Gaudeamus igitur

"De Brevitate Vitae" and "Gaudeamus" redirect here. For the work by Seneca the Younger, see De Brevitate Vitae (Seneca). For the Gaudeamus Foundation and Prizes, see Gaudeamus Foundation. For the rodent genus, see Gaudeamus (rodent).

Postal card with symbols of traditional German student life of 1898

"De Brevitate Vitae" (on the Shortness of Life), more commonly known as the Gaudeamus, is a popular academic commercium song in many European countries, mainly sung or performed at university graduation ceremonies. Despite its use as a formal graduation hymn, it is a jocular, light-hearted composition that pokes fun at university life. The song dates back to 1287^[1] and was already known by the time of the founding of the alma mater of all European universities, the University of Bologna. It is in the tradition of carpe diem (seize the day), with its exhortations to enjoy life.

It has been known as a beer-drinking song in many ancient universities and is the official song of many schools, colleges, universities, institutions, and student societies.

Content

The lyrics reflect an endorsement of the bacchanalian mayhem of student life while simultaneously retaining the grim knowledge that one day we will all die. The song contains humorous and ironic references to sex and death, and many versions have appeared following efforts to bowdlerise this song for performance in public ceremonies. In private, students will typically sing ribald words.

The song is sometimes known by its opening words "Gaudeamus igitur" or simply "Gaudeamus". In the UK, it is sometimes affectionately known as "The Gaudie". The many centuries of use have given rise to numerous slightly different versions.

Johannes Brahms quoted the hymn in the final section of his Academic Festival Overture. Sigmund Romberg used it in the operetta The Student Prince, which is set at the University of Heidelberg.

Lyrics

An eighteenth century version (C. W. Kindleben 1781) is shown here with each verse translated into English. This version uses the convention that consonantal i and u in the Latin are written as j and v respectively. The word antiburschius ("anti-student") is not really Latin, but has been invented based on the German word Bursche, meaning "young fellow" or "student".

Note that when sung, the first two lines and the last line of each stanza are repeated, for instance:

Gaudeamus igitur

Juvenes dum sumus.

Gaudeamus igitur

Juvenes dum sumus.

Post jucundam juventutem

Post molestam senectutem

Nos habebit humus —

Nos habebit humus.

Performances

A performance of the first, most characteristic strophe was recorded in mid-twentieth century by the Italian-American tenor Mario Lanza, and is still available under the title "Gaudeamus Igitur".

An excerpt of the song was performed by cast members of the television series The West Wing during the episode entitled "Debate Camp".

It was also performed as the musical theme of the classic 1951 Cary Grant film People Will Talk, delightfully "conducted" by Grant.

See also

Latin Wikisource has original text related to this article: Gaudeamus Igitur

German Wikisource has original text related to this article: Allgemeines Deutsches Kommersbuch:122

• Ars longa, vita brevis
• Anthem

References

External links

• De Brevitate Vitae performed by the Roosevelt Academy Choir
• Gaudeamus Igitur, lyrics in Latin, English, German, Finnish and Esperanto, midi and mp3 recordings
• Hoisting of the FISU flag during the openning ceremonies of the XXV Summer Universiade Belgrade 2009