Commissioned premiere performance at Davies Symphony Hall (San Francisco) by the San Francisco Girls Chorus. The explosive Lang work was appropriately contrasted by the excellent, gentle and more subtle O Magnum Mysterium by Kurt Erickson. This world premiere was commissioned by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Here the “mystery” part of the thematic trinity […]
“O Child” is written from the perspective of Joseph and Mary, imagining what they might have been thinking and feeling when they first beheld the newborn baby Jesus. Composer Michael T. Roberts also penned the words, inspired by his experience as a father of two.
This setting of Evensong Canticles (BCP 1662) is intended for use in those churches which are looking for a relatively simple choral setting, or that don’t always have a mixed choir and need the flexibility of being able to sing the canticles in unison where necessary, or where a choir of children’s/women’s voices or men’s […]
The words of this carol/motet are well-known from Britten’s teenage tour-de-force, but that double-chorus setting is out of the reach of most church choirs. The powerful text, alternating English and Latin in the style of medieval carols, warrants an additional, simpler setting. The work is suitable for concert performance, as well as for liturgical use […]
This carol was first published in 1833 in a collection entitled “Christmas Carols Ancient and Modern”. William Sandys, a solicitor by day and music & manuscript collector by night, purportedly came across the tune in Devonshire, England. In this gentle setting from 1991 many colors of choral writing appear with sections for SATB, 3-part men, […]
Originally written as an anthem to mark a Silver Wedding anniversary, this piece was rescored and incorporated as the opening piece in the contrasting set of “Three Anthems“, commissioned by the Purbeck Arts Choir in the UK. It is scored for SATB choir with divisi and organ. Although a dramatic and impactful work, it is […]
These Biblical texts are often associated with the Advent season of the Christian calendar. It is also sung anytime of the year at “Evensong” in Episcopal and Anglican traditions. The accompaniment is a traditional Woodwind Quintet. The composer knows of no other choral piece that uses this instrumental combination to accompany a choral work. If there are none, then, […]
This carol originated in the city of Wexford in the southeastern Republic of Ireland. It was transcribed from a local singer by the noted Irish author, composer, musicologist, and historian W. H. Grattan Flood (1859–1928). It eventually made its way into the Oxford Book of Carols. It has a modal (Mixolydian) feel, constantly shifting between […]
This is a straightforward setting for choir and organ/keyboard of an Appalachian carol found by John Jacob Niles (1892-1980). Niles was an American composer, singer, and collector of traditional ballads. He discovered this carol in Mayfield, Kentucky in 1933. Niles was an important influence on the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s, […]
“Cantemus in omni die” is a setting of a hymn to the Virgin Mary written by Cú Chuimne Sapiens, an Irish monk active at Iona by the early 8th century (died 747). It is the earliest known Latin hymn to Mary originally composed in the Western Christian Church rather than translated into Latin from earlier […]
This setting of the traditional “Hail Mary” prayer takes a new approach, employing a lullaby rhythm in F minor. The voices become a haunting plea for forgiveness and intercession. The piano accompaniment provides support for the singers while still maintaining its own voice.
I Sing of a Maiden (I syng of a mayden) is a Middle English poem or carol of the 15th century celebrating the Annunciation and the Virgin Birth of Jesus. The poem is written from a first person point of view, and contains five quatrains. No evidence of original music is known to exist, though […]
The Magnificat (Song of Mary) and Nunc dimittis (Song of Simeon) are biblical canticles. Mary sings the Magnificat (“My soul doth magnify the Lord”) on the occasion of her visit to Elizabeth, as narrated in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 1:39–56). Simeon sings the Nunc dimittis (“Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace”) […]
This new setting of the traditional Latin prayer features traditional harmonies and a simple unhurried rhythm, providing ample space for prayer and contemplation of the one blessed among women.
All vocal groups need short, portable items in their repertoire. A round is a melody which can unfold into harmony, the prime tool of choral directors who wish to develop in singers an ability to listen to others while holding an independent line. Rounds build cohesion among singers and provide opportunities for improving ensemble, sight-reading, […]
Sanford Dole’s Ave Maria is a harmonized setting of the Gregorian chant antiphon. The soprano part is a metrical version of the Gregorian chant melody. The other parts create a harmonic world that is uniquely Dole’s; what his choirs refer to as the “Dolian mode.”
Composer’s Note: “The Red Wheelbarrow,” an innovative environmental/imagist poem I first read as a teenager, struck me as an alluring and joyful means to immerse in a commission by Austin’s Inversion Ensemble for their Planet Home project. The score blossomed during a fellowship at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, a pastoral setting that […]
Commissioned by Richard Geiger for the Academy for the Study of St. Ambrose of Milan “Veni, Redemptor (Come, Redeemer)” is a new composition based on a hymn written in the 4th Century by St. Ambrose of Milan. The hymn was originally titled, “Intende qui regis Israel,” and the words invite Christ’s presence into this world […]
Rosa mystica is a sacred devotional cantata combining various texts in which a rose or flower is used as an analogy for the Blessed Virgin Mary, including the Rosa Mystica tradition, and Mary as the stem of the rose from which, arising out of the root of Jesse, grew Jesus, the Spotless Rose. In three […]
Nearly every December, Christmas sneaks up on me far too quickly, busy as I am with end-of-semester grading and final exams. I’m an admittedly nostalgic guy who unabashedly loves Christmas music, and every year I think to myself ‘I really should have written a Christmas piece this year’. Christmas 2015 followed a similar pattern, except […]
A lyrical carol for SATB choir, this Christmas piece imagines sunrise on the first Christmas morning. “O Gift of Glorious Sunrise” was premiered in Buffalo, NY in December 2015 by the Vocalis Chamber Choir (James Burritt conducting).
