Three Songs for the End

(tenor, piano, and horn)

Program Notes

            Three Songs for the End began in an undergraduate choral arranging class, where I was tasked to take an assigned hymntune (in this case, “Land of Rest”) and pair it with an piano and solo instrument accompaniment. Since I knew a fabulous horn player, I wrote it for horn, choir, and piano. “Jerusalem, My Happy Home” was, unfortunately, quickly revised for solo voice, as I dedicated it to my dear friend’s father, and then performed it at his funeral.

            In my master’s program, another friend—a fabulous tenor—asked for an arrangement of “There Is a Balm in Gilead,” and I, remembering “Jerusalem, My Happy Home,” asked if I could write him a set. This is the result of that collaboration.

            “Jerusalem, My Happy Home” uses spacious harmonies and diatonic dissonances, as well as complex rhythms to highlight the simple, moving tune. The horn initially represents the trumpet, sounding on the last day, and evolves to become a separate voice, singing alongside the soloist. “There Is a Balm in Gilead” makes use of a technique I frequently see in the music of Mack Wilberg, where an obligato motif permeates an entire composition in unexpected ways. In this arrangement, the obligato is in the horn, and presents a sort of counterpoint with the melody. Again, the piano is spare and spacious throughout. “Jesus Loves Me” provides a rousing conclusion to the set (since sets should have three songs in them, right?). I always found this song to be trite and usually sung in the most insipid way, which is a shame, given the profundity of the text. So, I chose to give it a virtuosic, rhythmically complex piano accompaniment and a rousing horn descant. It also sits intentionally high in the tessitura of the voice, as a boisterous, joyful exclamation.

I. Jerusalem, My Happy Home [PDF}