Music for November 22, 2020 + Christ the King Sunday, the last Sunday after Pentecost

Vocal Music

• King of Glory, King of Peace – K. Lee Scott (b. 1950) 
• Jade Panares, Soprano

Instrumental Music

• Suite Gothique – Léon Boëllmann (1862-1897)
• Introduction-Choral
• Menuet gothique
• Prière à Notre-Dame
• Toccata
• At the Name of Jesus – arr. Michael Burkhardt (b. 1957)

Since the last Sunday of Pentecost (Advent begins next Sunday!) is called Christ the King Sunday, our solo and the communion voluntary are based on hymns which refers to Christ as King.

The text for the offertory solo is by George Herbert, a Welsh-born poet, orator, and priest of the Church of England who was born on April 3, 1593 at Black Hall in Montgomery, Wales. His family on his father's side was one of the oldest and most powerful in Montgomeryshire, having settled there in the early 13th century and improving and consolidating its status by shrewd marriage settlements and continuous governmental service. 

George Herbert, 1593-1633

His father died when Herbert was three and a half years old so George's mother, Magdalen, who was by all accounts an extraordinary woman, moved the family first to Shropshire, then to Oxford, and then finally to a house at Charing Cross, London to facilitate the education of her ten children. George was tutored at home and then entered Westminster School, probably in 1604, a distinguished grammar school that not only grounded him in the study of Latin, Greek, Hebrew, and music, but also introduced him to Lancelot Andrewes, one of the great churchmen and preachers of the time. From Westminster, Herbert went up to Trinity College, Cambridge, in 1609 and began one of the most important institutional affiliations of his life, one that lasted nearly 20 years.

Herbert wrote much of his poetry during his Cambridge years. He began, auspiciously enough, with a vow, made in a letter accompanying two sonnets sent to his mother as a New Year's gift in 1610, "that my poor Abilities in Poetry, shall be all, and ever consecrated to Gods glory." 

Herbert wrote poetry in English, Latin and Greek. Shortly before his death in 1633, he sent a literary manuscript to Nicholas Ferrar, the founder of a semi-monastic Anglican religious community at Little Gidding, reportedly telling him to publish the poems if he thought they might "turn to the advantage of any dejected poor soul", otherwise to burn them. Later that year all of his English poems were published in The Temple: Sacred Poems and Private Ejaculations. It was so popular that there were at least 11 editions of The Temple in the 17th century alone.

One of the poems which has become most loved is Praise, a seven stanza poem of 4 lines each, which contains the three stanzas which make up the text for today's solo. This hymn has been set to music by many composers. Today's solo, King of Glory, King of Peace,  was written by K. Lee Scott, an American composer born, raised, and still living in Alabama. Scott attended The University of Alabama School of Music, where he has since served as adjunct faculty as well as for Music departments or The University of Alabama at Birmingham and Samford University. 

I am  delighted to have former choir member and staff singer Jade Panares sing for us this day. Jade is a graduate of Atascocita High School and the University of Houston School of Music.

The hymn At the Name of Jesus has been lovingly arranged by Lutheran organist Michael Burkhardt. Listen for an accompaniment that seems to hover above the melody which I will be playing on the oboe. We've put the text in the service leaflet so that you can read the words while listening (since we can't sing in church just yet!)