New Sacred Choral Work

Friday, March 12, 2010

So my "thing a week" has been a little sparse lately.  I've been working on some embroidery, which is not quite halfway done, and spent some time with my brother developing a more polished recording of Psalm 13 (which isn't ready yet).  But on the whole I've not felt very motivated, and admittedly I've been spending too much time playing World of Warcraft.  Last Saturday, however, I sat down at the piano, figuring I should do something, and text from the Psalms just started pouring out.

Within a very short time I had the complete lyrics, adapting text from a number of different verses of scripture, and began composing an SSA arrangement.  I chose this because I wanted something where I could sing all 3 parts, and so quickly generate a recording.  To that end, I kept the range limited and the chord voicing closely spaced.  I finished the composition on Wednesday, and recorded it yesterday.  Today I listened to the recording, adjusted some dynamics, and added some filters.  I must say, I enjoy the process of composing much more than recording!  While I could certainly work on it a bit more and perhaps re-record some parts and tighten things up a bit, I figured I'd just upload what I have and keep moving.

What I'd like to do with this piece now is add a bass part, and generate an arrangement for SATB.  Then my brother and I can record that version together.  And, who knows, I may even compose some orchestral accompaniment to go with it.

For now, the original SSA version is available here.

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Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? "Father, save me from this hour"? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!
— John 12:27-28