Communion Anthem:
Panis angelicus . . . . . . . . . C. Franck (1822-1890)
        The bread of angels becomes the bread of man.
        This heavenly bread gives a reality beyond symbols.
        O marvellous thing: the poor, lowly and humble
        Now eats his Lord.
        O Godhead, Three and One, thee we implore:
        So visit us, just as now we Thee adore:
        By thy paths lead us to where we aspire,
        To the Light wherein thou dwellest. Amen.
. . . . . . . . . . .  Latin text by  St. Thomas Acquinas  (1225? - 1274)

CLOSING VOLUNTARY
"Allegro ma non tanto, Andante, Allegro Moderato"
            from Sonata #1 (S. 1027)  . . . . . . .  J. S. Bach

Musical Notes      Franck's last musical testaments, the "Three Chorals" and "L'Organiste", were all for organ.  The latter was written for the “harmonium,” similar to the American reed organ, but much more standardized in construction, with sounds that are clearer and stronger (especially in the live acoustical environment of French churches) and tonally more diverse.  It is quite versatile: the one keyboard is “divided” . . . that is, the bottom half can be registered to sound very different from the top.  Thus, it works as though there were two keyboards: the “tune” played in, say, the right hand can sound very different from the “accompaniment” in the left.  Also, as with contemporary organs, pressing one key can bring forth the same note in 3 different octaves, with very different tone qualities.
         The harmonium, commonly situated at the east end of a French cathedral, accompanied the participants of the Mass in the chancel, complementing the "grand orgue" which commented from the west gallery with much greater grandeur.
         “L'Organiste", when finished, was to consist of seven movements in each of 12 keys of the keyboard, starting with C, a total of 84 pieces.  This reminds one of the structure of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier: 4 pieces (a Prelude and a Fuge, each in both major and minor) in each of the 12 keys for a total of 48.  By the end of September, Franck had completed 3 pieces for the 9th key, G-sharp/A-flat.  In my copy of "L'Organiste" the following words appear: "This collection has been unfortunately interrupted here by the death of the Master (November 1890)."
       The terms “canzona” and “canzone” both derive from the Latinate word for “song,” and denote instrumental works initially based on French “chansons” (songs).  In the Italian Baroque of the late 17th and early 18th centuries, canzonas were divided into definite and contrasting sections.  In this offering by Zipoli, the three sections keep the same tempo for the basic beat.  However, the first section is rather quiet and has two notes to each beat; the next section employs triplets in each beat; the final increases the number of notes to quadruplets in each beat.   The result is one of increasing tension and energy.
Soli Deo Gloria!                                                              Henry

Xmas 1
The Glory of the Father                   Egil Hovland (b. 1924)
The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.
We beheld the glory of the Father, full of grace and truth.
In the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God.
In Him was life; and the life was the light of men.
He came to his own, and his own received him not.
The Word was made flesh, . . . .
From the Gospel of John 1: 1, 4, 11, 14

Xmas Eve
Inserts

Adv 4
Ave Maria (“Angelus Domini”, 1964)                     Franz Biebl
   Dan Sakamoto, Kristin Franceschi
Solo: The angel of the Lord was announced to Mary, and
   she was conceived of the Holy Spirit.
Choir: Hail Mary, full of grace, God is with you; blessed are you
among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.
Solo: Mary said, behold the handmaiden of the Lord,
be it done according to Your word.
Choir: Hail Mary, . . . .
Solo: And the Word was made Flesh and dwelt among us.
Choir: Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners,
now and in the hour of our death. Amen.

Adv 3

Adv 2
Prepare Ye the Way A. Pote
Prepare ye the way of the Lord.
Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
And ev’ry valley shall be lifted up,
and ev’ry mountain and hill be made low,
and the rough places plain.
And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,
For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. Isaiah 40: 3 _ 5

Adv 1
The Lord Will Come           Charles Callahan
The Lord will come and not be slow, His footsteps cannot err;
Before Him righteousness shall go, His royal harbinger.
Truth from the earth, like to a slower, Shall bud and blossom then;
And justice, from her heav'nly bower, Look down on mortal men.
Rise, God, judge Thou the earth in might, This wicked earth redress;
For Thou art He who shalt by right The nations all possess.
The nations all whom Thou hast made Shall come, and all shall frame
To bow them low before Thee, Lord, And glorify Thy name.
(John Milton, 1698-1674; Ps 85:6)






 

    I Was Glad   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C. Hubert H. Parry (1848-1918)
       I was glad when they said unto me, we will go into the house of the Lord.
           Our feet shall stand in thy gates, O Jerusalem.
           Jerusalem is builded as a city, that is at unity in itself.
       O pray for the peace of Jerusalem, they shall prosper that love thee.
       Peace be within thy walls, and plenteousness within thy palaces. 
         (Psalm 122: 1-3, 6, 7)

      John Ness Beck’s career spanned four decades . . . in that time, he established himself as one of the U.S.’s best composers of sacred choral works.  Last February, our choir offered one of Beck’s earliest anthems, “The Young Lions” (1972), with text from verses of Psalm 104.  Today, as a meditation on Sister Pat’s mission, we offer Beck’s last musical testament, written for the text of Micah 6: 6-8,  Heyward’s and also my favorite. 
      Mature artists often reach back to find models in past masters.  In Offertory Beck uses a form most popular in the North European Baroque period: a musical element of 4 or 8 measures is repeated constantly throughout the whole piece.  The element is generally a melodic line; but it can also be a harmonic sequence (as in Bach’s Goldberg Variations) or a constantly repeated rhythmic element (as in Ravel’s Bolero.)  One might expect this constant repetition to yield incredibly boring music.  However, creativity is often most evident when artists are working within tight strictures.  Many masterworks are of this form.
     In Beck’s Offertory, a slow descending “ostinato” bass line, G F# E D C B A D , appears eight times, accompanied each time in the organ’s right hand by a gently florid line.  The choir sings a lovely 4-part chorale, with the basses on the “ostinato” line and the sopranos slightly more prominent, all intoning the words from Micah.  There is only one interruption to the repetition, when the words, “He has shown you, O man; He has shown you what is good” are sung by the tenors and basses.  The final admonition, “… to do justice and love kindness and walk humbly with your God . . .” is followed by the last statement of the repeated patterns in the organ.
      Did you hear a repeated message:  Do we individually and collectively do justice and walk humbly with our God?   (hlc)