Liu Zixuan, Alto 2

Score analysis of Sicut Cervus by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina

Background Sicut Cervus was written by

notable Italian Renaissance
composer Giovanni Pierluigi
da Palestrina. He was highly
influential in the development
of church and secular music
in Europe, and his works later
went on to be considered a
culmination of Renaissance
polyphony.

What makes Palestrina’s

style of works so unique is
that dissonances regulate on
the weak beats in a measure.
This is to produce a smoother
and more consonant type of
polyphony, now regarded to
be definitive of late
Renaissance music.

Palestrina’s “pure” style of

polyphony was obtained by
following a set of invariable
stylistic changes including:
● The flow of music
is dynamic, not
rigid or static.
● Melody should
contain few leaps
between notes.
● If a leap occurs, it
must be small and
immediately
countered by
stepwise motion in
the opposite
direction.
● Dissonances are to
be confined to
suspensions,
passing notes and
weak beats. If one
falls on a strong
beat (in a
suspension) it must
 be immediately
resolved.

Sicut Cervus was based upon

Psalm 42; As the deer runs
for longing waters, so my soul
longs for you, O God

In biblical symbology, deers

are used to represent piety,
devotion and safety in God’s
eyes.They are a symbol of
thirst and longing for the Lord
and signify the ability to leap
over obstacles.

Form* Polyphonic Sacred Motet

Tempo, Metre and Rhythm Tempo of ♩ = 96, moderato
aspects In common time. Articulation
is mostly expressed in a
smooth, legato sound.
-Breath control and
staggering, during notes that
are held for 4 counts or more
Take note of rests at
appropriate areas.

Vocal aspects and demands Vocals in this piece are
performed in a very
“elongated, flowy, hollow”
manner to signify the flowing
of the river of which the song
was based off of.
Trill exercises, practising
legato articulation. “ zee ah”
warmups.
Focus on mouth shapes “ ee”
and “ ah”

Tonality and Harmonic In the key of G major, the Go through tone ladder for
language piece ending in a (IV)- (I) consecutive notes that
plagal cadence. Prominent require more pitch accuracy.
running notes in the Alto line,
as seen in bars 8, 13-15,
23-24, etc.
SATB alternates to serve as
the drone note. In bar 31,
Sopr holds the single note all
the way to bar 34. In bar 36,
the Basses hold the note all
the way to bar 39, etc.

Texture Texture is polyphonic, with

with extensive use of
 counterpoint throughout the
piece.

Text “ Sicut Cervus” translates to “

“like a deer” in Latin.
The original psalm gives off
the idea of a thirsty deer in a
desert, crying from a lack of
water in the desert. The
psalmist compares himself to
the deer. He is thirsty but is
unable to seek God and have
his thirst quenched. It
symbolises a deep longing for
something you cannot have.