for flute and piano

Listen to Sanctus Spiritus Variations with flautist Monica Salas and pianist Nell Clowder

Hildegard of Bingen lived in the 12th century. As a child, she was given to a convent to live a holy life. In that environment, she matured into a mystic, a healer, and a composer.

Her chant, Spiritus Sanctus, forms the basis of this set of variations. The phrases of Hildegard's chant have each been taken as a source for one variation, as follows:

Theme:	Spiritus Sanctus vivificans vita movens omnia et radix est		Holy Spirit, the quickener of life, the motivator of all things, the root
Var 1 (1:00):	Spiritus Sanctus vivificans vita movens omnia		Holy Spirit, living and life-giving, the life that's all things moving
Var 2 (3:02):	et radix est in omnia crimina		the root in all created being
Var 3 (4:43):	ac omnia de inmundicia abluit tergens crimina		of filth and muck it washes all clean, wiping away guilty stains
Var 4 (6:24):	ac ungit vulnera et sic est fulgens laudabilis vita		healing our wounds, is our true life luminous and wonderful
Var 5 (7:52):	suscitans et resuscitans omnia		rousing and awakening everything

score (for flute part, please email a request to nell[dot]clowder[at]gmail.com)