My Beloved Spake is one of the earliest of Purcell's verse anthems; written for the Protestant service for Charles II. It is based on the Song of Solomon, II, 10-13, 16. Within a few months of Purcell's birth, the Puritan regime of Cromwell had come to an end, and with the return of the monarchy came a new interest in the musical arts. Cromwell had suppressed theater and music performance following Puritan ideals, but the new king, Charles II, was used to European tastes, and was a professed francophile. He loved the violin, and encouraged instrumental and choral writing for his services. Charles also reinstituted the "Children of the Chapel Royal," where gifted children were trained in performance, composition, and instrument making. Their performance instruction included voice, continuo, and the orchestral instruments of the time, particularly the violin of which the king was fond. Purcell was one of these youngsters. His mentor in composition was Henry Cooke, an advocate of the Italian style. There were several gifted older boys that taught him as well. Among them were Blow and Pelham Humfrey, both of whom had a profound influence on his compositional style.

Purcell took the new anthem style of Humfrey as his model, and combined it with his love of the Italian singing style and English counterpoint. Purcell utilized a much freer rhythmic approach to the vocal line, giving it dramatic and expressive appeal. His verse anthems contain "symphonies" (independent instrumental pieces, often with an introductory function), instrumental ritornelli, and choruses. He also varies the melodic material and treatment of the text, making almost distinct sections out of the various lines and turning the whole into a much larger design.

When Purcell wrote My Beloved Spake he was just eighteen years old. At the time he was composer to the Violins of Charles II, a string band modeled on Lully's string orchestra for the French court. This verse anthem is original and very sophisticated beyond his years. The text is a love poem full of life-giving imagery, to which the young Purcell responded with immediacy and vigor. The anthem is written for strings, continuo, (which in this case was probably organ), and four voices: countertenor, tenor, and two basses. The voices answer each other antiphonally with the opening melody to the words "My beloved spake," coming together on the second line, "Rise, my love, and come away." There follows a short instrumental ritornello, but long enough to change the mood so that Purcell can use completely different music for the next two lines. The text is about the passing of winter, and the music is mournful and sad. The movement to each new season of the year brings with it a change of mood. "The flowers appear" is hopeful and full of joy. In the middle of the anthem Purcell repeats the opening one-movement symphony as an instrumental interlude. But first there is another tenor solo that becomes a duet between tenor and violin. The musical line represents the twining and winding of the vines and fig trees in the text. The singer describes how delicious grapes taste when they are ripe, and Purcell has him relish his words. The last two lines imitate the musical style of the opening and an Alleluia ends the anthem in a mood of complete exuberance.

© Rita Laurance, Rovi