Music Notes: February 24th, 2013

Second Sunday Of Lent

What a busy week at St. Paul's this week!  Not only do we have two guest choirs, but it is also the kickoff of the Capital Campaign, where members of the newly formed Capital Campaign Committees will be introduced.  In addition, the Mission Board will be sharing their slideshow describing their activities and contributions to our ministries.

Pastor Sandberg will also continue her sermon series on giving during Lent.  In the Gospel reading this week, we hear Jesus be threatened by King Herod.  Despite this, Jesus vows to continue his ministry, knowing full well it could result in his death.  Jesus made this decision despite the risk.  During our Capital Campaign, will these risks possibly limit our generosity?

We are blessed to be joined by two guest choirs from Wartburg College this week.  Dr. Karen Black and her Chapel Choir will be leading music at the 9:00 AM service, and for the first time at the REJOICE service, we will be joined by Dr. Jane Andrews and her Castle Singers, who will be sharing selections from a newly composed "Jazz Mass" by Craig Curry.  This piece was commissioned by the Castle Singers this year.

PRELUDE

Recit de Nazard and Basse de Cromhorne from "Suite on the Second Tone" - Louis Nicolas Clerambault

If J.S. Bach held the standard of organ composition in Germany, the music of Clerambault (1676-1750) was among the most celebrated and respected to come out of France.  Among his huge list of sacred and secular compositions, Clerambault composed two suites (titled "First Tone" and "Second Tone" respectively), are extremely melodic, imbued with French characteristics of ornamentation, adding character and style to the melodies.

The two movements being played show off two sections of the organ that are particularly colorful.  The Recit (Narrative, or Song) de Nazard features the Nazard stop, which is a mutation stop of 2 2/3' in the manuals.  Without going too deeply into it, that means that a long with the fundamental 8' pitch of the organ, there is also a pitch sounded an octave and a third higher than the fundamental.  This harmonic tone enhances the fundamental and adds a lot of color.  The movement alternates between flute tones (which form a bit of a ritornello) and the Nazard stop creating and elaborating on the melody.

The second movement uses one of my favorite stops, the Cromhorne.  The Cromhorne is a gentler, mellower reed, its closest resemblance probably being that of a clarinet.  As the piece is titled "Basse de Cromhorne," it is featured in the bottom register of the piece, with two flute tones dancing on top, providing both counterpoint and harmonic support from above.

OPENING HYMN

The God Of Abraham Praise

This hymn has an incredibly long and complex history.  For the sake of brevity, I won't go into it all, but I'll say that the version we have was penned by Thomas Olivers in 1770.  It is actually Jewish in origin; its stanzas are based on the 13 Articles of Faith (essentially the Jewish Creed).

The hymn is not a direct paraphrase, but rather gathered inspiration from the articles.  Given its length, we generally sing around four of the included eight stanzas.  The stanzas picked for this Sunday not only re-emphasize the covenant Abraham made with God, but also the stanzas that bring us together with this covenant and tie everything together.

HYMN OF THE DAY

Great God Your Love Has Called Us Here

This lovely hymn by Brian Wren centers our worship this weekend.  I think the primary message for us is located in stanzas two and five.  Pastor Sandberg is preaching on risks that may possibly hamper our generosity during the Capital Campaign.  The second stanza describes other things that could impact our giving.  We experience pain from broken trust, bound by our own inner chains.  Despite our good intentions (evident in the final line of the stanza), a lot of things hold us back.

Stanza five explains all the reasons that we shouldn't limit our generosity.  Christ has set us free to live our lives, and we should live and give freely in his name, "offer[ing] all that faith can do while love is making all things new."

COMMUNION HYMN

Restore In Us, O God

This text and tune combination was created by two 20th century powerhouses of hymn writing.  Carl Daw is a former president of the Hymn Society of the United States and Canada.  His style of text writing is corporate and community based; most of his hymns involve us, the congregation, addressing God, whether in praise or prayer.

The tune writer, Hal Hopson, has had a long, successful career of composing music (and some texts) for the church.  In addition to hymn tunes, he is the author of several complete Psalters, hundreds of choral pieces, organ music, and other practical music for all areas of a church music ministry.

CLOSING HYMN

Bless God, O Now, The Journey

This hymn has a double meaning for us this week.  First, we continue the journey of Lent, this beautiful Sylvia Dunstan text not only shows us the way, but it also promises us that we will have a "divine eternal lover" who will guide us along the way.

Additionally, our Capital Campaign kickoff is certainly a significant journey that we are about to undertake.  Other "sojourners and pilgrims" have embarked on similar campaigns and have emerged victorious.  There is no reason we can't either.  Through prayer, worship, community, and guidance, we will be successful.

POSTLUDE

Praeludium in g minor - Nicolaus Bruhns

Bruhns was a Danish-German organist who lived during Bach's time.  His music is quite similar in form and function to Pachelbel.  This prelude is very ambitious in its form.  Similar to Pachelbel's large Prelude in d minor, this composition alternates between rapid passagework in both the manuals and pedals, along with melodic sequences that showcase a large variety of harmonic possibilities available to Bruhns and other composers of the day.

Colleen Tague, an organ and church music major from Wartburg College, will be playing this postlude.