"Sing with Me" published by Carl Fischer Music

Sing with Me is now available from Carl Fischer Music!

Jubilate Deo

Jubilate Deo was commissioned by Music Celebrations International for the Beethoven Choral Festival. Using the Jubilate text, the piece incorporates various motifs from Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. It was premiered on June 15, 2022 at St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna under the direction of Dr. Marc Ashley Foster.

Scoring: SATB, organ, optional brass quartet
Text: Psalm 100
Duration: 5:30
Publisher: manuscript

PERUSAL SCORE: coming soon
RECORDING: coming soon

PROGRAM NOTES:

This was a fun piece to write, much like putting together a puzzle! I was thrilled and honored to receive this commission, not only due to the prestige of the festival in Vienna, but also because conductor Marc Ashley Foster and MCI President John Wiscombe have been dear friends, colleagues, and collaborators for nearly two decades.

Since the festival featured the music of Beethoven (originally to celebrate his 250th birthday, then twice delayed by COVID), Marc and John asked me to compose a piece that would “evoke” the Ninth Symphony, while still giving me the freedom to create something that sounded contemporary and original. I felt that the Jubilate Deo text (“Sing joyfully to God”) was a fitting companion to Friedrich Schiller’s An die Freude (“Ode to Joy”).

I decided to adapt (or, in some instances, directly quote) two passages from each of the symphony’s first three movements. The first two measures of the “Ode the Joy” theme from the fourth movement appear in three different places throughout the piece. I also used a portion of the “Ode to Joy” theme in retrograde to create the melody for the “Laudate nomen ejus” section.

At the Name of Jesus

At the Name of Jesus was composed in 2008 and has finally found a home at St. James Music Press!

Scoring: SATB, organ
Text: Caroline Maria Noel
Duration: 3:10
Publisher: St. James Music Press

PERUSAL SCORE & RECORDING

Strength

Strength was commissioned by the Kentucky Music Educators Association - originally for the 2021 KMEA All-State High School TTBB Choir, but delayed due to COVID-19 and eventually premiered at the 2022 KMEA conference under the direction of Dr. Eugene Rogers (University of Michigan).

Scoring: TTBB, piano
Text: Rabindranath Tagore
Duration: 4:30
Publisher: manuscript

PERUSAL SCORE: coming soon

RECORDING: coming soon

Sing with Me

I composed “Sing with Me” during the summer of 2020 as my own personal response to the relentless series of heartaches that we faced: the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, the anguish of not being able to sing together, disturbing social justice issues… all of these tested our resolve. It is the first piece for which I have also written the text. At the time, I was unsure of what the fall semester would look like for my own choir. Would we be in person? If so, for how long? Would we have to transition back to online learning? Therefore, I designed the piece to be accessible and adaptable to whatever situation we faced. My wonderful students at EKU recorded it as a virtual choir; it premiered on YouTube on Monday, November 23, 2020 (see below). It is my wish that the message of hope and unity will resonate with all who sing or hear it.

Scoring: SATB, piano
Text: Richard Waters (see below)
Duration: 2:00
Publisher: Carl Fischer Music, CM 9765

PERUSAL SCORE & RECORDING

VIRTUAL WORLD PREMIERE (EKU Combined Choirs)

TEXT:
Sing with me, as I sing with you,
Let the music revive us anew;
Yearning for beautiful harmony,
Come and sing with me.

All the world is longing for peace,
For all meaningless hatred to cease;
Joining together, your hand in mine,
Let our voices shine!

Dream with us, together as one,
For the day when the battle is done;
Fervently striving for unity,
Come and dream with me.

Come and sing with me.

(c) Copyright 2020 by Richard Waters. All rights reserved.