One of the refrains that has survived from my first set of psalms written in 1995 with psalm tone and verses from the new Revised Grail Psalter. The choir is in a new location for this Mass, just over my right shoulder in the front area of the upper sanctuary. We have previously been in the back area of the upper sanctuary much closer to the organ.
The music for this piece is found in Audubon Park Psalter – Solemnities, Feasts and Holidays.
Recorded live 2 April 2016 (iPhone)
Cathedral of Mary Our Queen
Psalm 103 with the response “The Lord is kind and merciful,” appears several times in the lectionary cycle. This was recorded at a wedding, so the small congregation is hard to hear. Only two verses are included in this video because the lack of memory on my iPhone prevented me from capturing the entire psalm setting.
The music for this piece is found in Audubon Park Psalter – Weddings and Funerals.
This responsorial psalm is built over a simple two-chord progression. The refrain melody is composed to fit over the chords, and while there are verses written out in the score, the cantor (as demonstrated here) is free to improvise the melody for each of the verses.
This video was recorded at the Easter Vigil which begins in darkness, so the lighting is very dim. Sadly, my iPhone ran out of memory, so I am only able to share the first verse here.
The music for this composition is included in the Feasts and Solemnities volume of the Audubon Park Psalter.
Recorded with my iPhone, this performance is from the 11am Mass at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen in Baltimore. Brass quartet plays the choral parts on the refrain.
The music for this composition is included in the Feasts and Solemnities volume of the Audubon Park Psalter.
The Chrism Mass is the annual celebration where the archbishop blesses the oils for use throughout the archdiocese and the priests renew their vows of service. It is one of the events that generally fills the Cathedral every year. As with other special diocesan celebrations, these are people that have chosen to be here, so are willing to sing and participate. Here’s the responsorial psalm (from the Audubon Park Psalter)recorded by my iPhone placed on the organ console in the balcony. Brass are to my right. Choir is on the left, and the cantor is in the pulpit half-way down the building.
The music for this composition is included in the Feasts and Solemnities volume of the Audubon Park Psalter.
These two movements for organ and brass quintet were written for the wedding of my wife’s brother. The Chorale was written for the entrance procession, beginning quietly with a dramatic build for the entrance of the bride. The Festive Flourish was written for the recessional and is a joyous march with toccata figuration for the organ at the end.
The trailer from the wedding includes an excerpt from the Chorale.
For Good Shepherd Sunday this year, I had programmed an arrangement of J.S. Bach’s “Schafe können sicher weiden” from Cantata 208 with an English text. At each of the choir rehearsals I had however, I became more and more frustrated with the part writing and the irregularity of the text. Finally, in a fit of frustration, I decided I would make my own arrangement and fix both the voice leading and text problems. While I considered trying for a translation of the original German, I opted instead to paraphrase Psalm 23. This is an easy anthem for the choir as they sing a simple four part harmonization of the chorale melody supported at all times by keyboard accompaniment. The piece could also be performed by a unison choir singing the soprano melody.
A performance by the Choir of the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen can be seen here.
For the CFAGO Spooktacular, I decided to write a new piece for organ. Unfortunately, I was not able to record the performance at the Chapel at the Towers, so instead I decided to attempt a recording tonight (10/31/2013) after the vigil Mass for All Saints was over at Holy Redeemer. Because the organ console is in a pit at the front of the church, I often have people come speak to me while I’m playing, and tonight was no exception (c. 3″ in tonight). I hope you enjoy the piece and can look past any bobbles I might have made from the distractions. Happy Halloween!
Composed at the request of Dr. Carl MaultsBy, Director of Music/Organist at St. Richard’s Episcopal Church in Winter Park for a service of Evensong in commemoration of C.S. Lewis at Knowles Chapel on the campus of Rollins College. The text is a paraphrase of C.S. Lewis by John Dalles. While the piece is written in an advanced tonal language dividing into SATB, most of the composition is in unison or two-part. The audio below was generated by the Finale music notation program so does not reflect the registrations indicated for the organ.