Music for Sunday, October 9, 2022 + The Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Vocal Music

• Thee We Adore – T. F. H. Candlyn (1892-1964)

Instrumental Music

• Andante in D Major – Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
• The Infinite Meadows of Heaven – Paul Mealor (b. 1975)
• Praise to the Lord, the Almighty – Max Reger (1873-1916)

Congregational Music (all hymns from The Hymnal 1982 with the exception of those marked “R” which are from Renew.)

• Hymn 411 O bless the Lord, my soul (ST. THOMAS (WILLIAMS))
• Hymn 644 How sweet the name of Jesus sounds (ST. PETER)
• Hymn 295 Sing praise to our creator (CHRISTUS, DER IST MEIN LEBEN)
• Hymn 390 Praise to the Lord, the Almighty (LOBE DEN HERREN)
• Hymn R 266 Give thanks with a grateful heart (GIVE THANKS)
• Hymn 397 Now thank we all our God (NUN DANLET ALLE GOTT)
• Psalm 111 – Tone VIIIa

Thee We Adore

This is an anthem based on a hymn by St. Thomas Aquinas. The tune is in our hymnal, using a different translation of the original Latin text (hymn 314). 

The arrangement is by Thomas Frederick Handel Candlyn, English-born organist, composer and choirmaster who spent most of his professional career at two Episcopal Church congregations in New York. After graduating from Durham University in 1911 with  the Bachelor of Music degree, he was offered the position of organist and choirmaster at St. Paul's Church, Albany, New York by its rector Dr. Roelif H. Brooks and he emigrated to the United States. He was to remain at St. Paul’s for twenty-eight years, with the exception of the period between September 21, 1917 and April 25, 1919 when he served with the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) during World War I.

In 1943, Dr. Brooks (who had left Albany in 1926) offered Candlyn the position of organist and choirmaster at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, New York. where he worked until his retirement in 1954.

Although he composed two hundred works, primarily anthems, cantatas, service settings and organ solos, only three of his anthems ("Christ, whose glory fills the skies," "Thee We Adore," and "King of Glory, King of Peace") remain part of the standard repertoire of Episcopal church choirs in North America.

Andante in D Major

Although Mendelssohn was most famous during his lifetime as a composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor, he also enjoyed an enviable reputation as a highly skilled organist. The instrument had fascinated — one might almost say mesmerized — him from earliest youth, but aside from a year or so of formal training at the age of about 12 or 13, he was entirely self-taught. He never held a position as church organist, and never had any organ pupils. Nevertheless, the instrument played a uniquely important role in his personal life. In the course of his many travels, whether in major cities or tiny villages, he invariably gravitated to the organ loft, where he might spend hours playing the works of Bach or simply improvising. Although the piano clearly served Mendelssohn as an eminently practical instrument, the organ seems to have been his instrument of choice. He searched out an organ loft, not because he had to, but because he wanted to, because on the organ he could find catharsis. Indeed, as he once exclaimed to his parents after reading a portion of Schiller's Wilhelm Tell, “I must rush off to the monastery and work off my excitement on the organ!” 

Mendelssohn's public performance on the organ in Germany was rare, and he gave but one public recital: in the Thomas-Kirche in Leipzig in 1840. In England, however, he evidently felt more comfortable on the organ bench and played there often before large crowds. Indeed, he performed as Guest Organist twice at the Birmingham Music Festivals in 1837 and 1842. Given Mendelssohn's profound affinity for the organ, it is remarkable that he composed but relatively little for the instrument, and assigned an Opus number to only two works: his Three Preludes and Fugues for Organ (Op. 37) and his Six Sonatas for the Organ (Op. 65). A small number of organ works, plus sketches and drafts, were scattered among his musical papers; most of these only gradually found their way into print, and it was not until the late 20th century that an edition of his complete organ works was finally published. 

This Andante (1844) is one of them. It's a theme and variations on a very sweet melody

The Infinite Meadow of Heaven

Welsh composer Paul Mealor is one of the world’s most ‘performed’ living composers and has been described as, ‘the most important composer to have emerged in Welsh choral music since William Mathias’ (New York Times, 2001).

Born in St Asaph, North Wales in 1975, Paul Mealor studied composition privately as a boy with William Mathias and later with John Pickard, and at the University of York (BA Hons, 1997, PhD, 2002) and in Copenhagen with Hans Abrahamsen and Per Nørgård. He was catapulted to international stardom in April 2011, when 2.5 billion people heard his motet, Ubi caritas, at the Royal Wedding Ceremony of His Royal Highness Prince William and Catherine Middleton (now TRH The Duke & Duchess of Cambridge) at Westminster Abbey. 

The Infinite Meadows of Heaven is a quote from H. W. Longfellow and this slow and expressive piece is very beautiful. It is underpinned by oscillating thirds in its outer sections that accompany a melody using the upper end of the keyboard. A low pedal octave also accompanies the first section. The middle section is more agitated but all returns to a blissful calm. It was commissioned and premiered by Iwan Llewelyn-Jones at the Wales International Piano Festival in 2016.

“Silently, one by one, in the infinite meadows of heaven,

Blossomed the lovely stars, the forget-me-nots of the angels.”

― Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Evangeline: A Tale of Acadie

Music for May 21, 2017 + The Sixth Sunday of Easter

Rogation Sunday

Vocal Music

• If Ye Love Me – Thomas Tallis (c.1505-1585)
• Jesus Christ, the Apple Tree – Elizabeth Poston (1905-1987)

Instrumental Music

• Prelude on Dunedin – David Dahl (b. 1937)
• The Infinite Meadows of Heaven – Paul Mealor (b. 1975)
• Earth and All Stars – arr. Keith Kolander (b. 1955)

Congregational Music (all hymns from the Hymnal 1982 with the exception of those marked “R” which are from Renew.)

• Hymn 405 - All things bright and beautiful (ROYAL OAK)
• Hymn 492 - Sing, ye faithful, sing with gladness (FINNIAN)
• Hymn 455 - O love of God, how strong and true (DUNEDIN)
• Hymn 705 - As those of old their first fruits brought (FOREST GREEN)
• Hymn R250 - O Lord my God (O STOR GUD)
• Hymn R54 - I sing the almighty power of God (Ellacombe)
• Psalm 66:7–18 - Jubilate Deo – Mode 2

In addition to being the Sixth Sunday of the Easter Season, today is Rogation Sunday. Rogation Sunday is the day when the Church has traditionally offered prayer for God’s blessing on the fruits of the earth and the labors of those who produce our food. The word “rogation” is from the Latin rogare, “to ask.” Historically, the Rogation Days (the three days before Ascension Day) were a period of fasting and abstinence, beseeching God’s blessing on the crops for a bountiful harvest. Few of us today directly derive our livelihood from the production of food, yet it is good to be reminded of our dependence upon those who do and our responsibility for the environment.

Elizabeth Poston

In recognition of this day, I have chosen the beautiful setting by Elizabeth Poston of the text, Jesus Christ, the Apple Tree. One of my choir members asked what an apple tree had to do with Jesus. I found a great meditation by Joan Halmo in The Hymn, the journal of the Hymn Society of America that had some great food for thought.

Trees have always been revered in every culture, as they bring shade to the earth, refuge for living creatures, food for our bodies as well as materials for home and every day living. Not only are they functional, but they are beautiful as well. Trees are also a sign of hope in the annual season of rebirth and renewal. As Dr. Halmo says, "The tree is in truth a bearer of life and of healing for humanity and the earth. (1)

The poet, Richard Hutchins, was a Calvinist Baptist minister who served at Long Buckby, Northamptonshire, England.  For years this text was thought to be by Anonymous, but the poem was attributed to "R.H." in The Spiritual Magazine, 1761 and collected into the book Divine, Moral, and Historical Miscellanies, in Prose and Verse... (London, 1761). Since The Spiritual Magazine was a magazine for Calvinistic Baptists, "R.H." contributed additional poems to this magazine, one of which identifies him as being from Long Buckby and as a minister by the name of Richard Hutchins served the Calvinist Baptist congregation in Long Buckby from about 1759-1765, it is likely that "R.H." refers to Richard Hutchins.

Hutchins was probably not well schooled in theology, yet he displays a keen vision of Christ as the tree of life, "laden with fruit and always green."

Paul Mealor

The piano piece at communion is a new piece by the Welsh composer Paul Mealor. He may not (yet) be the biggest name in classical music, but he has composed music for one of the biggest ceremonial events of the past decade, the marriage of Prince William and Catherine (Kate) Middleton. Mealor's motet, a setting of Ubi Caritas et Amor, was commissioned by Prince William for his wedding at Westminster Abbey on April 29, 2011, when it was sung by the Choirs of Westminster Abbey and Her Majesty's Chapel Royal during the signing of the registry.

Topping the Classical Charts for six weeks with his bestselling album, A Tender Light in November 2011, he also broke records by being the first classical composer to hold both the classical and pop chart No. 1’s at the same time in December 2011, securing the UK Christmas No. 1 with his piece for The Military Wives Choir and Gareth Malone, Wherever You Are. Wherever You Are entered the UK Pop Singles Chart at number 1 that same month, selling over 556,000 copies in one week, more than the rest of the Top 12 combined, and was nominated for Best British Single in the 2012 BRIT Awards. It has been named as the fastest selling single since Elton John’s Candle in the Wind. In April of 2012 Mealor was voted the nation’s favorite living composer during the UK Classic FM Hall of Fame.

The Infinite Meadows of Heaven is a quote from H. W. Longfellow.

Silently one by one, in the infinite meadows of heaven, Blossomed the lovely stars, the forget-me-nots of the angels. Evangeline, A Tale of Acadie

This slow and expressive piece is underpinned by oscillating thirds in its outer sections that accompany a melody using the upper end of the keyboard. A low pedal octave also accompanies the first section. The middle section is more agitated but all returns to a blissful calm.

The opening voluntary is an organ interpretation of the hymn tune which we will be singing before the Gospel this morning. DUNEDIN is a tune written in 1971 by Vernon Griffiths, an English organist and teacher  who moved to New Zealand in 1926 to accept a position at the Christchurch Teachers' Training College. This tune, DUNEDIN, is named after the town where his second position at as music master at King Edward Technical College. (2)

This setting is from the Bayoubuchlein, the collection of organ preludes on hymn-tunes from the last 50 years that was compiled for the 2016 American Guild of Organists National Convention here in Houston. This prelude was debuted at a service at Christ Church Cathedral, Houston. It is in three parts: In the first verse the melody is played on a stopped called a Krummhorn (similar to a clarinet) while the right hand accompanies with a single flute stop. In verse two we find a canon at the octave between the two hands, playing on separate manuals (keyboards). The final stanza has the melody in the pedal on a trumpet and trombone sound while the right hand punctuates the musical phrases with fanfare-like chords.

David Dahl

David P. Dahl is Professor of Music and University Organist Emeritus from Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, WA, retiring in 2000 after thirty-five years of teaching. In August, 2010, he retired as Director Emeritus of Music Ministries at Christ Episcopal Church, Tacoma, where served for forty years. During his career he has been an active recitalist, including performances for national conventions of the American Guild of Organists and the Organ Historical Society. He is a published composer of organ music and has been awarded the Distinguished Service Award from the Organ Historical Society, and the Distinguished Alumnus Award from Pacific Lutheran University. (3)

(1) Halmo, Joan, "Hymn Interpretation ['Jesus Christ the Apple Tree']", The Hymn, July 2002, Volume 53, Issue 3, Pages 52-54, print
(2) Rachael M. Hawkey. 'Griffiths, Thomas Vernon', from the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/biographies/4g21/griffiths-thomas-vernon (accessed 19 May 2017)
(3) David Dahl biography (2016, June). Retrieved from http://agohouston2016.com/conference/composers/david-dahl