede's motto for that month was too problematic for singing.
Poto, ligna cremo, de vite superflua demo,
Do germen gratum, mihi flos servit, mihi pratum, Spicas declino, messes meto, vina propino,
Vino vas calet ecce novo, mihi pasco sues, mihi macto.
Venerable Bede (672-736)
Loose translation:
Drink! burn wood, prune the dead branch,
Grateful for the glorious new bud, serve the flower, serve the meadow, Turn down the tuft, gather the harvest, toast to the wine,
The vessel is hot with wine, feed the pigs, feast!
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