A dedication of Brentner's second printed opus
[Offertoria solenniora sex
quatuor vocibus et tribus instrumentis constructa
Honori ac venerationi
reverendissimi, perillustris ac amplissimi
domini, domini Raymundi,
sacri, candidissimi, canonici ac exempti Ordinis Praemonstratensium prelati,
monasterii Teplensis dignissimi praesulis,
sacrae caesareae regiaeque majestatis consiliarii,
domini, domini ac patroni sui gratiosissimi
humillime dicata
a Josepho Joanne Ignatio Brentner,
anno millesimo septingentesimo decimoseptimo.]
Reverendissime, perillustris ac amplissime
domine, domine patrone gratiosissime,
regi pyra vel poma intendens offerre paganus aulam simplicibus suis donis non penetrabit, nisi bene meriti ministri favorem praeoccupasse contigerit, per quem accessus pateat.
REX regum, et pontifex omnium maximus DEUS est, in cujus honorem indignissimus ego creaturarum OFFERTORIA modulis musicis noviter elaborari desiderans, ut ad arras offerantur, quod munus sacerdotum est, qui veri ministri DEI sunt: inter hos, REVERENDISSIME PRAESUL, Tua patrocinia exquisivi, eo quod per insignium Tuorum CERVINOS RAMOS intentationis meaeae desiderium cum coronato Psalmista psalmo quadragesimo primo tanto ferventius exprimere valeam repraesentando, quod, QUEMADMODUM CERVUS DESIDERAT AD FONTES AQVARUM, ITA ANIMA MEA AD DEUM ANHELET. Et cum indignitas mea spe acceptae oblationis destituatur, Tuo, REVERENDISSIME PRAESUL, virtutis et meritorum gravi ponderi negotium dedico. Supplebit pietas Tua defectus meos, sub cuius præsidio in CHORO, CHORDIS ET ORGANO laudabo Dominum.
REVERENDISSIMAE, PERILLUSTRIS AC AMPLISSIMAE
DOMINATIONIS TUAE
servorum infimus
Josephus Brentner.
Six ceremonial offertories composed for four voices and three instruments,
humbly dedicated in celebration of the honourable
and esteemed, the most reverend, glorious and most sublime
lord, Raymund,
Prelate of the holy and extraordinary Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré,
the Most Reverend Abbot of the Teplá Monastery,
Councillor to his Holy Imperial and Royal Majesty,
his lord, master and most beloved protector,
by Josephus Johannes Ignatius Brentner,
in the year one thousand seven hundred seventeen.
O Most Reverend and Most Exalted Lord, Most Gracious Patron, when a heathen wishes to offer an apple or a pear to the king, he cannot reach the court with his lowly gifts until he succeeds in gaining the favour of a worthy servant, through whom he is granted access. GOD is the KING of kings and the supreme high priest of all, and it is in His honour that I, the least worthy of all of creation, now desire to create OFFERTORIES in musical
melodies, that they might be sacrificed upon the altar, which is the task of priests, who are the loyal servants of GOD. Amongst them I have sought Thy patronage, MOST REVEREND ABBOT, because through the emblem
of Thy family, THE ANTLERS OF A HART, all the more fervently might I express, together with the crowned Psalmist and the Forty-First Psalm, my intent and desire to express that “AS THE HART PANTETH AFTER THE
WATER BROOKS, SO PANTETH MY SOUL AFTER THEE, O GOD”. And even if I, being unworthy, were to be disappointed in my hopes that this offering might be accepted, nonetheless it is unto Thee that I dedicate this
work, O MOST REVEREND ABBOT, for the great gravity of Thy virtues and merits. In Thy Godliness shalt Thou surely forgive me my faults, and under They protection I shall praise the Lord through the CHOIR, STRINGS,
AND ORGAN.
The humblest of servants
TO THY MOST REVEREND, GLORIOUS,
and MOST SUBLIME NOBILITY
Josephus Brentner
edited by Jiří Matl, translated by Mark Newkirk
published in J. J. I. Brentner: Offertoria solenniora (Academus Edition 6), Praha 2017, s. 147
