Music Notes – Sunday, October 16th:
This Sunday’s musicians are Pamela Schenk and UUCC Pianist Karin Tooley.
Opening Hymn: #360 Here We Have Gathered – Carpenter
A favorite opening hymn in many UU Congregations, #360 “Here We Have Gathered” is based on a Genevan psalter that dates back to at least the 16th century, juxtaposed with a 20th-century text by UU songwriter Alicia Carpenter (1930-2021). “Here We Have Gathered” is one of 10 hymns in Singing the Living Tradition that were written or co-written by Ms. Carpenter. Some of her other contributions to our hymnal include #6 “Just as Long as I Have Breath” and #300 “With Heart and Mind”.
Centering Music: Somewhere – Bernstein/Sondheim
On September 26, 1957, the face of American Musical Theatre changed forever with the Broadway debut of West Side Story. Inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story created new expectations for how a Broadway musical could look and sound. Two award-winningfilm adaptations have followed, and it is no overstatement to say that West Side Story has become an indelible part of American popular culture. The songs from West Side Story resulted from a collaboration between two giants of modern American music: Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990) and Stephen Sondheim (1930-2021). Bernstein, who wrote the show’s music, was a widely acclaimed performer and composer, and was perhaps best-known as the conductor and musical director of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra from 1956-1969. Sondheim, who wrote the lyrics for West Side Story’s songs, would go on to become one of Broadway’s most distinctive and influential composers himself, writing the music and lyrics for sixteen shows, including A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1962), Company (1970), Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (1979), and Into the Woods (1987). “Somewhere” is the signature ballad from West Side Story, and its flowing, arching melody, lush harmonies, and fiercely optimistic message provide a musical oasis amidst the staccato rhythms and dissonant, angular melodies of the other music that Bernstein and Sondheim created to reflect the frenetic and dangerous world inhabited by West Side Story’s characters.
Special Music: I Know This Rose Will Open – Grigolia
#396 in our Singing the Living Tradition hymnal, “I Know This Rose Will Open” is a 1989 composition by UU Minister and songwriter Mary Grigolia (b. 1947), who is currently serving Cleveland-area UU congregations in North Olmsted and Oberlin. Although short and simple, the song is often performed as an overlapping round, revealing multiple layers of texture and harmonic color like its namesake flower.
Offertory: Out Here on my Own – Gore & Gore
“Out Here on my Own” is a ballad from the 1980 movie musical Fame, first performed and recorded by the star of that film, Irene Cara (b. 1959). The song was written by the brother-and-sister songwriting team of composer Michael Gore (b. 1951) and lyricist Lesley Gore (1946-2015). “Out Here on my Own” was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, losing out to the title track from the same movie.
Closing Hymn: Winds Be Still – Wesley/Kimball
#83 in Singing the Living Tradition, “Winds Be Still” is a hymn that blends a 19th-century Methodist melody with a 20th-century UU text. The tune was written by English organist and composer Samuel Sebastian Wesley (1810-1876), who was the grandson of Charles Wesley (1707-1788), a prolific hymnist and leader of the Methodist movement. The younger Wesley named his tune “Lead Me, Lord”, which is still a much-beloved hymn in Methodist and other Protestant Christian churches to this day. In our hymnal, Wesley’s tune is set with words from Richard S. (Rick) Kimball (b. 1934), a UU educator and author who has written and co-written many curricular materials for youth and adult RE programs, including Our Whole Lives: Sexuality Education for Adults.
Postlude: Ordinary Miracles – Bergman, Bergman, and Hamlisch
“Ordinary Miracles” is a 1994 song written by American composer Marvin Hamlisch (1944-2012), who is a member of the EGOT club – in other words, he is one of just 17 people to have won Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards. The lyrics for “Ordinary Miracles” were written by the husband-and-wife team of Alan Bergman (b. 1925) and Marilyn Bergman (1928-2022), who are also Emmy, Grammy, and Oscar winners and inductees into the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame. “Ordinary Miracles” was originally recorded in 1994 by Barbra Streisand and has become one of her signature songs.
-Mike Carney, UUCC Music Director
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