Music Notes – Sunday, June 16th:
This Sunday’s musicians are Anya Ustin and UUCC Music Director Mike Carney
About Sunday’s guest musician (in her own words)…
I have always loved singing. From the time I was a toddler, I would carry around my “inflatable stage” as my mom would call it. Eventually I found jazz. I loved it. I loved its smooth notes and the dissonant chords; I loved the nuance and beauty it brings; I loved the communication, expression, and community it creates. But most of all, I loved the freedom. I have had the honor of getting into the world of professional Jazz, doing gigs this past year. This spring I was the Junior High School Honors Winner of the 2023 DownBeat Student Music Award as a Vocal Jazz Soloist. This is an award from an international magazine and is considered the most prestigious in jazz education. And though I find this so cool, for me, this music is about the joy and love it can cultivate, the freedom and the peace.
-Anya Ustin, UUCC kid and rising 10th grader
Opening Song: #323 Break Not the Circle – Benjamin/Kaan
One of the best-known living UU composers, Thomas Benjamin (b. 1940) remains an active performer, educator, and composer. Many of his works can be found in our Singing the Living Tradition and Singing the Journey hymnals. Published both as a composer and an author and the recipient of numerous awards, Dr. Benjamin taught for many years at the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music and also taught music theory and composition at the esteemed Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore. Benjamin wrote the music for “Break Not the Circle (#323 in Singing the Living Tradition), setting words by Dutch minister and prolific hymnwriter Frederik Kaan (1929-2009).
Song: #1051 We Are… (Barnwell)
#1051 in Singing the Journey, “We Are…” was composed by Ysaye Barnwell (b. 1946) for Sweet Honey in the Rock. “We Are…” was originally the last song in a suite that began with the lyric, “Lawd, it’s midnight. A dark and fear filled midnight. Lawd, it’s a midnight without stars.” Dr. Barnwell wanted to create a complete circle of experience, and so she wrote “for each child that’s born, a morning star rises…” This phrase is meant to establish hope, and it defines the uniqueness of each one of us. No matter what our race, culture or ethnicity, each one of us has been called into being and are the sum total of all who came before. In the composer’s words, “Each and every one of us stands atop a lineage that has had at its core, mothers and fathers and teachers and dreamers and shamans and healers and builders and warriors and thinkers and, and, and…so in spite of our uniqueness, we come from and share every experience that human kind has ever had. In this way, we are one. (from uua.org)
Centering Music: A Flower is a Lovesome Thing – Strayhorn
Born in Dayton, Ohio, Billy Strayhorn (1915-1967) was an American jazz composer and pianist who spent almost 30 years in collaboration with Duke Ellington. Strayhorn wrote many iconic jazz standards, including “Take the ‘A’ Train”, “Chelsea Bridge”, and “Lush Life”. Strayhorn wrote “A Flower Is a Lovesome Thing” in 1941, and although Ellington’s band often played this tender ballad live throughout the next few years, its first recording was not made until 1946 by the Johnny Hodges All-Stars (Hodges was the star alto saxophonist for Ellington’s band). The song has since been recorded by dozens of artists, including Ella Fitzgerald, Lena Horne, and the Vince Guaraldi Trio.
Offertory Music: September in the Rain – Warren/Dubin
“September in the Rain” is a jazz standard written in 1937 by the songwriting team of composer Harry Warren (1893-1981) and lyricist Al Dubin (1891-1945), who collaborated on more than 60 songs, including “42nd Street”, “I Only Have Eyes for You”, and “Lullaby of Broadway”, which won the 1935 Academy Award for Best Original Song. “September in the Rain” was written for and premiered in the 1937 film musical Melody for Two.
Closing Hymn: May Your Life Be as a Song – Russian folk song/Scott
#1059 in our Singing the Journey hymnal, “May Your Life Be as a Song” is an adaptation of a Russian folk melody, created by UU composer, performer, activist, and friend of UUCC Jim Scott (b. 1946). Jim is also responsible for several other songs found in our hymnbooks, including “Gather the Spirit” and “Nothing but Peace Is Enough”.
Postlude: It’s a Most Unusual Day – McHugh/Adamson
First heard in the 1948 musical romantic comedy film A Date with Judy, “It’s a Most Unusual Day” was co-written by composer Jimmy McHugh (1894-1969) and lyricist Harold Adamson (1906-1980). The original recording for the film was by Jane Powell, and the song rose to popularity and has since been recorded by many others, including Rosemary Clooney, Louis Armstrong, and Michael Feinstein.
-Mike Carney, UUCC Music Director