Music Notes – Sunday, March 30th:
This Sunday’s musicians are The Chancel Choir and UUCC Music Director Mike Carney
Prelude: Where Do We Come From? – Tate, arr. Carney
The lyrics for “Where Do We Come From?” originate from the title of a famous oil painting by Paul Gauguin (1848-1903). Gaugin’s painting depicts a group of women who represent the three questions posed in his title. Women shown with a young child represent the beginning of life: “Where Do We Come From?” A second group of women represent the daily existence of adulthood: “What Are We?” Finally, an old woman nearing the end of her life is asking, “Where Are We Going?” The musical adaptation was written in 1999 by Canadian composer Brian Tate (b. 1954) and is #1003 in our Singing the Journey hymnbook.
Song: Gather the Spirit – Scott
#347 in our Singing the Living Tradition hymnal, “Gather the Spirit” is one of the most familiar and well-loved hymns of our UU faith. The song was written by UU composer, performer, activist, and friend of UUCC Jim Scott (b. 1946), who also wrote and arranged several other songs found in our hymnbooks, including “May Your Life Be as a Song” and “Nothing but Peace Is Enough”.
Centering Music: The Hudson – Gjeilo
Norwegian-born Ola Gjeilo (b. 1978) is one of the rising stars in the world of 21st century classical music. He holds composition degrees from both The Royal College of Music in London and The Juilliard School in New York and recently served as composer-in-residence with the renowned choral group Voces8. “The Hudson” is from Gjeilo’s Five Pieces for Piano, which he wrote in New York City during 2006-2007.
Offertory Music: More Waters Rising – Lynch-Thomason, arr. Choi
Saro Lynch-Thomason is a ballad singer, folklorist, illustrator, author and social activist from Asheville, North Carolina. Her passion for traditional music, people’s struggles and Appalachian traditions has called her to perform, teach and produce media that tell the stories and songs of America’s social history. Her distinct, powerful singing style transports audiences to Appalachian Mountain hollers, 19th-century coal camps and old meeting houses. Since 2010, Saro has led the Asheville Community Sing and is still active as a songleader, composer, performer, and activist (from sarosings.com). Saro wrote “More Waters Rising” in 2016, and she describes her song in this way: “For me, this song is about seeing what’s coming on the horizon: harder times that are inevitable and unavoidable. But the answer to the fear of what’s coming is resiliency and claiming a strength within ourselves that has been there all along.” The choral arrangement our Chancel Choir will sing this Sunday was created by the award winning Filipino-Chinese composer and choral artist Saunder Choi.
Song: Woyaya – Amarfio, Amoa, Bailey, Bedeau, Osei, Richardson, & Tontoh
Primarily written by Ghanaian drummer Sol Amarifio (1938-2022), “Woyaya” (also known as “We Are Going” or “Heaven Knows”) is the title song of a 1971 album by Oisibisa, a group of Ghanaian and Caribbean musicians. The song was frequently heard in work camps throughout central West Africa in the 1970s and 1980s. The word “Woyaya” has no literal English translation but can have multiple meanings, as is the case with many scat syllables (a common feature in West African music). The arrangement of “Woyaya” used in our service (and appearing as #1020 in our Singing the Journey hymnbook) comes from Ysaye Barnwell of Sweet Honey in the Rock.
Postlude: Heart Wide Open – Lea Morris
“Heart Wide Open” is a song by award-winning performer and composer Lea Morris (b. 1978), also known simply as LEA. Born in Baltimore to a father who toured the world playing trumpet in the funk band Black Heat and a mother who dreamed of opera while performing with her siblings in the Jones Family Gospel Singers, LEA was singing on the pulpit of the Baptist church where she grew up as soon she could speak. When she discovered the acoustic guitar as a teenager, she began teaching herself to play by writing songs. LEA’s final year in high school in Germany at a classical conservatory, where she sang with the jazz ensemble Black & White and co-wrote with the British pop trio Indigo Wild. Having shared the stage with luminaries including Odetta, Mavis Staples, Dar Williams and Anthony Hamilton, LEA performs at a far-ranging array of venues, including arts centers, universities, festivals, places of worship and beyond. She performs solo and with her band, The Moment. (includes material from thisislea.com)
-Mike Carney, UUCC Music Director