Music for the First Sunday of Advent - December 1, 2019

Opening Voluntary Three Variations on Wachet auf     

setting, Robert Lau

See the tune and text at Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW) ELW 453.

One of my favorite forms of musical composition has long been the theme and variations form. Robert Lau’s first setting is pretty straightforward with the melody in one hand and some interesting counterpoint in the other.

Variation 2 uses the organs lusher sounds – strings mostly – to craft a gentle meditation.

Variation 3 is in the style of a chorale prelude. The French Horn stop takes the melody against a gentle accompaniment.

There is a fourth variation. It will be heard as the closing voluntary.

Gathering Hymn O Lord, How Shall I Meet You (Wie soll ich dich empfangen)

Paul Gerhardt

ELW 241

It would be hard to find a hymn with roots more Lutheran than this one. Paul Gerhardt (1607-1676), author of the text, spent much of his life acting as a mediator between Lutherans and members of the Reformed Church. He wasn’t very successful, but he was well-liked and respected by leaders on both sides of the religious divide. Nine of his hymns appear in ELW.

Johann Crüger (1598 – 1662) composed the tune. His name is equally famous in Lutheran hymnals. He was a well-known Cantor of his day and wrote about 71 hymntunes. Probably the most famous is Herzliebster Jesu, to which we sing the Lenten text “Ah, Holy Jesus.”

This hymn may not be very familiar to our assembly, but the form is easy to follow. We sing the first line, the second line is repeated verbatim, the third line brings new material, and the fourth line also repeats the first with only slight alteration.

Psalm – a metrical setting of Psalm 122

In many churches the assembly is ready to start singing Christmas hymns on the first Sunday of Advent. I’m happy that is not our situation, but a hint of Christmas can be seen in today’s setting of the psalm by Hal Hopson. The words, with alterations, come from the Psalter of 1912 and are sung to the tune Sussex Carol – an English Christmas carol.  It’s not widely sung in churches, but this spritely tune is popular with professional and community choirs. You’ve heard it before. I can almost guarantee it.

Hymn of the Day Wake, Awake, for Night Is Flying (Wachet auf)

ELW 436

This is probably the biggest, baddest, Lutheran hymn of all! That may be why its nickname is “King of the Lutheran Chorales.” It’s widely known as an Advent Hymn, but it’s in the “End Times” section of ELW – and no wonder. Its language is drawn heavily from the book of Revelation.

Sissel Kyrkjebø

This has long been one of my favorite hymns. One rendition that I really love is by the Norwegian soprano/pop star Sissel Kyrkjebø. Here is a link to her performance based on a setting by J. S. Bach. It’s on my playlist every Advent!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1beKJS8h6oo

Communion Hymns

Our communion hymns are all from the community of Taizé, an ecumenical community in France. The first we have sung many times, but the second and third might be new.  We will sing each several times, allowing the words and music to become meditative prayer.

One of our members recently visited Taizé. Take the time to ask her about her experience.

Wait for the Lord

The Lord Is My Light

Christ, You Are Light

Sending Hymn Savior of the Nations, Come (Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland

ELW 263

Of all of the church’s hymns, this is one of the oldest. The original text is attributed to Ambrose of Milan (340-397). The version we sing today is an English translation of Martin Luther’s German translation.

Closing Voluntary Fourth Variation on Wachet auf

setting, Robert Lau

Sources:
Wikipedia
Evangelical Lutheran Worship Hymnal Companion
Photo of  Sissel Kyrkjebø 

By Kristin & Vibeke - http://www.mynewsdesk.com/se/werecki_company/images/sissel-kyrkjeboe-sissels-jul-paa-turne-2014-280972, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=44428702

What I Did on My Thanksgiving Vacation - at least on Sunday Morning

The church's facade,
It sits on the side of a hill - like everything else in Asheville!

One of the first things I do when planning a vacation is decide where I’m going to go to church. It didn’t take me long to find St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in Asheville, North Carolina. As far as I can tell, it’s the only ELCA congregation in the city. A quick look at their website told me it might be just thing I was looking for – and it was.

Last Sunday I had the pleasure of celebrating Christ the King/Reign of Christ Sunday at St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Asheville, NC where David Anderson, Cantor, is doing a remarkable job of leading the church's song. The hymns were all perfect (and beautifully played) for the day.

I arrived early and was met by a smiling woman who introduced herself as Roseanne D. I have never received a warmer greeting when visiting a church. She guided me to where I could find a bulletin, showed me where the guest register was, and told me a little about the church. She also explained that it was their new Pastor's first Sunday so they were having a big Thanksgiving-style luncheon after church and warmly invited me to stay.

I sat down to absorb the nave and review the bulletin. The nave was well-lit and lovely. It was still pretty early, so I checked in on Facebook. Seconds later I received a text message from Pastor Daniel asking me to greet Pastor Matt Smith for him and Pastor Sarah. As I suspected, their paths had crossed at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary.

Jeffery Blersch’s setting of “Crown Him with Many Crowns” was the prelude and it set the tone for the rest of the service. The choir sang Carl Mueller’s “Come, Christians, Join to Sing.” Their singing was confident and sure – a fitting call to praise for the day.

One charming feature of the sanctuary was an old-fashioned hymn board. They aren’t commonly seen these days and I have to admit it made me smile.
We sang “Crown Him with Many Crowns (Diademata),” “At the Name of Jesus (King’s Weston),” “What Feast of Love (Greensleeves),” “Jesus, Remember Me (Taizé),” and “Jesus, Still Lead On (Seelenbräutigam).

The postlude brought back the Hymn of the Day in a vigorous setting of King’s Weston by Robert Powell.

Pastor Matt Smith's sermon hit home for me since part of the time he addressed a topic I had been thinking about a lot lately. He said, "The cost of grace is realizing God's grace is for OTHER sinners, including those who have wronged us AND those who have committed atrocities (against humankind). . . We have to let go of our hierarchies of sin."

I also loved the psalm. The assembly had a typical refrain while David Anderson chanted the stanzas from the piano.

The organ! It's a warm tracker built by Martin Ott in 1997. You can read the specs at this link:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/stmarkslutheran/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/07144434/Organ-Specs.pdf?fbclid=IwAR3DXstRxDz3zLzmBbhbwII38whjCMYjc8n0lTK0kS2IwDQzimtKlGrUIuk

Visiting Asheville? I highly recommend that you spend Sunday morning in this place of worship! Good preaching, worshipful music, and friendly people  - could you want anything more when you are on vacation?
Visit their website: https://www.stmarkslutheran.net/

After church there is scenery like this throughout the area. This photo was taken from the Biltmore Estate.

Bach Vespers Thank You!

This is a “thank you” post. Such posts are hard to write – I’m always afraid that I will forget to include someone in this long list.

Photo by Mark Weber

A little history: Jim Rindelaub started the Bach Vespers tradition at St. Mark’s in 1990. The first cantata was sung as part of a Liturgical Arts Week. In addition to workshops on handbells, liturgical dance, calligraphy, and drama, the week included rehearsals and a performance of Bach’s Cantata No. 7, Christ unser Herr zum Jordan kam.

Since 1990, about 19 of Bach’s cantatas have been performed at St. Mark’s as part of a Vespers (Evening Prayer) Service.

This year’s cantata was Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen. It included Lutheran hymns and music from David Cherwien’s setting of Evening Prayer, Stay with Us, Lord.

My first thank you is to the singers from the community, about 30 of them, who joined us for this event. They rehearsed for three Saturday mornings from 10:00 – 12:00, “wood-shedding” the parts, learning how to sing in German, and rehearsing liturgical music and hymns. There was one final dress rehearsal which included the orchestra and soloists on the morning before the service. I have no doubt that most of them spent considerable time outside of rehearsal learning the music. Thank you to all of you!

First Rehearsal!

Thanks also to our outstanding soloists: Kimberly Beasley, Timothy Keatley, and Clinton M. H. Weinberg. Kimberly Beasley is an Associate Professor of Voice at Jacksonville University and Timothy Keatley is a voice student there. I was happy to have these two JU connections since JU is also my alma mater. Clinton M. H. Weinberg is Artist-in-Residence at Flagler University where he teaches Applied Voice and directs the pep band. He’s also a long-time friend who I’ve been trying to have sing for Bach Vespers for several years. Thank you to each of you for your preparation and beautiful performances.

Lto R: Kimberly Beasley, Timothy Keatley, Clinton M. H. Weinberg

Thank you to our orchestra. Each year Ellen Olson has secured top-notch players for this event. Many of our instrumentalists return year after year for this special event. Thank you to Edie Hubert (organ), Melissa Barrett (violin), Andy Bruck (violin), DJ Cheek (viola), Ellen Olson (viola), Betsy Federman (cello), Patrick Bilanchone (bass), and Eric Olson (oboe).

Members of the Orchestra at dress rehearsal

Anita Renfroe

The music before the service was also lovely, so thank you to Anita Renfroe who played two harpsichord pieces, one each by Handel and Scarlatti. She was then joined by Eric and Ellen Olson for a trio sonata by G. P. Telemann. The three Baroque composers were well-represented and would have been pleased to hear their music so beautifully played.

Every Evening Prayer service needs a leader. Thank you to Pastor Daniel Locke for fulfilling this role with reverence and good singing!

Frank S. has been our German diction coach for nearly as many years as Bach Vespers has been in existence. Thank you, Frank!

Lynette and Renee hosting the reception.

The service was followed by an elegant reception hosted and coordinated by Renee R. She had help

that evening from Lynette and Mark W., and from Francine Baker.  Singers, instrumentalists, and guests enjoyed mingling and relaxing together because of their efforts. Thank you for a delightful reception!

Thanks be to God for the gift of salvation by grace through Jesus Christ. This gift gives us a reason to sing.

The Full Ensemble, photo by Mark Weber

Finally, in the words of J. S. Bach, the Fifth Evangelist: