New Sacred Music: Recordings and Remarks

This past June, The Ecclesia Choir under the direction of Timothy Woods gave a concert of my sacred choral music at St. John Cantius Catholic Church in Chicago. It was a splendid and memorable occasion, one for which I am very grateful to Our Lord, Our Lady, St. Cecilia, the singers, the canons at the church, and all who attended.

We made a professional recording of the final rehearsal as well as the concert and are planning to release a CD from these materials, but the project will naturally take some time to complete. In the mean time, my son has combined some of the recordings with scrolling scores or video footage, and these I wanted to share with NLM readers, along with some remarks about what I was intending to do with each particular piece of music.


Lord, Dost Thou Wash My Feet?

Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said: If I wash not thy feet, thou hast no part in me. He came therefore unto Simon Peter, and Peter said unto him: Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said: If I wash not thy feet, thou hast no part in me. What I do, thou knowest not now: but thou shalt know hereafter. Lord, dost thou wash my feet? Jesus answered and said: If I wash not thy feet, thou hast no part in me. (John 13, vv. 6, 7, 8)

This is the third of a set of seven Mandatum Antiphons (antiphons for the washing of the feet on Maundy Thursday), composed in 2010 and dedicated to Arvo Pärt on the occasion of his 75th birthday. The score was sent to Maestro Pärt in Estonia by his agent at Universal Edition in Vienna, and Pärt did me the great honor of calling me on the telephone to accept the dedication and to thank me for the music.

In this antiphon, I want to express the shock and dismay of Peter when the Lord stoops to wash his feet. In a way reminiscent of his initial reaction to Jesus, "Lord, depart from me, for I am a sinful man," it is almost as if Peter is saying: "Lord, depart from me, for I am your servant, not your master." The difficult emotions through which Peter is going are expressed by the uncertain, conflicted, and clashing harmonies. The response of Jesus is authoritative and unwavering, expressed in ringing consonant chords. In the antiphon as given by the Church, Peter asks three times, "Lord, dost Thou wash my feet?" (as Jesus was to ask him three times after the resurrection, "Peter, lovest thou Me?"), each time with a greater intensity, as if to say: "Are you really quite serious about this footwashing?"


Christus natus

Christus natus est nobis: venite, adoremus.
Hodie lumen mundi, hodie Salvator Israel natus est nobis.
Illi clamemus: Qui natus es de Virgine, miserere nobis.
Christus natus est nobis: venite, adoremus. Alleluia.
(Christ is born unto us: come, let us adore.
Today the light of the world, today the Savior of Israel is born unto us.
To Him let us cry out: Thou who wast born of the Virgin, have mercy on us.
Christ is born unto us: come, let us adore. Alleluia.)

This Christmas motet was commissioned by Heath Morber for the Choirs of St. John's Catholic Newman Center Chapel at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The Latin text is drawn from Dom Gueranger's The Liturgical Year and is derived from old Gallican sources. As befits a song of joy, the pace is fleet and the mood is festal, with a contrasting turn at "miserere nobis" before the return of the opening theme, which is now presented with elaboration and syncopation. I listen a great deal to Giovanni Gabrieli and I'm sure he was an influence at some points.


The Coventry Carol

The haunting melody of the Coventry Carol has long been a favorite for arrangers of choral music. In this arrangement, I bring out the eeriness of the juxtaposition of a lullaby with the lamentation over the slaughtered infants by using polytonality and some "false relations." During the verses, the lower voices are chanting "vita mutatur, non tollitur," from the Preface of the Mass of the Dead. At the end, while the sopranos and basses sing "Amen," the inner voices sing "Orate pro nobis."


My Jesus, Mercy

King of creation,
purest oblation:
Thy Body torn for me,
Thy Blood poured out for me,
Jesus, my Savior, My Jesus, mercy.
Jesus, my Savior, My Jesus, mercy.

Priest interceding,
wounds ever pleading,
Lamb slain before all time,
Love stronger than all crime:
Jesus, my Ransom, My Jesus, mercy.
Jesus, my Ransom, My Jesus, mercy.

Good Shepherd, guide me,
safe refuge, hide me,
True Prophet, Light from Light,
Shine through my inward sight:
Jesus, my Glory, My Jesus, mercy.
Jesus, my Glory, My Jesus, mercy.

I fall before Thee,
Christ, I adore Thee,
Be Thou my sovereign Lord,
Be Thou my sure reward:
Jesus, my Treasure, Joy without measure.
Jesus, my Treasure, Joy without measure.

This hymn is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Roy Horton, my composition teacher and choirmaster from 1985-1989. I wrote both the lyrics and the music. One never fully knows why a piece takes on the form it does, but it may be that the fact that Dr. Horton was a Methodist who loved four-part hymnody and who often spoke of the beauty of this repertoire prompted me to remember him with a work of that kind.

Another performance of this piece, by the Scottish ensemble Cantiones Sacrae, may be found here, with a scrolling score.

My YouTube channel has a number of other performances of choral music as well as of the Wyoming Catholic College Choir and (why not?) lute music -- but I can take no credit for the lute music.