ABSTRACT
The Seven Penitential Psalms represent the venerable psalms of confession, situated as a section of their own in books of hours, always followed by the Litany and leading toward the Office of the Dead. In illustrated hours, this set opens with a miniature featuring King David, the reputed author of the psalms. Musical sound figures into these depictions as the scene routinely shows David with his characteristic harp. This chapter examines the variable role of the harp in the Davidic imagery. It then reviews performance contexts for the Seven Penitential Psalms and continues with a close analysis of Ne reminiscaris Domine, the antiphon that frames all seven psalms in books of hours. Next, an enigmatic addendum to Ne reminiscaris Domine in books of hours is probed. The survey of the Seven Penitential Psalms from a sonic perspective concludes the chapter, noting the problems of modal assignment and tonal affect for the entire set.
