Helen Williams – Cecilia's List

If you choose Psalm 80:1-8 then you should include the square bracketed verses from Luke, so the Magnificat is included whichever way you do things.

Micah 5:2-5a is a prophecy about one who will come from Bethlehem to restore his people and care for them as a shepherd cares for his flock.

Luke 1:46-55 is the Magnificat.

Psalm 80:1-8 is a prayer for the restoration of Israel. “Turn us again, Lord God of hosts”.

Hebrews 10:5-10 is about the sacrifice of Jesus being the will of God, rather than the Temple sacrifices that were offered according to the Law.

Luke 1:39-55 is Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth.

Patricia Van Ness, Magnificat
Latin text, SSA (or TTB) and organ, moderately challenging, 6min.
Available from the composer’s website: http://www.patriciavanness.com/works-CM-accompanied.html
Recording:
http://www.patriciavanness.com/mp3/Magnificat.mp3

Gwyneth Walker, Magnificat from Bethesda Evensong
English text, SSAA Chorus, Solo Mezzo-soprano, Organ or Piano or Brass intet, Percussion, and Piano, moderately easy, 5min.
Published by E C Schirmer, availble from Presto: https://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/sheet-music/products/8101708–gwyneth-walker-bethesda-evensong-be-our-light-in-the-darkness
Recording: http://www.coomanarts.com/gw/mp3/magnificat-ssa.mp3

Helen Williams, Mary’s Whys
English text by Sarah Lutton
SATB with organ, moderately easy (extended a cappella passages), 3min.
Score and recording available from Canossa Choral Music: http://www.canossa.co.uk/MarysWhys.html

Music for Sunday 25th February: Lent 2, Year B

22/02/2018 Kathryn

The readings for this Sunday are:

Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16
Psalm 22:23-31
Romans 4:13-25
Mark 8:31-38

In the reading from Genesis, Abram and Sarai get their new names of Abraham and Sarah, as a sign of God’s covenant. God’s end of the covenant, as it happens, is to make Abraham and Sarah the ancestors of many nations.

Psalm 22:23-31 is what I think of as the “cheerful” section of Psalm 22 (verse one, for contrast, begins “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”). This psalm mentions the offspring of Jacob and Israel, who of course are themselves descendants of Abraham; and it goes further, saying all the nations, all the ends of the earth, will worship the Lord. But the idea of a covenant spanning generations is still there, too: future generations will be told about the Lord, and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn.

In this portion of the letter to the Romans, St Paul makes the point that the inheritance of Abraham did not come through the law but through faith, and that we all, through faith, are heirs.

In the Gospel reading, Jesus foretells his death and resurrection, Peter tries to tell him off and Jesus rebukes him for thinking of human rather than divine priorities. Then Jesus calls the crowd to follow him, and he doesn’t sugarcoat the costs of this, or the importance of it.

An anthem that might work well for this Sunday is Thus Far Did I Come by Helen Williams, with words by John Bunyan. It’s the point in the Pilgrim’s Progress where, on seeing the Cross, the burden falls from Christian’s back.

It being Lent, it might also be appropriate to sing the Ave Regina caelorum, particularly late in the day as it’s the concluding antiphon to the daily office from Candlemas to Holy Week. The Choral Public Domain Library has a version by Isabella Leonarda for ATTB with optional basso continuo, which you can also hear at Youtube:

There are other settings of the Ave Regina caelorum available, too, which I’ll include in coming weeks.

Music for 24th November: Advent 4, Year B

22/12/2017 Kathryn

2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16
Canticle: Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55) OR
Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26
Romans 16:25-27
Luke 1:26-38

Christmas is very nearly upon us, but Sunday morning is still Advent.

2 Samuel: King David lives in a house of cedar but the Ark of God dwells in a tent; David finds this disconcerting but God seems to have very particular ideas about it, and makes a covenant with David.

Psalm 89, or bits of it: very much about God’s anointed and the covenant with David. But you could use the Magnificat instead here.

Romans: So many ideas touched upon in only one sentence! Strength and faith in Christ; mystery and prophecy and wisdom. But the main idea is to give glory to God.

Luke: The Annunciation. An angel appears to Mary and tells her she’s going to get pregnant despite being a virgin.

The obvious choice of music here is Mary’s Whys by Helen Williams. There’s a recording online and you can download the score for free from Canossa Choral Music. Sarah Lutton’s poem imagines Mary’s response to being asked to bear the Son of God.

New music this week, and administrivia

05/12/2017 Kathryn

This week I added some music by Isabella Leonarda, Leanne Veitch, Susan Partlan, and Helen Williams. Check out the pages for Advent, Christmas, Lent and Eucharist to have a look.

I’m also changing the format of the listings slightly, using H6 (heading six) tags within the lists to make individual works easier to find for people using assistive screenreaders. I haven’t updated absolutely everything just yet, so please bear with me while the site looks a bit mis-matched.

Finally, please do use the music submission form if you’d like to suggest music for me to include on the site. I’ve updated it slightly to allow for you to submit someone else’s work.