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Trinity Sunday

♫ Music Notes

Trinity Sunday is unique in the Church Year in that it is the only Sunday devoted to a theological concept. The rest of the year narrates the stories of Jesus’ coming and birth, death and exaltation, or his ministry of healing and teaching. Both the Epistle and Gospel readings speak of the relationship between the persons of the Trinity.

Today’s hymns likewise reflect on the idea of God expressed in the persons of the Trinity:

·       “Holy, holy, holy!”(H-362 Nicaea): Probably the best known hymn associated with this day, and a classic example of Victorian hymnody, this tune is named for the city in Asia Minor (and near the capital of the Roman Empire in Constantinople, now Istanbul) where the famous Council of Nicaea met in ce 325 to define the doctrine of the Trinity in the form we know as the Nicene Creed.

·       “Holy God, we praise thy Name” (H-366 Grosser Gott): This German hymn is a metrical version (i.e., in the form of hymn) of the canticle Te Deum laudamus, itself another expression of the nature of God coming from the early Church. See p. 95 in the BCP.

·       “I bind unto myself today” (H-370 St. Patrick’s Breastplate): The text has been attributed to St. Patrick since the year ce 690. It is an example of a “lorica” or breastplate prayer, chanted while dressing oneself and calling on God for protection in the face of danger.

                        Twice this morning we will hear music by the mystic Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179). Her feast day in the Episcopal Church is celebrated on September 17. Hildegard’s music has become very popular in recent years, even including arrangements I heard back in the 1990’s on popular radio stations and the dance floor of the disco. She is one of the most interesting women in history: abbess, theologian, preacher, musician, poet, doctor and pharmacist. She is the first woman composer for which we have her actual music. As a mystic and visionary her ecological and holistic spirituality speaks prophetically to our time. Again, far ahead of her time, she uses feminine language for God as “creatrix omnium” (as an English translation says, “Mother Great Creator of all things living”)  

Today’s prelude, O viridissima virga: And from then on there was food for human beings, is an arrangement from Hildegard’s chants. This chant to the Blessed Virgin Mary compares her to a green branch, sweet with the smell of a balsam fir, from whose womb came eternal spiritual food (the body of Christ) for all the world. So this music weaves a connection between the creation story of Genesis and our sharing at the Holy Table of the Eucharist. If you would like to hear more of Hildegard’s O viridissima virga you can go on YouTube for a solo voice version at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2Og0uasO7o, or a version with female voices accompanied by medieval instruments at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tz60gG4wEL8.

During communion the choir will sing a motet using another chant by Hildegard of Bingen, Laus Trinitati. A simple version of this can be heard, again on YouTube, at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KUICvzM6DQ.  For an even more interesting version listen to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQLLghurcdE. This one is highly mystical, with an amazing accompaniment.

           In this chant Hildegard reflects on the image of the Trinity through principal theme of life—vita—first within the Trinity and then in God’s creation. Three times the chant repeats the word life with a cascade of descending notes. She uses a trinity of images—sound, life, and creatrix (feminine version of the noun for creator)—yet doesn’t explain how this relates to the theological description of God as Trinity.

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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Pentecost

♫ Music Notes

Pentecost is one of the great festivals of the church year, its importance coming only after Easter and Christmas. During the prelude we will hear Invention on Veni Creator, something of an improvisation on the 9th century plainsong tune Veni Creator Spiritus (found at H-504 in the Hymnal 1982). “Come Holy Ghost, our souls inspire” has a long and close association with services of ordination, being sung right at the point where the Bishop is about to lay hands on the ordinand (BCP p. 533). It has also been used in English coronation rites since the accession of Edward II in 1307. This setting is by Flor Peeters (1903-1986), the prolific Belgian composer, organist, and teacher. The version we are singing for our processional hymn, “Come Holy Ghost, our souls inspire” (H-503), was written to be sung in alternation between the bishop and congregation by John Henry Hopkins, Jr. It was first sung by his father at the consecration of a missionary bishop in 1865.

The second piece in today’s prelude, Komm, Gott schöpfer, Heiliger Geist  (Come, Holy Ghost, our souls inspire) is taken from a German adaption of the Latin tune Veni Creator Spiritus. It appeared in 1524 with Luther’s translation of the Latin text. This setting is by Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706), one of the most important German composers in the generation before J. S. Bach. Most of his music was written for organ, and everyone knows his famous Canon in D.  His style is described as having great sincerity and sweetness. As was common in his era, he served in both churches and the courts in Germany and Austria. His music was highly admired by Bach, and at one point he was Johann’s older brother’s music teacher. Interestingly, Pachelbel's name is commonly mis-pronounced in the USA. In Germany and the rest of Europe, the emphasis is on the second syllable (pac-HEL-bel), with the last syllable clipped to sound almost like the English word "bull." The postlude, Ricercar pro Tempore Festis Pentecostalibus, by the German Baroque composer Johann K. F. Fisher (1656-1746) is based on the same melody.

                        Our sequence hymn, “Come down, O Love divine,” H-516, is closely linked with our Gospel reading, and Jesus’ promise to send the Advocate, the Spirit of Truth, to abide with us forever. The original 15th c. Italian text, “Discendi, amor santo,” was by Bianco da Siena, and was translated in the 19th c. by Richard Littledale reflecting the idea that the time of the “Golden Age” of the faith was in the Middle Ages. A close comparison of the themes and images of this text can be found in the Charles Wesley hymn, “O thou who camest from above the fire celestial to impart, kindle a flame of sacred love upon the altar of my heart.” (H-704) The tune that is sung around the English-speaking world to H-516, Down Ampney, is one of Ralph Vaughan Williams’ true masterpieces. The tune name was given because the village of Down Ampney (near Gloucestershire) was where Vaughan Williams was born in the Vicarage where his father was priest. During WWII the local airfield saw a lot of action. The church has a stained glass window commemorating the planes that flew from the airfield for the Battle of Arnhem in 1944.            During Communion the choir will sing O Holy Spirit, Flowing Light, arranged by Mary Bringle from the music of Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179). Hildegard’s music has become very popular in recent years, even including arrangements heard on popular radio stations and the dance floor of the disco. She is one of the most interesting women in history: abbess, theologian, preacher, musician, poet, doctor and pharmacist. She is the first woman composer for whom we have her actual music. As a mystic and visionary her ecological and holistic spirituality speaks prophetically to our time.

As we celebrate Pentecost and the coming of the Spirit, reflect on these other words of Hildegard:

“A musical performance also softens hard hearts, leads in the humor of reconciliation, and summons the Holy Spirit.”

“So remember:  just as the body of Jesus Christ was born by the Holy Spirit from the spotless Virgin Mary, so too the singing in the Church of God’s praise, which is an echo of the harmony of heaven, has its roots in that same Holy Spirit.”

“Underneath all the texts, all the sacred psalms and canticles, these watery varieties of sounds and silences, terrifying, mysterious, whirling and sometimes gestating and gentle must somehow be felt in the pulse, ebb, and flow of the music that sings in me. My new song must float like a feather on the breath of God.”

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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PSALM 23

♫ Music Notes

Today could be described as “all things 23rd Psalm Sunday.” Each year the lectionary theme for the fourth Sunday in the Easter season is about Jesus as the Good Shepherd. The psalm for all three years is Psalm 23. Today’s music follows these themes.

As an opening voluntary today we will hear a Prelude on Brother James’ Air, arranged by David Lasky. The tune now known as Brother James’ Air was originally set to a paraphrase of the 23rd psalm and used in a popular hymn anthem from the 1930s. From there it was used in Quaker and Lutheran hymnals before coming to our hymnal. The tune was by James Leith Macbeth Bain, better known as Brother James. Bain was born in Scotland in 1840. In addition to writing hymns and tunes he was a mystic and spiritual healer. This tune was written as an expression of peace during WWI. He organized a Brotherhood of Healers to treat both spiritual and physical infirmities. During his healing sessions, he would often sing to his patients as part of their treatment. His later years were spent in Liverpool working at a children’s home. This tune appears in our hymnal as a metrical (hymn) version of Psalm 84 at H-517 “How lovely is thy dwelling place.” At this afternoon’s Solemn Choral Evensong we will be singing a metrical version of Psalm 23, set to Brother James’ Air, “The Lord’s my shepherd, I’ll not want.”

Elsewhere in the service we will sing Psalm 23 in simplified Anglican chant. At the Sequence Hymn we sing the popular metrical setting “The King of love my shepherd is” (H-645) to the tune St. Columba. During the offering we will hear music from Handel’s Messiah. The “duet” He Shall Feed His Flock and Come unto Him draws on a text from Isaiah, with the promise that the Messiah would shepherd God’s people and hold them safely in his bosom, and from Matthew, as Jesus invites all who carry heavy burdens to find rest for their souls in him. At communion we will sing the hymns “Shepherd of souls” (H-343 St. Agnes) and “My Shepherd will supply my need” (H-664 Resignation). Our recessional is the children’s hymn “Savior, like a shepherd lead us” (H-708 Sicilian Mariners). Finally, at the postlude we hear The Lord’s My Shepherd, a setting of the tune Crimond (H-663).

Countless composers and poets have written words and music inspired by this beloved Psalm. It is used with great frequency at funerals and memorial services. It is so familiar, when it is used we almost don’t hear it. In the 1960s  Japanese woman named Taki Miyashina wrote a very different version, reflecting our modern world so full of busyness, as well as aspects of her own Buddhist culture. See if this doesn’t speak these words of comfort with new meaning…

Psalm 23 from a Japanese Translation

 The Lord is my Pace-setter, I shall not rush,

He makes me stop and rest for quiet intervals.

He provides me with images of stillness, which restore my serenity.

He leads me in ways of efficiency through calmness of mind,

And His guidance is peace.

Even though I have a great many things to accomplish each day,

I will not fret for His presence is here.

His timelessness, His all importance will keep me in balance.

He prepares refreshment and renewal in the midst of my activity.

By anointing my mind with His oils of tranquility;

My cup of joyous energy overflows.

Surely harmony and effectiveness shall be the fruits of my hours.

For I shall walk in the pace of my Lord and dwell in His house forever.

Dr. David Kerr Park,

Director of Music

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The Three Lilies

♫ Music Notes

Today’s brass prelude will conclude with a choral introit. The Three Lilies is an old Breton Easter carol arranged by Harvey B. Gaul (1881-1945). This uses three lilies as an image for the three Marys at Jesus’ tomb: “Three lilies blossomed from the ground, where blood-drops fell from Jesus’ wound. One for each Mary burst into bloom, when they sought Jesus at the tomb.” Each phrase concludes with the exclamation, “Christus resurrexit!” The music builds until the final phrase leads us directly into that most famous of Easter hymns, “Jesus Christ is risen today.”

Although a life-long friend of Ralph Vaughan Williams, Gustav Holst (1874-1934) is not particularly known for writing sacred music. Holst was a true musical eclectic. He drew his inspiration from sources as diverse as astrology, English folk song, Sanskrit poetry, and Algerian melodies. He was a natural teacher with the ability to inspire both adults and children. Holst studied at the Royal College of Music, and his primary instrument was trombone. He became director of music at St. Paul’s Girls’ School, and did most of his composing during school holidays. His colorful blend of traditional tonality with inventive combinations of chords and spare, open intervals gave his music a distinctive voice.

Holst wrote ballet music, operas, choral music, and song cycles. He is the composer of the tune Cranham, used in the beloved Christmas carol “In the bleak midwinter” (H-112). His festival arrangement of “Let all mortal flesh keep silence” has been a perennial favorite of choirs. He is best known for his orchestral music, particularly The Planets, an orchestral suite with a separate movement for each of the known planets (at that time only seven). It is from the movement titled “Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity” that the tune for today’s opening hymn comes, Thaxted. This movement depicts the majesty of the heavenly giant, with the orchestra emphasizing Jupiter’s jovial spirit. The central, broad sweep of the melody Thaxted was later used for the popular English hymn “I vow to thee, my country.” Today the choir is singing it to the text O God Beyond All Praising. Thaxted is named for the English village where Holst lived much of his life. It was his friend Vaughan Williams who included it in a hymnal he edited in 1926, and it was this setting that was sung at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997.

During Communion the choir and brass together will present music by the most illustrious composer of the Spanish Renaissance. The original text, and perhaps the plainsong tune, is by Wipo of Burgundy (d. 1050?). A version is found in the hymnal at H-183. In today’s setting by Tomás Luis de Victoria (c. 1540-1611) Victimae Paschali Laudes begins with the first verse sung in plainsong, followed by antiphonal phrases in which the choir and brass echo one another. This was a common device used in Italy, where Victoria studied. He wrote only sacred music, and was highly innovative for the deeply moving expression of the text with a very Spanish mystical intensity. You may recall on Christmas Eve the brass played his most famous masterpiece, O Magnum Mysterium. Victoria was the most famous composer of 16th century Spain, as well as an accomplished organist and Roman Catholic priest. After his early years at the cathedral in Ávila he moved to Rome and may have studied with Palestrina.  

May your Easter be filled with joy and hope,

Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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♫ Music Notes On this day we enter the most solemn, and the most joyous period of the Christian Year. We follow Jesus through the events of his entry into Jerusalem, his final meal with his friends, his trial and death, his burial and resurrection. We find the stories primarily in the four gospels, but where did the liturgies and rituals come from? How did we come to celebrate the central themes of our faith in this particular way? Some of the evolution of Holy Week is shrouded in the mists of the primitive Church. The pattern we follow today seems to have been in place in Jerusalem by the fourth century, during the time of St. Cyril. We know a good deal about this because of a detailed journal kept by a Spanish pilgrim named Egeria, who visited during the 380s. After Christianity was legalized by Constantine there was a strong fascination in the history behind this relatively new faith. People were interested in visiting the places where the events of Jesus’ life took place, especially those of his final week in Jerusalem. When Egeria was in Jerusalem she experienced a series of services roughly following the pattern we know today. Pilgrims to the Holy Land took these liturgies and traditions back home with them, where they were adapted and spread. The liturgies of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Great Vigil of Easter constitute a single liturgical act—actually, a single service spread over three days. They are called the Triduum. You will notice there is an organ prelude on Thursday and a postlude on Saturday night, but no other organ voluntary is offered. There is no blessing or benediction at the conclusion of Thursday or Friday’s service. The ritual simply ends, to be continued the next evening. This is related to the ancient celebration of the Pascha, the earliest observance that combined the death and resurrection of Jesus into a single celebration. It was only later that the final meal, death, and resurrection were separated out into distinct liturgies. The services of Holy Week have been described as “rememorative,” that is, they symbolically remember the events of Jesus’ passion so we are able to enter into them and experience their transformative power. They are not something like a passion play that merely imitates the historical account. We are not invited to observe, but to participate in the mystery of Christ’s death and resurrection. We, too, die, are buried, and raised to new life through our participation in the baptismal covenant and the resurrection banquet.   Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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When Jesus Wept

♫ Music Notes

I doubt there is anyone in this, or most churches, who would not know the answer to the question, “What is the shortest verse in the Bible?” The obvious answer is “Jesus wept” from John 11:35. In this short statement, we see the depth of his humanity and compassion. Even he who could raise the dead, and would himself be raised, is moved to tears at the death of a close friend. Our own tears at the death of a loved one aren’t a sign of weakness, but of the reality of loss and love.

This verse is the inspiration for the text of today’s anthem When Jesus Wept. The text was first published in 1770 and has been attributed to several different authors. It is also found in our hymnal at H-715: When Jesus wept, the falling tear in mercy flowed beyond all bound; when Jesus groaned, a trembling fear seized all the guilty world around.

         The music is a simple round and can be sung in up to four parts. It was written by the first American composer to achieve any level of acceptance and respect, William Billings (1746-1800). The song first appeared in his The New England Psalm Singer, for which Paul Revere engraved the front piece. Billings’ music was extremely popular during the period of the American Revolution. If you saw the mini-series, John Adams, you may recall a scene where citizens from Massachusetts were electing delegates and stood to sing a rousing song of liberty, and another scene where President Adams is attending the theater and the audience sings another similar song. Both of these were actually by Billings. He was a very prolific composer, publishing six full collections of music. To make a living he worked as a tanner. He led singing schools throughout the Boston area, teaching people to sing in parts.

           Our sequence hymn, “Martha, Mary, waiting, weeping” retells the story found in today’s Gospel reading. Part of the function of a sequence hymn is to prepare the congregation for hearing the Gospel with a greater openness. I will often select hymns that do that by telling the story in new words, set in the metrical form of a poem—which is what a hymn is. Today’s sequence is by Herman G. Stuempfle, Jr. (1923-2007), a Lutheran pastor. He served as Professor of Preaching, and then Dean and finally President of the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Gettysburg, PA. He wrote over 600 hymns retelling stories from the Bible. He considered hymn writing “a natural extension of the preaching task.” His hymns aimed to connect the Biblical story to the everyday lives of people, similar to how he approached preaching: “In homiletics classes, I used to tell students that sermons emerge from the space where three intersecting circles overlap: 1) the biblical text; 2) the situation of the parish and its individual members; 3) the persona and gifts of the preacher. These three realities must always be in dynamic interaction with each other in the creation of a sermon. I believe the same model applies to the creation of a hymn text.” His hymns have appeared in nearly every hymnal published over the last three decades. He died a few years ago after a long battle with ALS at the age of 84.

At communion, the choir will sing the haunting motet O Holy Father, by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (1526-1594). The original title is O Bone Jesu, though many translations and texts have been adapted for it. In a relatively brief span, this motet progresses through a variety of sensitively delineated emotions, from despair and anguish to hope and consolation. The music of Palestrina is sometimes said to have saved church music in the time of the Catholic Counter-Reformation. Polyphonic music had become so complicated people could barely understand either the complex musical ideas or the text. Palestrina demonstrated music of many voices singing different parts could be musically interesting and easily understood while allowing the meaning of the words to come through. Palestrina (named for the town of his birth outside Rome) spent nearly his entire career in the city of Rome in the Pope’s chapel.

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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About the Way of the Cross (Stations of the Cross)

A devotion to the Passion of Christ which recalls a series of events at the end of Jesus' life from his condemnation to his burial. The Way of the Cross imitates the practice of visiting the places of Jesus' Passion in the Holy Land by early Christian pilgrims. The first stations outside Palestine were built in Bologna in the fifth century. This devotion was encouraged by the Franciscans, and it became common in the fifteenth century. The number of stations for prayer and meditation in the Way of the Cross has varied, but it typically includes fourteen stations. Each station may have a cross and an artistic representation of the scene. The stations may be erected inside a church or outdoors.

The Book of Occasional Services includes the following stations in the Way of the Cross: 1) Jesus is condemned to death; 2) Jesus takes up his cross; 3) Jesus falls the first time; 4) Jesus meets his afflicted mother; 5) the cross is laid on Simon of Cyrene; 6) a woman wipes the face of Jesus; 7) Jesus falls a second time; 8) Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem; 9) Jesus falls a third time; 10) Jesus is stripped of his garments; 11) Jesus is nailed to the cross; 12) Jesus dies on the cross; 13) the body of Jesus is placed in the arms of his mother; 14) Jesus is laid in the tomb. The BOS notes that eight of the stations are based on events that are recorded in the gospels. The remaining six (stations 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 13) are based on inferences from the gospels or pious legends. The BOS allows these six stations to be omitted from the Way of the Cross. The BOS provides opening devotions and the Lord's Prayer. There is a versicle and response, a reading, a prayer, and a collect for each of the fourteen stations. Concluding prayers before the altar follows the fourteenth station in the BOS service. 

The hymn Stabat Mater has been associated with the Way of the Cross. Verses of this hymn traditionally have been sung between each of the stations when the devotion is done by a congregation. The Stabat Mater appears as "At the cross her vigil keeping," Hymn 159 in The Hymnal 1982. The BOS suggests that verses of this hymn be sung as the ministers enter for the Way of the Cross and as they approach the first station. The BOS also suggests that the Trisagion be chanted as the procession goes from station to station. The Way of the Cross is a popular devotion that is often done on Fridays during Lent. However, it should not displace the Proper Liturgy for Good Friday. Some have questioned its disassociation of Jesus' death from his resurrection.                                                                                                     —An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church

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Bach’s Family Tree

 ♫ Music Notes

Much of today’s music revolves around Bach, in one way or another. The 8:00 offertory is a setting of the German chorale Warum betrübst du dich, mein Herz (“Why pity yourself, my heart”) by J. C. Bach—not J. S.  The Bach family tree is filled with many great musicians, and not only his sons. Johann Christoph Bach (1642-1703) was the uncle of JSB, and also an organist and composer. Another JC is Johann Christian Bach, the eleventh surviving child and youngest son of JSB. In his own day he was more famous as a composer than his own father. And then there is his older brother, Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach, a famous harpsichordist, composer, and fifth son of JSB.

 It’s hard to keep track of them all. You need a chart, and this one is only a small part of this family of musical giants. The word that comes to mind with this family is prolific.

           At 10:30 we will hear a well-known song by J. S. himself, Bist du bei mir (“You are with me.”) Ester Brewda will be giving an entire concert of mostly Spanish songs accompanied by classical guitar. Today you will get just an introduction to her singing—and will want to come back for more! Today’s song is a popular choice for weddings. It was included by Bach in the musical notebook he prepared for his second wife, Anna Magdalena.

Today’s prelude is a setting of a German chorale melody, Erbarm’ dich mein, O Herre Gott (“Be merciful, my God”), by Johann Ludwig Krebs (1713-1780). This chorale was set by many Baroque composers, including Sweelinck and J. S. Bach. This setting by Krebs is very chromatic, slow, and sad, reflecting the text. You can almost hear the teardrops falling from the cheeks of the penitent at prayer. The text is very penitential and introspective, reflecting language from many of the Psalms used in the Lenten season.            Have mercy on me, O Lord God, according to your great kindness.            Wash me, make clean my wrongdoing. I confess my sin and repent;            I sinned against you only, I am constantly aware of it;            even the best may not stand in your sight, you are just, though you condemn me.

Krebs was the son of a well-known organist. As a child he was sent to Leipzig to study with J. S. Bach himself. From a technical point on the organ he was unrivaled next to Bach. Unfortunately, he was writing and playing music in a style (Baroque) that was by then out of fashion, too complex and ornate. Musical taste was moving into what we now call “Classical” (the style of Mozart, Haydn, and eventually Beethoven) that emphasized clarity and simplicity. Krebs was never able to obtain a patron, or a post at a cathedral. He became so desperate he didn’t work for money, but for food to feed his family of seven children. Most of his music wasn’t even published until the 20th century.

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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This Lent

♫ Music Notes

The season of Lent brings many changes to the feel and mood of the liturgy, and this is felt most clearly in our music. Words like solemn and penitential are often used. One of the musical and liturgical changes for each season is in the sung portions of the service known as the “ordinary” of the mass. These are the portions that are part of every Eucharist, as opposed to the “propers” (such as the readings and collect), which are specific to the day. The ordinary includes the canticle (usually the Gloria, Kyrie, or Trisagion, as on page 356 in the BCP), the Sanctus (Holy, holy, holy), and Agnus Dei (Lamb of God). When those are sung to music intended by the composer to go together they are known as a mass setting.

This Lent we are singing Missa Oecumenica (Ecumenical Mass), a setting using music by the Russian composer Alexander Archangelsky (1846-1924), as arranged by the prolific and well known contemporary Roman Catholic organist Richard Proulx. Archangelsky was a choral composer and conductor who was active in the movement to reform music in the Russian Orthodox Church. He was the first to include women’s voices in the performance of sacred music.

Missa Oecumenica is found in an official supplement to the Episcopal hymnal called Enriching Our Music (Vol. 1). The Trisagion (which means “thrice-holy”) is also in the hymnal at S-102. This is sung three times, which is a characteristic trait of Eastern Orthodox liturgy. In the East, such as in The Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, it is typical to repeat the Kyrie, Gloria Patri, and other texts three times (or multiples of three), in part as an echo of the angelic chorus “Holy, holy, holy” and to honor the Trinity. The Trisagion has its origin as a refrain to a psalm.

Proulx extended the music of Archangelsky by adapting another piece into a Sanctus. We find the same music in the hymnal at H-560, “Remember your servants, Lord.” This chant is used on All Saints’ and at funerals. The verses are taken from the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12) and the refrain from the plea of the thief on the cross to Jesus, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom.” The music of this chant was used by Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky in his popular 1812 Overture. Listen for the strong low bass line, a characteristic feature of Russian choral music. Proulx goes on to finish the mass by repeating the same music of the Trisagion for the Agnus Dei, which itself has a three-fold repetition of the text.

During the 5:00 pm service the sequence hymn will be an old American folk song, “Jesus walked this lonesome valley.” It talks first about the valleys that Jesus faced. Scripture speaks of valleys as places of challenge and adversity, as in the valley of dry bones, and “the valley of the shadow of death” in the 23rd Psalm. Jesus faced a time of trial and temptation, fully sharing in our human experience. The Jordan River, where he had just been baptized, lies in a long valley that runs from the Dead Sea to the Sea of Galilee. It is lush and verdant, but only right along the river. Stray just a few meters and you are in the desert. It is there he faced the first of many trials. We forget that the temptations offered Jesus must have truly been tempting to have had any meaning. “Jesus walked this lonesome valley” goes on to remind us of his trial before Pilate, and when we think of that trial our minds must also go to the trial he faced in the garden, praying for strength to face the coming day.

Finally, this hymn reminds us that this is the human experience. We all face trials and temptations in life. I have a theological quibble with the text of this song as it appears in many hymnals. Usually the text will say he (and we) had to walk the valley of trial “by himself.” Not so! Rather, I would suggest, Jesus faced his trial (and we must face ours) “for himself.” A subtle difference, yes, but an important one. Jesus was not alone, and neither are we. We have the promise that God will be with us every step of our journey, not just through the easy parts, but especially through the “valley of the shadow” of whatever life throws our way. Yes, we walk through that valley responsible for our choices, but we are never alone.

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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John and Charles Wesley

♫ Music Notes In the Episcopal calendar March 3 is the feast day for John and Charles Wesley. I have a particular devotion to the Wesley brothers, having been raised and ordained as a pastor in the United Methodist Church, prior to my confirmation as an Episcopalian over ten years ago. The Wesley brothers were the sons of an Anglican rector and remained faithful priests themselves until their deaths. The Methodist movement was intended to be a renewal of faith within the Church of England. John (1703-1791) had a genius for organization, and a passion for issues of social justice, combined with a high view of the sacraments and a religion of personal transformation. Charles (1707-1788) is remembered especially for his hymns, of which he wrote over 6,000, including some two dozen in our hymnal, like: “Jesus Christ is risen today,” “Come, thou long-expected Jesus,” “Hark! the herald angels sing,” “Love divine, all loves excelling,” and “O for a thousand tongues to sing.” Today I encourage us to take to our hearts John Wesley's Rules for Singing: • Learn these tunes before you learn any others; afterwards learn as many as you please. • Sing them exactly as they are printed here, without altering or mending them at all; and if you have learned to sing them otherwise, unlearn it as soon as you can. • Sing all. See that you join with the congregation as frequently as you can. Let not a slight degree of weakness or weariness hinder you. If it is a cross to you, take it up, and you will find it a blessing. • Sing lustily and with a good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, than when you sung the songs of Satan. • Sing modestly. Do not bawl, so as to be heard above or distinct from the rest of the congregation, that you may not destroy harmony, but strive to unite your voices together, so as to make one clear melodious sound. • Sing in time. Whatever time is sung be sure to keep with it. Do not run before nor stay behind it; but attend close to the leading voices, and move therewith as exactly as you can; and take care not to sing too slow. This drawling way naturally steals on all who are lazy; and it is high time to drive it out from us, and sing all our tunes just as quick as we did at first. • Above all sing spiritually. Have an eye to God in every word you sing. Aim at pleasing him more than yourself or any other creature. In order to do this attend strictly to the sense of what you sing, and see that your heart is not carried away with the sound, but offered to God continually; so shall your singing be such as the Lord will approve here, and reward you when he cometh in the clouds of heaven. The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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This Week Music

♫ Music Notes

The Fuge in G-minor is by the German organist Gottlieb Muffat (1690-1770), son of an important composer, Georg Muffat. Gottlieb first studied under his father, and then the famous teacher Johann Fux. He was considered the best keyboard composer after Bach. Handel borrowed some of his themes for several works. An interesting feature of this fugue is its descending chromatic harmonies. You can hear a simple and direct performance online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jz8R8jLMJRA.

Our opening hymn, “Come down, O Love divine,” H-516, sung to the tune Down Ampney, one of Ralph Vaughan Williams’ true masterpieces. The tune name was given because the village of Down Ampney (near Gloucestershire) was where Vaughan Williams was born in the Vicarage where his father was a priest. During WWII the local airfield saw a lot of action. The church has a stained glass window commemorating the planes that flew from the airfield for the Battle of Arnhem in 1944.

 For today’s offertory anthem the choir will sing Notre Père, by the French composer and organist Maurice Duruflé (1902-1986). This setting of the Lord’s Prayer will be sung in French. It was originally written in 1977 for unison male choir and organ and later reset for 4-part mixed choir a capella. The text is set in a straight-forward manner, with simple homophonic chords in which all four parts are singing the same words at the same time (very much like a hymn). Duruflé studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, winning prizes in organ, harmony, piano accompaniment, and composition. He was a close friend of Vierne and Poulenc. His most famous choral work was his 1947 Requiem for choir, soloists, orchestra, and organ.

During communion, we will sing the hymn “Forgive our sins as we forgive” (H-674), which uses the American folk tune Detroit. Earlier we will hear a setting by the American composer and arranger G. Winston Cassler (1906-1990), Prelude on Detroit.  The melody was originally published in the 1820 Supplement to Kentucky Harmony.

What makes folk hymns different from most others is the way in which they are transmitted. Folk hymns come through the oral tradition and are passed on to others who repeat them without having an original official published version with a known composer. Many early American folk hymns had their roots among settlers from the British Isles. Some were originally secular songs adapted for singing on the frontier.  A very large percentage of these used a five note (or pentatonic) scale, which gave them a unique harmonic feeling.

Over time music teachers formed “singing schools” to teach both music notation and group singing, and the melodies were written down and published. Early hymnals used shaped-notes that followed a kind of do-re-mi system where each note was also given a different shape. Among the most famous of these collections were Southern Harmony (1835), The Sacred Harp (1844), and Wyeth’s Repository of Sacred Music, Part Second (1813).

Many of these early American folk hymns have become very popular in recent hymnals across all denominations. Some you would likely recognize include: H-675 Bourbon, H-583 Consolation, H-636 Foundation, H-686 Nettleton, and H-238 Holy Manna.

Our closing hymn, “God is Love, let heaven adore him” (H-379) is set to the tune Abbot’s Leigh, by Cyril Vincent Taylor (1907-1992), who was canon at Salisbury Cathedral. He wrote this in 1941 for the text “Glorious things of thee are spoken” (H-522 & 523). At that time he was working in the wartime headquarters of the religious broadcasting department of the BBC in Abbot’s Leigh, hence the name. This was shortly after the Battle of Britain, when German bombers terrorized the people of England and destroyed Coventry Cathedral. Taylor wrote Abbot’s Leigh as a substitute for the familiar tune Austria—unthinkable to use in England as it also served as the German national anthem (Deutschland, Deutschland, über alles). It was an immediate success in England and has become steadily more popular in the United States.

Finally, at the postlude, we will hear the Prelude and Fugue in F-minor, from the collection Ariadne musica by the German (Bohemian) composer and Kappelmeister Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer (1656-1746). He was considered one of the best keyboard composers of his day. Not a great deal is known about his early training. He served the court at Baden for some 60 years. He seems to have been influenced by Jean Baptiste Lully and Georg Muffat, and he was responsible for bringing a French influence to the German baroque. Fischer possessed an exceptionally varied musical spectrum, reflecting the principal styles current in his time: arpeggios and virtuoso scales in the Italian style, overtures in the French, and melodies with a contrapuntal emphasis in the best German tradition.

The Ariadne musica was first published in 1702. The main part of the collection is a cycle of 20 preludes and fugues in different keys, and is considered an important precursor to J. S. Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier, which has a similar structure. Both Bach and Handel knew Fischer’s work and even borrowed themes from it. Some of Fischer’s music has even been thought in the past to have been by Bach. By contrast, Fischer’s pieces are quite short and written predominantly using long note values, while Bach’s fugues are much more complex, with dense counterpoint and are also much longer. Fischer’s collection also included a series of ricercars for the Church year based on chorale melodies (I often use them for postludes on the major festivals.) If you are interested in listening to the whole collection (about 40 minutes) there is a delightful performance on a German pipe organ found online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYgJFQZU264.

The title of Ariadne musica refers to the Greek myth in which Theseus finds his way out of Minotaur's labyrinth using a ball of thread that Ariadne, daughter of King Minos of Crete, gave him. Similarly, the music in the collection can be said to guide the listener through a labyrinth of keys. Fischer also used Greek mythology to name the pieces in another large scale music collection of his, Musikalischer Parnassus.

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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Fanny Crosby

♫ Music Notes

The new trial sanctoral cycle (also known as a hagiography, or list of saints’ days and commemorations) in the Episcopal Church, A Great Cloud of Witnesses (formerly known as Holy Women, Holy Men), made a significant effort to broaden our remembrances beyond what was predominantly a list of white male celibate clergy who lived many centuries ago. Our new list includes many more women, lay persons, married people, people of color, Protestants, persons from other denominations, and persons from more recent times. A good example of that is the upcoming observance on February 11 of the life of the blind poet Francis Jane (Fanny) van Alstyne Crosby (1820-1915).

With over 8,000 sacred texts, Fanny Crosby was the most prolific hymn writer in the evangelical tradition. She could hear a tune and almost immediately write a hymn to go with the music. She lost her sight as an infant. She lived most of her life in New York City, and was married to a blind musician.  Crosby served on the faculty of the New York School for the Blind, and was a lifelong Methodist. About her blindness, she said:

"It seemed intended by the blessed providence of God that I should be blind all my life, and I thank him for the dispensation. If perfect earthly sight were offered me tomorrow I would not accept it. I might not have sung hymns to the praise of God if I had been distracted by the beautiful and interesting things about me…. If I had a choice, I would still choose to remain blind...for when I die, the first face I will ever see will be the face of my blessed Savior." 

Among her best known hymns are “Jesus, keep me near the cross,” “To God be the glory,” “Rescue the perishing,” “Pass me not, O gentle Savior,” and “Blessed assurance.” Her hymns are well represented in the African-American hymnal Lift Every Voice and Sing. “Blessed assurance” is often listed in the top ten most popular hymns in Protestant denominations. It was published in 1887, and used extensively in Britain and the USA in the Moody and Sankey revival meetings.

The story behind its writing is told in Crosby’s autobiography, Memories of Eighty Years (1906):            “In a successful song words and music must harmonize, not only in number of syllables, but in subject matter and especially accent. In nine cases out of ten the success of a hymn depends directly upon these qualities. Thus, melodies tell their own tale, and it is the purpose of the poet to interpret this musical story into language. Not infrequently a composer asks, ‘What does that melody say to you?’ And if it says nothing to you the probability is that your words will not agree with the music when an attempt is made to join them. “Blessed Assurance” was written to a melody composed by my friend Mrs. Joseph F. Knapp [Phoebe P. Knapp]; she played it over once or twice on the piano and then asked me what it said to me. I replied, Blessed assurance, Jesus in mine! O what a foretaste of glory divine! Heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of His spirit, washed in His blood.            The hymn thus written seemed to express the experience of both Mrs. Knapp and myself.”            The hymns of Fanny Crosby are not without their detractors. Her words, and the music usually associated with them, are often criticized for being excessively sentimental. The focus is almost exclusively on a religion of “just me and Jesus.” In other words, they are about the salvation of the individual soul, rather than about God, and almost never point to the life of a Christian in the world, or the Church and its worship and sacraments. That, of course, is a modern perspective rarely seen in hymns from the 19th century.

And yet, her hymns are beloved by many. People just like to sing them! This is reflected in a parody of her hymn “Pass me not, O gentle Savior” in which a typical congregant pleads for the selection of hymns they know and love, rather than other types of hymns from various ages and traditions. “Sing a song by Fanny Crosby” is sung to the tune Pass Me Not. It was written by someone with the initials J. T. S. in 1988…

 1. Sing a song by Fanny Crosby ev’ry Sabbath day;

  pay no heed to those who claim that she is déclassé.              

Refrain: Pastor, Pastor, hear my irate cry:

  when you pick the hymns for Sunday, don’t pass Fanny by!

2. Gregory the Great is no saint to us Protestants;

  we’ve abandoned all his dogma. Why intone his chants?

3. Lutheran chorales are boring, lengthy and morose;

  Fanny’s hymns are twice as peppy, and half as verbose.

4. Calvinists transformed the Psalter into metric verse;

  Though the texts may not be noble, yea, the tunes be worse.

5. Folk Mass music is atrocious, lacking tune and rhyme,

    and they’ve massacred the meter, cramming extra words in all the time.            

 Fanny Crosby’s life is an inspiring witness to one women’s determination not to let her status as a woman, nor her disability, get in the way of living a life of Christian witness and being used by God to make a real difference in the world.

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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Prelude in G-minor.

♫ Music Notes

Today’s includes features Johann Sebastian Bach’s Prelude in G-minor. Johann Sebastian Bach was born in Eisenach, Germany, in 1685 into a family of musicians. As a youngster he studied violin and organ and served as a choirboy at the parish church. By early adulthood, Bach had already achieved an enviable reputation as a composer and performer. His assignments as a church musician began in 1707 and a year later he became the organist and chamber musician for the court of the Duke of Weimar. In 1723, Bach was appointed cantor of the St. Thomas School in Leipzig and parish musician at both St. Thomas and St. Nicholas churches, where he remained until his death in 1750.

The Prelude in G-minor, sometimes called “The Little Prelude and Fugue in G-minor,” is from a collection of eight short prelude and fugues in various keys. Some doubt has been held by certain scholars as to their authenticity to Bach’s works. Suggestions have been made this collection was actually by one of his students, but nevertheless, they have been played and loved by organists for centuries, and they have stood the test of time.

Want to hear this one again? There are many recordings on YouTube. You could try this one (which gives a great close-up view of the pedal work by the feet)… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wa4PIH7zTo4

More often than not, when we hear the name Bach we think of only one person—Johann Sebastian. But JS wasn’t the only famous musician with that name. For over three hundred years the name Bach represented a musical dynasty in Germany shared by dozens of musicians. Among JS’s twenty-odd children, Johann Christian Bach and Carl Philippe Emmanuel Bach would become famous composers in their own right—not to mention the infamous P.D.Q Bach, but that is another story altogether.

JS Bach was orphaned at age ten. He moved in with an older brother who became his first organ teacher. Bach was very practical, and wrote music that was needed by the situation at hand, either for church or court. He wrote in every musical form of the day, except opera. He was better known as a performer than a composer, as he wrote in a style already considered very old fashioned. Bach’s sons were more famous in their day than their now exalted father. It wasn’t until the early 19th century and Mendelssohn that his music was dusted off and given a new hearing.

Bach was a person of profound Lutheran faith. He owned two complete editions of Luther’s works (which are huge by any definition), was a devoted reader of the Bible and deeply mystical. He often marked manuscripts with initials: J.J. (Jesu Juva—Help me, Jesus), I.N.J. (In Nomine Jesu—In the name of Jesus), and S.D.G. (Soli Deo Gloria—To God alone be glory). In the new Episcopal calendar Bach shares a feast day (July 28, the day of his death) with Handel and Purcell. He is also celebrated in Lutheran and United Methodist calendars. Some quotes worth remembering:

“The aim and final reason of all music should     be nothing else but the glory of God and the refreshment of spirit.”

“On land, on sea, at home, abroad, I smoke my     pipe and worship God.”

“There is nothing remarkable about it. All     you have to do is hit the right notes at the right time and the instrument     plays itself.” (when complimented on his playing)

Beethoven—“His name ought not to be Bach, but     ocean, because of his infinite and inexhaustible wealth of combinations     and harmonies.” (Bach is German for brook)

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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This Week’s Music

♫ Music Notes

Today’s prelude begins with music by Daniel Pinkham, a prominent American composer, mostly of sacred music. He studied at Harvard with Walter Piston and Aaron Copland, and later with E. Power Biggs, Arthur Honegger, Samuel Barber, and Nadia Boulanger—a “who’s who” in theory and composition in the 20th century. He teaches at the New England Conservatory and is Music Director of historic King’s Chapel in Boston.

In listening to Pinkham’s music you will immediately notice the style is frequently atonal, or not in a regular major or minor key. The music is driven instead by disjointed melodic passages and shifting harmonic centers. When he does use conventional harmonies it is for special effect. Saint Brigid of Ireland, who fed the poor with butter and turned her bath-water into beer is one of an entire collection of short pieces with long titles based on the lives of the saints. Many have intentionally humorous titles, such as these…

Saint Asaph, who brought live coals in his clothes without their having been burnt

Saint Canice, who rebuked the birds for their noise on Sundays

Saint George, who rescued the king’s daughter by piercing the dragon with his lance and led it captive with her girdle

Saint Caecilia, who, while the organ was playing, prayed that the Lord keep her heart pure that she not be confused

St. Brigid’s feast day is February 1. She is among the most beloved of Irish saints. She was raised in a Druid home but became a Christian at a young age. She became a leader in the Celtic church and was even said to have received episcopal orders. She was widely known for her care for the poor and needy.

           The prelude and postlude include music by another contemporary composer, Philip Gehring. He is a prominent Lutheran organist who taught at Valparaiso University. He has held leading positions in one of the primary organizations for church musicians in this country, the American Guild of Organists. Introit and Deo Gratias (meaning “thanks be to God”) are the opening and closing movements to a suite of short pieces for organ. His music features some interesting elements of modern music, such as not including any time signature or bar lines or measures. He uses notes with time values determined not by a specific number of beats but by the proportional relationships based on their relative appearance. In one section the organist is told to insert a “wedge” (I am using a pencil) into a note to hold it down, freeing the hands to play other notes. Gehring’s music, like Pinkham’s, tends to be on the dissonant side, with clashing chords and harmonies. In the end of each piece, however, it all resolves in a big major chord everyone can be happy with!

For the 10:30 sequence we will sing a simple unison hymn, “These three are the treasures”, whose music and text are both by Colin Hodgetts, a composer, social justice activist, and priest in the Church of England. The text sheds light on Jesus’ call for us to love God with all our heart, and our neighbors as ourselves.

These three are the treasures to strive for and prize: be gentle, live simply and have the humility to shy from the struggle to put oneself first, these are the pearls.

If mercy’s abandoned by those who’d be brave, economy squandered by those who’d be generous, humility slighted by those who would lead, this is sure death.

Be gentle and you can afford to be bold, be frugal and so have enough to be liberal, be humble and thus be a leader of all, this is the way.

Through gentleness those who attack win the fight, and those who defend have their safety in gentleness; this gentleness rests in the children of God, this is their sign.

                        This song is found in Wonder, Love, and Praise, an official supplement to the Hymnal 1982. The tune is called Song of Lau Tsu, who was the first great Taoist philosopher in China. He occupies a position in Asian culture not unlike that of Moses in Judeo-Christian society. Like Moses and the Pentateuch, Lau Tsu was long said to have been the sole author of the Tao-te Ching, the repository of formative Taoist teaching. Unlike Moses, Lau Tsu shunned any leadership role. While this text is not Christian in origin, it shares the sense of right relations proclaimed by Israel’s prophets and the teachings of Jesus. As we sing “These three are the treasures” hear the words in the light of the first reading from Micah and Jesus’ teachings in the Beatitudes.

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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Pescador

♫ Music Notes

At 10:30 the choir will sing as an anthem, and at the 12:30 service the congregation will sing, a gentle melody that has become increasingly popular in recent decades, including being featured in two movies. Tú Has Venido a la Orilla (You have come down to the lakeshore) is a song about the calling of the fisher apostles, but that story is transformed into the calling of Jesus on our own lives: “Jesus, you have looked into my eyes; kindly smiling, you’ve called out my name. On the sand I have abandoned my small boat; now with you, I will seek other seas.” The tune is appropriately named Pescador, which means fisherman. The song has been translated into many languages and is sung around the world. Once, when a tour guide in Palestine said the hymn was written by the Sea of Galilee the composer was present and quietly smiled. It was written in Madrid.

                        The composer is Cesáreo Gabarain (1936-1991), a Spanish priest and liturgical composer. He was born in the Basque region. After attending seminary in Zaragoza he wrote over 500 hymns and songs. He strove to make them easy to learn and sing by the entire congregation. He recorded 37 albums, and his music is popular in Spanish speaking countries. Tú Has Venido a la Orilla was a favorite of Pope John Paul II, who appointed him Chaplain Prelate. Gabarain was also an athlete. He ministered to cyclists in the Tour de France and coached basketball. In addition to serving in local parishes he was a chaplain at colleges and nursing homes. He died at the age of 55 from cancer. A friend of his wrote: “He lived in constant awareness of situations of human needs, which resulted in songs of support for moments of personal or communal prayer. All are vehicles approaching the transcendent world, expressions of praise to God and the Virgin, expressions of zeal liturgical music that consumed him.”

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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♫ Music Notes

Marcel Dupré (1886-1971) was the foremost organ virtuoso of his time, and heir to the great French Romantic tradition of organ composition. He was raised in a musical home. His father was a noted organist and his mother a cellist. He studied under one of the great organists of his day, Alexandre Guilmant, and received his first appointment as a parish organist at age 11. At age 16 he was admitted to the Paris Conservatoire, and at 20 was appointed first as assistant to Charles Widor at Saint Sulpice, where he served the rest of his life.  He was famed for his ability to improvise, and for his performances of the entire repertoire of J. S. Bach from memory. Dupré wrote extensively for organ, and taught two generations of the greatest French organists (as well as one of my own organ teachers).

   Today’s prelude, Antiphon III: I am black but comely, O Ye Daughters of Jerusalem, is from Dupré’s set of 15 pieces based on antiphons from the Song of Solomon (1:5 in this case), and verses from Ave Maris Stella and the Magnificat. These were originally written for the Office of Vespers, or Evening Prayer. The tonal center of Antiphon III is in G major, with long elegant phrases unfolding on the Great manual, against soft flute stops undulating in the Swell. Under it are heard occasional groups of three detached Pedal notes.

St. Teresa of Avila, Spain (1515-1582) was a Carmelite nun and mystic. At the offertory the choir will sing a setting of her well-known admonition Christ Has No Body Now but Yours:

Christ has no body now but yours, no hands, no feet on earth but yours. Yours are the eyes with which he sees, yours are the feet with which he walks, yours are the hands with which he blesses all the world.

Teresa is one of two women given the title “Doctor of the Church.” Her most important writings, The Way of Perfection and Interior Castle, are mystical and contemplative. She had a strong devotion to St. Augustine of Hippo and St. Mary Magdalene. She traveled for twenty five years across Spain establishing seventeen convents.

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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Season after the Epiphany

♫ Music Notes

We’ve now moved into the liturgical time known as the Season after the Epiphany (which falls on January 6 with the traditional celebration of the visit of the Magi), lasting until Ash Wednesday.  Epiphany will be long this year, since Easter won’t be until April 16. We celebrate throughout Epiphany the manifestation of God in Jesus, and today’s Sunday’s gospel is about one such event: the Baptism of Christ.  Jesus seeks to be baptized in the river Jordan by his cousin John.

When we hear the world carol we usually think of Christmas, but the musical form of a carol doesn’t particularly indicate a song related to the birth of Jesus or the Christmas season. There are carols for Easter, and for many times of the liturgical year, including today, the Baptism of Jesus. Today’s choral anthem, titled The Baptism of Jesus, is also known by its Latin original Jesus autem hodie. There are two ancient manuscripts with this Latin text, which dates from an English source written around the year 1500 ce.

This text has been set by two modern composers—Peter Maxwell Davies (a very difficult version written in 1961), and the one we are hearing today, Peter Hallock. You can hear both them online at http://aclerkofoxford.blogspot.com/2014/01/jesus-autem-hodie.html. Hallock was for several decades the Music Director at the Episcopal Cathedral in Seattle. He wrote this setting for his choir there. The solo part was originally for countertenor (a male alto singing in a very high range), which he sang himself. In this piece the voice of the narrator is given by the solo voice alone, but when God speaks God’s voice is heard by the singing of the whole choir. This combination has been compared to the solo voice (originally in a high pitch) reminding one of the Holy Spirit, in the form of a dove, hovering over Jesus.

The Rev. Dr. David Kerr Park, Director of Music

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