Mass of Reflection (BCP 1979, Rite Two)
An attractive and accessible setting of the Rite Two Holy Communion Liturgy from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer of the Episcopal Church.
Intended primarily for use in churches where congregation and choir sing the service together, it could be used by congregation alone, as the melody line does not rise high. Ideally, though, an SATB choir of moderate ability would add the warm harmonies in sections which complement the unison passages.
There are musical settings of the Kyrie (Lord have mercy), Gloria (Glory to God in the highest), Sursum Corda (The Lord be with you), Sanctus & Benedictus (Holy, holy, holy & Blessed is he), four alternative Eucharistic Acclamations (for Eucharistic Prayers A-D), Agnus Dei (Lamb of God), Final Amen and Dismissal. (The sample sound file above includes only the Gloria and Agnus Dei).
The overall style is reflective, as suggested by the title. But the title also refers to the fact that the Gloria opens with a theme familiar to anyone who has used John Merbecke’s traditional setting, and this intonation motif returns elsewhere in the setting, so ‘reflecting’ a work of musical heritage well known to many.
A melody-only edition of the score for use with congregations is also available via Swirly Music.
| Duration: | 5-10 Minutes |
| Voicing: | SATB, Unison |
| Language: | English |
$2.25
This title is available in print or for immediate download. For both options, there is a minimum required quantity of 8 copies for choral titles. Please support self-publishing composers by ordering the quantity according to the number of singers in the ensemble that will perform the work.
Print orders are printed on demand and shipped by our printing partner, and can be expected to be processed within a few days of the order. Please do not hesitate to contact [email protected] to follow up.
Explore More Music…
Title | View | Voicing | Duration | Language | Composer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SATB | 4'20" | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A setting of the brief yet powerful poem by Walt Whitman (from “Leaves of Grass”). The score takes its cue from the meditative nature of the text. There is a contemplative tone throughout, laced with subtle harmonies and perhaps inspired by the works of Randall Thompson. The score quietly expresses the expansive feeling one gets […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Equal Voices ⋅ SSAA | Each round 1′30″ to 2′ (in performance) | English ⋅ Latin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The modern Chapel is a meeting-place for diverse musical expression, a place where choral polyphony has long had a home. The term “a cappella” (“in the style of the chapel”) evokes the sound of a Renaissance chorus unaided by any church organ. This original collection of 14 sacred and biblical rounds (a “poor man’s polyphony”) […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB+SATB | 1' 45" | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| “Are Friends Delight or Pain?” is a brief a cappella double-choir movement (SATB + SATB, ~1’45”) excerpted from Cycle of Friends, setting Emily Dickinson’s epigram with concentrated intensity. The entire piece rests on a single sustained E—a pedal point whose meaning keeps shifting as the harmony moves through changing modes and colors. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB | 5' | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB | 5'45" | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This delightful piece sets a whimsical poem by the American poet, Susan Kinsolving, about steps taken internationally to make the world a better place. Sanford Dole’s Dance Steps has artistic merit…no one can doubt the artistic merit of Dole’s entertaining piece. I was not looking forward to enduring Susan Kinsolving’s absurdist text, printed in the […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB | 3' 12" | English ⋅ Latin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 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 […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB ⋅ SATB+SATB | 3' | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A 17th-century riddle poem, “I Saw a Peacock With a Fiery Tail” at first seems fantastical: A peacock with a fiery tail! I saw a comet drop down hail! Full of evocative text painting, this choral setting reveals the sense of the poem by dividing each line between the two choirs and then reordering the […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SAB | 1'57" | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 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 […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB | 2'15" | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Short choral blessing (text from the Old Testament) written as part of 2001-2003 Composer Residency at San Francisco’s National Shrine of Saint Francis of Assisi. Premiered by resident ensemble, Schola Cantorum SF | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
SATB | 3' | English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| “Winds of May” took First Place in the Morningside College Choral Competition. It is one of two settings by Madelyn Byrne of poems from James Joyce’s Chamber Music. The other setting, “Rain Has Fallen“, is also available from Swirly Music. The composer writes: Chamber Music, is an early work by James Joyce. It is a […] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||