Music Notes – Sunday, July 27th:
This Sunday’s musician is UUCC Pianist Karin Tooley
Prelude: From You I Receive – Segal and Segal
Most UUs are familiar with this short and simple round, which is #402 in Singing the Living Tradition and is used by many UU congregations as their weekly offertory response. What many UUs do not know is that the song was written and performed by two brothers, Joseph and Nathan Segal, who describe themselves as “12th generation singing rabbis”. The Segal brothers had a successful career as both spiritual leaders and entertainers, blending music, humor, and life lessons in their appearances.
Song: Bright Morning Stars – Appalachian Folk song
“Bright Morning Stars” is an Appalachian spiritual that may also have roots in Irish or Scottish folk music. The exact origins of the song are lost to history, but it has become a popular choice in modern hymnals, including our own Singing the Living Tradition (#357), and has been recorded by many folk and popular artists, including The Seeger Sisters, The Wailin’ Jennys and Judy Collins.
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-winning film 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.
Offertory Music: “Dear Father” from Jonathan Livingston Seagull – Diamond
Postlude: “Be” from Jonathan Livingston Seagull – Diamond
This Sunday’s offertory and postlude are both selections from the soundtrack of the 1973 film Jonathan Livingston Seagull, which was based on Richard Bach’s 1970 book of the same name. Despite the popularity of Bach’s novella, the movie adaptation was not well-received by critics and was a box office disappointment. However, the film’s soundtrack, written by legendary American singer-songwriter Neil Diamond (b. 1941), was an unqualified success, grossing far more than the film itself and winning both a Golden Globe and Grammy Award for Best Original Score.
Song: Building a New Way – Sandefer
Martha Sandefer (b. 1952) is an American vocalist and composer who is currently involved with the Work o’ the Weavers project. She wrote “Building a New Way” in 1986 and her song was later arranged by Jim Scott (b. 1946) and included as #1017 in our Singing the Journey hymnbook.
-Mike Carney, UUCC Music Director