On this Second Sunday of Christmas, we also observe the Epiphany, which will be a mere twelve hours away on January 6. Music and words depicting the Magi, their guiding star: the Light — the Story of Christmas — will usher in these first services of the new year. The Epiphany hymn "How Lovely Shines the Morning Star" receives a Neo-Baroque treatment by early twentieth century composer Hugo Distler. Recalling the imitative and quai-fugal stylings of composers such as Johann Pachelbel and Dietrich Buxtehude, this short plaintive setting ends with a restatement of the original chorale reimagined by Distler. A "Noël" by George Frederick McKay echoes the sounds of Christmas with its inference of a yuletide church bell peal. Soprano Blair Carpenter and flutist Aaron McGrew will join me on Swiss composer Frank Martin's "Trois Chants de Noel" (Three Christmas Songs). Composed in 1947, the work encompasses three brief songs poetically describing the visitation of Jesus in the manger by the Magi ("The Gifts"), the collective original manger scene ("A Picture of Christmas"), and the arrival of the shepherds ("The Shepherds"). Musically, Martin works often from a medieval perspective though employing Middle Eastern tonalities in the opening Magi section. Along with the incessant flute obligato lines throughout, these songs take on an artful otherworldly quality.
0 Comments
On this Fourth Sunday of Advent, the Vision and Light of Christmas grows nearer illuminating the receding and darkening days of wintertime. In the morning, the birth of one to be known as "Immanuel" (God with us) is foretold. A prayerful and jazz-laced setting of "Veni Emmanuel" begins the services and opens our hearts to the coming of Christ. At the early communion service, two Marian songs will be offered by soprano Blair Carpenter: "A Slumber Song of the Madonna" by Samuel Barber and "The Stable" by Royal Brantley. "How Fair and How Pleasant Art Thou" by Marcel Dupré began as a series of improvisations based on Vespers Antiphons for the Assumption of Mary. So well-received was this music that he was compelled to notate them for publication. Dupré's antiphons have been described by Pipedreams host Michael Barone as "grave yet rapturous." Gustav Holst was a pioneer of the now common hymn-anthem for church choirs. His setting of the Marian-themed communion hymn "Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence" will be offered at the 11:00 a.m. choral service. The annual 6:00 p.m. Longest Night Service celebrates the hope of Advent while acknowledging the Winter Solstice (December 21) and the inevitable colder days and longer nights ahead. Accompanied by harp, flute, cello, organ and piano, songs and musical expressions of solace, hope, and ice will be offered in this richly contemplative service. The Chamber Choir will sing Bob Chilcott's setting of the ancient text "Nova! nova!" (News! news!) reminding us that even in darkness, the Good News of the Birth of Light in Christ will soon be upon us. At all three services this weekend, we experience a taste of the Anglican Advent Carol Service through lessons of prophecy and carols from this season of Advent. From the organ this Sunday morning, Brahms' adored setting of "Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming" brings us to a time of centering silence. An inventive setting in irregular meters of "Savior of the Nations, Come" by Kevin Hildebrand accompanies the early service communion. From the Advent portion of Bach's Orgelbüchlein, "Lord Christ, the Only Son of God" brings the services to a majestic close. At the 11:00 a.m. Choral Service, two traditional responses for an Anglican Advent Carol Service will be sung by a quartet: Palestrina's Matin and Vesper Responsories. The Chancel Choir will offer Libby Larsen's "Lord, Before This Fleeting Season," a setting of a poem by Mary Ann Jindra widely circulated this time of the year. Be inspired and enlightened by these words in this busy season: Lord, before this fleeting season is upon us, Let me remember to walk slowly. Lord, bless my heart with love and with quiet. Give my heart a leaning to hear carols. Grace our family with contentment, And the peace that comes only from You. Lord, help us to do less this busy season; Go less; stay closer to home; kneel more. May our hearts be Your heart May we simply, peacefully, celebrate You. The Second Sunday of Advent takes us to the proclamation of John the Baptist: prepare your hearts for baptism in the Spirit by one greater than he. The foretelling of Christ's birth and the arrival of Light and Peace to the world becomes this Sunday's muse. The morning services begin with excerpts from Georg Böhm's twelve movement partita "Freu dich sehr, O meine Seele" (Rejoice Greatly, O My Soul). The tune, originally composed by Louis Bourgeois for inclusion in the 16th century Genevan Psalter as Psalm 42, is most well-known today as the Advent carol "Comfort, Comfort O My People." The playful and highly imaginative variations on this sprightly tune effortlessly evoke the affect of Baroque Joy. During the early service communion, an intimate setting of "Rorate caeli" by virtuoso French organist Jeanne Demessieux will be played from her collection Twelve Choral Preludes on Gregorian Chant Themes. "Rorate caeli" is the opening Latin text of The Advent Prose, first line translated as "Let the heavens drop dew from above," originating in the Roman Catholic tradition. At services' end, a joyous setting of the Advent hymn "Lift Up Your Heads, Ye Mighty Gates" by Dutch organist Jan Bender manifests well the hymn writer's exclamation in the closing verse: "Thy Holy Spirit lead us on until our glorious goal is won; eternal praise, eternal fame be offered, Savior, to thy name!" The Chancel Choir presents "Come, Jesus, Come," an elegant setting of an insightful and contemporary text by the Reverend Carl Daw, an Episcopal priest and respected hymn writer. Organist Linda McGinn and flutist Aaron McGrew will also join. The beginning of a new liturgical year, and so the time of Advent, is upon us this Sunday. We greet the season in part with two organ selections based on traditional Advent carols. "Once He Came in Blessing" is a 16th century German carol written by a contemporary of Martin Luther, Michael Weiss. The setting by J.S. Bach from his Orgelbüchlein collection will be offered during the prelude. The cantus firmus (or tune) is clearly expressed on a reed stop in the pedal with the manuals gently playing the tune in canon using a three part chorale texture. The tune Morning Song, commonly paired with the Advent text "The King Shall Come When Morning Dawns", closes the services with a boisterous setting by Richard Proulx. At the 9:00 service, violinist Harmony Tucker plays "Abendlied," from Josef Rheinberger's 6 Pieces, Opus 150, a collection of duets for organ and violin. Abendlied translates as "evening song," a precursor to our darkening days as winter quickly approaches. The Chancel Choir offers an "Advent Message" by British composer Martin How. Conducted by Amy Welsh, the work provides a synopsis of this fleeting season as we prepare our hearts for the renewed birth of Light and Christ in our hearts. As we come to the close of another liturgical year, we are reminded of the humble servant-spirit of Christ and the importance of gratitude in our lives.
"Simple Song" is an excerpt from Leonard Bernstein's 1971 MASS: A Theatre Piece for Singers, Players, and Dancers. It extols the virtues of a modest service to God, "the simplest of all." Soprano Blair Carpenter and flutist Aaron McGrew will present the work Sunday morning. From the organ, the 9:00 prelude will be a set of whimsical variations on the Shaker hymn "Simple Gifts" by James Pethel. Karg-Elert's grand setting of "Now Thank We All Our God" brings the services to a thunderous roar of gratitude. At 11:00, the Chancel Choir "sings to the Lord a marvelous song" with Allen Potes "Festive Praise" based on the text of Psalm 92. One service at 11 a.m.Odes to joy will be shared and sung at this Sunday morning's candidating service.
Two organ works from eminent composer Emma Lou Diemer serve as the prelude and postlude. Her setting of the quintessential song of joy, "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore You," is a capricious work with rapid chord clusters and a hint of bitonality to create a musical landscape of mischievous fun. The "Toccata on a Joyful Day" is an exciting flourish of color exuding the hope and joy of a new day. The Chancel Choir offers "One, Faith, One Hope, One Lord" by Craig Courtney. Based on Ephesians 4.4-6, 13, the text is a hymn of praise and expresses the idea of unity of all people under God. The organ works of Johann Sebastian Bach can be considered the apex of Baroque composition in their display of masterful counterpoint, virtuosic manual and pedal parts, and genius examples of word painting. But Bach's mentor and acknowledged influence Dietrich Buxtehude offers an illuminating glimpse into what so greatly inspired his wunderkind of a pupil to such great heights. Buxtehude's style was less evolved than Bach's in a sense but did possess a distinct style and passion. We hear three of his works this Sunday morning. An Invocation to the Spirit begins worship with an ornamented chorale prelude setting of "Nun bitten wir den Heiligen Geist" (We Now Implore the Holy Ghost.) This venerable tune and text are based on several sources: stanza one from a 13th century church song based on the Latin hymn to the Spirit, Veni Creator, and additional stanzas written by Martin Luther in 1524. Buxtehude composed two settings of this hymn, both of which will be offered. At the 9:00 a.m. communion, the eucharistic hymn "Jesus Christus unser Heiland" (Jesus Christ Our Savior) will help create a sacred space of sound as we gather around the table. The composer employs a four-part chorale texture ending on an unresolved dominant chord to express the awe and mystery of this ancient sacrament. Lastly, the "Toccata in F Major" brings worship to a thrilling close in a grand display of dramatic Baroque flourishes. At the 11:00 a.m. "choral" service, an intimate yet powerful arrangement of "O God Beyond All Praising" by celebrated composer Dan Forrest will be offered. The melody was originally a central motif from the "Jupiter" movement of Gustav Holst's The Planets. Holst adapted the melody as the hymn tune "Thaxted" (named after the English village he lived most of his life in) for "Songs of Praise", a 1925 compilation assembled in part by his friend Ralph Vaughan Williams. As the tune was often paired with a nationalist text, hymn writer Michael Perry wrote the present words as a "...response to a call for alternative words that would be more appropriate for Christian worship.” Music and text connoting peace, eternal light and life, and the Church Triumphant will be presented this Totenfest and All Saints' Sunday morning. An elegy can be defined as a lament for the dead, a sad poem. This literary term, as with many other literary terms, have musical counterparts as well. Such an example is the meditative "Elegy" by George Thalben-Ball, his most well-known work. It was conceived during a live religious service broadcast on BBC radio during World War II. The service ended earlier than planned and so he improvised a piece which, due to interest by listeners, was reconstructed and published as "Elegy". And so this Sunday's services begin in an introspective space as we remember those who have passed on over the year. For the closing voluntary, a joyous setting of the hymn tune "Lasst uns erfreuen" (Let us rejoice most heartily) reminds us of the bliss that awaits. The tune has been paired with several texts over the centuries. Our Doxology this fall is an example as are the hymns "Ye Watchers and Ye Holy Ones" and "All Creatures of Our God and King." On this special Sunday of the liturgical year, we will also hear two choral offerings by two of Plymouth's vocal ensembles. The Chamber Choir, an auditioned group of Plymouth members and fine vocalists from the community, offer the sublime "Illuminate (Lux aeterna)" by Matthew Wheeler at both morning services. The anthem was composed in memoriam to his father and expresses a journey from the shadows of despair to the promise of Light's return. "Lux aeterna" (Latin for "perpetual light") and additional select texts from the traditional requiem mass are interwoven into the English text creating a tapestry of personal feelings of loss and hope with an ancient liturgical underpinning. At 11:00, the Chancel Choir sings "We Are Surrounded" by Joseph Martin. The words by J. Paul Wiliams, based on Hebrews 12.1-3, call us to heed the will of God as those saints before us have done so well. At 6:00 p.m., join us for a service of simplicity and peace as we share a humble meal together and sing chants from the Taizé tradition. Bobby and Blair are joined by flutist Aaron McGrew for this beautiful service of evening prayer. In celebration of Consecration Sunday, the Chancel Choir offers Bob Chilcott's A Little Jazz Mass during the 9:00 and 11:00 a.m. services. British composer Bob Chilcott composed the mass as a commission for the 2004 Crescent City Children's Choral Festival in New Orleans, debuting at St Louis Cathedral, New Orleans in June of the same year. The work is a Missa brevis (Latin for "short mass") in five sections. Chilcott expresses several facets of jazz throughout this twelve minute work: the Kyrie has a groove, the Gloria truly swings, a serenity permeates the Sanctus, the Benedictus has an easy strut, and the blues is felt in the Agnus Dei. Pianist Bobby Brannock and bassist Cameron Collums will help bring this quirky yet elegant reading of the traditional Mass text to life. For the Prelude, a selection from William Bolcom's Gospel Preludes, "Sweet Hour of Prayer", will set the musical tone in a hybrid of art music, jazz, and gospel. The perennial hymn of the Reformation, "A Mighty Fortress", is given a contemporary and rhythmic setting by Charles Ore for the Postlude. At 6:00 p.m., the strains of jazz will still be heard as Bobby and Blair are joined by bassist Cameron Collums and guitarist Alan Skowron for original arrangements and a head by Wayne Shorter. |
Details
|