Music for March 19, 2023 + The Fourth Sunday in Lent

Vocal Music

• Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us – William Bradley Roberts (b. 1947)

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

• Hymn 149 - Eternal Lord of love (OLD 124TH)
• Hymn R191 - O Christ, the healer, we have come (ERHALT UNS, HERR)
• Hymn 143- The glory of these forty days (ERHALT UNS, HERR)
• Hymn 671 - Amazing grace! how sweet the sound (NEW BRITAIN )
• Hymn 493 - O for a thousand tongues to sing (AZMON)
• Psalm 23 - Tone IIa

This Sunday I will be in Ireland with my family for Spring break, so I want to thank Karen Silva for playing the organ at the 10:15 service and Bernice Satterwhite for playing piano at the 8 AM service.

The things you learn writing (and researching) a blog about your music. For instance: this Sunday we are going to sing one of the anthems from Reverend Celeste's ordination service, a simple but beautiful piece by a friend of mine, Bill Roberts. I had met Bill several years ago at the Mississippi Conference on Church Music and Liturgy and strengthened that friendship through the avenue of Facebook. It was not until looking up pertinent information about him  (read: his birth-year) that I learned he was a graduate of Houston Baptist University. The Rev. Dr. Roberts is the retired Professor of Church Music at Virginia Theological Seminary and Director of Chapel Music there, so you can imagine my surprise to find out that not only is he an alum of HBU, but had also been ordained as a Baptist minister! He is now, however, thoroughly Episcopalian, having served as music director of some of the country's largest and most active Episcopal congregations, and most recently ordained as an Episcopal priest!

We are singing his setting of the hymn text, Savior, like a shepherd lead us, which employs a lilting melody in compound triple meter.

Music for April 25, 2021 + The Fourth Sunday of Easter

Good Shepherd Sunday

Vocal Music

• Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us – William Bradley Roberts (b. 1947)

Instrumental Music

• He Leadeth Me/Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us – arr. Phillip Keveren (b. 1961)
• My Shepherd Will Supply My Need – arr. Brian Henkelmann (b. 1956)
• Communion – Louis Vierne (1870-1937)
• Tuba Tune – C. S. Lang (1891-1971)

Congregational Music (all hymns from the Hymnal 1982 with the exception of those marked “*” which are from Wonder, Love, and Praise.)

• Canticle*- Christ our Passover (Pascha nostrum) (SINE NOMINE)
• Hymn 208 - Alleluia! The Strife is O’er (VICTORY)
• Hymn 304 - I come with joy to meet my Lord (LAND OF REST)
• Psalm 23 - simplified Anglican chant by Jerome W. Meachen

The fourth Sunday of Easter is also called Good Shepherd Sunday, for the Psalm is always Psalm 23, and the Gospel reading references sheep. Many churches named after saints will often claim that saint's day as their "patronal" festival, so it is fitting that the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd in Kingwood should look to this day as our own feast day.

Jackson Hearn and Grace Tice
(looking for all the world like a prom picture)

With that in mind, we celebrate with music appropriate to the day. Not only does this Sunday mark the official return of the choir, but also brings a guest musician, the oboist (and my dear friend) Grace Tice. Grace is a free-lance musician in the Houston area, with degrees from North Texas State University (now the University of North Texas) and Rice. She has performed with the Houston Ballet Orchestra as well as several regional orchestras. She is a favorite of church musicians in Houston, because not only is she extremely musical but also because she lives up to her name, Grace.

Grace will be heard on the choir's anthem, a setting of the text "Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us" which first appeared in Hymns for the Young, 1840, which was edited by Dorothy Ann Thrupp. Although no author's name appears with the text, it is thought that Thrupp wrote it, since she often published hymns anonymously, under the pseudonym "Iota," or simply using her initials. 

The text is coupled with a new tune written by William Bradley Roberts, the Professor Emeritus of Church Music at Virginia Theological Seminary, Alexandria. Previously he was a parish musician, serving at St. John’s, Lafayette Square, Washington, D.C., and at churches in Tucson, Newport Beach, Louisville, and Houston, where he was a student at Houston Baptist University.

In addition to playing with the choir on their anthem, Grace and I will play arrangements of some "Shepherd Hymns" for oboe and piano. We will start with a "mash-up" of two American hymn-tunes associated with the texts He Leadeth Me and Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us. If you came to the Episcopal church out of any other Protestant tradition, you will likely recognize these two tunes.

He Leadeth Me is a hymn paraphrase of Psalm 23, written in the late 1800s by Baptist minister Joseph Gilmore. With its tune by William Bradbury, it has appeared in well over 1150 hymnals - with 50 of those being published since 1979. It is not in The Hymnal 1982.

The other tune in this "mash-up" (I still can't use that term without thinking of the TV series GLEE which introduced it to me.) is the  tune used in most hymnals for Savior, like a Shepherd lead us. This tune is named BRADBURY, after its composer, William Bradbury (the same William Bradbury who wrote He Leadeth Me.) This tune is pair with this text in at least 254 modern hymnals, while the tune in our hymnal, SICILIAN MARINERS, is paired only three times.

This arrangement of these two hymns is the work of Phillip Keveren, a multi-talented keyboard artist and composer living in Brentwood (Nashville), Tennessee. He composes in a variety of genres, and is widely acclaimed for his piano publications. Mr. Keveren is a prolific arranger, orchestrator and producer. His work is featured in numerous instrumental recordings, church choral, educational piano and Christian artist releases. His arrangements and compositions appear on recent projects by Sandi Patty, Travis Cottrell, Sara Groves and Ronan Tynan. Keveren holds a Bachelor of Music in Composition from California State University, Northridge, and a Master of Music in Composition from the University of Southern California.

The other piece in the opening voluntary is a oboe and piano setting of the Southern hymn, My Shepherd Will Supply My Need. It is arranged by Brian Henkelmann, a pianist, organist, composer and educator currently living in Jonesboro, Arkansas, where he is organist at the First United Methodist Church and on the faculty of Arkansas State University. Henkelmann holds a bachelor of arts in music from Moravian College, a master of arts in theological studies from Moravian Theological Seminary, and a master of church music from Concordia University Chicago. 

Music for June 3, 2018 + Music Appreciation Sunday

Living Americans 

music by contemporary composers connected to the Episcopal Church or with connections to Texas and Houston

Vocal Music

• When In Our Music God Is Glorified – David Ashley White (b. 1944)
• Nearer, My God, to Thee – arr. Dan Forrest (b. 1978)
• Lord, You have Searched Me – David Hurd (b. 1950)
• Mass for St. Philip’s – William Bradley Roberts (b. 1947)

Instrumental Music

• Aria on a Chaconne – Joel Martinson (b. 1960)
• Strengthen for Service, Lord – Anne Krentz Organ (b. 1960)
• Festival Piece – Craig Phillips (b. 1961)

Congregational Music (all hymns from the Hymnal 1982 with the exception of those without a number which are from Wonder, Love, and Praise: A Supplement to the Hymnal 1982.)

• Hymn 7 - Christ, whose glory fills the skies (RATISBON)
• Hymn 490 - I want to walk as a child of the light (HOUSTON)
• Hymn - Through north and south (LASST UNS ERFREUEN)
• Hymn - Heal me, hands of Jesus (SHARPE)
• Hymn 324 - Let all mortal flesh keep silence (PICARDY)
• Hymn 530 - Spread, O spread, thou mighty word (GOTT SEI DANK)

As I write this blog each week, I am acutely aware that much of what we sing, play, and hear in our worship is the work of dead white men. While I appreciate that we want to hear and perform music which has stood the test of time, I also have a yearning to experience music that is new, different, and indicative of the age in which we live. One day, while listening to SiriusXM's Symphony Hall channel, I heard a promo for their weekly series "Living Americans," and the idea of scheduling a service devoted to music of such people was planted in my head.

With the exception of two composers, all of the composers featured today have ties to the Episcopal Church. And though all the hymns are not by living composers, two of them (I want to walk as a child of the light and Heal me, hands of Jesus) are indeed written by composers who are still very much alive and connected to the Episcopal Church.
 

David Ashley White

When you think about hymns about worship and music, one of the first hymns that comes to mind is one written in 1971 by the British minister and hymn-writer, Fred Pratt Green. When In Our Music God Is Glorified , usually sung to the hymn tune ENGLEBERG. However, today we sing a setting of the text to the tune HAMMERLING by Houstonian David Ashley White, Professor of Composition and Composer-in-Residence at Houston’s Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church. He served as Director of the Moores School from 1999-2014.  This festival setting owas commissioned by the Houston Chapter of the American Guild of Organists for the 1988 National Convention, and was premiered at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Houston.

Dan Forrest

Nearer, My God, to Thee is by Dan Forrest, a free-lance composer living and working in South Carolina. Though he is a Presbyterian, his arrangement of the hymn Nearer My God to Thee was part of the prelude music for the funeral of Barbara Bush at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Houston in April. It is a beautiful arrangement with lovely harmonies which brings new life in this timeless hymn. It starts out in 6/8 time, but then reverts to the more familiar 4/4 time of the hymnal setting as it changes key on the second stanza. On the third stanza, we change keys again, not just once but twice before returning to the original key and gentle rhythm  of the beginning

David Hurd

The psalm for the day is David Hurd's Lord, You Have Searched Me Out. Dr. Hurd was Professor of Sacred Music and Director of Chapel Music at the General Theological Seminary in New York City for 28 years. He is presently the Director of Music at The Church of Saint Mary the Virgin in Times Square, New York City. We often sing parts of his Intersession Mass at our services, particularly in Advent. This setting of Psalm 139, the appointed Psalm for today, is one of the choir’s favorites.

William Bradley Roberts

Mass for St. Philip’s is a setting of the mass by William Bradley Roberts, the Associate Professor of Church Music at Virginia Theological Seminary and an ordained Episcopal priest. He came to Virginia Seminary after serving at St. John's, Lafayette Square, Washington, and St. Philip’s in the Hills, Tucson, Ariz. His undergrad degree was from Houston Baptist University.  This Mass was written for the Tucson congregation while he was serving as their director of music.

The organ and piano music includes:

Joel Martinson

Aria on a Chaconne is a beautiful, meditative organ piece by Joel Martinson, director of music and organist at Church of the Transfiguration (Episcopal) in Dallas. The lyrical melody is heard in the right hand played on a solo flute stop, while the left hand plays an accompaniment of pulsating block chords. At one point, the right hand plays a duet with itself as the left hand continues the accompaniment. Joel is another well-known composer of organ and choral music in the Episcopal Church. He runs his own publishing company, Kessler Park Press.

Anne Krentz Organ

Strengthen for Service, Lord is a setting of a new hymn-tune by Robert Hobby, director of music for Trinity English Lutheran Church, Fort Wayne, Indiana. The arrangement is by another Lutheran musician, Anne Krentz Organ, who serves as the Director of Music Ministries at St. Luke's Lutheran Church in Park Ridge, IL. Contrary to her name, Anne holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance from Valparaiso University, a Master of Music degree in Piano Pedagogy from the University of Illinois, and a Certificate of Advanced Studies in Church Music from Concordia University Chicago. She currently serves as the President of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians.

Craig Phillips

Festival Piece – Craig Phillips is Director of Music at All Saints’ Church, Beverly Hills. His organ compositions are heard in churches all across the continent, with many being featured at National and regional meetings of the American Guild of Organists and the Association of Anglican Musicians.
After the service we will celebrate and honor all our musicians at Good Shepherd with an extended coffee hour to thank our choirs, music director and all those involved in the music program. This will be the choir’s final Sunday before summer break.

The public is invited to attend this service – guests are welcome.

Music for Sunday, April 22 + Good Shepherd Sunday

Vocal Music

• The Lord is My Shepherd – Allen Pote (b. 1945)
• Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us – William Bradley Roberts (b. 1947)

Instrumental Music

• Variations on “St. Columba” – Don Freudenberg (1939-2007)
• Prelude in D Minor, Op. 16, No.3a – Clara Schumann (1819-1896)
• Prince of Denmark’s March – Jeremiah Clarke (1674-1707)

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

• Hymn 518 - Christ is made the sure foundation (WESTMINSTER ABBEY) 
• Hymn 417 - This is the feast of victory (FESTIVAL CANTICLE)
• Hymn 208 - The strife is o’er, the battle done (VICTORY)
• Hymn 380  - From all that dwell below the skies (OLD 100th)
• Hymn R106 - The King of love my shepherd is (ST. COLUMBA)
• Hymn R226 - Ubi caritas (Taize)
• Hymn 343 - Shepherd of souls, refresh and bless (ST. AGNES)
• Psalm 23 - Dominus regit me - setting by Hal H. Hopson

The fourth Sunday after Easter is traditionally referred to as "Good Shepherd Sunday,"  the name coming from the gospel reading for the day, which is always the tenth chapter of John's Gospel. In this reading Christ is described as the "Good Shepherd" who lays down his life for his sheep. Our two anthems reflect that description, one being a setting of the 23rd Psalm, and the other a setting of the hymn "Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us." Both of these were composed by men who have Houston connections.

The Lord is My Shepherd was written by Allen Pote. A native of Halstead, Kansas, and educated at Texas Christian University, he has served Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church in Houston as director of music. He is currently a full-time composer living in Pensacola, Florida, where, with his wife Susan, he was founder of the Pensacola Children's Chorus, an organization of over 200 singers which has achieved national recognition. He has collaborated with Tom Long for several very successful children's musicals, including The Three Trees, which our children's choirs have performed several times.

The composer of the communion anthem, Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us, is William Bradley Roberts is an Episcopal priest who is Professor of Church Music at Virginia Theological Seminary (Episcopal) in Alexandria. Previously he was Director of Music at St. John's, Lafayette Square, in Washington, D.C. Prior to this, he was in similar positions in Tucson, Ariz., Newport Beach, Calif., Louisville, Ky., and Houston, where he got his undergraduate degree at Houston Baptist University. 

The opening voluntary is a set of variations on the communion hymn, The King of Love My Shepherd Is. This Gaelic hymn tune appears in over 125 hymnals under the tune name St. Columba after the Irish abbot and missionary credited with spreading Christianity in the 6th century in what is today Scotland. He founded the important abbey on Iona. These variations were written by Don Lee Freudenburg, a Lutheran pastor and musician who served churches in New York State and Missouri.

The communion voluntary is a piano piece by Clara Wieck Schumann, a German musician, who was one of the leading pianists of the Romantic era, as well wife of composer Robert Schumann.

Clara Schumann was trained from the age of 5 with her father, the well-known piano teacher Friedrich Wieck. She had a brilliant career as a pianist from the age of 13 up to her marriage to Schumann which was opposed by her father.

Clara Schumann

She continued to perform and compose after the marriage even as she raised seven children. An eighth child died in infancy.  In fact, she was the main bread winner, making money by performing - often Robert Schumann's music. She continued to play not only for the financial stability, but because she wished not to be forgotten as a pianist. She had grown up performing and desired to continue performing. Robert Schumann, while admiring her talent, wanted a traditional wife to bear children and make a happy home, which in his eyes and the eyes of society were in direct conflict with the life of a performer. Furthermore, while she loved touring, Robert Schumann hated it and preferred to sit at the piano and compose.

Clara Schumann considered herself a performing artist rather than a composer and no longer composed after age 36. It is suggested that this may have been the consequence of the then prevalent negative opinions of women's ability to compose, which she largely believed as her statements show: "I once believed that I possessed creative talent, but I have given up this idea; a woman must not desire to compose - there has never yet been one able to do it. Should I expect to be the one?" 

However, today her compositions are increasingly performed and recorded. Her works include songs, piano pieces, a piano concerto, a piano trio, choral pieces, and three Romances for violin and piano. Inspired by her husband's birthday, the three Romances were composed in 1853 and dedicated to Joseph Joachim who performed them for George V of Hanover. He declared them a "marvelous, heavenly pleasure."

If you don't know the closing voluntary, go back under your rock. You may, however, think of it as the Trumpet Voluntary by Henry Purcell, but it is really the The Prince of Denmark's March written c. 1700 by English baroque composer Jeremiah Clarke (who was the first organist of the then newly rebuilt St Paul's Cathedral). I'm not going to tell the story here, but there is a fun piece in the Houston Press about Clarke which you can read here: Why you shouldnt play trumpet voluntary at your wedding.. I disagree. It's better than "Here comes the Bride." (and I KNOW you finished that title in your head.)

Music for Christmas Weekend 2016

December 24, 2016 – 4 PM

Pamela Saxon King, soloist
The Good Shepherd Bell Choir
The Good Shepherd Liturgical Dance Company

Vocal Music

• Mary, Did You Know? – Buddy Greene
• Do You Hear What I Hear? - Gloria Shayne Baker (1923 – 2008)

Instrumental Music

• Go, Tell It on the Mountain – Patricia A. Sanders
• Away in a Manger – Patricia A. Sanders
• Chorale partita on From heaven above to earth I come – Paul Manz
• I. Theme
• II. Allegro
• III. Andante Sostenuto
• IV. Allegro Moderato
• V. Adagio
• VI. Toccata

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

• Hymn 86 - O come, all ye faithful (Adeste Fidelis)
• Hymn 96 - Angels we have heard on high (Gloria)
• Hymn 115 - What child is this? (Greensleeves)
• Hymn 111 - Silent night, holy night (Stille Nacht)
• Hymn 99 - Go, tell it on the mountain (Go Tell It on the Mountain)

December 24, 2016 – 6:30 and 10 PM

The Good Shepherd Choir
Allison Gosney, soprano

Vocal Music

• Adam Lay Ybounden – Richard Shephard (b. 1949)
• What Is This Lovely Fragrance - Healey Willan (1880-1968)
• Hail, Blessed Virgin Mary – Italian Carol, arr. Charles Wood (1866-1926)
• Ding Dong, Merrily on High– French tune, arr. Charles Wood
• What Sweeter Musick - William Bradley Roberts (b. 1947)
• Ave Maria – César Franck (1822 – 1890)
• Christmas Joy - Mark Schweitzer (b. 1956)

Instrumental Music

• Chorale partita on From heaven above to earth I come – Paul Manz
• I. Theme
• II. Allegro
• III. Andante Sostenuto
• IV. Allegro Moderato
• VI. Toccata

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

• Hymn 86 - O come, all ye faithful (Adeste Fidelis)
• Hymn 96 - Angels we have heard on high (Gloria)
• Hymn 87 - Hark! the herald angels sing (Mendelssohn)
• Hymn 115 - What child is this? (Greensleeves)
• Hymn 79 - O little town of Bethlehem (St. Louis)
• Hymn 111- Silent night, holy night (Stille Nacht)
• Hymn 99- Go tell it on the mountain! (Go Tell It on the Mountain)

December 25, 2016 – 10:15 AM

Instrumental Music

• Good Christian Friends, Rejoice – Marcel Dupré (1886-1971)
• In the Bleak Midwinter—John Purifoy 
• O Little Town of Bethlehem – Jim Brickman (b. 1961)
• Prologue – Traditional, arr. Joseph W. Clokey (1890-1960)

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

• Hymn 107 - Good Christian friends, rejoice (In dulci jubilo)
• Hymn 96 - Angels we have heard on high (stanzas 1, 2, 3) (Gloria)
• Hymn 102 - Once in royal David’s city (Irby)
• Hymn 115 - What child is this? (Greensleeves)
• Hymn 100 – Joy to the world (Antioch )

Music for April 26, 2015 + The Fourth Sunday of Easter

Good Shepherd Sunday

Vocal Music

• Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us – William Bradley Roberts (b. 1947) 

Instrumental Music

• Prelude on “Brother James’s Air” – Searle Wright (1918-2004) 
• Cantabile - Alexandre Guilmant (1837-1911) 
• Allegro in D Minor – C. V. Stanford (1852-1924) 

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

• Hymn 518 Christ is made the sure foundation (Westminster Abbey)
• Hymn R-139 Halle, Halle, Hallelujah (Halle Halle)
• Hymn 304 I come with joy to meet my Lord (Land of Rest)
• Hymn 296 We know that Christ is raised and dies no more (Engleberg)

This Sunday, the fourth Sunday of Easter, is called the Good Shepherd Sunday, because of the scripture readings (John 10:11 - “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep") and the use of the 23rd Psalm, so it is the closest thing our congregation has to a Patronal Feast Day. For this Sunday the choir is repeating an anthem we sang last Fall by another friend of mine, William Bradley (Bill) Roberts. I encourage you to look at this earlier post to read about him and this piece. The only difference is that this time around, Matt Hawley is playing the flute part.

M. Searle Wright

In keeping with the Good Shepherd theme, I am opening the service with Searle Wright's setting of the tune BROTHER JAMES' AIR, which is most often used for the text, "The Lord's my shepherd." It was composed by James Leith Macbeth Bain, a Scottish healer, mystic, and poet known simply as Brother James. This well-loved tune is in bar form (AAB) with an unusual final phrase that ends on a high tonic note instead of a low note.

Wright has arranged this folk-like melody in three stanzas. For the first stanza he uses manuals only, with the melody in the soprano. The string stops on the organ are used. For the next stanza, he keeps the strings for the accompaniment, but puts the melody in the pedal on the English Horn. After a developmental section that goes through several minor keys before coming back to A Major, he presents the tune very much like the beginning, adding the bass notes in the pedal for the first A section of the tune, then putting the cantus firmus (the melody)in the tenor ranger with the crommorne for last half of the stanza.

M. Searle Wright was a composer, teacher and master of both classic and theater pipe organ. He died in his hometown of  Binghamton, N.Y. when he was 86.

The closing voluntary is Charles Villiers Stanford's Allegro in D minor, an energetic piece in 6/4 time, but with a general feel of two strong pulses to the bar. It is in a three part, ABA1 form, with three main sections: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. The exposition itself is in three parts, an aba form, with the b section using a new theme. That theme forms the basis of the second main section, the development section, which is now in D MAJOR. The final section, which is a recapitulation of the first section, switches between minor and major, before ending in that bright key of D Major.

Hymns

• Christ is made the sure foundation (WESTMINSTER ABBEY) This crowd-pleaser (for a crowd of Episcopalians) is set to a hymn tune adapted from Henry Purcell's choir anthem ‘O God, Thou are my God’. It was adapted as a hymn tune in 1842 by Ernest Hawkins, a Canon of Westminster Abbey where Purcell had been organist. It did not become popular however until it was sung at Princess Margaret’s wedding in the Abbey in 1960.
• Halle, Halle, Halle (Caribbean) 'Alleluia' (Hallelujah)  is a Hebrew word which means 'Praise the Lord'. 'Alleluias' may be sung at many times of the year but are traditionally not sung during the penitential season of Lent. 'Alleluia' is often sung before the Gospel reading in a communion service to show its importance. This lively setting of the Alleluia is from the Caribbean.
• I come with joy to meet my Lord (LAND OF REST) Brian A. Wren wrote this communion hymn to summarize a series of sermons on the meaning of the Lord's Supper, specifically as a post-sermon hymn to help illustrate the presence of Christ in the sacrament. He states that he wanted to express this "as simply as possible, in a way that would take the worshipper (probably without . . . recognizing it) from the usual individualistic approach to communion ('I come') to an understanding of its essential corporateness ('we'll go')."
• We know that Christ is raised and dies no more (ENGLEBERG) This hymn was written in 1967, when John B, Geyer was tutor at Cheshunt College, Cambridge.  At that time a good deal of work was going on in Cambridge producing living cells ("the baby in the test tube"). The hymn attempted to illustrate the Christian doctrine of baptism in relation to those experiments. You'll recognize the tune as the same tune for "When In Our Music God Is Glorified," though it was written for "For All the Saints"!

Music for October 12, 2014 + The Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Vocal Music

• O Taste and See – Richard DeLong (1951-1994)
• Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us – William Bradley Roberts (b. 1947)

Instrumental Music

• Basse de Trompette - Jean-François Dandrieu (1682-1738)
• Deck Thyself, My Soul, With Gladness - Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
• Rigaudon - André Campra (1660-1744)

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

• Hymn 7 - Christ, whose glory fills the skies (RATISBON)
• Hymn 645 - The King of love my shepherd is (ST. COLUMBA)
• Hymn 383 - Fairest Lord Jesus (ST. ELIZABETH)
• Hymn 321 - My God, thy table now is spread (ROCKINGHAM)
• Hymn 556 - Rejoice, ye pure in heart (MARION)

Dr. William Bradley Roberts

The things you learn writing (and researching) a blog about your music. For instance: this Sunday we are going to sing one of the anthems from last week's Diocesan Choral Festival, a simple but beautiful piece by a friend of mine, Bill Roberts. I had met Bill several years ago at the Mississippi Conference on Church Music and Liturgy and strengthened that friendship through the avenue of Facebook. It was not until looking up pertinent information about him  (read: his birth-year) that I learned he was a graduate of Houston Baptist University. The Rev. Dr. Roberts is currently Professor of Church Music at Virginia Theological Seminary and Director of Chapel Music there, so you can imagine my surprise to find out that not only is he an alum of HBU, but was also ordained as a Baptist minister! He is now, however, thoroughly Episcopalian, having served as music director of some of the country's largest and most active Episcopal congregations.

We are singing his setting of the hymn text, Savior, like a shepherd lead us, which employs a lilting melody in compound triple meter. The addition of a flute (played by Ruth Clark) on the second stanza really adds to the pastoral feel that one would expect for a song about a shepherd.

Richard DeLong

Our other anthem was written by another friend of mine from my SMU days, Richard Delong, Richard was an organist, harpsichordist, conductor, composer, and clinician, from Mansfield, Ohio, before he moved to Dallas, Texas in 1973 to attend Southern Methodist University, where he received the degrees of Master of Music and Master of Sacred Music. He served as director of music for East Dallas Christian Church and St. Matthew's Episcopal Cathedral before being appointed Director of Music for the Roman Catholic parish of St. Mark the Evangelist, in Plano, Texas, a position he held until his death.  He was an exquisite choral conductor, and his choirs rivaled any choir at home or abroad.

His work as a composer became recognized nationally following the premiere of his "Deus Creator Omnium" at the opening of the 1985 Regional American Guild of Organists convention in Providence, RI. His own choir sang the premiere performances of nearly 100 choral works. His anthem, O Taste and See, was published in 1992. It is a superb a cappella motet on the text from Psalm 34. It has a harmonic language with really requires the choir to listen and tune to each other.