The Liturgical Church Music of Kenneth Leighton, Part 2

Dr. Peter Hardwick is a retired music professor who, during his career, taught at the University of Guelph, Guelph, and Agincourt Collegiate Institute, Toronto, Ontario. In addition, he served as organist of St. John’s Cathedral, Winnipeg, Manitoba, and St. George’s Church, Guelph.

In 2003, Scarecrow Press published his book British Organ Music of the Twentieth Century. Over the last two and a half years he has been writing a monograph on the life and music of Kenneth Leighton, which will probably be finished sometime this year. Dr. Hardwick has written feature articles and numerous reviews of recordings and organ music for The Diapason

Kenneth Leighton was born on October 2, 1929, at Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. His formal education was at Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield (1940-47) and Queen’s College, the University of Oxford (1947-51). He continued his composition studies privately with Goffredo Petrassi in Rome (March-September, 1951). Leighton was principally a composer, but he also appeared quite frequently as a concert pianist, and he gave the first performances of a number of his own piano works. In addition, he was a highly regarded teacher of composition. Except for two years as a lecturer and fellow at Worcester College, Oxford (1968-70), he taught composition in the Faculty of Music at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, from 1956 until his death on August 24, 1988.1

Musical training

The composer was involved with church music throughout his life. In his childhood, the Leighton family were parishioners of Holy Trinity Anglican Church in downtown Wakefield, and Kenneth sang in the choir there, as did his father and brother. In 1938, he gained admittance to the Wakefield Cathedral Choir. Years later, the composer reminisced that

 . . . my career as a Cathedral chorister left some of the most vivid impressions in my mind of that time of life. I didn’t particularly ask to become a chorister . . . but my father had sung in church choirs all his life, my brother had been a choral scholar before me, and it seemed the most natural thing in the world--nobody questioned it--that I should follow in their footsteps. Unlike my brother I didn’t have much of a voice, I fear, and I would never have made a soloist--but I was able to sing reasonably in tune, and I was able to sight-read; and so I became one of those worthy and stalwart leaders at the bottom end of the stalls--hooting away with not a very strong voice--but to be relied on in moments of crisis. . . .

As far as the repertoire it was pretty wide for those days--we sang some Palestrina, we sang the old favourites--Noble in B minor, Walmisley in D minor, and the Stanford (all fine music in its own right--and thank God that we are getting over our prejudices against the Victorian and Edwardian church music)--and we also sang what was then the latest thing--Darke in F minor--a most exciting experience--Warlock carols, and even a piece by Britten which I didn’t like very much because it seemed so outrageously modern and cacophonous. And then there were many great occasions like the Stanford TE DEUM with Trumpets and Drums--and [Handel’s] Messiah for the first time. I was so completely overwhelmed--emotionally--by the Messiah that I was completely unable to control myself and had to escape from the stalls half way through. Curiously enough I have never heard the Messiah since.

On the whole what an extraordinary richness of musical experience it all was--and what a marvellous musical training!2

Wakefield Cathedral was a High Church of England establishment, and during these years, the composer had his first taste of plainsong. He clearly liked the old chants, and later they were sometimes used verbatim in his compositions. In other works, original themes cast in the plainsong mold were introduced. In the Cathedral Choir, he also sang sacred Tudor polyphonic music, which impressed him,3 and he used a modernized version of the cut and thrust of this style in his own counterpoint later.

In 1947, he was awarded a Hastings Exhibition to study Classics at Queen’s College, Oxford, and a year later he gained permission to continue with Classics, but to also focus principally on music under the direction of the Queen’s College music lecturer, Bernard Rose. Vaughan Williams, Walton, and Britten were Leighton’s idols at this time, and they were to have an effect on his music to a limited degree during the next few years. He learned much during his Oxford music studies, but perhaps the only lasting skill that he acquired was his immense contrapuntal technique.

During his six months of composition studies with Petrassi in 1951, Leighton became more aware of modern Continental musical styles, especially those of Bartók, Hindemith, Stravinsky, as well as the techniques of the Second Viennese School’s serial procedures, and, thereafter, Leighton adopted a much more highly chromatic, mid 20th-century style.

Compositional style

However, he did not adopt one style thereafter for all his compositions. For instance, the choral music, including the works for church services, is quite conservative. In the sacred scores, links with traditional musical style are maintained, yet they sound modern. He achieves this partly by retaining elements of tonal and modal music, while making little use of conventional functional harmony and key signatures. The highly dissonant chords, including cluster chords, in the sacred music have a modern ring to them, but most of these are coincidental, the result of linear counterpoint, not, primarily, vertical thinking.4 At least occasionally, in most of the church pieces Leighton likes to cadence on diatonic chords, which help underline his adherence to tonal/modal traditions. There is also a conventional versus forward-looking ambivalence in the voice leading in Leighton’s church music. This is the result of the contours of the vocal lines being essentially conventional, while at the same time there is a liking for such “dissonant” leaps as augmented fourths and major sevenths.

Almost a third of the ninety-six published works in The Kenneth Leighton Trust’s Opus Index are for use in church services. They consist of nineteen anthems, motets and carols; ten masses and communion services; eight canticles for matins and evensong; one set of preces and responses; five hymn tunes; and two hybrid works that may be sung at the Mass or as concert works.5

Like most 20th-century English church composers, he generally wrote for a four-part all-male choir consisting of trebles, altos, tenors, and basses, and quite frequently called for one or more vocal soloists. In his fondness for centuries-old poetry and prose of the highest literary quality, he showed decided insight into what words blended best with his elevated, emotionally intense musical style. In particular, he set many passages from the King James I version of The Holy Bible of 1611, and the Church of England’s The Book of Common Prayer, whose origins may be traced to 1552. The other old British religious writers whose work he set include Robert Herrick (1592-1674), George Herbert (1593-1633), Sir Thomas Browne (1605-82), Isaac Watts (1674-1748), and Christopher Smart (1722-71).

The organ parts in the church music are idiomatic and important, yet Leighton was not fond of the instrument. He revealed his feelings as early as 1952, when, after playing the new organ in Wakefield Cathedral, he wrote: “It is a very large instrument with five manuals but . . . I don’t like the organ very much. On this instrument, one can produce magnificent effects but I find it incapable of expressing those fine feelings which are the secret of a truly human music. It is an instrument without heart.”6 His reservations were reinforced later when he heard the criticisms of British Romantic/Orchestral instruments of his colleague in the Edinburgh University Faculty of Music, the celebrated organ historian, Peter F. Williams.7

Three Carols

Among the earliest works in the genre is the miniature a cappella Three Carols, Op. 25 (1948-56), for soprano soloist and SATB choir. The modality, occasional open fifth chords, and Picardy third cadences match well the archaic English language and imagery of the texts.

These points are illustrated in the second carol, titled Lully, Lulla, Thou Little Tiny Child. One of the composer’s most celebrated sacred choral works, it echoes, characteristic of his music of the late 1940s, with the style of Vaughan Williams. There is much word painting. For example, the introductory gentle rocking motion of the ostinato musical phrases, as the choir repeatedly sings the words “Lully, Lulla, thou little tiny child,” paints an intimate scene of Mary lovingly, and with gentleness, caring for the baby Jesus in the cradle. The music’s Mixolydian modal harmony enriched with seventh chords, and two cadences containing a Picardy third, enhances the ancient ambiance of the old words. In addition, the waves of close position concordant triadic upper vocal lines over a pedal in the bass capture in sound the image of the nativity scene, with the mother rocking her child to sleep in her arms. (Example 1)

In the second strophe, a loud setting of the words “Herod the king, In his raging, . . . All children young to slay,” the mood changes from the idyllic happiness of verse one to deadly chilliness. This iciness reaches a peak at the word “slay,” which is sung to a dissonant forzato chord consisting of two simultaneous augmented fourths.

With verse three, a setting of words beginning “That woe is me, Poor child for thee!,” there is an abrupt return to the mystical, cradle-song style of the first verse. The choir softly performs a varied version of the music heard at the start of the carol, with the harmony consisting of leisurely paced block chords, embellished with faster moving harmonic and non-harmonic tones. Over this rich four-part choral writing, the soprano soloist effortlessly floats a soaring obbligato line. The juxtaposition of contrasting sonorities, textures, and moods, such as exists in the three verses of Lully, Lulla, Thou Little Tiny Child, is a hallmark of Leighton’s style.

Works of the 1960s

The anthem Give Me the Wings of Faith (1962) is a setting of the All Saints’ Day hymn text of the same title by Isaac Watts. The performing forces are typical of much of the church music the composer wrote in the 1960s: soprano and baritone soloists, SATB choir, and organ. Overall, the anthem is written in a lean, prickly, non-functional harmonic language in which there tend to be many transient dissonances.

There is a mental struggle in Give Me the Wings of Faith, and the mood is complex. At the start, the tone is one of uncertainty and anxiety. Leighton seems to have found disturbing the notions of the human soul rising above into heaven and seeing the saints, who had, like us in our time, wrestled with sins, doubts, and fears. This is depicted in the soprano solo “Give me the wings of faith,” in which the organ accompaniment slithers snake-like in small chromatic intervals. However, the depressing mood, while never completely dispelled in the work, gradually gives way to a more optimistic tone as the saints find their eternal rest through Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross. The somewhat triumphant final section, which is perhaps best described as being “on” D major, rather than in that key (even though the D major key signature is used), is launched by the baritone soloist singing “They marked the footsteps that he trod” to a bold, wide-ranged melody. This theme is developed at length chorally, and the choir closes with a triumphant chordal setting of “Our glorious Leader claims our praise.” However, the full organ alone has the last word, blazing out majestically, yet with a trace of nervous uncertainty, on a B minor chord with an added C sharp.

A hallmark of Leighton’s style is idiomatic writing for voice, and this is certainly true in Give Me the Wings of Faith. The same could be said of the organ, whose role is to contribute to the singers’ word painting, and provide a continuous web of sound that links up the choral sections. A fondness is evident for flowing manual lines that have chains of parallel perfect fourths and fifths, supported by slower moving pedal parts.

His only arrangements of preexistent church music are O Leave Your Sheep (1962) and Wassail All Over the Town (1964).8 O Leave Your Sheep is a setting of the four-strophe French traditional carol text of the same title, and the tune with which it is usually associated, Quittez Pasteurs. For SATB choir and organ, the work is uncharacteristic of Leighton’s mature style in its tonal idiom, and the scaled-down technical demands. As such, it is accessible to the amateur choir and organist. The preexistent melody undergoes a limited amount of variation after the first verse, and is easily recognizable throughout. Verse one, in F major, is sung by a soprano soloist or by all the sopranos, with a light and transparent organ accompaniment that is almost entirely in the treble clef. In verse two, which is in D major, the melody is treated to four-voice imitation, with sustained organ chords in the bass register. The D minor, a cappella third verse is much more ruminative, almost improvisatory, and the preexistent melody is treated more freely. After this section of relative repose, an energetic mood is introduced by the staccato, highly rhythmic organ introduction to the last verse, and this is followed by imitative entries of the voices. The chordal vocal writing gradually increases in excitement and becomes exultant, while the organ accompaniment adds further to the joyous sound with long flowing chains of parallel thirds in the manuals over sustained bass notes in the pedals. O Leave Your Sheep ends ecstatically with a più largo block chord phrase and perfect cadence in D major alla Handel for choir and organ.

The ten-minute setting of the matins canticle Te Deum Laudamus (1964) for soprano and baritone soli, SATB chorus, and organ, is arguably one of Leighton’s first great liturgical masterpieces. It marked a major confluence in the development of the composer, where, at last, his creative inspiration was matched by his mastery of the tools of his profession.

Most of the hallmarks of his style are present in the work. Among these elements is the taste for soloists, with the traditional Church of England SATB choir and organ. Other aspects of his style, already noted in previous works, that are also found here include a freely dissonant, non-functional harmonic idiom; plainsong-like melismatic vocal embellishments; masterly imitative counterpoint and abundant word painting.

The opening is a good example of the style. Over a series of held, close-position cluster chords on the organ, each of which begins with a Scotch snap articulation, the soprano soloist declaims the words “We praise thee” over and over again, “praise” being embellished more elaborately with each repetition, much along the lines of settings of joyous words in Gregorian chant. One by one the choir sections enter and rise in excited acclamation as they surge forward to the first loud grand climax, a moment endowed with a sense of glorious revelation, at the word “everlasting” on an F major chord.

There is a lull in the rejoicing at the words “When thou tookest upon thee to deliver man: thou didst not abhor the Virgin’s womb,” which are set in a polymetric,9 syllabic style reminiscent of ancient chant.

The counterpoint is frequently linear and imitative, supported by a foundation of rhythmic figuration in the organ accompaniment. This may be seen, for example, in the setting of “When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death” (bars 83-91). Cruelly painful cut-and-thrust imitative counterpoint, in which simultaneous seconds create flashes of hard sharp dissonance, are heard over a backdrop of vaguely menacing syncopated, rhythmic detached chords in the organ manuals, and a more sustained pedal line. (Example 2)

The ancestry of such musical pathos might be traced to the choral settings of similar texts by late Renaissance and early Baroque English composers, such as Tallis, Byrd, and Weelkes. In passing, one might also mention the two-part polyphony in Example 2: sopranos and tenors singing the same line in octaves, altos and basses singing the other line in octaves. This was a type of doubling of pairs of voices at the octave that Vaughan Williams had utilized in contrapuntal passages in, for example, his Te Deum in G (1928), O How Amiable (1934), and the Benedicite (1939).10 Britten also wrote passages like this in such works as Antiphon (1956), a setting of sacred words by George Herbert for choir (with optional soloists) and organ. The Te Deum appears to be the first work in which Leighton used this texture. He was to use it many times in his subsequent church music, partly, one might suspect, because it sounds effective, but also because two parts are easier to sing than four parts, and this offers relief from singing in four real parts.

The bustle of the setting of “When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death” ends dramatically with fortissimo cluster chords on the organ that create a cacophony of sound, followed by general pause. After the silence, a volcanic blast of sound erupts as choir and organ present the words “We believe that thou shalt come to be our Judge.” Leighton obviously is struck with grave misgivings, possibly fear, at the thought of the Last Judgment, and the music of this short, highly dissonant passage, marked Lento sostenuto and fortississimo, is pervaded with a sense of bewildering awe mingled with anxiety. The emotionally distraught mood is initiated by a loud, low pedal point on the organ pedals, and twisting, snake-like chromatic counterpoint in the manuals. Then the voices enter in a five-part stretto-like point of imitation. (Example 3)

An element of prayerful hopefulness ensues at the start of the last section of the work, as the baritone soloist sings softly and with contrition in a plainsong-like chanting style “We therefore pray thee help thy servants.” The setting of “Day by day we worship thy Name: ever world without end” is bright and joyful, but this is halted abruptly by a sense of dread and fear in an acridly dissonant chord at the word “sin” in the phrase “Vouchsafe, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin.” With reminiscences of the organ music with its Scotch snap rhythms that had been heard at the opening of the composition, the choir then presents “O Lord, have mercy upon us” with very expressive, pianissimo, ethereal phrases. Finally, after the choir’s last, prayerful entreaty, “O Lord, in thee have I trusted, let me never be confounded,” the organ ends the work with a whispered F-sharp major chord.

Less than a year after the Te Deum Laudamus, Leighton wrote an anthem on George Herbert’s hymn text Let All the World in Every Corner Sing (1965) for SATB choir and organ. Since both the Te Deum and Let All the World texts are joyous, and the pieces were composed close to each other, it is hardly surprising to note similarities between them. For example, at the start of the anthem he uses the two-voice canonic imitative style between the altos and basses singing the same line in octaves simultaneously, and the paired sopranos and tenors in octaves simultaneously, that was noted in the Te Deum. Such two-voice canonic imitation appears several times in the anthem, and there are also several passages in which, in like fashion, the four voice parts divide into pairs singing in octaves, though not in imitation.

In the first section, the organ has staccato, fragmented phrases against which the voices joust. As in the Te Deum, there is a departure from conventional, rhythmically square, metric writing. This occurs in the short polymetric setting of the words “The heavens are not too high, His praises may thither fly,” where the music slips quickly from 3/4+3/8 to 4/4, 7/8, 4/4, and 7/8, before settling in 4/4. (Example 4)

In the concluding passage of the anthem, the words and a variation of the music of the opening return in the manner of a recapitulation. However, here there is a much greater sense of excitement, of breathtaking denouement. Contributing to this sense of rousing celebration is the thickening choral texture to five parts, with the sopranos dividing into two parts, and all the voices being called upon to sing in their upper ranges. The organ also adds to the drive to climax. Far more flamboyant and bombastic than at the opening of the anthem, the instrument’s assertive role is to provide rhythmic excitement with short motivic groupings of ejaculatory cluster chords, punctuated by short general rests. In addition, the organ has numerous short joyous rushing ascending scales that are reminiscent, possibly, of one of Leighton’s musical heroes, Howells, who was fond of these embellishing figures as an expression of joy in his church music organ parts. After so much astringent dissonance, the organ brings down the curtain on the anthem with an appropriately shrill, dissonant chord: C-sharp and D major chords played simultaneously--in effect the simultaneous sounding of tonic and dominant harmony, a tonally ambiguous ending.

First Masses

In the 1960s Leighton composed his first Masses: Missae Sancti Thomae, Op. 40 (1962), Mass, Op. 44 (1964), Communion Service in D, Op. 45 (1965), and Missa Brevis, Op. 50 (1967).

The twenty-six-minute Mass, Op. 44, for double mixed chorus, is arguably a masterpiece. The first of only two Latin Masses by the composer,11 it is a cappella, except the Credo, which calls for organ, and is in the Palestrina style, as seen through a 20th-century prism. Among the innumerable remarkable passages in the Mass is the opening of the Kyrie Eleison, which starts with a solo voice singing in the minor mode, and surges irresistibly to an immense, fortississimo climax for double chorus at bar 17. The passage’s penitential, bittersweet opening that quickly changes to a great paean of confident optimism is so characteristic of Leighton’s mercurial nature. (Example 5)

An Easter Sequence, Op. 55 (1968) is a fourteen-minute piece in five movements, for boys’ or female voices and organ with optional trumpet. Considering the crème de la crème choir for which the work was written,12 one might have expected a more technically demanding, showy composition. In fact, the vocal writing is tonal; the melodic contours conventional, and there are no gallery-pleasing virtuosic fast melismatic lines. Nor is the organ part especially difficult. In the absence of a trumpeter, the solo trumpet part may be played on a trumpet stop, if one is available on the organ being used.

An Easter Sequence is not a sequence in one of the traditional music history or theory meanings of the word. It is a homogeneous series of pieces,13 setting in English of four Roman Catholic liturgical texts and Psalm 23.14 If the five movements are performed at Mass, they are to be sung as the Introit, Gradual, Offertory, Communion, and Sortie. The work may also be sung on the concert platform.

One may notice similarities between An Easter Sequence and Britten’s Missa Brevis in D (1959) for three-part boys voices and organ, written for the boys of Westminster Cathedral Choir. As in Britten’s composition, there is much three-part writing for the voices, though single- and two-part music is more common. Several passages of canon-like imitation, and a number of ostinatos in the organ accompaniment in Leighton’s work are also Brittenesque.15 In addition, like Britten, the Yorkshireman is especially adept at word painting. For example, he captures the mostly joyous Introit text, “Alleluia. Rejoice in God our helper: Sing aloud to the God of Jacob,” with buoyant, dancing vocal lines that leap lightly, and with staccato articulation. See also the setting of Jesus’ words “Peace be with you” in the Gradual. This music is ethereal, and consists of a soft, glossy, heavenly halo of sustained four-part chords--the only four-part phrase in the composition. The pastoral imagery of Psalm 23 is captured immediately in the opening gentle, reflective organ solo. The melody, in the organist’s right hand, is a chromatic, sinuous, rhythmically complex line oscillating within a narrow pitch range. The left hand accompaniment consists of a close-position cluster-chord that undergoes slight alterations over a pedal point.

In the Sortie, the organ part is much heavier and dominant than in the earlier movements, and it shines forth in a most thrilling manner. This is illustrated in the instrument’s slow improvisatory introductory solo section, with its chromatic, serpentine lines. Then the main section of the movement begins, in the style of a very fast fanfare for voices, organ, and trumpet. Against a backdrop of brightly registered, rhythmic, often stabbing organ chords, the choir, in unison throughout, declaims in brief snappy phrases “God is ascended in jubilee,” and short trumpet obbligato phrases rasp out as the choir sings “and the Lord in the sound of the trumpet” in short, motivic, rhythmic fanfares.

This material is heard again in the coda of the Sortie. First, a greatly transformed variant of the chromatic organ introduction to the movement is presented over a pedal C. Then, the choir sings the stirring vocal fanfare-like phrases “God is ascended, and the Lord in the sound of the trumpet” that were heard early in the movement, while the organ pursues its own path of syncopated, rhythmic, stabbing, highly dissonant manual chords. As so often happens with Leighton, the organ (with trumpet) has the last words: an emotionally gripping tonic C major chord combined with the dominant chord.        

This article will be continued.

In the Three Motets of Serenity 2000), Nine Marian Anthems,and Five Motets in Honour of the Trinity (composed 2000; both still manuscripts), Mawby expresses more overtly than usual a deeply felt nostalgia for the earlier part of his life.31 The quoting of plainsong and composing chant-like melodies suggest his retrospective mood. Another clue is that all these works are a cappella settings of traditional Latin texts, the four-part mixed choir frequently dividing, sometimes into as many as eight parts. The Nine Marian Anthems and Five Motets in Honour of the Trinity  are written for specified days of the Catholic Church's Year, but the Three Motets of Serenity may be performed on any occasion deemed appropriate.

The Three Motets of Serenity are dedicated to the memory of Cardinal John Heenan, Archbishop of Westminster between 1963 and 1975, a period that coincided with most of Mawby's tenure of the Master of the Music position there. For SSAATTBB choir, they are based on three of Mawby's favorite plainsong tunes, which he describes as "superb, evocative and compelling [and] . . . central to the motets."32 In performance they should be treated as serene "musical prayer[s]," should sound unrushed, and display a chant-like meditative quality.33

Organ Music

Mawby had written no organ solos by the age of fifty-five, but Kevin Mayhew had a hunch that there was an as yet untapped vein of talent in that direction in the composer, and offered to publish any that he might care to produce. He had a strong background in organ, having been a fine organist as a boy, and, as was noted earlier, had majored in the instrument at the Royal College of Music. During the years as a church musician he had, on occasions, played for services, and had written many choral works with organ accompaniments. Thus it is not surprising that Mayhew's insight proved correct. What was unexpected was the heavy flow of pieces that poured from Mawby's pen once he started in 1991.

Unique among English organ composers, Mawby has written almost exclusively for church services.34 This may be explained by the role the instrument has played in his life. When he worked for the Roman Catholic Church, he occasionally performed on the organ, but primarily he was a choirmaster, and assistants usually played the instrument. Thus, he tends to see the instrument as a major adjunct to worship, as the provider of accompaniments for vocal music, the creator of "walking music," the furnisher of music to fill awkward silences, and generally supply background music at appropriate mo-ments in services. At the same time, though, he appreciates and values highly the traditional solo repertoire of the instrument. "Organ music," he says, "has a unique power which can move people deeply."35

The scores indicate that he thinks, broadly, in terms of a traditional large, four-manual, Romantic, orchestral instrument, such as the one built between the World Wars by Henry Willis at Westminster Cathedral.36 At least one enclosed division is necessary for the execution of the crescendos and diminuendos that are a part of Mawby's style. There should also be a supply of accessories, in order to realize the occasional terrace dynamics, the gradual orchestral-style piling up of power, and various other dynamic fluctuations within a piece. He quite regularly marks melodies to be soloed, without usually specifying specific stops. The one exception is that he sometimes marks entries of the tuba at climactic moments, a reflection of his lifelong love of the sound of the tuba at Westminster which is sui generis, a rank on thirty inches wind with an agreeable rasp about it, a sort of "edge." In the tradition of early 20th-century English organ composers,37 in loud passages he will sometimes call for a tuba solo in the tenor register in the left hand to roar out within a texture provided by the pedal and right hand. Less frequently, the tuba is given a soprano solo or plays chordal fanfare phrases.

Very prominent in his organ music are verbatim fragments of plainsong melodies or plainsong-like themes and phrases. This reflects his fondness for plainsong that he has felt ever since he sang the ancient chants for the first time at the age of nine.38 His organ works are usually between two to four pages in length, and are for performance by average to good church organists. Homophonic textures are the norm, as is the developing of material in a free, improvisatory manner that usually does not conform to one of the traditional organ forms. His music is almost completely free of the influence of the major organ composers past or present. Thus, there are no preludes and fugues, passacaglias, or sonatas, and hardly any of the other types of pieces favored by organists, such as toccatas, scherzos, intermezzi, and arias. Most of his pieces have been inspired by sacred texts or images, or have been written for situations in church services where organ music is useful, such as processionals, recessionals, and, as noted above, music to fill awkward silences during the service.

The first works, Quiet-Time: Fifteen Interludes for Organ (1991), follow, at least in spirit if not musical details, down the path blazed by his friend, Gregory Murray, in his monumental seven-volume collection of Short Organ Interludes for Liturgical Use (published between 1935 and 1987).39 Mawby's miniatures are untitled except for being numbered, are printed on two staves for an organ with two manuals and pedal, and employ modality, and plainsong or pseudo plainsong mel-odies. One may see an indication of Mawby's future mature organ style in the spirituality of the Quiet-Time interludes, but the pieces occasionally lack the flow and sense of inevitability that surrounds the better pieces that were written later.  Chords frequently fluctuate from four to five and six parts and sometimes more. Dissonances are frequent, quite often being those created by seventh and ninth chords, added seconds, and voice leading that is not always concerned with consonant vertical alignments.

With the trilogy Gregorian Calendar: Thirty Contrasting Pieces for Organ Based on Plainsong Melodies (1993), Gregorian Communion:  Twenty Pieces for Organ Based on Plainsong Melodies (1995), and Gregorian Processionals:  Twenty Pieces for Organ Based on Plainsong Melodies (1996) Mawby supplied a large collection of pieces for the organ in its role as a major adjunct to worship.

Gregorian Calendar comprises works of between two and four pages length for use throughout the liturgical year. Each season has one loud and one soft voluntary, and six shorter pieces for general use are attached at the end of the book. In the Foreword, Mawby says "the chant's rich variety of moods and modes [provided] a generous reference point from which to explore the inherent prayerfulness of the music." Entire Gregorian melodies are used as the basis of some pieces. Others, like the composition based on the All Saints Day plainsong Placare Christe Servulis, are built from one or more Gregorian fragments.

Placare Christe Servulis is developed from the first six tones of the chant. At the outset, the pentatonic plainsong fragment, set in 7/8 time, is enunciated four times, unaccompanied, in the rich soprano register of the tuba, and thereafter reappears periodically throughout the work, each statement being regenerated by some type of transformation. Characteristic of many of Mawby's organ pieces, in Placare Christe Servulis he writes what appears to be a newly-composed melody that is, in fact, derived from the plainsong motif introduced in bar one. Example 8 shows a version of this tune in the right hand part at bars 28-31. Reflecting the unmetered nature of plainsong, the main meter of 7/8, which Mawby usually divided in eighth notes as follows:  3 + 2 + 2 (see bars 32-33), is disturbed by regular changes of time signature, thus disrupting any lengthy impression of metric rhythm. This allows the plainsong style to pervade the piece, and also enervates the forward thrust of the music because it is rhythmically unpredictable. The triads are often larded with seconds and sevenths, less frequently ninths (bar 31), and, occasionally, elevenths (bars 32-33). These added tones create a different acoustical dimension from conventional triadic harmony, a more dissonant accompanimental foundation for his tunes. The off the cuff patchwork of contrasting ideas in Placare Christe Servulis, often heard over pedal points, suggests that the work was originally improvised and then written down.

The methods of Gregorian Calendar continued in Gregorian Communion  and Gregorian Processionals. This may be seen, for instance, in the dreamy improvisational chorale prelude on Adore te devote in Gregorian Communion. Although soloed statements of the opening line of the plainsong are heard near the beginning, and there is a presentation of the second half of the hymn tune near the end, the focus of Mawby's interest is in subtly weaving short phrases of the Gregorian melody into the delicately meandering, dreamy harmonies.  The essence of his use of ancient chants is that he likes one to hear snatches of motifs derived from the original theme, but only rarely quotes them unchanged and entirely. The accompanying left hand and pedal parts of the Adore te devote setting are concordant with the right hand much of the time, but extremely strident cluster chords occasionally result when preeminence is given to the horizontal movement of the parts.

With Hymns for Occasions for Manuals (One Hundred Special Arrangements) and More Hymns for Occasions for Manuals (One Hundred Special Arrangements) (both 1997) Mawby joined the ranks of such 20th-century English composers as Tertius Noble, Edward Bairstow, Eric Thiman, Henry Coleman, Harrison Oxley, Richard Lloyd, and Noel Rawsthorne, all of whom have contributed collections of varied keyboard accompaniments to hymn tunes sung by a church congregation. The above long list of composers suggests that the field was already crowded before Mawby added his arrangements, but some of the earlier collections were hardly usable because they never rose above the mundane and, by the 1990s, others had become old-fashioned.

Furthermore, Mawby's are different from the collections by the men listed above in that he provides more than simply a single varied accompaniment for each hymn. Each starts with an introduction for organ solo that captures the mood of the words and melody of the hymn, and this leads without break into two organ accompaniments for the congregational singing, the first a standard harmonization of the hymn tune, with first ending, marked dal segno, for repeating the same music for more verses, the second ending leading into the last verse, which is a more complex harmonization. Dovetailed into the end of the hymn proper is a concluding flourish of a few bars for the keyboard alone that is often a development of the introduction material. The organist chooses all or part of each arrangement as befits the occasion.

Much of the harmony is conventional four-part hymn style, but the composer is clearly attracted to the tension-creating attributes of dissonance, and he indulges with abandon his liking for this element in the varied accompaniments for the last verses. The end of the setting of  Crimond, shown in Example 9, illustrates the point. Several of the dissonances in this passage are traditional nonharmonic embellishing tones, such as the appoggiatura at bar 42 in the left hand part, and the suspension at bar 44 in the right hand, both of which resolve downwards by step. Dissonant clashes occur between the tonic pedal point and the manual harmony at bars 43-46, and there are numerous mildly dissonant seventh chords that are redolent of the musical theater style of Lloyd Webber.

Some of the touches of chromaticism that ratchet up the element of surprise and excitement in the varied harmonizations for last verses involve seventh chords. See, for instance, the secondary dominant seventh chord at bar 40, the diminished seventh chord at bar 41, and the half diminished seventh chords on the dominant at bars 44, 46, and 50 in Example 9. The major chord on the flattened mediant at bar 49 is a chromatic touch that some may feel is quite exhilarating.

Hymns for Occasions and More Hymns for Occasions are written with a sense of bold confidence and sheer enjoyment, coupled with thrilling, often unexpected delightful harmonic ventures, and they may well revive stale choirs and congregations who have become bored hymn singers.40

Given the above inspired arrangements of hymns, it is something of a disappointment that the composer has chosen to write almost all the twenty or so voluntaries on hymn tunes41 in the improvisational, homophonic, formally free style of the Gregorian trilogy discussed earlier. William Lloyd Webber was particularly fond of the style for some of his pieces based on hymn tunes.42 But he avoided the sameness of Mawby's compositions by sometimes using techniques and forms of the past, such as imitative counterpoint including canon,43 writing alla Bach,44 and casting the music in one of the chorale prelude forms.45 Yet this is not to say that one cannot commend some of the Mawby hymn preludes. Unto Us Is Born a Son (1994) and O Filii et Filiae (1995), for example, are vibrant and alive, and entirely convincing.

Unto Us Is Born a Son is so intensely joyous and melodious, and enriched with warm seventh chords and chromaticisms, that one might not notice the art concealing art, for the preexistent melody is subjected to continuous development, without any sense of it being an intellectual, technical study. The old Christmas tune traditionally associated with this text appears in a multitude of guises. Sometimes it is heard as a soprano melody with or without intervallic or rhythmic modification.  In one ruminative soft passage, there are vague reminiscences of the carol theme showing up fleetingly in a melismatic right-hand solo, accompanied by whole-note chords in the left hand, over a long pedal point. In the growing excitement leading to the closing apotheosis, parts of the Unto Us Is Born a Son melody appear in an inner part over an extended tonic pedal point. At the start of this passage, the first and third phrases of the preexistent melody are stated without break. Then the first two phrases of the hymn tune are presented in a particularly grand and "in the face" manner in augmentation, enunciated in stentorian, raspy tuba chords in the left hand, sandwiched between fortissimo accompanimental right-hand figurations and a pedal point in the feet. The last phrase of the carol tune is never stated in the work.

O Filii et Filiae is unique among the hymn preludes in that it is built around a full, uninterrupted statement of the preexistent melody. Mawby retains the modality and moderate pace of the ancient Easter plainsong tune, but removes the original free rhythms in favor of triple meter. A rhythmic, one-bar motif involving octave leaps in the right hand, over dotted half note left-hand chords, provides the material of the opening prelude, and returns in modified forms in interludes later.  In the first section, this leaping material frames presentations of the first and third lines of O Filii et Filiae in the mixolydian mode on G, followed by a repeat of the third line, now in the mixolydian on C. Next, via an eight-bar dominant pedal point that is ornamented by references to the leaping motif, there is a loud, majestic complete statement of the modal plainsong on C in manual block chords over dotted half notes in the pedals. In the third section, with a growing sense of excitement engendered by syncopations, more dissonance, and a gradual increase in organ volume, the ancient melody is presented a final time, broken into separate phrases and supported by a foundation of material derived from the preludial leaping motif.  The coda is both sublime and breath-taking: above a fortissimo fifteen-bar dominant pedal point, the left hand plays the first two lines of O Filii et Filiae in the tenor register on the solo division tuba stop, accompanied by chords in the right hand on the great manual. Finally, the last phrase of the hymn, marked Adagio, appears in the pedals, under a series of massive, held chromatic manual chords. A thunderous full organ C major chord closes the work.

Compline (1993) is an example of some fifteen pieces composed for the so-called "Reluctant Organist"--someone who can only play simple pedal parts consisting of mainly lower notes (which are easier for beginners to play) under a more difficult keyboard part.46 Such restrictions do not seem to have hampered the composer, for Compline unfolds naturally, with a restrained beauty and calm spiritual tone that is entirely appropriate for Compline, the final service before retiring in the Roman Catholic Church.  Two musical ideas are developed in a series of short alternating sections. The one idea is introduced at the start, and is a solemn, reverent theme in solid quarter and half note chords that are generally dissonant. Noticeably more concordant, the other idea is a faster moving, sinuous, melismatic, widely spaced theme.

The Weekend Organist: Service Music for Manuals (1997) is similar to the Gregorian Calendar, Gregorian Communion, and Gregorian Processionals in that it is a resource volume for church organists. The book comprises eighteen Fanfares, ten Processionals, seven Meditations, and nine Recessionals. The envisaged user is "the busy weekend organist who, while anxious to contribute to a vibrant weekly liturgy, has little time to undertake systematic and concentrated organ practice."47

In the Preface, Mawby suggests that the nine longer Fanfares could be used as an introduction to the hymns on special occasions, or might be played as greetings for an important visitor, or even to mark the arrival of the ordinary procession. They are in the nine most common major keys for hymns:  the first in C major, followed by one piece for each of the major key signatures from one to four sharps and flats.  A large two manual organ that includes a trumpet stop, reed chorus, and enclosed swell seems to be in the composer's mind.  Mawby has a fine grasp of the need, when writing fanfares, for a vibrant sense of dash, staccato articulation, repeated-note rhythms, triadic melodic motifs, and, perhaps in order to keep the audience alert, brief surprising chordal digressions here and there. The harmony is modern-sounding but tonal, with frequent progressions to unexpected chords, and is encrusted with traditional nonharmonic embellishing tones. One does not sense that the composer has labored long and hard on polishing, with the result that there is a pleasant easy flow about the music, which can be magnificent and emotionally stirring.

Mawby says the nine shorter Fanfares should be played as prefaces to the Gospel reading on feast days, but they might introduce hymns at important services.

The Processionals and Recessionals are divided into three categories:  (1) loud two-page works; (2) quiet two-page pieces; and (3) short compositions that are mostly only three systems long.  Mawby envisages them as interchangeable, and may be shortened if necessary.

To some degree, in the Processionals and Recessionals, but especially in the quiet, two-page Meditations, plainsong's contours pervade the melodic material.  The Meditations are also endowed with a contemplative, spiritual mood that is the world of the Roman Catholic Church's High Mass, with its chiming altar bells, smell of incense and candles, and Gregorian chant. Optional cuts, marked by square brackets, are provided in the Meditations, to facilitate the tailoring of the length to suit a particular occasion.

A procession of majestic pseudo plainsong melodies dominates the joyful  voluntary Praise the Lord with Mighty Sounds (1997). Cast in ternary form, a celebratory mood is established immediately in Section A with detached, dense, chordal writing for full organ alternating with skipping plainsong-like interjections. After developing these ideas, a subdued middle section is ushered in with a short lyrical new melody that again suggests the influence of ancient Catholic chant. Initially this tune is soloed in the left hand, accompanied on another manual by detached repeated chords in the right hand, and then it undergoes development, with fragments of the piece's principal melodic material appearing here and there. Section A1 sees a return to the dynamically powerful, dignified ideas of the opening. These are developed briefly, after which, with the organ blazing away at full throttle, there is a closing cadential affirmation of Christ's majesty over his people.

Triptych for Organ (1997), Mawby's only large scale,48 technically difficult work, is for top recitalists. It requires a large Romantic orchestral organ with at least one enclosed division.  In using the term triptych Mawby was likening his three pieces to an altarpiece painting in three hinged-together panels, such as the 1432 Altarpiece by Hubert and Jan van Eyck in St. Bavo Cathedral, Ghent, which he loves.49 The three movements are titled "The Energy and Humanity of Christ," "The Mystery of Communion," and "Christ is Risen, Alleluia!" and are independent programmatic pieces that are related by their Christian theology but nothing more. The work's modality, pseudo chant motifs, free use of successions of different meters, and through-composed, improvisational style are vintage Mawby. Dissonances are much more pervasive and abrasive than usual, notably in the greater than usual use of cluster chords. Despite the religious titles of the movements, the composition is not in cyclic form, but similarities in the main motifs of each of the movements (marked with brackets in Example 10a-c) help to bind the work together thematically.

Marked Allegro feroce, the first movement opens with the principal idea, a five-tone motif, in the pedals (Example 10a). This eventually gives way to subordinate material consisting of a series of syncopated, detached, agitated, repeated-note, sixteenth-note patterns. The opening five-tone motif returns, transformed into a jaunty modal dancing theme, and then is truncated, against a backdrop of savagely dissonant cluster chords. Then a new, less dramatic subordinate melodic idea appears, duplicated at the fourth and sixth below, thus forming parallel first inversion triads. This material returns in various guises throughout the rest of the movement. As the triumphant close approaches, both the principal five-tone motif and the syncopated, sixteenth-note motif are brought together in a series of overlapping entries, against a backdrop of busy, high pitched, sixteenth-note figurations in the right hand. In the breathtaking lead up to the final chord, the first motif is dominant.

The second movement, marked Andante ma un poco rubato, is characterized by a rather static, spiritual atmosphere that Mawby first used in Mass in Honour of Christ the King (1967) and had turned to so effectively a number of times later.50 The structure is a series of smoothly joined sections in which the movement's chief motif (which is similar to the first movement's principal motif) undergoes a series of transformations, against slower moving ethereal-sounding chords. First, it is reiterated like an ostinato in the pedal. Then it turns into a wide-ranging, serpentine, high-pitched, fragmented solo (Example 10b). At the approach to the climax the motif is obsessively repeated, after which it returns to the pedal.

A similar motif to the first movement's principal idea opens the finale, and this is followed by a bridge passage of agitated sixteenth-note figurations that are also reminiscent of the beginning of the composition. Then a secondary idea, a rhythmic, wide-ranging melodic fragment for a solo reed in the style of a pompous heraldic fanfare, is introduced. With deep, highly emotional religious fervor, the composer alternates the movement's principal motif and the solo reed fanfare idea in an extended, wildly ecstatic movement of metamorphosis. Mawby, as if overcome with enthusiasm, and drawing upon his whole arsenal of improvisational effects, seems to lose himself in what is the most extensive display in his organ music of colorful, sonorous, acoustical effects.

After so many pieces of between two to four pages length written principally for church service use, Triptych's larger canvas  is a major departure for Mawby.  Its positive attributes are the fluency of the writing, the vivid pictorialism, and the courageous daring the composer demonstrates in experimenting on a much larger canvas than before. But the composer's improvisatory, through-composed methods, that work well in shorter structures, are put under unbearable stress in here.

The 20th-century English Catholic composers of significant church music are probably Edward Elgar, Edmund Rubbra, Lennox Berkeley, Anthony Milner, and Colin Mawby. Unlike the others in this group, Mawby has concentrated almost entirely on writing liturgical church and organ music. He has a keen appreciation of, and affection for, religious texts, and responds to them creatively and with finesse. This factor, combined with his superlative mastery of the techniques of writing for voices, accounts, at least in part, for his best church works probably being unequaled by other living English Catholic composer. In the organ works, plainsong has perhaps been allowed to be too influential, and preoccupation with loosely evolving, improvisational development of material monopolizes the scores. Salient positive features of his organ compositions are the excellent under-the-fingers style and feeling for what sounds well, and the music's appropriateness for the occasions for which it has been written--its ability to beautify and bring into focus the moods of the various situations that call for organ music in church services.

The conviction, inspiration, sincerity, and warmth of expression in his church and organ music, are expressions of the two paramount galvanizing forces in Mawby’s life:  his love of God, and devotion to the Roman Catholic Church.

Godwin Sadoh is a Nigerian composer, ethnomusicologist, organist and choir director with degrees in piano performance, organ performance, and ethnomusicology. He is currently a doctoral student in organ performance and composition at the Louisiana State University. His recent publications include "Music at the Anglican Youth Fellowship, Ile-Ife, Nigeria: An Intercultural Experience" published in The Hymn, in January 2001, and "A Centennial Epitome of the Organs at the Cathedral Church of Christ, Lagos, Nigeria" published in The Organ, in May 2002.

Historical Background

The history of Nigerian hymn-based compositions consists of several related experiences in which European and American missionary efforts played a major role. The establishment of the Christian church in the 19th century by the missionaries is a turning point of Western musical influence in Nigeria. However, other institutions such as the Christian mission schools, institutions of higher learning, and the modern Nigerian elite also contributed to the development of hymn-based works in the country.1

Through the church, the missionaries introduced hymns to Nigerians, and before long Nigerian congregations became familiar not only with European hymns, chants, and canticles, but with anthems, cantatas, oratorios, and organ works by European composers. Prominent among these works are variations on the Blue Bells of Scotland, George Frideric Handel's Messiah, Joseph Haydn's Creation, John Stainer's Daughter of Jairus, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's Hiawatha, Felix Mendelssohn's Elijah, and the organ works of Dietrich Buxtehude, Johann Sebastian Bach, John Stanley, Felix Mendelssohn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Max Reger.

In the mission schools, Nigerians were taught to use European notation as well as play harmonium and piano. In fact, it is the introduction of Western musical exegesis that led to the rise of modern Nigerian composers. As Bode Omojola notes, from the advent of the missionaries around 1850 until the end of the 19th century, musical activities among elitist groups and churches in the Western and Eastern parts of Nigeria were mostly European.2

Rev. Robert A. Coker (the first Nigerian to study music abroad to a professional level) is reported to have trained a large number of Nigerian women in the performance of Western classical music between 1880 and 1890. In addition, he organized a number of public concerts known as the Coker concerts, which became the center of social life in Lagos.3 Rev. Coker was the first organist and choirmaster at the Cathedral Church of Christ, Lagos (the present headquarters of the Anglican communion in Nigeria and the seat of the Archbishop). Dr. Thomas Ekundayo Phillips (the second Nigerian musician trained in Europe), who later became the organist and Master of the Music at the Cathedral Church, concentrated on oratorios and organ music for the churches in the southwestern region of Nigeria. A Passacaglia on an African Folksong for organ, Variations on an African Folksong for organ, and Samuel, a cantata for SATB, voice solos and organ accompaniment, are some of the compositions by Ekundayo Phillips.

After the nation gained its independence from Great Britain in 1960, the quest for a national identity was the paramount objective of art and church music composers in Nigeria. Experimental works by pioneering church organists and choirmasters produced compositions neither entirely Nigerian nor entirely Western. These works could be best described as a synthesis of Nigerian and Western musical idioms. The synthesis of the two musical idioms actually began in the church. Fela Sowande, an organist and composer and the foremost representative of the second generation of modern Nigerian composers, employed several folktunes as the basis of his work. Examples of such works are African Suite for string orchestra, and Folk Symphony for orchestra. Among his famous organ works are Oyigiyigi, Obangiji, Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho, Prayer, K'a Mura, Yoruba Lament, and Sacred Idioms of the Negro.

Hymn-Based Compositions

Sacred Idioms of the Negro is a six-movement work out of which five are based on Yoruba Christian hymns and one on the African-American spiritual "Bury Me Eas' or Wes'." Laudamus Te is based on a Yoruba hymn and it bubbles with rhythmic energy. The composer did not specify the title of the hymn. The thematic material of Supplication is derived from a Yoruba hymn of prayer in which the Yoruba Christian beseeches God to accept the gifts of their hands, so that when it is time to die, the Christian may wake up in Heaven. It is built on a local hymn tune composed by a Yoruba Methodist minister, The Rev. A.T. Ola Olude. The text of the hymn tune may be translated as "The day is gone, darkness draws near, soon every creature will sleep, May God watch us through the dark night, and may we not find ourselves out of the hands of Sleep into the hands of Death while we sleep." Via Dolorosa supplies a classic example of Yoruba melodies in speech rhythm. Here the Yoruba Christian ponders on the first Good Friday, and reminds us of the tragic event of that terrible day, when Christ was crucified on the cross. Bury Me Eas' or Wes' is based on an African-American spiritual, which has the same words for its title according to the composer. See Example 1 for the themes of each movement of Sacred Idioms of the Negro.4

The last movement of the work Jubilate is based on the tune of a Yoruba Christian hymn "Oyigiyigi, ota omi" (The sea pebble is immortal). Jubilate is a song of joy on the organ, the title deriving from Psalm 100, Jubilate Deo omnis terra (O be joyful in the Lord, all ye lands). The rhythmic disposition of the work consists of syncopations, constant and variable rhythmic patterns, and an ostinato in the pedal. The texture is homophonic following 19th-century convention, while the harmony is triadic and functional. Its form is expanded ternary with a fanfare as introduction, a contrasting middle section with the principal theme over a pedal ostinato and a recapitulation of the principal section. See Example 2 for the middle section of Jubilate.

Another work based on a preexisting hymn is Sowande's Oh Render Thanks, a hymn anthem for SATB and organ accompaniment. The texts are derived from hymns 552 and 554 of the British Hymnal Companion. Sowande composed an original tune for the combined five verses, which are clearly separated with organ interludes. The first and last verses are in full unison, while the second and fourth verses are in four parts (SATB). Verse three is a duet for double tenor and double bass voices. It is very practicable to engage the congregation in singing this anthem with the choir. I do recall the congregation at my home church, the Cathedral Church of Christ, Lagos, singing verses one and five with the choir since they are in unison. The choir sang verses two, three, and four. This creates an interesting alternatim. The anthem closes with a long Amen in imitative style. Example 3 shows the arrangement of the first verse of the anthem.

Ayo Bankole's Sonata No. 2 in C for piano (The Passion) is another example of hymn-based work. Bankole provided  an excellent structural analysis of the music in the composer's notes to the work. The three-movement composition is a programmatic piece depicting the passion and crucifixion of Christ. The first movement subtitled "And They Sought About for to Kill Him" is in conventional sonata form. The ticking of the seconds, the throbbing of the heart, the stillness of the night, the mischievous searchers and similar sinister concepts are realized by a subtle mixture of polytonality, wholetonality, and pentatonality. The exposition, which begins without an introduction, has two contrasting themes. The first, which is realized over a pedal C, is a rhythmic, pentatonic motive on the notes G-flat, A-flat, and B-flat. The second theme is a melodic setting of the hymn "Jesu, Jesu mo ki o o" (Jesus, Jesus I greet thee) over an implied ostinato. Note that this hymn is based on a pentatonic scale as shown in Example 4.

The development section pursues the searching motive and begins and ends with the passion song "Jesu Kristi, Igi Oro" (Jesus Christ, O painful Cross), by the late Rev. Canon J. J. Ransome-Kuti, one of the pioneering organists and choirmasters in Nigeria. The song vividly describes the agony and suffering of Christ.

The second movement, titled "And He Was Crucified," is in ternary form and begins with a slow, somber, chord progression in the minor key which blossoms into a broad, pentatonic melody suggesting the esoteric and mystical joy of the crucifixion. It depicts the hammering and nailing by the executioners, the sympathizers and the abandonment of Christ's body by his spirit.  The major chord at the end of this movement affirms that Christ's death was a triumphant achievement for the whole world as it guarantees salvation for all believers.

The final movement of this well crafted masterpiece is a rondo, subtitled "The Song of Mary." The few Africanisms in the work as a whole are found in the borrowed themes composed by local choirmasters and the use of pentatonic scale. Western musical elements predominate: 19th-century programmatic features, dynamic markings, polytonality and wholetone scale, form, instrument (piano), and several pianistic devices not found in indigenous Nigerian music.

Joshua Uzoigwe's Nigerian Dances is a collection of four pieces for piano. Dance No. 2 is a derivation of a popular Yoruba Christian hymn called "Ise Oluwa" (The Work of God). The piece is structured in three parts: an introduction, principal theme section with a development portion, and a conclusion. The principal section figures the hymn tune Ise Oluwa in the right hand with a chromatic accompaniment in the left hand. The coda is derived from the first two and last measures of the main tune. See Example 5 for an excerpt of the principal section of Nigerian Dances No. 2.

The last work for discussion is my own O Trinity Most Blessed Light, a hymn anthem for SATB and organ accompaniment. The text is taken from hymn 15 of the British Hymns Ancient and Modern. I arranged the three verses for choir only, however, the congregation may sing along with the choir in verse two which is in unison. The first verse is in strict homophonic four-part texture with accompaniment ad libitum. The first two measures of verse two are arranged for male voices (tenor and bass), while the last two are for female voices in unison with the sopranos singing the descant. The last verse marked Maestoso con mosso is a triumphant and brilliant ending in contrapuntal imitation of all the voices accompanied with full organ. The piece closes with a final Amen. See Example 6 for the arrangement of the second verse of O Trinity Most Blessed Light.

Summary

In conclusion, one may ask why the use of hymn tunes or texts as the basis of new compositions? The answers are not far-fetched. In the first place, 99.9% of the composers and audiences of these works are predominantly Christians. All the aforementioned composers received their early musical training from various churches. Most of them began their musical careers as choristers and later became organists in several denominations in Nigeria. Second, the borrowed hymn tunes and words are familiar to the audiences since they must have sung them during worship. The hymns then become an instrument of attraction to draw interested persons to the concert hall. Third, using hymns in classical music helps to distillate the social stigma of secularization attached to concert music. The sacred texts and tunes enhance the creation of a serene environment similar to worship. Fourth, all the works are suitable for divine services in churches. For instance, church choirs could sing Fela Sowande's Oh Render Thanks and my own O Trinity Most Blessed Light. Ayo Bankole's Passion Sonata is appropriate for prelude or offertory music on Good Friday, while Sowande's Sacred Idioms of the Negro is very suitable for preludes and postludes at divine services. Finally, creating new works from preexisting melodies is a good exercise for artistic stimulus and creativity. It enhances the development of the intuitive and creative imagination of the composers.

A New Series of Organ Music Established by MorningStar Music Publishers

Marilyn Biery, DMA, AAGO, is Associate Director of Music at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul, Minnesota. An ardent supporter of composers and performer of new music, she has collaborated with Libby Larsen, Stephen Paulus, David Evan Thomas, James Hopkins, Pamela Decker, and others. She is editor of the new Concert Organ Music Series at MorningStar Music. Biery earned Bachelor and Master of Music degrees in organ from Northwestern University, and her Doctorate from the University of Minnesota.

It was a frustrating two years of hopeful submissions and
disappointing rejections. Imagine--you are a performer and enthusiast of
new music and you have just been given the greatest gift: a piece of music
written and dedicated to you! You so emphatically believe this composition
should be shared with the world that you do everything you can to find the
piece a publisher, only to be told that it is “a wonderful piece that
won’t sell” or “beautifully written, but the sales it would generate
in today’s market wouldn’t offset the cost of printing it.”

In the spring of 1999, Jim (Biery) and I were given the gift
of an organ duet by one of our composer friends, David Evan Thomas of St. Paul.
Written in the Dust is a symphony for organ duet, written by a versatile composer
whose works have been performed by the Minnesota Orchestra and the Minnesota
Opera, who is Composer-in-Residence at the Schubert Club in St. Paul, and whose
undergraduate years of study at Northwestern University included organ lessons
with Robert Delcamp, currently University Organist at University of the South
in Sewanee, Tennessee. Written in the Dust is
a semi-programmatic work based on the scripture story from John 8: 3-11
about the woman who is caught in adultery, whose punishment was to be stoned
for her sin. Jim and I are convinced that Thomas’ duet is one of the
finest examples of literature written for the genre. We were so excited about Written
in the Dust that after the premiere, I
started sending it off to various publishers for consideration. I tried
publishers in the United States, England and France. All were very impressed
with the work; none agreed to publish it.

In the fall of 2001, I broached my frustration to Mark
Lawson, President of MorningStar Music Publishers. MorningStar was founded in
1987 by Rodney Schrank; in 1997 Mark Lawson became president and has continued
the MorningStar tradition of publishing quality music with particular emphasis
on choral, organ and handbell music. Not only did Lawson agree to publish it,
he suggested that we start a series of music that would fit into this category:
Concert Organ Series at MorningStar. The series would include pieces that were
not composed for worship (although some portions or movements could be used as
such), that would be primarily non-chorale based, more virtuosic, more
extended, and more developed than the music currently published by the houses
which promote (primarily sacred) organ music in the United States today. Lawson
says: “I would like this series to encourage composers to continue to
create concert works, and MorningStar will endeavor to make them available to
those interested in obtaining them.”

The reason that Lawson could suggest such a project without
as much concern for its potential to return the publisher’s investment is
that his investment is minimal. Technology today has made it practical for
composers to print their own publisher-ready scores using a computer program,
and therefore submit camera-ready copy. Some publishers use this system often,
others still have their own engraver convert the computer file so that it
matches their other printed scores. In the case of MorningStar, Lawson decided
to ask each Concert Organ Series composer to submit their score camera-ready,
and then MorningStar would print the copies as needed instead of committing to
a set number of printed copies.

What Lawson has done with the formation of this series is to
make a commitment to supporting composers who are writing for the organ as a
concert instrument, by advertising and making their works available through his
catalog of music for the church. Since the beginnings of the idea in 2001, the
catalog has grown to include music by Herb Bielawa, James Biery, Emma Lou
Diemer, Charles Hoag, James Hopkins, Robert Sirota, David Evan Thomas, and
others.

Emma Lou Diemer, 1995 AGO Composer of the Year, has had
numerous collections of organ pieces published.  In addition to her organ music, Diemer has written many
works for orchestra, chamber ensemble, solo voice, choir and electronic tape. She
has received an ASCAP award for publications and performances annually since
1962. Diemer says of the Concert Series: “This venture by MorningStar is
producing a treasury of new music that every concert organist will want to
delve into.”1

Herb Bielawa is a free-lance composer and pianist, married
to organist Sandra Soderlund. He has written music for instrumental ensembles,
piano, harpsichord, organ, choir, electronics, chamber opera, band and
orchestra. Bielawa recently remarked on the MorningStar series:
“MorningStar’s new series is certainly a beacon in a very dark sky.
Their bravery in embarking on this kind of project to support serious classical
music is truly laudable.”2

James Hopkins, Professor of Music Composition at the
University of Southern California, whose compositions have been performed by
the National Symphony, Denver Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Seattle
Symphony, Pacific Symphony, Fine Arts Quartet, the Western Arts Trio and the
Washington Choral Society, has received commissions from the National Endowment
for the Arts, Pasadena Chamber Orchestra and the American Guild of Organists.
Hopkins says: “I am very pleased that MorningStar provides an outlet for
music which, because of its technical demands, duration, or other elements will
necessarily not have a large commercial market. Nevertheless, this music, I
hope, merits serious attention by those whose abilities and performance venues
make these compositions entirely appropriate.”3

John Nuechterlein, President and Chief Executive Officer at
the American Composers Forum, based at the home office in St. Paul, is
supportive and enthusiastic about MorningStar’s new series: “Three
cheers to MorningStar for taking this giant leap forward. New work is critical
for the long-term health of the repertoire, and the Concert Organ Series will
offer a visible showcase for the best literature being written for organ
today.”4

Libby Larsen, American composer and tireless advocate for
contemporary music and musicians, says: “To challenge ourselves with the
compelling poetic voices of our time is really the only choice for serious
students and performers of the organ.”5

This new series deserves to thrive under the good will and
support of organists at all levels of experience and technical expertise. Organists
can support this project by collecting these scores either for performance or
for personal libraries of organ music. The list of pieces currently offered by
MorningStar on the Concert Series follows, with some description of each work.

MorningStar Concert Organ Series list of works

Organ Solo:

A Diet of Worms, Michael Horvit

Subtitled “An Entertainment for All Hallows Eve and
Other Cheery Occasions,” A Diet of Worms was written for the first annual
“Monster Concert” of the Houston Chapter of the American Guild of
Organists, held on Halloween night 1979. The title is a play on words, relating
to the two main themes employed in the work. The main body of the piece is a
passacaglia based on the children’s song “The worms crawl in, the
worms crawl out” (the tune from Paul Dukas’ The Sorcerer’s
Apprentice). The other important theme is the chant melody Dies Irae from the
pre-Vatican II Requiem Mass, which Hector Berlioz used as the “Witches
Sabbath” theme in his Symphonie fantastique. In the composer’s mind,
this made a connection to the medieval Church conclave, the Diet of Worms.

h2>Celestial Wind, Robert Sirota

In composing Celestial Wind, Sirota was inspired to write a
brilliant toccata based upon Acts 2:2-3:

And suddenly there came a sound from heaven of a rushing and
mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire,
and it sat upon each of them.

Sirota’s aim was not merely to imitate the sound of
rushing wind and flames, but to also evoke the sense of awe and ecstasy that
must have been felt by Jesus’ disciples at this manifestation of the Holy
Spirit. (Example 1)

Cityscape, Morgan Simmons

Cityscape dates from 1992 and was composed for inclusion in
an organ recital of Chicago composers as part of the Fourth Presbyterian
Church’s annual Festival of the Arts. The theme of that year’s
festival was “Faces of the City.” This three-movement work, which
depicts facets of the city, is based on a three-note descending scale (C-B-A),
the opening notes of the popular song, “Chicago, Chicago, That
Toddlin’ Town.” Coincidentally, this same melodic sequence marks
the beginning of Old Hundredth, and a citation of that melody occurs in the
third movement. The Fourth Presbyterian Church is located on the part of North
Michigan Avenue which is known as “The Magnificent Mile.” Each of
its Sunday morning services begins with the singing of Old Hundredth, sung to
the text of the Doxology. The first performance of Cityscape was played by
David Schrader, to whom it is dedicated.

Overture to Coriolan, op. 62, Ludwig van Beethoven, arranged
for organ by James Biery

Beethoven composed nine symphonies, eleven overtures, a
violin concerto and five piano concertos, sixteen string quartets, nine piano
trios, ten violin sonatas and five cello sonatas, thirty large piano sonatas,
an oratorio, an opera, two Masses, and numerous smaller pieces, but only one
curious work for the pipe organ, an odd little Prelude which passes through all
the major keys. In 1824 Beethoven wrote to Freudenberg, an organist from
Breslau, “I, too, played the organ frequently in my youth, but my nerves
could not withstand the power of this gigantic instrument. I should place an
organist who is master of his instrument at the very head of all
virtuosi.”6 The opening unison C’s and exclamatory chords of the
Coriolan overture, each followed by some of the most resounding rests in all of
music literature, allow the magnificent King of Instruments to add its own
voice to Beethoven’s powerful music.

Deux Danses, James Hopkins

Hopkins’ Deux Danses for organ was composed in 1983
and was premiered by James Walker at the AGO Far-Western Regional convention in
June of that year. The titles for each of the dances were suggested by two
legends from Greek mythology. The title of the first dance, Mirror of Medusa,
refers to the tale of the Medusa. She was one of the three fearsome monsters
called Gorgons. Her body was covered with scales, her hair was a mass of
twisting snakes, and whoever looked at her turned into stone. In the legend,
Medusa was slain by the Greek hero Perseus, who used a shield of polished
bronze as a mirror with which to see her. The title of the second dance, The
Circle of Bacchants, refers to the followers of Bacchus, the God of Wine. The
Bacchants, being frenzied with wine, rushed through the wilderness
“uttering shrill cries and performing frightful deeds.” (Example 2)

Fantasy on Cortège et Litanie of Marcel Dupré,
James Hopkins

The Fantasy on Cortège et Litanie of Marcel
Dupré was composed in 1986 as a solo piece for concert organist Cherry
Rhodes and first performed by her in October, 1989, at Grace Cathedral, San
Francisco. Because of the very orchestral nature of the writing, the composer
decided in 1994 to recast the work in a second version for small orchestra. The
Fantasy is based on the two main themes of the well-known work Cortège
et Litanie of Dupré. Even though one or both of these themes is almost
always present in some form, there is in fact no direct quotation from the
original work. The harmonic style, while incorporating some fairly dissonant
combinations, nevertheless retains Dupré’s original E major tonal
framework. The first part of the Fantasy consists of several short sections
that evoke a vague, dream-like atmosphere. After a brief cadenza, the
rhythmically driving central portion of the work is heard. A short
recapitulation of earlier material and a final triumphant outburst bring the
Fantasy to a joyous conclusion. Hopkins’ Fantasy won first prize in an
international composition contest sponsored by the Los Angeles Chapter of the
AGO.

Five Pipe Organ Adventures, Herbert Bielawa

This set of relatively short organ pieces dates from 1993
and was written for specific groups of musicians: those who have recently
become interested in the pipe organ, those who have yet to discover it and
those who are intrigued by the pieces themselves. The Adventures were composed
with a capable keyboard player in mind, with minimal skill or experience
playing pedals. The pedal parts are fairly basic and undemanding. The number of
pedal notes in Adventures is limited, changing foot position occurs when manual
activity is minimal, and occasionally no pedal is required at all.

Four Biblical Settings, Emma Lou Diemer

This major work was commissioned by the Ventura, California
chapter of the AGO. The four movements feature a variety of styles, including
minimalism, rhythmic innovation, and subtle dissonances. It was premiered on
June 30, 1993 by Sandra Soderlund in Santa Barbara. The movements are based on
Psalm 90, Psalm 121, Isaiah 11:1 and Isaiah 35:1. The first movement is in a
minimalist style and is innovative in the way that the increments in
“volume” of the crescendo pedal are used not only for drama but to
define the phrase structure of the movement and to express the imagery in Psalm
90. The second movement (Psalm 121) has expressive, upward bending lines. The
third movement (Isaiah 11) weaves in the chorale “Jesu, meine
Freude.” The last movement (Isaiah 35) is characteristically joyful and
rhythmic in its use of various groupings of eighth-note patterns. (Example 3)

Metopes, James Hopkins

Commissioned by the Far West Regional Convention of the
American Guild of Organists, Metopes was composed in the summer of 1990 and
first performed by Cherry Rhodes in June 1991. The work consists of two
extended movements, Arachne’s Web and The Gift of Nessus. These are
connected by the brief “Interlude,” for pedals alone, which serves
to unite the two by motivic transformation. The title Metopes is the
architectural term that refers to the sculptured marble slabs between the
triglyphs of a frieze. These spaces were frequently decorated in low relief
with depictions of scenes from classical Greek mythology.

Arachne’s Web refers to the story of the maiden
Arachne, a mortal who was exceedingly skilled in the art of weaving. She
unwisely challenged the goddess Minerva to a contest. Minerva was greatly
displeased by Arachne’s obviously greater skill at weaving. To punish
Arachne for her impudence, Minerva transfigured Arachne into a spider that
hangs by its own thread. Musically, an almost constant stream of descending
thirds depicts the weaving while above it an ever more ornate melody is spun
out. An angry outburst terminates the melodic elaboration, and the movement
ends quietly with the opening material.

The Gift of Nessus relates to the story of the centaur Nessus
who attempted to run away with Dejanira, the wife of Hercules. Hercules heard
her cries and shot the centaur in the heart. The dying Centaur told Dejanira to
take a portion of his blood and keep it to be used later as a charm to preserve
the love of her husband. Dejanira did so and before long had occasion to use
it. In one of his conquests Hercules had taken prisoner a fair maiden, named
Iole, of whom Dejanira became jealous. When Hercules was about to offer
sacrifices to the gods in honor of his victory, he sent to his wife for a white
robe to use on the occasion. Dejanira, thinking it a good opportunity to try
her love-spell, steeped the garment in the blood of Nessus. As soon as the
garment became warm on the body of Hercules, the poison penetrated into all his
limbs and caused him the most intense agony. The garment stuck to his flesh and
as he wrenched it off, he tore away whole pieces of his body. This movement
begins in a low register as a slow dance with menacing sounds. As the music
gradually moves higher, the dance becomes more complex and animated. A quiet
middle portion that develops the material heard thus far provides a foil to the
dramatic and agonized final dance episode.

Of Things Hoped For, David Evan Thomas

“Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the
evidence of things not seen,” writes Paul in his letter to the Hebrews.
Thomas’ two-part work is based on the idea of faith; the experience of
writing a piece on such a subject enabled Thomas to express his own thoughts:
“Faith and I have an uneasy dialogue, since my own faith is so . . .
mercurial. But just as the act of writing a letter is the quickest way to draw
a friend close, the meditation of writing music often makes the ineffable
concrete. I found when all the notes were down that a reverent murmur had grown
into a crowning shout of praise. Paul’s words came to mind, and thus a
title.”

Of Things Hoped For begins with a modest arching phrase,
supported by a descending pedal line. The ensuing meditation develops a new
melismatic idea along with toccata elements, leading to a grand statement. A
dance follows, based on the melisma, which stretches and flips the material.
The little bass line from the opening reasserts itself as a soprano tune, first
in a quiet B-major episode, then--triumphantly and in D major--in the
trumpet. The two movements may be performed together, or may stand alone; they
would work well in a worship setting. Marilyn Biery commissioned Thomas to
write this work in honor of James Biery’s birthday in 2001; it was
premiered by James in May 2001, at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul,
Minnesota. (Example 4)

Organ Booklet, Herbert Bielawa

The movements in Bielawa’s Organ Booklet are
essentially etudes modeled upon the various “Organbooks” in
history. It was from Bach’s term Orgelbüchlein that he drew the
title for these organ etudes. Bielawa set himself the task of making use of the
classical major and minor triads and manipulating them in unusual ways. The
challenge was to create a fresh marriage of familiar triads with unfamiliar and
unexpected developmental procedures. Whereas the triads are from antiquity,
their combination is from the present.

Prologue, Reflection and Jubilation on York, James Biery

In Biery’s search for possible material on which to
base this commission for The Congregational Church of Green’s Farms,
Westport, Connecticut, he came across the hymn “O Lord, Almighty God, Thy
Works.” The history of the text coupled with the quirky angularity of the
melody proved irresistible. The hymn was one of several “hymns and
spiritual songs” found in the third edition (1651) of the Bay Psalm Book.
The Bay Psalm Book was published by the Congregationalist settlers in the
Massachusetts Bay Colony; in 1640 it was the first book published in English in
North America. “O Lord, Almighty God” was popularly known as
“The Song of Moses and the Lamb” and was sung at the first great
council of Congregational Churches in New England, the Cambridge Synod of 1648.
The hymn is sung to the tune York, which is one of the twelve Common Tunes from
the Scottish Psalter of 1615. At one time in England it was second only to Old
Hundredth in popularity.

Even though the Prologue, Reflection, and Jubilation is
based on the tune York, the entire melody is not heard until the third movement.
The Prologue is a tribute to one of Biery’s favorite 20th century
composers, Maurice Duruflé. The running figuration heard throughout is
built upon the first four notes of the hymn. The main theme, played on the
string stops, begins with the ascending triad of the opening phrase of the hymn
(transformed to the minor mode).

The first movement melts into the second, a serene
“Reflection.” Once again the melodic line begins with the first
four notes of York.

An improvisatory recitative passage leads into the final
“Jubilation.” This movement pays homage to Calvin Hampton, the
gifted and innovative New York composer who died in 1984 at the age of
forty-six. Again the rising triadic motive is prominent, now in the major key.
The hymntune is first heard in the pedal part, and then triumphantly in a final
grand statement. (Example 5)

Psalm 151, Emma Lou Diemer

Psalm 151 was commissioned by Joan DeVee Dixon in 1998 in
honor of Alvin Broyles. The piece moves restlessly with sixteenth-note
figuration, punctuated by melodic ideas that alternate between the hands. Psalm
151 builds to a dramatic close in which an A major chord emerges from the
contrasting sonorities and is sustained full organ to the end. (Psalm 151 is one
of the non-canonical psalms found in the Dead Sea Scrolls at Quamran.)

Scherzo, Emma Lou Diemer

Scherzo was written in 1996 in honor of Carolyn and David
Gell and for the dedication of the Schulmerich Carillon at Trinity Episcopal
Church in Santa Barbara. The piece is mostly for manuals, and sections of it
may be played with various bell sounds contrasting to light organ
registrations. It is in the style of a traditional scherzo, bouncy and bright
in character.

Six Chorale Preludes on Ton-y- Botel, Herbert Bielawa

In Giocoso, the tune is in the pedal for several measures
but turns into a fugal subject in partial imitation. In Cantilena the tune is
embedded inside the staccato “peppering” of the texture. Canone
Doppio is a double canon with fragments of the tune in the pedal. Cadenza is a
flourish for the pedals where the tune is laced into the rush of sixteenth
notes with a few commentaries on the manuals. Preghiera is a prayer in which
very delicate flakes of sound accompany the pedal, which presents the tune.
Maestoso is a grand finale with the tune appearing in the manuals and pedal
alternately. (Example 6)

T.S. Eliot Impressions, Dennis Bergin

T.S. Eliot Impressions (Set 1) was inspired by the four
“Ariel” poems of T.S. Eliot. The poems are entitled “Journey
of the Magi,” “A Song for Simeon,” “Animula,” and
“Marina.” Colorful organ registrations, late twentieth-century
musical language and references to other organ works and chant melodies are
employed in this musical representation of Eliot’s poetry. The poems
mark, in part, Eliot’s conversion experience to orthodox Christianity.
The spiritual theme of T.S. Eliot Impressions is that of a journey from
darkness to light and from despair to hope.

Organ duet, two players, one console:

Auld Lang Syne, Eugene Thayer, edited by Robert C. Mann

The organ works of Eugene Thayer are not widely known today.
Thayer (1838-1889) was a well-known and highly respected organ
recitalist, pedagogue, composer and church musician who held church positions
in Massachusetts and New York. Robert C. Mann has provided this edition of
Thayer’s duet on Auld Lang Syne, which Thayer transcribed for duet from
one of his solo compositions. Thayer used duets as teaching pieces: he would
play the secondo part and his student would play the primo part. Unfortunately,
this duet is printed with each performer having their own score, making it
necessary to have an organ with a wide music desk in order to fit both scores
on it.

Evensong, Charles Callahan

Both of the Callahan duets in the MorningStar Concert Series
were commissioned by Raymond and Elizabeth Chenault. Evensong was premiered in
May of 1987 at the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, South Carolina. It is based
on two evening hymns: Tallis’ Canon and Ar Hyd y Nos. Evensong is quiet in
nature and uncomplicated in texture.

Largo ma non tanto, J. S. Bach, transcribed for organ duet
by James Biery

Biery has transcribed the middle movement of the Bach
Concerto in D minor for Two Violins, BWV 1043, for organ duet. This duet
requires the secondo player to sit in the middle of the bench to play the
ripieno part (which uses pedals), and the primo player to sit off to the right
side in order to play the two solo parts (manuals only). (Example 7)

Ragtime, Charles Callahan

Ragtime was also premiered in 1987 at the Spoleto Festival
by the Chenaults. The title of this piece conveys the compositional style of
this lively and colorful duet.

Psalm Variations, James Hopkins

Psalm Variations was composed originally in the spring and
summer of 2000 for orchestra. The piece was reworked in the summer of 2002 for
organ duet, and is dedicated to Marilyn and James Biery.

Psalm Variations is based on the American folk melody
Resignation. This melody is most often associated with the text “My
Shepherd Will Supply My Need,” a metrical paraphrase of Psalm 23 by Isaac
Watts (1674-1748). Although Psalm Variations is not a religious piece,
the variations do follow the flow of the text.

Written in the Dust, David Evan Thomas

Written in the Dust by David Evan Thomas was inspired by an
address given at the First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis in November 1998 by
the Rev. Dr. Kendyl Gibbons, Minister of the Society. Gibbons’ address
focused on the biblical story from John about the woman, caught in adultery,
whose punishment was to be stoned for her sin (John 8: 3-11). Jesus said
to the crowd “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to
throw a stone at her,”  and
then he dismissed her, saying, “Go and sin no more.” The
semi-programmatic movements of Written in the Dust are entitled “Jesus,
the Woman and the Pharisees” (verses 3-6), “The Writing in
the Dust” (6-8), and “Go, and sin no more”
(9-11). Written in the Dust contains all the ingredients which make this
a masterful, virtuosic work for duet: a brilliant pedal cadenza, “pedal
fans” in the outer movements, motives which are started by one player and
finished by the other, ranges of motion for each player that cover the keyboards,
fast figuration, conversational passing back-and-forth of musical ideas, and
elegant, lyrical writing. All combined, they enable Written in the Dust to tell
a compelling musical story. It was premiered in October 1999 by Marilyn and
James Biery at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul, Minnesota. (Example 8)

Duet, two organs:

Chantasy, James Hopkins

Chantasy for two organs was a commission from Mount Angel
Abbey, St. Benedict, Oregon, in thanksgiving for the two recently installed
Martin Ott organs. It was premiered by Cherry Rhodes and Ladd Thomas on October
17, 1999 in the Abbey. Hopkins calls it a “chant fantasy” on the
Kyrie and Sanctus of the Missa Cum Jubilo. Much of the harmonic language of
Chantasy is reminiscent of the music of Maurice Duruflé. (Example 9)

Voluntary for Antiphonal Organs, James Biery

The Voluntary for Antiphonal Organs was composed for and
first performed at the 1988 National Convention of the Organ Historical Society
in San Francisco. The piece is constructed using the standard sonata form with
a brief slow introduction.

Organ with instrument:

Divertimento (string quartet), Charles Callahan

A light-hearted piece, with considerable contrapuntal
activity among the instruments and a mystic element of calmly soaring melody in
the quiet sections.

Easter Canticles (organ and violoncello), Robert Sirota

The three movements of Easter Canticles--Vigil,
Crucifixion, and Resurrection--are structured as a triptych after the
iconostasis7 of an Orthodox church. The three panels are meditations on scenes
from the Passion of Jesus Christ: his prayerful agony in the Garden of
Gethsemane, his crucifixion and resurrection. With the combination of cello and
organ, Sirota sought to capture the mysticism of these three moments of the
Passion. The first movement is agonized and restless, the second portrays the
crucifixion, even down to the hammering of the nails into Christ’s hands,
and the third depicts Christ’s light-suffused resurrection.

The Kraken, Charles Hoag

The Kraken is a work for organ pedals with the player also
playing a large tam-tam (or the player could also be joined by a
percussionist). It is based upon the poem by the same name by Alfred Lord
Tennyson (1809-1892). The Kraken is a mythical Norse sea monster. The
opening lines of the poem give the setting for the music, which starts on the
lowest possible pitches and works upward to a frenzy in both instruments:

Below the thunders of the upper deep,

Far, far beneath in the abysmal sea,

His ancient, dreamless, uninvaded sleep

The Kraken sleepeth . . .

Organ and Voice:

Canticle of the Sun (high voice), David Evan Thomas

Canticle of the Sun, a setting of the poem by St. Francis of
Assisi, was commissioned by the Twin Cities (Minnesota) AGO and first performed
by soprano Elizabeth Pauly and organist James Biery in 2000.

The parallel verses of St. Francis’s poem inspired from
Thomas a series of variations on what could be called a Theme of Praise, a
declamatory melodic idea that emphasizes fourths and fifths. After the initial
presentation of the theme (“All praise to you, my Lord”), the
speaker moves from extolling sun and moon to praising each of the four elements
of the medieval world (wind, water, earth, fire) taking in all of creation.
Because the text is concise--only a few key images per variation--it
remains for the organ to develop the material through figuration, texture and
registration, as well as to provide links between sections, each of which
explores a different tonality. A special place is reserved for the human art of
forgiveness. The vocal line here descends into its lowest register, accompanied
by the simplest organ texture, before rising up again in fountains of praise.

Concertos:

Concerto for Organ and Orchestra, Gerald Near

This concerto by Gerald Near was conceived in the grand
traditional manner. The movements follow the usual form for a concerto: Sonata-allegro,
Slow movement (in no particular form) and Rondo (Toccata). It is scored for
chamber orchestra in a desire to make the work more practical and accessible.
Gerald Near’s music is published by Aureole Publications and distributed
by MorningStar.           n

The name Arthur C. Becker was familiar to the readers of THE DIAPASON in the period of the 1930s to the 60s because of his many articles and frequent notices of his activities. In addition to his accomplishments as an organist and college administrator, Dr. Becker was an able composer who composed much organ and liturgical music for St. Vincent de Paul Church in Chicago, where he was organist and music director from 1918 to 1973. That he was so long associated with this church gave him ample opportunity to create music not only to demonstrate his own virtuosity as an organist but also to support the services of the church.

Background

Arthur C. Becker (1895-1976) was the founding dean of DePaul University's School of Music and served as organist and choirmaster at St. Vincent de Paul Church from 1918 to 1973. Born in Louisville, Kentucky on September 20, 1895, Becker soon evidenced talent for playing the organ. After holding a number of positions in the Louisville area, Becker moved to Chicago in 1918, where he received a Bachelor of Music and later a Master of Music degree from the Sherwood Conservatory. Among his teachers were Wilhelm Middleschulte and Gaston Dethier in organ and Josef Lhevinne in piano. In 1918 Becker organized DePaul University's School of Music and began his position at St. Vincent de Paul Church. In 1922 Becker went to Paris to study organ with Charles-Marie Widor and Marcel Dupré, and composition with Albert Roussel. In 1942 he received an honorary Doctor of Music degree from The Chicago Musical College. Because of his distinguished service, Becker became an affiliate of the Vincentian order in 1964 and was awarded the Via Sapientiae, DePaul University's highest honor, in 1966. He died in 1976, one of the most respected members of the Chicago musical community and the leading Catholic church musician of the city.

In general, Becker's music is conservative, with the strong influence of the French school of the late Romantic period much in evidence. His organ study in France and his composition studies with Albert Roussel fostered a love for the French repertory. In addition, Becker's own manner of organ performance was decidedly in the French tradition.

Sonus Epulantis

The purpose of the present article is to consider the Sonus Epulantis for organ, one of his finest compositions. What I assume to be an earlier work, Prelude to a Sacred Drama (no date), is the basis for Sonus Epulantis. The differences between the two are few: Prelude to a Sacred Drama begins with slightly fuller harmonies, and there are some differences in dynamic indications. Other than these slight details, the two compositions are the same, though the manuscript style for Sonus Epulantis is smaller and neater.

At this time little is known about the date and the reason for composing this work. My impression, as we shall see, is that it is a late work. The title is both curious and enigmatic. The literal translation is "the sounds of one rejoicing." The key to the title's meaning is found within the work itself. There is a musical quotation from the opening of the Gregorian sequence for Easter, Victimae Paschali. The opening lines of the sequence read:

Victimae paschali laudes immolent Christiani. Agnus redemit oves: Christus innocens Patri reconciliavit peccatores.

May Christians bring praise as the sacrificial offering to the Paschal Victim. The Lamb redeems the sheep. Innocent Christ reconciles sinners to the Father.

I interpret the title to relate to this sequence, for the "sounds of one rejoicing" are in truth the sounds of rejoicing at the Paschal feast. Easter, after all, celebrates the resurrection of Christ and the birth of spring. This is, therefore, the most joyful season of the liturgical year; thus Becker's Sonus is actually an Easter work, one that relates the Latin text of the sequence to the title. As far as I know, the title is Becker's own--it neither seems to be quotation or the title of some hymn.

There are two melodic ideas that dominate Sonus: the Gregorian quotation (Example 1), and another short melody that likewise seems to be derived from the Gregorian repertory (Example 2). Thus far I have not been able to identify the Gregorian chant, but I suspect this haunting melody is Becker's own. Does not this melody relate to the work's title? But for a composition that is supposed to be joyful, Sonus is strangely subdued. Again I interpret, but my impression is that Sonus reflects a deeply felt joy, one that is suffused with tranquility and introspection.

Structural features

Let us turn to the work itself. In general, Sonus is marked by linear counterpoint that creates friction between the lines and quartal harmonies. (Example 3)  Peculiar harmonic inflections are also common. (Example 4) The general structure results from the cantus firmus treatment of the two melodic ideas mentioned above. Becker's own melodic idea is presented as an ostinato and becomes the most striking feature of the work. (Example 2)

The work opens with a sustained D in the bass. Quartal harmonies with dissonance are here featured, creating a prelude from mm. 1 to 30. An Allegro maestoso begins at m. 31. Here the ostinato is introduced, with fragmentation and variation. Increasingly chromatic harmonies and active rhythms provide intensity. The texture clears and there is a return to D as the tonal center. At m. 76 the opening of the Victimae paschali is quoted and then treated as a cantus firmus against active figuration. At m. 93 the ostinato is presented against the opening of the Victimae Paschali. A change to 6/4 meter and D major appears at m. 108, introducing a free variant of the sequence and veiled references to the ostinato. At m. 121, D minor returns with active rhythm and a combination of the two melodic fragments. At m. 139, the Adagio tempo returns with the final appearance of the ostinato pattern used as the cadence.

Stylistic features

There are a number of features of Sonus Epulantis that imply it is a later work of Becker's. The harmonies are frequently dissonant. The enigmatic title and the haunting melody used as the ostinato are also unusual. Was this work composed for some special Easter occasion? I rather suspect that it was, for it could well have been featured as an interlude during one of those grand Easter services that Becker was so famous for. Although Sonus Epulantis is carefully composed, it reflects Becker's mastery as an improviser. Each section leads into the next, creating contrast and climaxes but always referring to the two thematic ideas.

The score includes registration suggestions and manual designations and is intended for a large romantic organ of three manuals and pedal. The registrations include both general and specific instructions. For example, the work opens with the registration: Sw: Soft Strings, Gt: Foundations, Ch: Dulciana, Ped: 16¢ and 8¢, and the dynamic is piano. Within the first 15 measures the music crescendos to fortissimo, presuming the use of the crescendo pedal or carefully worked out general and divisional piston changes. Five measures later, the score indicates piano. Later instructions include such indications as "Gt and Sw Full" and "Gt Diapasons to Full Sw," along with crescendo to full organ. The middle section indicates Sw: Diapason and Ch: Clarinet; and later Sw: Solo Stop (Trompette) and Ch: Soft Flutes; later still Sw: Flutes and Strings 8¢, 4¢. Another crescendo in measures 117 to 128 builds to full organ, achieved with the crescendo pedal or numerous piston changes. After a climax on V2 of iv, the piece ends quietly on the Swell Voix Celeste and the Great soft Flute. Performance requirements include a thorough control of legato touch, octaves in the manuals and pedal, brilliant 16-note figuration, and numerous manual and registration changes. Two enclosed divisions are intended.

Summary

Unfortunately, Becker's music has fallen into oblivion. A concert of his music on the 125th anniversary of St. Vincent de Paul church on November 5, 2000 revealed a composer with a solid technique and profound commitment to religious expression. Of all the compositions on this program, Sonus Epulantis was the most expressive and most beautiful. It reflects the emotions of a man who had lived a long life in church music and wished to express the spiritual satisfaction that life had given him. Its transcendence suggests it was one of the last compositions Becker wrote and that it was a kind of opus ultimum--a final statement of his life and purpose.

Becker bibliography

"Who's Who Among American Organists," The Diapason, October, 1925, p. 10.

"Arthur Becker appointed director of the chorus of the Illinois Club for Catholic Women," The Diapason, July, 1930, p. 46.

"Catholic Church Music: Three New Masses of Interest," The Diapason, August, 1932, p. 23.

Arthur C. Becker, 1/4 page display ad, Concert Management McNab & Gressing, The Diapason, September, 1933, p. 7.

"Arthur C. Becker broadcasts recitals in university course," The Diapason, April, 1936, p. 20.

"Arthur C. Becker, A.A.G.O., dean of the school of music of DePaul University, Chicago, and organist and choirmaster of St. Vincent's Church, completed his thirty-third broadcast of organ music from station WGN . . .," The Diapason, July, 1938, p. 17.

"Becker and School to Mark Anniversary: serves a quarter century," The Diapason, April, 1943, p. 7.

"Dr. Arthur C. Becker on April 5 observed his 36th anniversary as organist and choirmaster of the Catholic Church of St. Vincent de Paul," The Diapason, May, 1954, p. 6.

"Dr. Arthur C. Becker, dean of DePaul University's school of music, is shown at the console of the three-manual Moller organ donated anonymously to the school," The Diapason, April, 1957, p. 1.

"Arthur C. Becker celebrates 40th anniversary," The Diapason, April, 1958, p. 6.

"Dr. Arthur C. Becker will retire as dean of the school of music at DePaul University, Chicago, after 48 years as its head," The Diapason, March, 1966, p. 26.

"Arthur C. Becker celebrates 50 years at St. Vincent de Paul Church," The Diapason, May, 1968, p. 2.

"Arthur C. Becker will observe his 52nd anniversary as organist and choirmaster of St. Vincent de Paul Church," The Diapason, April, 1970, p. 8.

"Nunc Dimittis," The Diapason, April, 1976, p. 11.

Arthur C. Becker Work List

Organ

Brünnhilde's Awakening and Finale from Siegfried-Richard Wagner, arranged for organ by Arthur C. Becker, February 12, 1933.

Four Antiphons of the Blessed Virgin Mary Choral-Paraphrased for Organ (1948?).  Alma Redemptoris Mater, Ave Regina Caelorum, Regina Coeli, Salve Regina. Published by McLaughlin & Reilly Co., Boston, M&R Co. #1590-20, copyright MCMXLVIII.

Miniature Suite for Organ (August 4, 1962), dedication:  "To René Dosogne." I Con Moto, II Moderato, III Moderato, IV Con Moto. Unpublished manuscript.

Music for Low Mass (no date), Suite for Organ. Introit-Effusum est, Offertory-In virtute tua, Elevation-Benedictus-Mass XI, Communion-Religio munda, Post-lude-Alleluia. Unpublished manuscript.

Prelude to a Sacred Drama (no date). Unpublished manuscript. Note: This piece reworked into "Sonus Epulantis" listed below.

Retrospection (February 11, 1969). Unpublished manuscript.

Scherzando (August 22, 1966). Unpublished manuscript.

Second Sonata for Organ (no date), dedication:  "To my friend and colleague Herman Pedtke." I Larghetto, II Lively, III Andante, IV Moderato. Unpublished manuscript.

Sonus Epulantis for Organ (no date). Unpublished manuscript.

Three Sketches for Organ (June 25, 1969). I Andante, II Andante, III Allegro  Maestoso. Unpublished manuscript.

There was also a First Sonata for Organ written in the 1920s. The manuscript for this has been lost. Two of the movements had been arranged for brass sextet. Paean for brass sextet [New York] Remick Music Corp., ©1938. Library of Congress Call # M657.B4 P3. Romance for brass sextet [New York] Remick Music Corp., ©1938. Library of Congress Call # M657.B4 R6.

Organ and Piano

Concert Overture (April 16, 1941). Unpublished manuscript. Probably written for performance with his wife Barbara S. Becker.

Choral

Published Works

Alleluia-Choral Part for the Toccata from Organ Symphony No. 5 by C.M. Widor.  Published by McLaughlin & Reilly Co., Boston, copyright MCMLV.

Ave Maria (early 1930s?), a cappella, Latin. Published by McLaughlin & Reilly Co., Boston, copyright MCMXXXV, "In the Caecilia (June, 1935)."

Creator of the Stars of Night, Sacred Chorus for Mixed Voices, S.S.A.A.T.T.B.B. a cappella, Published by Hall & McCreary Co., Chicago, copyright 1940.

Mass in Honor of St. Vincent de Paul, "Dedicated to my sister Lucile," SSAATTBB and organ, Latin, Boston, McLaughlin & Reilly Co., ©1937. There are also string parts (in manuscript) for this Mass-V1, V2, Vla, VC, DB.

Mass in Honor of the Holy Name, SATB Voices and Organ, Latin, dedication:  "To Msgr. Charles N. Meter, S.T.D., Mus.D., and the Cardinal's Cathedral Choisters, Chicago, Ill." Published by McLaughlin & Reilly Co., Boston, copyright MCMLIX.

Mass "Lord God, Heavenly King," English Mass for Congregation and Choir of Four Mixed Voices with Organ. Published by Gregorian Institute of America, Toledo, Ohio, copyright 1966.

Mass of the Sacred Heart, SATB Voices and Organ with Congregation ad lib. Published by Gregorian Institute of America, Toledo, Ohio, copyright 1966.

One Is Holy, SATB a cappella. Published by McLaughlin & Reilly Co., Boston, copyright MCMLXIX.

Arrangements

Bless the Lord, O My Soul, Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov (1859-1935), arranged for S.A.T.B. by Arthur C. Becker. A cappella. Published by GIA Publications, Chicago, copyright 1970.

Come Holy Spirit, Orlando Gibbons, arranged for SATB Voices with Organ. Published by GIA Publications, Chicago, copyright 1970.

The Lord Bless You, J.S. Bach, arranged by Arthur C. Becker. Text: "From the concluding prayer of a Commissioning Service. Freely Translated by A.C.B."  S.A.T.B. a cappella. Published by GIA Publications, Chicago, copyright 1970.

Unpublished Works

Adore Te Devote (no date), for soprano, alto, tenor, bass and organ, Latin.

Ave Maria (no date), SATB a cappella, Latin. (This is different from the published Ave Maria listed above.)

Blessed Be God The Father (October 11, 1969), for mixed voices, 2 trumpets, 2 trombones and organ, English.

Cantate Domino-Come, let us sing to the Lord (no date), SATB and organ, English.

Domine Deus (April, 1958), "To St. Vincent Choir," SATB with organ, Latin.

Have Mercy On Me (May 2, 1967), SATB with organ, English.

I Will Delight in Your Commands (February 4, 1970), SATB and organ, English.

Mass in Honor of St. Barbara (no date), for mixed choir, congregation and organ, "In Memory of my Beloved Wife, Barbara."

Mass (Untitled) (May 20, 1970), "To St. Vincent de Paul Church Choir," SATB with organ, English.

Missa Brevis (no date), SATB, organ (ad libitum), Latin.

O Lord, I Am Not Worthy (May 8, 1966), SATB a cappella, English.

Our Father (December 28, 1965), SATB a cappella, English.

Panis Angelicus (no date), SATB, organ, Latin.

Rejoice unto the Lord (July 17, 1966),  "Respectfully Dedicated to Rev. Charles E. Cannon, C.M., Pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Church, Chicago Illinois," SATB with organ, English.

Yours Is Princely Power (January 4, 1969), Scriptural Response Christmas Midnight Mass, SATB with organ, English.

Arrangements

Agnus Dei, Kalinnikoff, arranged with Latin words by Arthur C. Becker, soprano solo, alto solo, S.S.A.A.

Hymn-Accept Almighty Father, four part chorus of mixed voices.

Hymn-At That First Eucharist, arranged for solo, mixed choir and congregation.

Hymn-Crown Him with Many Crowns.

Hymn-For All The Saints, R. Vaughan Williams.

Hymn-Forty Days and Forty Nights, arranged for 4 voices and organ.

Missa Plebs Dei, David Kraehenbuehl, arranged for 4 voices.

Missa Regina Pacis, Albert J. Dooner, English arrangement of  Latin mass.

Send Forth Thy Light, Balakirev (?), alto solo, SATB solos and mixed choir with organ.

Miscellaneous

DePaul University "Fight Song," Published by DePaul University Press, 64 East Lake Street, circa early 1930s.

Stephanie Burgoyne obtained her ARCT in piano performance in 1990 from the Royal Conservatory of Toronto. She holds the associateship in organ performance from Western Conservatory (now Conservatory Canada), the A.R.C.C.O. from the Royal Canadian College of Organists, and earned an artist diploma in organ performance from Western University, while at the same time obtaining a Ph.D. in mathematics. 

She has served as organist and minister of music at St. Jude’s Anglican Church, Brantford, Ontario, where she instituted both a semi-annual concert series and an organ recital series. In 2011, she became music director and organist at St. Paul’s United Church in Paris, Ontario, where she also began a concert series. She performs recitals both as a soloist and with William Vandertuin. Burgoyne teaches mathematics at Laurier University.

Although much has been written about Sir Charles Villiers Stanford, it is still difficult to understand why (apart from his church music) so little of his output of over 200 compositions is often performed—in particular, his organ works, which include the Six Occasional Preludes (op. 182), Three Preludes and Fugues (op. 193), Six Short Preludes and Postludes (op. 101, op. 105) and his organ sonatas (opp. 149, 151–153, 159). A review of recordings and writings about his organ music revealed a need to further explore Stanford’s five sonatas for organ. This article presents my own personal experience with them, in the hope of inspiring others to explore these neglected works. 

Charles Stanford (Dublin 1852–London 1924) was born into a musical family. His father, a lawyer in Dublin, was an amateur cellist and a noted bass singer, good enough to be chosen to sing the title role in Mendelssohn’s Elijah at its Irish premiere in 1847. His mother, an accomplished pianist, played the solo parts in concertos at various concerts in Dublin. Stanford’s parents encouraged their son, providing instruction in violin, piano, organ, and composition. Nevertheless, they felt it beneficial that he pursue a university education as well, leading towards a degree in law. Yet Stanford not only pursued music study in Britain but early on started travelling to the Continent every year to further increase his musical knowledge. (It is worth noting, in view of his study in Leipzig and Berlin, that his interest for study in Germany might have originated with his early teachers, three of whom had been students of Ignaz Moscheles, a Bohemian pianist of German parents, who spent a number of years in Britain. Moscheles returned to Germany in 1846, to serve as professor of piano at the Leipzig Conservatory.)

Stanford studied with Karl Reinecke in Leipzig and Friedrich Keil in Berlin. He was appointed professor of composition at the Royal College of Music in London in 1883 and professor of music at Cambridge in 1887. As a teacher, conductor, and composer, he exerted a strong influence over future generations of composers and musicians. His former student Ralph Vaughan Williams is reported to have said that Stanford could adopt the technique of any composer he chose. Stanford is mostly recognized for his choral music, which includes several settings of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis, and a number of Communion services. He also composed works for solo voice, piano, and organ, as well as orchestral works, including seven symphonies and five Irish rhapsodies.

An examination of Stanford’s organ sonatas reveals that he frequently utilizes many chorale-like phrases. Except for those melodies clearly identified and labeled by Stanford himself, I have decided not to identify any others. 

Sonata No. 1 in F, op. 149

Dated May 1917, it is dedicated to “my old friend Alan Gray” (1855–1935); without subtitle.

I. Allegro molto moderato

The first movement, in common time, opens in F major and is in sonata form. It has some stylistic affinity with the organ sonatas of Josef Rheinberger (1839–1901), who in addition to the usual concluding fugue in most of his organ sonatas would also periodically include a fugal section in the first movement. The principal theme is a two-measure chorale-like phrase in quarter notes; it is restated once, with slight modification (Example 1). Part of this motive is then used for a number of measures, ending with a C-major chord. (The same two-measure theme returns in the final movement, giving this sonata a cyclical structure.)

Stanford then develops this material for thirty-three measures (with the addition of a “trumpet call” on another manual). The exposition section uses very soft dynamics while it serves as a modulating bridge, preparing for the second theme in the tonic minor. The second theme consists of a two-measure fugato subject in sixteenth notes ending in several quarter notes, with the countersubject entering before the subject is complete (Example 2). The opening sixteenth-note portion of the fugato subject continues to appear frequently in different voices, and there is interplay between it and the principal theme, with episodes based on both. Part of the countersubject in augmentation serves as preparation for the recapitulation (in which one can almost hear shades of Stanford’s choral writing). A final restatement of part of the main and secondary themes signals the recapitulation proper, and with the inversion of the “secondary theme” adding further interest, the movement ends very quietly with an octave E-flat. 

II. Tempo di Menuetto

The second movement, in A-flat major, is one of Stanford’s most light-hearted movements for organ. The opening, shown in Example 3, features a dancelike motive in three-quarter time. This motive is stated sequentially twice and is extended by a two-measure eighth-note passage in tenths. Stanford then continues to develop both parts of the subject separately as well as combining them so that the main theme is never far away. The development section utilizes such techniques as inversion, imitation, and modulation. Duplet is changed to triplet motion and added to soprano, alto, and/or pedal parts in turn. After a number of repetitions of the main thematic material, the movement concludes quietly with a restatement of the opening motive. 

III. Allegro maestoso

The third and final movement, in common time and in F minor, is an introduction and fugue (as one finds in many Rheinberger sonatas). The introduction uses the same chorale-like phrase as the first movement. Whereas the first movement starts in F major and ends in F minor, this movement does the reverse (beginning with the bridge passage introducing the fugue subject).

In contrast to the first movement, where the quarter-note chorale-like phrase repeats a number of times without interruption, here each statement alternates with passage runs in triplets and sixteenths (some of which are derived from the countersubject of the first movement’s fugato). After two solo reed additions, the section concludes with a modulation to F major that introduces the key for the fugue subject (which is related to the chorale by using the same three-note opening). The fugue begins with a fairly strict exposition, with a real answer and a “dotted rhythm” countersubject (Example 4). Parts of both themes then are used to create episodes. An imitative passage based on the opening quarter-note motive leads to the fugue’s dotted-rhythm countersubject over a final restatement of the fugue subject in augmentation in the pedal. The recapitulation is prepared for by a repeated appearance of the three-note opening motive and is then established by the chorale-like subject beginning at the final “Maestoso.” After the addition of a solo reed, the sequential three-note chorale subject opening appears a number of times before the movement ends on full organ.

Sonata Eroica No. 2, op. 151

Dated August 1917 and dedicated to “Charles Marie Widor and the great country to which he belongs,” the first and third movements of this sonata refer to two specific battlegrounds where French troops faced very fierce and costly battles during the World War I. Even though Stanford does not quote the French national anthem in its entirety anywhere in the three movements, it does appear in various guises throughout.

I. Allegro moderato

The first movement, in G minor and three-four time, is subtitled “Rheims.” The main theme quotes the hymn O Filii et Filiae, whose text denotes new life and resurrection (Example 5). Stanford may have chosen this tune to relate it to the history of the great cathedral at Rheims, which was burned during World War I. 

The first line presents the main theme in octaves; this theme recurs regularly throughout the movement in various voices. After the first line, Stanford uses sixteenth-note passagework (relating it to some of Widor’s symphonies for organ), which frequently uses the Marseillaise’s melodic rhythms. The themes alternate between extreme agitation (suggesting the hostility of war) and quiet reflection during periods of rest.

Stanford continues to add new material in the middle section, visiting a number of keys (E minor, A-flat major) during development. This section briefly returns to G minor; nevertheless, the movement concludes with a stately reminder of the main theme in G major. 

II. Adagio molto 

The second movement, in E-flat major in common time, presents two distinctly different themes. Might Stanford have intended this as part of a “Requiem Mass” setting (to recall the many deaths on the battlefields)? If so, the first meditative theme might function as the Introit, “Requiem aeternam” (Example 6), while the second theme, with its extensive agitated dotted-rhythm motive depicting the horrific reality of the conflict, might be considered the Sequence, “Dies irae” (Example 7). 

In the loud and boisterous second section, Stanford uses punctuating chords supported by sixteenth notes in the pedal. This is followed immediately by a four-measure imitative polyphonic counterpoint and a restatement of the dotted half-note section, this time in A-flat major. From here on, the chorale tune enters (in part) now and then, prepared for by polyphonic imitation and periodically interrupted by the dotted half-note motive, sometimes in diminution. Toward the end there is a complete mood change through the use of the same four-note motive again. The movement ends as it began.

III. Allegro moderato

The third movement is subtitled “Verdun.” The battle for Verdun was one of the fiercest and costliest battles between the French and German armies during the First World War, and cost an estimated one million lives, without gaining any advantages on either side. This movement quotes the French national anthem melodically and rhythmically more strongly than any of the other movements. It opens with a few loud chords, followed immediately by agitated two-part scale-like passages in sixteenths (Example 8). The chordal sections continue to alternate with fast-moving, sixteenth-note episodes that include parts of the Marseillaise (Example 9). Stanford then develops the themes using modulation, sequence, and imitation. Although this movement contains many quiet sections, it is generally loud, and the sonata ends with the complete first line of the Marseillaise (beginning with a solo trumpet).

Sonata Britannica No. 3 in D Minor, op. 152 

Dated November 1917, it is dedicated to Sir Walter Parratt (English organist and composer, 1841–1924). This sonata contains the most recognizable melodies; the first movement is based on the hymn tune St. Mary and the third movement is built on the tune Hanover. 

I. Allegro non troppo ma con fuoco

The first movement, in D minor, opens with dotted half-note accumulating chords in 12/8 time (Example 10). Even though there are a number of different texts for the St. Mary tune, based on the forte dotted half-note opening section (which repeats in various ways throughout the movement), it is hard to imagine any other text fitting the music except that composed by Cardinal John Henry Newman, the first verse of this hymn beginning with the creedal statement, “Firmly I believe and truly, God is Three and God is One.” Thus Stanford keeps quoting selected phrases of the St. Mary tune in different voices and maintains interest by alternating loud and soft sections using both themes. There is a short section in the key of D major before returning to D minor, and the movement concludes with some wonderfully quiet melodic sections using the St. Mary tune.

II. (Benedictus), Larghetto

The second movement, “Benedictus,” in B-flat major, emerges from an opening melody in common time (Example 11). In the sixth measure, Stanford adds what might be perceived as an interlude (or comment) on this melody (Example 12). This alternating pattern continues until the piu mosso designation in D-flat major where the manual parts make a “hesitating” octave jump before the opening melody continues and the pedal adds to the hesitancy with off-beat eighth notes. Following this, we hear a section characterized by upward chordal octave skips where Stanford asks for reed stops to be added to the ensemble. One can imagine that these bold, ascending chords paint the text “Hosanna in the highest” of the Benedictus (Example 13). There then follows a development utilizing all the previous themes. The movement ends quietly with the opening melody. 

III. Allegro molto e ritmico

The third movement, in 3/4 time and overall in D major, is based on the tune Hanover, and although it is sixteen pages long, presents little in new or innovative ideas. It variously quotes parts of the tune and uses these for further development. There are many short imitative lines, loud emphatic chordal statements, as well as equally short melodic lines with varied accompaniment. The movement ends with a setting of Hanover in its entirety and a repeat of the last line, which adds an energetic close to this sonata.

Sonata Celtica No. 4, op. 153 

Composed 1918–1920, this sonata was dedicated “To my friend Harold Darke” (English organist-composer, 1888–1976). 

I. Allegro molto moderato

The first movement, in C minor and 3/4 time, shows the most Germanic influence of all of Stanford’s compositions; its contrapuntal nature brings to mind the first sonata by Josef Rheinberger (which in turn is related to the style of Bach). This reminds us that no composer lives in isolation or is ignorant of historical models.

After introducing the principal theme (Example 14), Stanford presents a simple melody in various voices, which alternates with the main subject (or parts thereof). This continues until the addition of modified thematic material in an eighth-note pattern leading to another setting of the melody. Following a key change to C major the melody is then enhanced by a running sixteenths pattern in the tenor (Example 15). After reiterating parts of the main theme, Stanford concludes the movement with a number of repeated chords over off-beat pedal notes, reinforcing the C-major ending. In just a few measures Stanford quickly moves from Germanic counterpoint (as in Rheinberger) to an English choral music style. 

II. Tema con variazioni

The second movement, in A-flat major and common time, is a set of variations, sometimes based on melody and other times on harmony. The written-out lower mordent in single notes, which opens the movement, is a motive that appears fairly often (Example 16). At the second variation, there is a time signature change to 6/4 with much use of the imitative lower-mordent motive. In the third variation (in common time), we hear a short reminder of the first movement, with Stanford inverting part of the opening subject (Example 17). This section also features the lower-mordent motive in diminution in the pedal. The movement then returns to material based on excerpts of the original theme at “Tempo della thema” of the fourth variation, which closes the movement quietly.

III. St. Patrick’s Breastplate

The third movement is mostly based on a hymn to the Trinity, a text ascribed to St. Patrick (372–466), translated by Cecil Frances Alexander, set to an ancient Irish hymn melody (St. Patrick) in an arrangement by Stanford. There are also references to the tune Gartan (known to many in North America as “Love came down at Christmas”). The movement begins with forte octaves sounding the first five notes of the hymn, then chordal support ending on a whole-note D-major chord (Example 18). This repeats sequentially a third higher and modifies the opening material, ending in C minor where it introduces the passacaglia unison theme in the pedal (Example 19). The accompaniment to the passacaglia subject appears three times, each time increasing in volume and number of voices. The melody then moves to the soprano, supported by chords and imitative counterpoint, slowly eliminating some voices to a quiet reduction to three-part harmony. Here Stanford introduces the tune Gartan (Example 20).  

Part of this new theme is then developed until the poco piu lento in 6/4 time, when we hear again a reminder of the passacaglia theme. This is accompanied by an accumulative two-note upward chordal leap, emphasizing the beginning of the chorale on the manual, which eventually is supported by rhythmic pedal in octaves. This section gradually becomes softer, utilizing a two-part passage in sixths leading to another passacaglia section, slightly modified (Example 21), which is repeated a number of times with different accompaniment. The following section leads to manuals and pedal imitating and reinforcing each other. After a pedal solo is the final statement of fragments of Gartan and the main theme, which get stronger in preparation for the final entry of the St. Patrick tune. 

Sonata No. 5, op. 159, Quasi una fantasia 

Dated May 1918 with a first printing in 1921, the whole of this sonata is based on Stanford’s own tune Engelberg, written in 1904, when he was in Switzerland. In contrast to the other four, this sonata is not in three distinct movements, but in cyclical form. All three of its sections are based on the same thematic material. 

The first section (Allegro moderato), in A major and common time, opens with the first line of the hymn in octaves (Example 22). It is followed immediately by similar statements using actual note values as well as diminution of the opening three notes of the tune in four parts. This continues with arpeggiated chords in sixteenths (again based on the first three notes) followed by a short chordal section finishing on the dominant. Here Stanford introduces a dotted-rhythm accompaniment (Example 23), which adds to and alternates with previous material until we hear the first line of the hymn as a solo line over triplet accompaniment. It then returns to chordal sections with the solo first line interspersed and modulated until it is stated hymn-like in homophonic style. Stanford then uses parts of the previous thematic material to prepare for the second section.

The second section (Allegretto non troppo mosso), in F# minor, is in 9/8 time and is based on the opening notes of the hymn in diminution (Example 24). A gentle, unison eighth-note passage leads to and serves as the accompaniment for a melody based on the (modified) second line of the hymn on the Swell manual. These different parts continue to interact with each other until the key change to G-flat major, where Stanford returns to the first line of the hymn in 3/4 time. The main subject then continues in the alto-tenor part with a new countersubject in the soprano. When the main theme returns to the soprano, it is undergirded by an eighth-note passage in the pedal before returning to F# minor and 9/8 time. Whereas in the opening section, the (modified) melodic fragment was in the tenor, accompanied by triplet eighths, the roles are here reversed, the melody being in the soprano with triplet eighths in the tenor. A chromatic rise in the soprano is followed by a reiteration of part of the second measure of the hymn-tune and with one last ascending chromatic scale following a descending scale in the pedal, concludes this second section on an A-major dominant-seventh chord.

The third section (Allegro), in 2/4 time and in A major, is a fugal treatment of the last two measures of the hymn tune (Example 25). Although this motive alternates with reminders of other parts of the hymn tune, it returns regularly, either in the tenor or soprano, and it is periodically accompanied by sixteenth-note passages. A modulatory bridge, which features the fugato motive in the pedal, leads to the first complete statement of the hymn melody in quarter notes in A-flat major, supported by staccato pedal eighth notes. After a return to A major, Stanford continues to develop the fugato motive sequentially and imitatively with interludes based on other parts of the tune. This development prepares for the entry of the “Allegro Moderato, ma più largamente” indication of the Engelberg tune in its entirety. The movement concludes after a number of repetitions of the last three notes of the tune, and after a climbing pedal passage, ends gloriously on the complete last line of the hymn, triple forte in A major. 

Some final thoughts

It appears from the foregoing analysis that sonatas one and five treat thematic material differently than do sonatas two through four. In sonata one, Stanford uses the same thematic material throughout the three movements; sonata five comprises one complete movement with three separate sections based on the same theme. Sonatas two through four consist of three separate movements, each with its own theme. In addition, their second movements are derived from a sacred Latin text or from a model from the Middle Ages.