Michael Praetorius' In dulci jubilo is a gloriously expansive amalgam of sound and text. Composed near the end of Praetorius' life as part of his Polyhymnia Caduceatrix et Panegyrica (Polychoral Hymns of Peace and Festivals) of 1619, this setting of the well-known tune In dulci jubilo was actually his 11th, and most ornate. Praetorius sets the stanzas of this thirteenth century macaronic hymn (written in both Latin and German) utilizing a highly flexible ensemble of three to five choruses and brass ensemble, continuo (organ), and tympani.

Twelve, 16, or 20 voices are possible: one or two SATB choruses, an ATBB chorus, and a SATB chorus of soloists that may be doubled at the octave. A brass chorus adds to the available color palette. In this work, indeed, throughout the Polyhymnia, Praetorius made excellent use of his resources to create aural contrasts. Solo chorus phrases are answered by the power of the tutti forces, as at the opening of the piece. Various solo choruses pass the melody from one to another, making use of spatial effects, heard, for example, at the beginning of the second verse. Polyphony and homophony, voices and instruments, all vie for superiority in a vast collage of sound.

The three verses are all stated in the first half of the piece. After the dizzyingly fast presto opening with an introductory pedal tone in the continuo, the first verse develops comparatively simply, its extended cadence ("Alpha es et o," "You are alpha and omega") the only hint of the extension and repetition to come. The second verse, a leisurely lento, plays the various choruses against each other, returning to the fast tempo for the cadence. The third verse develops similarly, beginning slowly and quietly before accelerating. Yet like the first verse, the cadence is extended. The tempo returns to lento as the last line of the verse, "Eya waren wir da" (We will praise him there), circulates slowly between choruses.

The second half of the work (labeled as such by Praetorius himself) consists of a repeat of the third verse. Praetorius again uses the contrasts of tempo and ensemble, and other specific techniques from the first half: the pedal tone on "und die Schellen klingen" (and the bells ring). The final line ("Eya waren wir da") receives even more extensive treatment than the first time, as it passes not only between choruses, but groups of choruses. Then this homophonic treatment dissolves into a breathlessly polyphonic setting that alternately speeds (presto) and crawls (lento) along. Praetorius pulls everything back together for a great cadence, after which the first half may be repeated.

Praetorius' In dulci jubilo is remarkable for its composer's use of contrasting sound, virtuosic singing, and appropriate instrumental writing. As a polychoral work it compares well with anything by his contemporary Schütz or even the Gabrielis of Venice.

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