December 30, 2012 - Christmas 1

Hymn at the Cradle
The First Christmas - Celius Dougherty
Partita on In Dulci Jubilo - Kevin Hildebrand

Hymns: #105 God Rest Ye Merry, #110 Venite Adoramus,
              #115 Greensleeves, #107 In Dulci Jubilo

This week’s music is our one chance to get in all of the Christmas carols that we didn’t catch on Christmas Eve. It is also one of the few times during the church year that the choir gets a Sunday off. For the prelude I will be improvising a medley of cradle hymns. I have not completely worked out what I am doing but you can plan on strains of Infant Holy, Infant Lowly mixing with two settings of Away in a Manger (Mueller and Cradle Song) as well as snippets of other random carols and perhaps a little Brahms…

The First Christmas by Celius Dougherty (1902-1986). Dougherty received his earliest musical training at home from his mother, the valedictorian of her college, a music education supervisor, church organist, choir and band director and piano teacher. Dougherty later studied at the University of Minnesota and later Julliard where he met several prominent singers and made a successful living as an accompanist and later he and Vincenz Ruzicka toured as a piano duo. Dougherty was known as a composer for whom the text was of the utmost importance. He is best remembered for his art songs which draw on the texts of many famous American poets but also include settings of Chinese poems and entries from the dictionary and newspapers. This setting of the The First Christmas by Elizabeth Fleming is a gentle lullaby. The melodic line is evocative of the beloved carol Stille Nacht while the accompaniment goes from throbbing chords to tolling bells and then to a lovely duet with the soloist. It is easy to see that Dougherty had interest in collaborative piano; the accompaniment is almost as interesting as the vocal line.

The postlude is the Sinfonia from Kevin Hildebrand’s (b. 1973) Partita on “In dulci Jubilo.” Hildebarnd is the Associate Kantor at Concordia Theological Seminary where he studied as an undergraduate. He then went on to study at the University of Michigan with Marilyn Mason to whom the piece is dedicated. This 14^th century German melody may have started its life as a dance tune. This carol became associated with the text Good Christian Men Rejoice, is a paraphrase of the original macronic (mixed language) text by the English hymn writer and translator John M. Neale. The setting by Hildebrand is subtitled: With homage to Dietrich Buxtehude on the 300^th anniversary of his death. Buxtehude was known for his chorale based fantasias and partitas which took well known hymns and transformed them into highly decorated pieces of organ music. This Sinfonia exploits the different divisions of the organ by moving from the Great to the Positive division and for today’s piece I am contrasting the real pipes with the digital to further contrast the difference between divisions.

December 23, 2012 - Advent 4

Die Marianischen Antiphone: "Alma redemptoris mater"
                                                            - Hermann Schroeder
The Blessed Virgin's Expostulation - Henry Purcell
He Shall Feed His Flock - John Ness Beck
Magnificat on the III Toni - Heinrich Scheidemann

Hymns: #60 Conditor Alme Siderum, #266 Nova, Nova,
              #56 Veni, Veni

The theme for today’s musical selections is Mary. With the exception of the communion anthem, the other three pieces all offer different composer’s take on the story of Mary. This coupled with the canticle and the scripture readings offers a holistic approach to the wide array of emotions that must have been going through her mind.

The communion anthem is a setting of Isaiah 40:11 by John Ness Beck (1930-1987). John Ness Beck made his career as an arranger, composer, and clinician. In 1972 he joined with John Tatgenhorst to form Beckenhorst Press, a publishing company that focused on publishing high quality, accessible church music. Just before his death Beck established the John Ness Beck Foundation to recognize outstanding acheivements in traditional church music. This foundation was started in memory of Joseph Clokey and Randall Thompson. This anthem offers a beautiful alternative to the traditional setting from Messiah.

As for the music on Mary, the prelude is the third of four settings from Die Marianischen Antiphone by Hermann Schroeder (1904-1984). Schroeder’s compositional style is similar to Hindemith. He spent the majority of his career in Cologne. This setting of Alma redemptoris mater (Loving Mother of the Redeemer) places the chorale tune in the pedal on a soft four foot flute. The manuals are a different story, the left hand plays rising sevenths while the right hand plays a winding pattern which rises and falls in a serpentine pattern. This illustrates the line of text: “assist your people who have fallen yet strive to rise again.”  This highly chromatic line against the very simple statement of the chorale shows the interesting contrast between the peaceful image of the Virgin Mother and the great responsibility that she bears.

Submitted by our Soprano soloist, Anne Shelly:

The Blessed Virgin’s Expostulation is one piece in the set, Harmonia Sacra, published by Henry Purcell in 1693.  The text is a poem by Nahum Tate, written as a dramatic representation of Luke 2:42 describing a time that Mary couldn't find Jesus because he had stayed behind at the temple to talk to the Elders.  Although this is not a traditional Advent text, I come back to it regularly at this time of year because I can imagine Mary working through this tangle of emotions in anticipation of Jesus’ birth.  I am moved by the interplay between her fear of the unknown and her confidence based on heritage and faith.    There is a wonderful tension as the music shifts from minor to major back to minor keys as Mary weighs that which sustains her against the challenges she faces.   At the musical climax, Mary moves beyond worrying about her son into the struggle of how to manage her fears.   And we are left with no answers.   I find it a compelling and complex image to ponder at Advent.

The postlude is a setting of the Magnificat by Heinrich Scheidemann (ca. 1595 – 1663). This setting of the Song of Mary is an exciting illustration of the joyful side of Mary’s story. The writing is reminiscent of the keyboard writings of Sweelinck and the influence of Scheidemann can clearly be seen in the later writing of Buxtehude and even Bach. The registration that I have chosen pits the bright stops of the Positive division with the weightier stops of the Great. The middle section is just fun, each beat changes manuals (an illustration of the baby leaping in the womb when Mary and Elizabeth meet?) This combined with the presentation of the tune in whole notes in the pedal illustrates his mastery of counterpoint.

December 24, 2012 - Christmas Eve

Fantasia on Christmas Carols - Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ceremony of Carols: "Balulalow" - Benjamin Britten
Pastorale on "Forest Green" - Richard I. Purvis
A Rush of Wings - Gilbert M. Martin
Messiah: "Every Valley" - G.F. Handel
Mass in c minor: "Laudamus Te" - W.A. Mozart
Christmas: "Finale" - Gaston Dethier

Hymns: #83 Adeste Fidelis, #109 The First Nowell,
              #87 Mendelssohn

The music for the Christmas Eve service draws from a number of traditions and time periods. The choir’s selections are firmly entrenched in Traditional 20^th century choral literature. The postlude is a flashy finale to the service based on the opening hymn and the prelude(s) range from traditional arias to lesser known organ works based on familiar carols.

My background is not in liturgical music. I was raised in a Pentecostal church where I never heard of Advent and we rarely (usually only the Sunday before Christmas) sang carols. Then I took jobs in Methodist and Baptist churches and had to learn about this “Advent” business. In the churches that I served it basically amounted to spending an extra few minutes lighting a candle and singing some Christmas carols. This notion of waiting to sing and play carols until Christmas Eve is foreign to me and I will say that the waiting really makes me want to get as many in as I can.

During the prelude I will play Richard I. Purvis’s (1913-1994) setting of Forest Green. Purvis served as the Organist/Choirmaster at Grace Cathedral from 1947-1971. After studying at the Curtis Institute Purvis enlisted in the army as a Bandmaster. He was taken prisoner during the Battle of the Bulge and spent the rest of the war in a prison camp. He is primarily remembered for his colorful, light compositions and arrangements of familiar tunes.

I will again play variations from John McCreary’s Canonic Variations on “Divinum Mysterium” (See posting for Advent 1 for notes on this piece.) as well as Gilbert M. Martin’s (b.1941) setting of Regent Square entitled A Rush of Wings. Martin is a composer and arranger. A graduate of Westminster Choir College, he has received several awards for his compositions and travels around the country as a clinician and conductor.

In addition to the organ offerings during the prelude we will hear Every Valley from Messiah. This prophecy foretelling the coming of the Christ child has always held a disconnect between the text and the tune for me. The dark, angular, minor overture gives way to the gentle, bright Comfort Ye which breaks joyfully into this aria. It seems like the events that the tenor is singing about would be difficult and painful, violent even but they are presented with great joy. Laudamus te is taken from the W.A. Mozart (1756-1791) Grand Mass in c minor K. 427, which remained unfinished (most likely due to events in Mozart’s life surrounding the death of a child and his departure from Salzburg. The mass was written for his wife Constanze and received its first performance in 1783. This performance probably featured a version which included borrowings from his other mass settings to complete the piece. It’s message is simple, praise. Just praise.

The postlude is the last portion of Christmas by Gaston Dethier (1875-1958). Dethier was a Belgian born American organist. He served on the faculty of Julliard from 1907-1945. This setting of Adeste Fideles features the melody played in large chords in the manuals over quick scalar passages in the pedal. The piece ends with a pedal cadenza finishing with a whole lot of “a” played on full organ.

As I said as the outset, the choir’s selections are thoroughly British. The communion anthem is the haunting lullaby Balulalow from Benjamin Britten’s (1913-1976) Op. 28 Ceremony of Carols. This work was composed in 1942 while Britten and longtime friend Peter Pears were crossing the Atlantic on a trip from the US back to England. Britten had brought along two technical manuals on the harp to read as research for a harp concerto that he planned to write so it is likely that this explains his choice of the harp as accompaniment for the work. The piece was originally scored for three part treble voices and (perhaps at the urging of his publisher) was rescored for four part adult voices. The text is based on an English translation of the Martin Luther hymn Vom Himmel Hoch. This translation was published in the 1567 collection Ane Compendious Booke of Godly and Spirituall Songs collected out of sundrie partes of the Scripture, with sundrie of other Ballates changed out of prophaine sanges, for avoyding of sinne and harlotrie, with augmentation of sundrie gude and godlie Ballates not contenit in the first editioun. The brothers Wedderburn (James[1495-1553] John[1505-1556] and Robert[1510-1555-60]) were all charged with heresy and spent a period of time in exile. This setting of Balulalow (a Scottish word which means lullaby) features a gentle rocking accompaniment supporting the opening soprano solo. The full choir comes in for the second verse before the soprano soloist reenters on the last line with the choir trading off the rocking figure of the accompaniment with alternating major and minor figures.

Fantasia on Christmas Carols by Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958) was first performed in 1912 as part of the Three Choirs Festival. Vaughan Williams wrote a great deal of music, all of which sounds very British. He was very interested in the folk tunes of his homeland. Many of the tunes that he collected became the basis for his compositions. This work opens with a setting of “The truth sent from above,” an anonymous folk carol collected by Cecil Sharp (1859-1924) in the Herefordshire region of England. The work opens with a solo cello followed by the baritone soloist underscored by the choir humming. The tonality changes from minor to major with the entrance of the choir on “Come all you worthy gentlemen” passed back and forth between the men and women of the choir. The next section features the baritone soloist and the sopranos of the choir trading lines on the hymn “On Christmas Night.” The piece continues with snippets of “The First Noel,” “There is a Fountain,” “The Virgin Unspotted,” and “The Wassail Bough” all scattered throughout, some appearing only briefly in the accompaniment. The work takes the listener from the creation story to the virgin birth and hope for the future. This is not the final time Vaughan Williams looked to the Christmas season for inspiration. His cantata Hodie was written in 1954 and dedicated to Herbert Howells. The Fantasia is still frequently performed and is a chance to showcase the beautiful English folk tunes that are set in this work.

December 16, 2012 - Advent 3

Cry Out, Zion - Carl Nygard Jr.
Advent Canticle - Mark Shepperd
Toccata on "Veni Emmanuel" - Page C. Long

Hymns: #69 St. Mark's Berkeley, #679 Thomas Merton

All of the music that is being presented this week is by living composers. These composers are primarily known for their contribution to church music but have also found success in other veins of composition.

The gradual anthem, Cry Out, Zion has a text adapted from Isaiah 40:9 “O Zion, You who bring good tidings, get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, You who bring good tidings, Lift up your voice with strength, Lift it up, be not afraid; Say to the cities of Judah, ‘Behold your God!’” the same verse which we hear more commonly as “O Thou That Tellest Good Tidings” from Messiah. This setting by Carl Nygard Jr. (b 1947) has an accompaniment which drives the anthem forward. The syncopation makes it feel as though the whole thing is in mixed meter but it is Nygard’s uneven rhythmic groupings that give the piece its rhythmic vitality.  Nygard has spent his career in Pennsylvania, first as a student at West Chester University and later as a music educator in the Fleetwood Area School District. The melodic motif which Nygard has woven throughout acts as a sort of “trumpet call” alerting the listener to “Cry out.” The text is not one of gloom and doom but focuses on a God of love and strength. There is urgency to the piece, perpetuated by the rhythmically punctuated accompaniment. This piece is sure to wake Zion and the people in the pews.

The communion anthem and postlude are both based on the hymn tune Veni Emmanuel. The tune was originally written for a 15^th century Requiem mass. Thomas Helmore (1811-1890) published the tune in the 1854 collection The Hymnal Noted (Part II). Among Helmore’s major contributions was a revival of plainchant in the Anglican Church. The text is a collection of antiphons used for Vespers in the 7 days leading up to Christmas Eve. These antiphons date back to the 9^th century, thus predating the tune by 600 years. According to Michael Martin, the initial word of the Latin antiphons form a reverse acrostic: ERO CRAS, which means “I will be there tomorrow.”

The anthem setting, Advent Canticle, by Mark Shepperd received first place in the John Ness Beck Foundation competition in 2003 (more on Beck next week). The piece is for SATB choir and four soloists accompanied by flute and oboe. The arrangement has a stark, haunting quality to it which is further reinforced by the placement of soloists in the room. Shepperd preserves the feeling of plainchant by allowing the text to dictate the ever changing meter. Shepperd currently serves as Minister of Music at Woodbury Lutheran Church, Minnesota and received his training at Augsburg College and the University of Minnesota.

The postlude, Toccata on “Veni Emmanuel” is another setting of the well-known Advent hymn O Come, O Come Emmanuel. This time the setting is by Page C. Long. Dr. Long has written for organ, choir, recorder consort, and handbells. He holds degrees the Universities of Iowa and Arizona. In addition to his work as a composer, Dr. Long spent over 30 years as Minister of Music at First Congregational Church in Saginaw, Michigan. This toccata is from a collection of toccatas on familiar carols. The toccata is a form that is frequently associated with the organ and can range in style from the dark and free Toccata in d minor by J.S. Bach to the flashy perpetual movement of Charles-Marie Widor’s Toccata from Symphonie V. This toccata has two sections which alternate, the opening section with its rapid fire sixteenth notes and long pedal points with the tune presented in the left hand, playing in the tenor register; and a louder, thicker, and more dissonant section. This “B section” is then carried to the swell division (a softer division of the organ named for the box with louvered shutters on it which open and close to allow the sound to “swell”) before returning to the opening figure and finally the crashing climax.

December 9, 2012 - Advent 2

Obbligato for Flutes on an Advent Melody
                                                                  - Clarence Mader
Messiah: "But Who May Abide"  - G. F. Handel
Hark! a Herald Voice is Sounding - Mark Shephard
Messiah: "Overture" - G. F. Handel

Hymns: #76 Winchester New, #75 Ascension,
              #65 Bereden Vag for Herran

As I said last week, during Advent we are exploring the connection between the ancient and the modern. Two of the pieces come from American church composers of the twentieth century, while the other two are excerpted from that Christmas classic Messiah, by G. F. Handel (1685-1759).

Handel went to England to write opera but during the season of Lent opera is forbidden so the public turns to oratorio for a more devout form of entertainment. These oratorios are basically operas without the staging and costumes that are written on Biblical texts. Despite the fact that Messiah is one of the most often performed pieces of music in the classical canon. It has come to be connected with the Christmas season because the first (and most familiar part) of this work is the birth of Christ. The oratorio tells the story of the life of Christ in three parts. The first is the prophecy leading up to the birth of Christ, the second the prophecy and the crucifixion, and the third the resurrection and ascension.

The aria But Who May Abide the Day of His Coming, like many of the movements of Messiah exists in a few different versions. The aria was originally written for bass and included only the first (Larghetto) section of the aria. The presto section was added in 1750 for the castrato, Gaetano Guadagni (1728-1792). Guadagni was known for his impressive technique and the quality of his low notes. Handel rewrote arias in several other oratorios with him in mind and created the role of Didymus in Theodora for him. This aria comes early in part one, Leonard Van Camp in his book A Practical Guide for Performing, Teaching, and Singing Messiah places this aria in “Scene two: The Purifying Messiah is Prophesied.” This text fits into the idea of preparing our hearts and minds for the coming of Christ. The aria asks the question who is worthy to stand when Christ comes for He is like a refiner’s fire. The subsequent chorus answers this question. “And he shall purify the sons of Levi that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.” This aria serves as a reminder that we should view Advent as a time to burn out the dross that is in our hearts and lives and to examine the more base parts of our existence.

For the postlude I am playing a transcription of the Overture to Messiah. The piece is in two parts. The opening is written in the traditional French Overture style with angular dotted rhythms. This gives way to an energetic fugue which, in the orchestral version, opens with the subject played by the violins. This is a unique feature that is repeated in the closing fugue, usually referred to as The Great Amen. Many of Handel’s oratorios have overtures and all were performed with some sort of instrumental prelude. It was not uncommon for the composer to improvise an organ concerto at the beginning of an oratorio performance. This Sinfony as it is labeled in the autograph score is dated August 22, 1741 and is therefore the first piece of music written for the work. It’s dismal key of e minor has been said to evoke “a mood without hope.” The subsequent aria is in E major and offers a substantial brightness in contrast to the dark opening.

The prelude is a lovely little piece that I discovered in a pile of organ music that I “inherited” from a retired organist. It is a beautiful piece called Obbligato for Flutes on an Advent Melody by Clarence Mader (1904-1971). The melody is sited as being a 17^th century melody taken from “Sacred Melodies” by J.W. Franck but, try as I might I could not find the melody that the piece is based on. Clarence Mader was an organist and teacher that spent his career in California. He began his journey in church music at age eleven, serving as organist of his father’s church. In 1926 he studied with the famed concert organist Lynnwood Farnam in New York City. Three years later he took the position of organist at Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles where he served for thirty-seven years. Mader’s compositions tested the boundaries of composition and proved that church music could continue to have relevance in the scope of the larger musical world. His career was brought to an untimely end when he and his wife Ruth (also an organist) were killed in a car accident. Mader’s legacy continues to live on through his music and writings as well as scholarships and competitions in his memory.

The communion anthem is a setting of the 6^th century Latin hymn Vox clara ecce intonate used for Lauds during Advent. The English translation by Edward Caswall has become an Advent favorite because of the various interpretations of the coming of Christ which the verses encompass. The text makes allusions to both the first and second comings of Christ. This setting’s tune is by the contemporary church composer Mark Shephard. Shephard started as a chorister at Gloucester Cathedral and later studied with Sir David Willcocks and Hugh MacDonald. His compositional oeuvre includes operas, musical, orchestral music.

December 2, 2012 - Advent 1

Canonic Variations on "Divinum Mysterium"
                                                                     - John McCreary
Wake, Awake, For Night is Flying - Dale Wood
A Spotless Rose - Herbert Howells

Hymns: #59 Merton, #721 Ton-y-Botel, #66 Stuttgart

For the season of Advent we are examining the similarities between the ancient and the modern. Much of the music over the next month has been written within the last hundred years (with the exception of two Baroque gems). This music is contrasted with the ancient tunes and texts that many of the pieces draw their thematic material from. All three of the pieces for this week were written in the last century but have texts and tunes that predate these arrangements by hundreds of years.

The prelude and postlude are taken from Canonic Variations on “Divinum Mysterium” by John McCreary. John McCreary was a student of Marilyn Mason, this piece is part of the “Marilyn Mason Music Library,” a collection of works commissioned by Mason who is a tireless advocate of contemporary music. McCreary is Organist Emeritus of St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Honolulu, Hawaii. McCreary is known for his great sense of humor, another of his compositions is a piece for organ, orchestra, and chorus called Variations on Rubber Ducky. This set of variations is an arrangement of the tune Divinum Mysterium which was first published in the 1582 collection of Latin Songs Piae Cantiones. This piece is usually paired with the text, Of the Father’s Love Begotten, attributed to the 5^th century poet Marcus Aurelius Clemens Purdentius. This prelude consists of the second and fourth variations. The second is a canon at the sixth between the right hand (played on an 8’ reed) and the pedal (played on an 8’ flue). This is accompanied by swirling triplets on the celeste stops (sets of pipes tuned slightly sharp so as to cause a shimmering effect when combined with other stops tuned at pitch.) The fourth variation again uses the celestes for accompaniment but places the melody on a solo 4’ flute in the pedal. The canon is less clear in this variation, it only hints at slight imitation rather than a true canon. The postlude is a romping toccata with the canon between the top voice in the right hand and the pedal played on full organ.

The gradual anthem is a setting of Philipp Nicolai’s (1556-1608) text Wake, Awake, For Night is Flying. This anthem was written by Dale Wood (1934-2003). Wood was one of the most influential organists and composers of the last century. His hymn tunes appear in dozens of hymnals and his music has been performed in over 60 countries. This anthem for trumpets, organ and choir (today the trumpet part will be played on the organ). The text is taken from the opening lines of each of the three verses of this apocalyptic chorale tune. The piece opens with the trumpets and choir alternating with forceful fanfare. The second verse diminishes to a seven part a cappella choral section on the gentler text imploring the Son of God to come. For the last verse, the trumpets return and are joined by strong unison singing in the choir.

The communion anthem is Herbert Howell’s A Spotless Rose. Herbert Howells is primarily remembered for his large output of Anglican Church Music. His life was marked by many challenges and tragedies including a diagnosis of Graves disease while studying at the Royal College of Music and the death of his nine-year-old son Michael from polio. This latter event colored most of Howell’s writing including his Hymnus Paradisi for the 1949 Three Choirs Festival, and his motet Take Him, Earth, for Cherishing, commissioned for the memorial service of John F. Kennedy.  This setting of the traditional German text Es ist ein ros is more commonly translated as Lo How a Rose. This setting by Howells for choir with baritone soloist is a mood piece. Like so much of Howell’s music it creates an effect with lines that easily fit in a number of chords making the piece harmonically ambiguous. The anthem has a lovely calming effect and is ideal for making us stop, listen, and breathe.

November 25, 2012 - Christ the King

Last Words of David - Randall Thompson
E'en So, Lord Jesus, Quickly Come - Paul Manz
God of Grace  - Paul Manz
Prelude on "Land of Rest" - Leo Sowerby

Hymns: #397 Nun Danket, #382 General Seminary,
              #598 Mit Freuden Zart

November has been a celebration of American music at St. David’s. This’s weeks selections come from three of the most influential composers of church music in the last century. Paul Manz and Leo Sowerby made their careers as church composers and musicians, although Sowerby also wrote a number of secular compositions and symphonic works it is for his advances in church music that he is best remembered today. Randall Thompson is among the most important choral composers of all time. Like Sowerby, he wrote for a variety of ensembles but his chief successes were in the world of academia and composition rather than as a church musician.

Leo Sowerby (1895-1968) is closely associated with the city of Chicago where he spent the majority of his career. He was born in Grand Rapids, MI and began his piano studies at age seven but taught himself theory and organ. He served in the US Army as a clarinetist and bandmaster and in 1921 he was awarded the Prix de Rome and studied in Italy for three years. Upon his return to the US he was appointed choir director and organist of St. James Episcopal Cathedral where he served from 1927-1961. In 1932 he joined the composition faculty of the American Conservatory where he taught until 1962. He also helped to found and served as director of the College of Church Musicians in Washington D.C. until his death in 1968. Throughout the fall we have been using the tune “Land of Rest” as the Sanctus. This Prelude on “Land of Rest” is dedicated to Richard Wayne Dirksen (1921-2003), the then Assistant Organist at Washington National Cathedral. He was promoted to organist and choirmaster of the cathedral in 1977 and served in that capacity until 1988. This composition on Land of Rest passes the tune, often in canon between right or left hand and pedal throughout the many different stops of the organ. The registrations and solos called for in the piece would certainly show off the versatility of the large Skinner organ at Washington National Cathedral.

The gradual anthem is the chestnut of the choral literature (or warhorse depending on your feelings about the piece) The Last Words of David. Randall Thompson (1899-1984) was commissioned to write this by the Boston Symphony Orchestra for the 25^th anniversary of Koussevitzky’s directorship. This is the second major commission associated with Koussevitzky, the first being the Alleluia written for the opening of the Berkshire Music Center at Tangle wood in 1940. One of the most admirable characteristics of Thompson’s writing is his connection to the texts that he chooses. The text for this anthem comes from 2 Samuel 23:3-4 and, as far as I know this is the only musical setting of this text. It seems odd that Thompson chose this text to honor a conductor – someone that “ruleth over men (musicians).” This is also a timely piece to come at the end of a long election year. It is a reminder of some of the Biblical tenants of leadership. Thompson’s use of text painting after the opening is a beautiful depiction of the images of nature that David paints. The piece ends with a peaceful “Alleluia, amen” which seems like an intentional reference to his own Alleluia written for Koussevitzky nine years earlier.

The postlude and communion anthem were written by Paul Manz (1919-2009). E’en So, Lord Jesus Quickly Come occupies a prominent place in choral literature. It was one of only a handful of anthems to be included regularly in the King’s College Lessons and Carols service. The piece was written in 1953 while Manz and his wife Ruth were at the bedside of their gravely ill three-year-old son, John. Ruth adapted the words from Revelations 22 and gave it to her husband to work on and he wrote this Advent anthem which was published after their son had recovered. The anthem reads like a psalm of praise until you get to the last few lines “E’en so, Lord Jesus, quickly come, and night shall be no more; they need no light nor lamp nor sun, for Christ will be their all.” It is easy to see why the Manz family would look to this text at a time of great personal difficulty. The text is filled with hope. Not in a bombastic triumphant way, but in a dark and quiet way; a way that conveys that we don’t know what the future holds or why things are the way they are but that they are alright.

Paul Manz is best known for his contributions to the world of liturgical organ music. Manz received a Fulbright Grant to study in Europe with the great organists and composers Flor Peeters and Helmut Walcha. Manz short “choral improvisations” bear a great deal of similarity to those of his teachers but have a uniquely American flare to them. Manz went on to become a tireless advocate of quality church music and creative hymn playing. He taught and served churches and universities in the Lutheran tradition for the majority of his career and was the recipient of several awards and honorary degrees. His setting of Cwm Rhonda features a bold and energetic pedal line as well as quotes from Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus at the opening. This original material alternates with the chorale tune being played in the tenor register on a big solo trumpet. It is a fun piece to play and hear and works well as a hymn introduction as well.

November 18, 2012 - Proper 28

"The Sacred Harp":Jerusalem - William Walker
Merrick - John Newton, arr. Genensky/Hellauer
Where We'll Never Grow Old - James C. Moore
I've Got That Old Time Religion in My Heart
                                                     - Hurdist Milsap

Hymns: Dix, #380 Old Hundredth, Marching to Zion

This month we have been celebrating American music. This Sunday’s music is taken from the shape note tradition. The prelude and postlude come from the later seven note (Aiken) tradition while the two choral anthems are taken from the older four note or, fasola tradition.

Fasola or “Sacred Harp” singing takes its name from the 1844 publication The Sacred Harp by Benjamin White. The title of this book is a bit misleading but many early hymnals were referred to as “harp” and the sacred harp of the title is the human voice. This style of singing is not a concerted performance to be observed but a participatory tradition. Singers get together for “singings” which typically last all-day (with dinner on the ground.) The singers form a hollow square with one voice part on each side with space in the center for the leader. Anyone is welcome to lead a song at these events. The leader calls out the number and which verses are to be sung and he or she beats time while facing the tenors – the melody is typically found in the tenor part in this tradition.

One of the unique and to some confusing things about this tradition is the actual print music, the shapes. Fasola singing is so named because it makes use of only four syllables, fa-sol-la-fa-sol-la-mi makes up a scale. This methodology was used to teach sight reading. In a scale there is always a half step before the syllable “fa.” Each syllable has its own shape: fa is a right triangle, sol is a round note, la is a rectangle, and mi a diamond. This simplified way of teaching sight-singing was looked down on by the musical elite and so this music became relegated to rural communities. As time went on the music grew in popularity and is still sung today in much the same way that it was first presented 200 years ago. Here in New York there are active singing communities in Rochester, Ithaca, New York City, and Utica. There are large singings held annually and new members are always welcome.

Jerusalem was written by (or possibly collected by) William Walker (1809-1875). Walker is credited with the composition of many tunes from his 1835 publication Southern Harmony but it is possible that many of them were actually collected during his travels throughout the South. He and his brother-in-law, Benjamin White (publisher of The Sacred Harp) traveled throughout the Appalachians and the South collecting folk tunes and ballads to preserve what up to that point was a primarily oral tradition. Merrick is a setting of John Newton’s (1725-1807) text, Savior Visit Thy Plantation. This arrangement was written by Marsha Genesky and Susan Hellauer of the group Anonymous 4. It features the ladies of the choir in beautiful four part harmony.

The piano music gave me a chance to draw on my personal history. For this I have taken two classics from the seven note (Aiken) tradition. In this tradition each syllable of the scale has its own shape. Those of the fasola tradition are the same with the addition of “do”, an equilateral triangle, “re” a semi-circle and “ti” an ice cream cone shaped note.  This style of music can into popularity in the South at the turn of the Twentieth century. Publishing companies like Stamps-Baxter and James D. Vaughan would release books two to six times a year and congregations would meet to sing through the latest music. The companies would send out quartets to promote their new books and they would sponsor “Singing schools” where students would go to learn the rudiments of music and have the opportunity to study voice and piano. As a teenager I was lucky enough to attend one of these schools in Nashville, TN. This school is still held every summer on the campus of Belmont University. We received instruction in theory, sight-singing, conducting, private piano, and arranging. And we sang - every day for four to six hours. The singing would sometimes last long into the night. This is also the first experience that I had with polyphonic music and counterpoint. It seems strange but the music of G.T. Speer and Luther Presley led me to Mendelssohn, Bach and Handel.

The prelude is James C. Moore’s Never Grow Old, a song that I have known for many years. This is probably his best known composition despite the fact that he has over 500 songs to his credit. The music paints a lovely picture of heave – as do many of these songs, as a land where we will never grow old. The piece has been recorded by hundreds of performers in the gospel field as well as artists like Johnny Cash, Jim Reeves, and Patty Griffin.

The arrangement of I’ve Got That Old Time Religion In My Heart by Hurdist Milsap is a combination of an introduction that I learned from Rosa Nell Speer, an arrangement by Sidney Ryan Hicks and an ending by Stan Whitmire with a healthy dose of my own ideas throw in. This joyful piece is a perennial favorite at singings and with quartets and continues to be sung in churches throughout the South to this day.

 

November 11, 2012 - Proper 27

An American Sonata - Charles Callahan
How Can I Keep From Singing? - Bradley Ellingboe
Give Me Jesus - Larry L. Fleming

Hymns: #686 Nettleton, #705 Forest Green, Slane

The music through the month of November is taken from different traditions in American music. This week the prelude and postlude are taken from Charles Callahan’s American Sonata, a setting of several traditional American hymn tunes. Staying in this vein, the gradual anthem is a setting Robert Lowry’s How Can I Keep From Singing? The communion anthem is a setting of the Spiritual Give Me Jesus.

The prelude and postlude are taken from An American Sonata by Charles Callahan, one of the leading composers of organ music in the country. He is a graduate of the Curtis Institute and the American Catholic University. He is a noted expert on church music and organ buildings with two books on the latter to his record which have become standards in the field. The prelude, Canticle: Meditative, is a quiet setting of the hymn He Leadeth Me. The flute takes the melody while the organ plays sustained colorful chord underneath. The piece just kind of sits and creates a nebulas image of calm peacefulness.

The Finale: Joyful is just a fun romp. It combines the spiritual Now Let Us Sing (Robeson) with the more traditional Charlestown (All Who Love and Serve Your City). This allows the chance and the challenge to combine two disparate styles of music into a cohesive piece. For this movement I am trying to make the organ sound like a Hammond B3 and then a Victorian Era American Organ. The end of the movement combines the two sounds and ends with full on theatre organ style tremolo.

The gradual anthem is a setting of How Can I Keep From Singing? written by the Baptist minister and hymn writer Robert Lowry.  This arrangement is from the pen of Bradley Ellingboe, a singer/conductor/teacher/composer. He is known for his choral arrangements and has had a successful career in academia serving at the University of New Mexico since 1985. He has received several honors and commissions from many noted choral organizations. This arrangement creates a dialogue between the flute, organ and choir. The repeated refrain builds in confidence each time leading to the climax that then dissipates and ends with the flute and voices “singing”. This text serves as a reminder that throughout everything singing is something that provides comfort. It begs the question “What can keep me from singing?” because Love is lord of heaven and earth. This is a gentle reminder that in all things we can find joy and we can find song.

The communion anthem is a plaintive arrangement of the spiritual Give Me Jesus. The arrangement by Larry L. Fleming (1936-2003) is filled with quiet subtle detail. The dynamics within a phrase sometimes range from pianissimo to fortissimo in the span of two measures. The thick, rich writing creates a grounded supported sound that helps anchor the soring soprano line of the last verse. It also creates a smooth texture that feels very comforting. The message of the piece is simple as are the harmonies. To me this is what makes this piece so beautiful. It feels like the kind of thing that would be sung by someone alone and afraid, looking for solace and choosing to sing their prayer. Like the prelude there are parts of the piece that just sit there and create a mood. I think that is what three out of the four musical offerings this week have in common. They are simple and provide comfort because of the text but also the simple harmonies that are easy to hear and easy to follow.

November 4, 2012 - All Saints Day and A Concert of Remembrance

Requiem - Bob Chilcott
I Will Lift Up Mine Eyes - Howard Boatwright
Psalm 117 - Brian Israel
Suite Gothique - Leon Boellmann

Bob Chilcott (b.1955) is an active composer and conductor Chilcott began his involvement in choral music as a chorister at King’s College, Cambridge. He later went on to be named Choral Scholar and then to sing with and compose for the King’s Singers. Chilcott left the King’s Singers in 1997 to pursue a career as a full time composer. Among his compositions are several commissioned works including The Angry Planet which was commissioned for the BBC Proms and was premiered on August 5, 2012. Since 2002 Chilcott has served as Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Singers and continues to remain active as a clinician throughout the world.

The Requiem was commissioned by the Preston Hollow Presbyterian Church, Dallas, Texas in honor of Cynthia Cole Finley and The Oxford Bach Choir. The UK premiere took place at the Sheldonian Theatre on March 13, 2010. The US premiere followed on March 21. Although the Requiem is a commissioned work it bears the dedication “In loving memory of Samantha Verschueren (1985-2009),” the composer’s niece who died while the composer was writing the piece. The composition combines the traditional text of the Latin Mass for the Dead with sentences from the funeral service in the Book of Common Prayer. Noticeably absent from the composition is the Dies Irae section making for a more contemplative and reflective work that provides comfort and peace for both performer and listener.

Chilcott taps into the human side of the Latin texts for an intimate work that honors those who have died and consoles those of us that have been left behind. The work in seven movements opens with a quiet Introit and Kyrie reminiscent of the Durufle and Faure Requiems. It then moves from a fiery Offertorio to a simple and beautiful Pie Jesu featuring the soprano soloist. The dance like Sanctus is a sharp contrast to the quiet tenor solo of the Agnus Dei. The only movement of the piece in English, Thou Knowest, Lord paints a beautiful picture with a text from The Book of Common Prayer which opens with a fervent cry and then moves into a quiet plea. The work closes just as it opened with a simple and peaceful Lux Aeterna which closes with a final appeal for “rest eternal.”

The prelude and postlude by Leon Boëllmann (1862-1897) are taken from his Op. 25 Suite Gothique. Boëllmann was educated at L'École Niedermeyer where he studied piano, organ, composition, and counterpoint. After graduating he was hired as substitute organist at St. Vincent-de-Paul. After six years he was named organist titulare, a position he held until his death. The Suite Gothique is perhaps his most well-known composition. The work opens with a Chorale played on full organ followed by a Menuet Gothique. The prelude for this week is the third movement, Prière à Notre-Dame, a beautiful soft movement played on the string and flute stops of the organ. The final movement and this week’s postlude is the fiery Toccata. The piece opens with running sixteenth notes in the right hand accented by chords on the beat in the left hand. The theme is then introduced in the pedal. This theme sounds like something out of an old black and white horror film (perfect for the Sunday following Halloween) the movement begins to build and concludes with four crashing chords played on full organ.

Howard Boatwright (1918-1999) was well known as a violinist, composer and professor. Born in Newport News, Virginia, he played a New York debut recital on violin and the age of 24 and subsequently joined the faculty of the University of Texas and then went to Yale University to study composition with Paul Hindemith. After receiving his master’s degree at Yale, he taught at Yale for many years and was also a conductor of the Yale Symphony, concertmaster of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, and first violinist of the Yale String Quartet. In 1964 he became Dean of the Syracuse University School of Music and remained there until he retired from teaching in 1988. He is well remembered as the author of several books on music theory. Howard and his wife, the well-known soprano Helen Boatwright, were long-time members of St. David’s Church.

As with much of Boatwright's choral music, this is likely a product of his time in New Haven. The piece is for SSATB choir a cappella. The piece opens with imitative entrances on the text "I will lift up mine eyes" before coming together on "unto the hills." Another imitative phrase leads us into the B section. This section features the men in unison on the melody with the ladies floating above in three part harmony. For me this is reminiscent of Mendelssohn's setting of this text in Elijah for a ladies trio. It is possible that Boatwright had this in the back of his mind but who can say. The imitation comes back and the piece closes with a quiet but initially unsettling Amen. The piece is very specific in its musical direction and the demands on the singers. It is a beautiful piece that I have grown to love.

Brian Israel (1951-1986) was a faculty member as the Syracuse University School of Music from 1975-1986 and a noted composer of symphonies, chamber, choral and solo works. Born in the Bronx, New York, he received his MFA and DMA from Cornell University. His final work, Symphony No. 6 for soprano, baritone, and orchestra was premiered three days before his death. St. David’s member Donna Miller was the soprano soloist from this premiere. Brian had many friends at St. David’s; his works were often performed by Donna Miller and James Shults. Today’s work was commissioned by St. David’s Church and first performed at the Church the Sunday following his death and again at his Memorial Service. Brian was married to Christine Day, a priest in the Episcopal Diocese of Central New York. His ashes are interred in St. David’s Memorial Garden.

Notes on Howard Boatwright and Brian Israel provided by James Shults.

October 28, 2012 - Proper 25

Paulus Op. 36: "I Praise Thee, O Lord"
                                                               - Felix Mendelssohn
O Taste and See - John Goss
Songs Without Words: "Confidence"and "Hope"
                                                               - Felix Mendelssohn

Hymns: #429 Old 113th, #306 Sursum Corda,
              LEVAS #207 By and By

This week’s music is completely Victorian English music. The gradual anthem and postlude were written by Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847). Strictly speaking, Mendelssohn is a German Romantic composer but during his brief lifetime he made ten trips to England. During these trips he revolutionized the English organ world to the extent of causing a change in their approach to organ building. Before Mendelssohn’s trips to England, English pedal boards were just pull down pedals, meaning that they played whatever stops were on in the rest of the organ rather than being their own individual division. In fact, some British organs didn’t even have a pedal division. In addition to his career as an organist Mendelssohn found success with the composition of oratorios.

I Praise Thee, O Lord is taken from Mendelssohn’s Op. 36 Paulus written between 1832 and 1836. The text is derived from Biblical texts and was assembled by Julius Schubring. The work received its first performance on May 22, 1836 at the Rhenish Music Festival in Dusseldorf. It tells the story of Paul’s conversion and ministry, a story that may have had special meaning to Mendelssohn, the grandson of a Rabbi. In 1816 the Mendelssohn family moved to Berlin and added the surname Bartholdy although Felix resisted this. I Praise Thee, O Lord opens with a baritone aria sung by the newly converted Paul in praise of God. The chorus’s part of this movement is typical Mendelssohn. The choir sings a fugue alternating between two themes on two different texts, the first from the book of Revelations and the second from the Gospel of Matthew. After both themes have been presented and developed they are combined. The altos finish the movement the same way they started before the final statement of the choir, “for His word shall not decay” fades off into nothingness.  

For the postlude I have chosen two of Mendelssohn’s Songs Without Words that I feel complement each other while at the same time making a statement. Mendelssohn published eight collections of these “songs” each consisting of six pieces. As the piano grew in popularity it became common for composers to write short lyric pieces that were accessible to the general public. While subsequent publications of these pieces has paired titles with them that were not intended I think that the “titles” attached to the two pieces I will play does reflect the mood. The first is called Confidence. This light piece is assertive but also soft spoken and whimsical at the beginning and end, I think this speaks to our interpretation of confidence. I have often found that confidence comes from honesty and honesty from being true to yourself – I hear that in this piece. The second piece is called Hope. Again this piece opens and closes with soft whisperings with a confident statement sandwiched in-between. It seems an appropriate pairing for Confidence and an appropriate selection going into an Election week.

The communion anthem is a setting of Psalm 34 by the British composer John Goss (1800-1880). John Goss is a composer that I first discovered through his setting of God So Loved the World. Goss is best known for his choral compositions and his hymn tunes including Praise My Soul the King of Heaven. This setting of O Taste and See is typical of Goss’s writing and makes use of simple harmonies with primarily homophonic writing. The B section introduces slightly unexpected harmonies into the mix on the text “the lions do lack and suffer hunger” but still the piece follows a logical progression to the resolution that “they who seek the Lord shall want for nothing.” The piece closes with a prolonged statement that reminds us that the "man" who trusts the Lord is blessed. This week's music has essentially covered many of the positive attributes of human character: hope, trust, confidence, faith and thanksgiving. All important things for us to remember in these uncertain times when human character is called into question and is of such vital importance.

October 21, 2012 - Proper 24

Creation: "Sing the Lord, Ye Voices All" - F.J. Haydn
b minor Mass BWV 232: "Agnus Dei" - J.S. Bach
Prelude and Fugue in c minor

Hymns: #379 Abbott's Leigh, #602 Jesu, Jesu,
              #583 Morning Song

This week the music comes from three monumental musical undertakings by two of the giants of classical music. All three pieces occupy a prominent spot in music history and have left a lasting impression on the Classical Western canon both because of the innovations and the music itself.

The gradual anthem is by Franz Joseph Haydn and is taken from his oratorio The Creation. This work was not Haydn’s first oratorio, but is certainly his most well-known. Haydn visited London in 1791-1792 and 1794-1795. On both visits he heard massed choir performances; the first in memory of Handel, the second a hymn sung by 4,000 children. Haydn brought a text from the Book of Genesis and John Milton’s Paradise Lost to Baron von Sweiten who translated the text into German. Die Schopfung received its first performance in 1798. Sing the Lord, Ye Voices All is the final chorus of this oratorio and adds an alto soloist to the trio of angels that has been singing throughout. The chorus opens with full choir stating “Sing the Lord, ye voices all, Magnify his name through all creation, Celebrate his power and glory, Let his name resound on high.” This then breaks into a joyous fugue on the text “Jehovah’s praise forever shall endure.” The exuberant fugue subject hops between voice part as the orchestra builds to the closing statement with flying sixteenth notes in the organ and big unison writing for the chorus.

The communion anthem is taken from J.S. Bach’s monumental b minor mass BWV 232. This mass is based on the Roman Catholic Mass but is far too substantial to be performed in the context of the church service. It is unclear why Bach wrote this music because most of it is not suited to the Lutheran church service at all. The Agnus Dei is the final solo in the nearly two hour work. It is taken from Bach’s Ascension Oratorio and precedes the chorus Dona Nobis Pacem. The aria is very chromatic and; despite starting and ending in g minor, drifts far from there.

The Postlude is taken from Book I of The Well Tempered Clavier.  Many people have assumed that this work was Bach’s argument for Equal Temperament, it is however his argument for a well tempered tuning system. The Prelude and Fugue in c minor showcases the key’s active and energetic character and the pain and bite of the key. I have always affectionately referred to the Prelude as the “typewriter prelude” because it is constant 16^th notes first played together, and then alternating hands. The Fugue is a chipper three voice fugue that serves as a perfect example of fugal writing.

October 14, 2012 - Proper 23

Canonic Variations on "Slane" - Larry Visser
Messiah: "He Trusted in God" - G.F. Handel
O Vos Omnes - Tomas Luis de Vittoria

Hymns: #492 Finnian, #475 Tysk, #488 Slane

The music this week is a bit on the dark side but is not without hope. The prelude and postlude are taken from a set of variations that have connections to both of the anthems as well as the closing hymn. The two anthems share key and theme despite being written 150 years apart. These anthems also have a great deal of drama packed into just a few measures. This is true of the organ music as well. It’s amazing how much can be packed into only a few measures of a variation.

The Gradual anthem is taken from the second part of Handel’s Messiah. It is one of the choruses that is quite often cut. He Trusted in God is a setting of Psalm 22 and following the tenor solo All They that See Him is a very sarcastic and biting chorus reminiscent of the mob choruses of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion. Handel left his mark on music history primarily through the composition of oratorio. This was mostly by default. Handel had gone to England as a composer of operas but the performance of opera was not allowed during Lent so he had to turn to oratorio; an unstaged opera on biblical texts. There are moments in Messiah that are very clearly opera set to Biblical text. The implied mob psychology and disdainful tone of this chorus is Handel’s way of illustrating the fear and pain of Christ on the cross. This text can also easily be applied to each of our lives and be seen as a reminder of the fact that, though the message is intended as sarcastic and biting that what is said is true. God will deliver those that have his favor.

The communion anthem is O Vos Omnes by Tomas Luis de Vittoria, one of the most prominent composers of the Renaissance. Despite being educated in Rome (possibly by Palestrina) he never lost the Spanish flare that was an integral part of his heritage. Musicologists constantly site the fact that his music is filled with “Spanish mysticism.” His setting of O Vos Omnes from Lamentations 1:12 from the collection of motets published in 1572 is beautiful because of its simplicity. This piece is the response of the Christ on the cross from He Trusted in God. The translation of the piece is:
“O all you that pass by the way, attend and see: If there is pain like as my pain. Attend all people, and see my sorrows if there is sorrow like as my sorrow.” This dialogue captures the pain and suffering of Christ as a response to the taunting mob. The juxtaposition of the taunting mob of He Trusted in God and Christ’s response of “who knows sorrow like unto my sorrows” is incredibly poignant.

The prelude and postlude are taken from Larry Visser’s Canonic Variations on “Slane” which is the closing hymn. The first variation is an overture, which reminds me of the overture to Messiah, something I had considered playing this week before finding this piece. It exploits the double dotted figure typical of the French overture of the Baroque period, and reminiscent of the opening of the Meesiah overture. The piece then gives way to a very simple trio titled Hymnus for solo reed and flute with pedal. The third variation, Prayer¸ places the tune in the pedal and the upper voice of the right hand. The manuals are exploiting the Voix Celeste, a string stop which composers like Guilmant and Boellmann had used for Priere’s of their own. The pedal plays the melody on a 4’ reed stop. The fourth movement is a trio which features the melody on two “gap” registrations bouncing between hands and an accompanying line in the pedal. Movement 5 is a Paean, a lyric poem of thanksgiving and triumph played on full organ sounds that play with the rhythm of the tune. The penultimate setting is a Lament, this movement features the Flute Celeste and the oboe taking turns on the melody in the excruciating key of eb minor. The melody is passed between the two voices throughout and ends with a statement combining eb major and minor in a way which draws parallels with the treatment of key and mode in the Vittoria. The concluding toccata opens with the canon split between the upper voice of the right hand and the pedal. The “B section” features a canon between left and right foot before reintroducing the canon between right hand and pedal to end. This piece exploits the full resources of the organ while capturing the many moods of pieces available to the organist and illustrating different aspects of the text. This hymn tune has been paired with Be Thou My Vision and Lord of All Hopefulness as well as exploiting the innate beauty of the hymn tune.

October 7, 2012 - Proper 22

Pavan - William Byrd
O Lord Our Governor - Benedetto Marcello
Ave Verum Corpus - William Byrd
Psalm 19 - Benedetto Marcello (arr. E. Power Biggs)

Hymns: #388 Hanover, #495 In Babilone, 
              #678 College of Preachers

The music for this week comes from two very different composers. Both of these composers completed a monumental composition which has left an indelible mark in the catalog of Sacred music.  The writing of William Byrd (1539/40-1623) represents the height of compositional achievement in England during the Renaissance. In fact, some musicologists argue that Byrd is the most influential British composer ever. William Byrd studied composition with Thomas Tallis and later the two shared duties as organist at the Chapel Royal. In 1577 he moved to Middlesex with his family. Byrd preferred to live outside of London because he was a devout Catholic at a time when Catholics were being persecuted by the government. Despite his faith his devotion to the monarchy was never questioned. He was so highly thought of by Elizabeth I that he and Tallis received a monopoly on the publishing and sale of all print music. In 1593 he retired to Stondon Massey, Essex where he lived until his death in 1623.

Byrd’s keyboard music was unrivaled at the time of its composition. The pieces rarely specified which keyboard instrument they were for, some for virginal and some for the organ. His musical style changed from the early works which resembled the more austere vocal writing of the time. His later worked became more idiomatic and virtuosic incorporating scalar runs and more advanced rhythms. One of his favorite compositional genres is the dance pair, Pavan and Galliard. The pavan is a slow stately dance in duple meter often used to open a ball. This is followed by the faster galliard in triple meter. The Pavan that I am using as the prelude is in ABC form (the repeats have been omitted) and exploits some of the ensemble sounds that could be found on an English organ from that time period. These organs were typically very small. They had only one or two manuals and no pedal board. The stops of these instruments were primarily flutes and principals of small scale and high pitch. This pavan begins with a ponderous minor variation followed by a slightly lighter and faster section. I have registered the third and final section on a single 4’ flute. The section is in major and creates tension through the use of gentle dissonances.

All of Byrd’s compositions were recognized for their quality but it is felt that his Latin motets are among his greatest achievements both in quality and creativity. Byrd’s greatest contribution to sacred music was his two volume Gradualia (1605 and 1607). This collection contains proper cycles, as well as settings of the ordinary of the mass for every major feast day and votive mass of the Roman Catholic Rite. Byrd’s setting of the Corpus Christi hymn Ave Verum (Hail the true body) shows the great care that Byrd took with setting the Latin text. One compositional technique that is frequently employed is that of “false relation” – a note and its chromatically altered pitch appearing in close proximity. The first instance of this is between the soprano and bass of measure one and two. This highlights the word verum (true) which as a Catholic would be a particularly important distinction for the Catholic Byrd (Atrium Musicologicum). Byrd also includes a great deal of text painting in this motet. The text in cruce (on the cross) literally forms a cross in the music with the tenor entering first followed by soprano and bass [aligned vertically] and the altos after. The entrances of unda fluxit sanguine (flowed water and blood) are staggered descending lines. The pitches of Jesu and Mariae are the highest pitches of the piece giving greater importance to the settings of these names. It is incredible to note the care taken to set texts in a work that was written basically for private devotion as it is unlikely that it would have ever been performed because Latin motets were not a part of the liturgy in the newly formed Church of England.

Benedetto Marcello (1686-1739) was born into an influential aristocratic family in Venice. Both he and his brother Alessandro enjoyed success as composers but were not allowed to pursue music as more than a hobby. Marcello instead enjoyed a successful career as a lawyer, the governor of Pola and at the end of his life chancellor of Brescia. Most of his compositions come from his early life where music played a larger role and was encouraged as part of his studies. The most enduring of Marcello’s contributions is his Estro poetico-armonico. This work is a setting of the first fifty Psalms as translated by his friend Girolamo Ascanio Giustiniani. It was published in eight volumes between 1724 and 1726. The texts are very free translations of the Latin thought to make the Psalms more accessible to the general public. The setting of Psalm 8 O Lord Our Governor is a light dance like piece originally for alto solo and unison choir with basso continuo. This arrangement features soloists alternating with full choir.

The postlude is an arrangement for organ solo by E. Power Biggs (1906-1977) of another of Marcello’s Psalm settings from this collection, Psalm 19. As with the setting of Psalm 8 there is a lot of back and forth between the full organ and the softer secondary manual. This is representative of the concertato style of writing popular in Italy during the Baroque period. In this style of writing a small group (the ripieno) alternates with the full ensemble (tutti). This is a through back to the earlier polychoral styles of the Gabriellis. At St. Mark’s Cathedral in Venice instrumental and vocal ensembles would be placed throughout the church and would play or sing antiphonally, exploiting the possibilities of having ensembles in different parts of the church and in essence creating the first stereo sounds.

September 30, 2012 - Proper 21

Suite No. 7 in g minor HWV 432: "Andante" and 
                                                   "Passacaille" - G.F. Handel
Messiah HWV 56: "If God Be For Us" - G.F. Handel
Elijah Op. 70: "He Watching Over Israel"
                                                               - Felix Mendelssohn

Hymns: #546 Siroe, #509 Nun Danket all und Bringet,
             #344 Sicilian Mariners

Three of this week’s four pieces are by the same composer (and incidentally are in the same key – this part was an accident.) The prelude and postlude are taken from the seventh of G.F. Handel’s (1685-1759) “Grand Suites” for harpsichord. The prelude is the “Andante” and the postlude, the “Passacaille from Suite No. 7 in g minor HWV 432. The gradual anthem is taken from the third part of Messiah, the soprano aria If God Be For Us. Although the communion anthem is not by Handel, his influence is clearly present in the piece. He Watching Over Israel from Felix Mendelssohn’s (1809-1847) epic Elijah Op. 70. complements the Handel very well.

The two movements of Suite No. 7 which serve as bookends to the service are perhaps the two most dissimilar movements in the suite. The tenderness of the Andante is a stark contrast to the fire of the final variations of the Passacaille. The Andante is a simple two part piece in binary form. The right hand plays a lyrical ornamented melody above a continuo like bass line. The Passacaille is a piece that I first encountered as a harp student. It is a set of sixteen variations built on a repeated chord progression. This movement has more in common with the traditional definition of the chaconne in that it is not a piece built on a repeated bass line but rather a repeated chord progression. It is also not in triple meter, one of the other characteristics of both the chaconne and passacaille. Each variation becomes more rhythmically active and propels the work to an exciting climax with both hands playing arpeggiated sixteenth notes all the way to the end of the movement.

If God Be For Us, is one of the lesser known, frequently cut movements in Messiah. Alfred Mann refers to it as “the epilogue to the epilogue.” The aria is sandwiched between two choruses, But Thanks be to God and Worthy Is the Lamb which leads into the “Great” Amen. This puts a great deal of pressure on the soloist to hold the audience’s attention going into the big finale of the work. The aria is essentially a series of rhetorical questions sung by the soprano. “If god be for us, who can be against us” is really a clever line which asks and answers its own question. The soprano basically gets to have a whole conversation with herself. This coupled with the communion anthem and the gentle prelude makes for a day of comforting music.

Mendelssohn’s anthem brings about a more serene image of the God that the soprano sings about in the Handel aria. However, this chorus is not without its turmoil. The opening theme is one of the most beautiful melodies in the whole oratorio but unlike the trio that the angels sing before this chorus, this piece makes no effort to gloss over the suffering. The comfort comes from the idea that God has a plan for helping us deal with that as well. If we are grieving he will rejuvenate us. This is reminding us that sometimes things are bad but that God will be there to restore us – and better yet he is always there to do this for us. He does not sleep. I think that in order to truly appreciate this chorus you have to consider both the aria and the trio which precede it. At this stage of the oratorio Elijah has given up and wants to die. God sends a trio of angels to comfort him but then we get this chorus. I think that Elijah must have needed not one message of comfort but like so many of us, he needed to hear it twice – the second time in a different way to truly grasp it.

This is something to think about as you hear the music this week. Both anthems bring comfort although in different ways. It is my hope that they make you think about something from a different point of view and that you can then draw on this somehow. I know that for me hearing the same phrase a different way can make all the difference.