Thank you to the many UUCC members who joined me on Zoom last Sunday for “The Poet Sings” with composer and conductor Dr. James Mulholland along with Good Company: A Vocal Ensemble. If you missed the “Zoomcast” on Sunday but still want to check out the program, you can access it here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1vePM_j9g7GHcXSLZpUEw7GM1isQKnghY?usp=sharing
Music Notes for November 21st, 2021
This Sunday’s musicians are Amy Collins and UUCC Pianist Karin Tooley.
Opening Hymn: #349 We Gather Together – Valerius/Dutch folk melody
Found in the hymnals of dozens of denominations, “We Gather Together” is among the most familiar and well-loved hymns within Singing the Living Tradition – in fact, it appears twice (with lyric variations) in our hymnbook, as #67 and #349. The hymn tune, known as ‘Kremser”, is derived from a Dutch folk melody called “Ey, wilder den wilt”, which dates to at least the 16th century. The words for “We Gather Together” were originally written by Dutch poet Adrianus Valerius (c. 1575-1625) in celebration of a 1597 Dutch victory over the Spanish force that had been occupying The Netherlands. That victory resulted in liberation from an order by Spanish King Philip II that had prohibited Dutch Protestants from worshipping with one another. Many years later, Dutch settlers brought their beloved song to the new world, and the hymn gained popularity in the United States, particularly at the end of World War II when American families were especially grateful to be reunited.
Offertory music: Omnia sol temperat(from Carmina Burana) – Orff
Carmina Burana was the best-known composition of German composer Carl Orff (1895-1982). Orff did not compose a tremendous amount of music, but did write several works for theatre as well as cantatas and other concert works. Aside from being the composer of Carmina Burana, Orff is famous as an innovator in the world of children’s music education. Developed during the 1920s, Orff’s Schulwerk is a pedagogical approach that blends music, movement, and drama to create music lessons that are meant to engage children in in a way similar to their natural state of play. Nearly a century later, Orff’s concepts are still used by music educators around the world. Composed in 1935-36, Carmina Burana is a scenic cantata by Orff that is based on a selection of medieval poems from a larger collection of poetry also called Carmina Burana. Orff’s work is structured (both poetically and musically) around the theme of a turning wheel of fortune, which spins out life’s sweetness and bitterness in equal and dispassionate fashion. “O Fortuna”, which is the first poem of the collection, is used twice by Orff: both to open and close his 25-movement cantata, reinforcing the concept of this spinning wheel of fate. Aside from its original usage as part of Carmina Burana, Orff’s bombastic musical setting of “O Fortuna” for full chorus and orchestra can be found supporting countless pieces of popular culture, from movies to cartoons, video games to television commercials – pretty much anything that requires a dramatic musical effect. The fourth movement of Orff’s Carmina Burana, “Omnia Sol Temperat” (All things are warmed by the sun) was originally set for a baritone soloist with light orchestration, and is part of a larger section of the work that celebrates the beauty of nature and the annual rebirth of spring.
Closing Hymns: #68 Come, Ye Thankful People and #67 We Sing Now Together
These two traditional Thanksgiving hymns will be combined into a mini-medley of harvest celebration in this Sunday’s service. For more about “We Sing Now Together”, see my notes above. “Come, Ye Thankful People” is an English import, with words originally penned by Henry Alford (1810-1871) and music by his countryman Sir George Elvey (1816–1893), both of whom came from families with deep roots in Anglican worship and music. The words we’ll sing this Sunday are a more contemporary and inclusive reimagining of a hymn of Thanksgiving, written in 2017 by UU Minister and author Rev. Dr. Kendyl Gibbons (b. 1955), who is currently serving as minister of All Souls Unitarian Church of Kansas City, Missouri. Here is Dr. Gibbons’ version of the familiar hymn:
Come, ye thankful people, come;
Raise the song of harvest home.
All is safely gathered in
Ere the winter storms begin.
Earth is bounteous to provide
For our wants to be supplied;
Come, in glad thanksgiving, come;
Raise the song of harvest home.
These our days are as a field
Sweet abundant fruit to yield;
Wheat and tares together sown,
Unto joy or sorrow grown.
First the bud and then the ear,
Then the full corn shall appear.
Live so that at harvest we
Wholesome grain and pure may be.
Field and furrow, heavy grown;
Yours to tend but not your own.
Bread of life shall ye restore
To your neighbors evermore.
Gather all the nations in,
Free from sorrow, free from sin.
Let the world in gladness come;
Share the joy of harvest home.
Postlude: Praeludium (from Holberg Suite) – Grieg
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907) is the most celebrated and historically significant composer of Norwegian descent. Like many of his contemporaries from the Romantic Era, Grieg incorporated folk melodies from his homeland into much of his music, and he played a large part in introducing Norwegian culture to international audiences. One of Grieg’s most celebrated works is his Holberg Suite (Op. 40), a five-movement work for piano written in 1884 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the birth of the Norwegian humanist playwright and philosopher Ludvig Holberg (1684-1754). Because the work was written in honor of a historical figure, Grieg composed it using elements of older musical styles, becoming one of the first composers to employ neoclassicism, which would gain widespread popularity among other composers in the mid-20th century.
-Mike Carney, UUCC Music Director