Program notes from the composer:
AT THE LAMB'S HIGH FEAST WE SING
We begin tonight's concert with a prelude for organ. It is based on a wonderful Easter hymn from the 16th century. Written in the style of the Chorale Prelude, you will hear segments of the melody alternating with my own original material. Eventually, an entire verse prevails and brings the prelude to a conclusion. The organist is Kenneth Danchik.
A BOY WAS BORN
We next hear two works written for the Christmas season. The first of these is a motet for a Capella choir. The motet is a polyphonic musical setting for choir, usually sacred in content. The text comes from the 16th century. This is one of the numbers the choir recorded for their Christmas CD.
A BABE IS BORN
This second work is much different in style, and employs an organ accompaniment. The text is taken from an English text from the 15th century.
DO NOT LET YOUR HEART BE TROUBLED
I wrote this tune for my mother a few weeks before she passed away. It includes wonderful words from the Gospel of John that would serve us all well.
EVENING AND MORNING
I found this beautiful text from P. Gerhardt that was written way back in 1666. I decided to set it to music, enhancing the work by including two violins. The violinists are Donna Deeney and Sarah Greenwald.
REJOICE IN THE LORD
In March of 2011 I decided to write a piece of music to celebrate my 66th birthday. Why not? I don't know any other composers who would do that for me! So I chose this text from Philippians because it sounded so comforting.
AVE MARIA
No one in my life has inspired me more in my quest to produce sacred music than my mother. We celebrate the Blessed Mother with this next piece, but I also dedicate it to all the women here this evening.
TE DEUM
This is an organ work that was premiered here in July by concert organist, Adam Brakel. The work takes several themes from the Gregorian chant, Te Deum, and weaves an eight-minute expression of wonderment TO GOD! Tonight's organist is Ken Danchik on our majestic Beckerath organ.
SALVE MATER
The sax is sometimes wrongly maligned as a profane instrument, but tonight there should be no doubt as to it's capability to sing like an angel. I've separated our two performers so as to create an antiphonal effect in this holy space. With Mr.Curtis Johnson on one side of the church, and Mr. Keith Bertoluzzi on the other, with Don Fellows on the organ, I hope you will enjoy my arrangement of this beautiful Gregorian chant for two alto saxophones, Salve Mater.
QUARANT'ORE
This work is dedicated to Don Fellows, but it's inspiration comes from memories long past. Way back around 1955 I was an altar boy. One of my first experiences was a 40-hours devotion. I remember lots of priests, the older altar boys swinging things around that made a lot of pleasant smoke, and lots of little girls dropping flower petals in the aisle as we processed around the church. But most of all, I remembered the music. the priests sang most of the time, but we got to answer them once in a while with Latin phrases the nuns taught us. Over the next few years I grew to love the Litany of the Saints, but my favorite hymn was the Pange Lingua. Maybe it was my favorite because it meant the end of the ceremony. Nevertheless, I threw all these musical memories together in a work for organ for Don to premier. See if you can pick out the responses to the Litany that are intertwined throughout the work. I'm sure you will pick up on the Pange Lingua toward the end of the piece. I hope you enjoy....Quarant 'ore. (Forty Hours of Prayer)
CRUCIFIXUS
For the past several years we have performed this work here at the Cathedral during Good Friday services. Originally, it served as the climatic point in my cantata entitled "The Prince." Listen for the ending as the women sing the final section of the Requium mass, "In Paradisum."
CONFIRMATIO
It's been a long time since my 4th grade confirmation. However, the tunes the sisters of Charity hammered into our brains have never left me. For months we prepared a glorious version of Ecce Sacerdos that opens this organ work. I can still see the bishop and his entourage marching up to the altar. We had to learn a second piece with a lot of Latin words: Veni Creator Spiritus. The third piece we sang was a favorite that we already knew, Come Holy Ghost. Listen for variations on these hymns as Ken Danchik plays this organ fantasy on Confirmation.
BENEDICTION
This work saved my marriage! The night before my wife's birthday I realized I had forgotten to buy her a present. I promptly wrote and dedicated this short benediction and presented it to her the next day. I think she was expecting jewery, but happily accepted this musical gift. Please accept this music blessing as we end tonights performance.
--
