Dona Nobis Pacem

About this arrangement

The Latin round “grant us peace”, the first two of its three parts, one after the other. Part one (bars 1 to 8) is the elaborate tune: “Do-na” and “no-bis” each start with a quick slurred pair of quavers that jumps down to the G below middle C, bar 5 is a run of four quavers, and the phrases end on long notes. Part two (bars 9 to 16) is the plain tune, mostly minims, and sits inside C position. The left hand plays a waltz bass through C, F and G7.

Practice tip: Play part two first, it is the easy one, then part one. When both are secure, one player can play part one while another plays part two; they are written to fit.

The words

Do na no bis pa cem, pacem, do na no bis pa cem. Dona no bis pacem, dona nobis pa cem.

A short history

“Dona nobis pacem” means “grant us peace”. The three Latin words are the last line of the Agnus Dei, the prayer sung near the end of the Mass, and composers from Palestrina to Beethoven have set them.

This round, in three parts of eight bars each, is by an unknown composer. It is often printed as “attributed to Mozart”, but there is no evidence that he wrote it, and it does not appear in any list of his works. It was widely known by the 19th century and became a standard in school, church and scout songbooks in the 20th.

It is a perpetual canon: the second part enters when the first reaches bar 9, the third when the second does, and all three fit together over the same harmony, so it can go round for as long as the singers like.

Quick facts

Tune

Traditional (round, composer unknown)

Key

C major

Time signature

3/4

Length

16 bars

Tempo

Peacefully, crotchet = 92

Difficulty

Level 3: Notes below middle C (piece 60 of 201)

Type

Round

Hands

Both: melody in the right hand, chords in the left

Copyright

Public domain tune; arrangement by Digital Greenhouse, free for personal and classroom use

Questions and answers