Hostias
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

Hostias et preces tibi, Domine
laudis offerimus
tu suscipe pro animabus illis,
quarum hodie memoriam facimus.
Fac eas, Domine, de morte
transire ad vitam.
Quam olim Abrahae promisisti
et semine eius.




Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's song "Hostias" are a plea to the Lord, offering up prayers and sacrifices for the souls being remembered. The song is a call for the Lord to receive these sacrifices and prayers, and to allow the souls being remembered to pass from death into eternal life, as promised to Abraham and his descendants. The lyrics reflect a common theme in religious music, that of offering praise and worship to a higher power, and asking for guidance and blessings in return.


Mozart's "Hostias" was written as part of the Requiem Mass in D minor, a Latin mass for the dead. The Requiem Mass was commissioned by an anonymous patron in 1791, and was left unfinished at Mozart's death later that year. The "Hostias" movement, along with the rest of the Requiem Mass, has become one of Mozart's most famous and revered works. The language and themes of the Requiem Mass have made it a staple of choral repertoire for centuries, and it continues to be performed in churches and concert halls around the world.


Line by Line Meaning

Hostias et preces tibi, Domine
We offer you sacrifices and prayers, O Lord.


laudis offerimus
We offer you praise.


tu suscipe pro animabus illis,
Accept them for the sake of their souls,


quarum hodie memoriam facimus.
Whose memory we celebrate today.


Fac eas, Domine, de morte
Grant them, O Lord, to pass from death


transire ad vitam.
To life, as you promised long ago to Abraham and his descendants.




Contributed by Violet H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Comments from YouTube:

@calebwhymark1789

To think this is the last song Mozart heard as he lay on his death bed…really brings it home

@maitrejeanseke561

Merci de vos séquences musicales Mozart.

@Wosiewose

1:52 to 2:10 - really struck me as an alto singing this, both the text and the music - not sure why but it really hit home. Every time I think of someone I know that has died, this is the part I come back to. "Make it so for them, Lord! from death to life to transition." (my translation - not a really good one, but pretty literal)

@DaviSilva-oc7iv

I think it's "make them transition from death to life"

@glogordcreativo6000

Me encanta esta canción

@lucianoiovino304

Che meraviglia! Grazie

@dallasd1282

Great music good times! The second drop hits harder than anything I've ever heard!

@authenticmusic4815

Indeed

@marcelo2306

Sublime.....

@chantalou604

Quelle beauté! Les mots me manquent.

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