LUX

PRESENTS

Sweet Was The Song

St. Jerome’s Church

Hyattsville, Maryland

January 4, 2019
7:30 PM

 LUX

Soprano Eby Buscher, Amanda Densmoor, Austin Nikirk, Beth Ann Zinkievich

Alto Margot Cohen, Abigail Hines, Kimberly Parr, Anya Trudeau

Tenor Anthony Jones, Robby Napoli, Zach Taylor, John-Paul Teti

Bass Ciaran Cain, Tim Crane, John Mullan, Tommy Rust

Praised by composers such as Eric Whitacre and Paul Mealor, Lux is a semi-professional
chamber choir that specializes in contemporary choral music. Founded in 2014 by member
Robby Napoli, the ensemble performs with a dedication to excellence, innovation, and
accessibility in choral performance.

Lux has been met with some of the highest compliments from professors at local
conservatories, the world’s most loved composers, professional musicians, and casual
audience members alike. Lux has been hailed as “incredibly impressive” by Benjamin
Olinsky, Artistic Director of The 18th Street Singers, and as “beautiful,” “lovely,” and
“wonderful” by composers, music educators, performers, and listeners all over the east
coast.

Their 2018 album, Now Ye Heavenly Powers, featuring over an hour of stunning music, was
met with great acclaim from composers, critics, and others, becoming the Featured Choral
Album on Classical MPR’s choral radio station, joining past winners such as Voces8,
Tenebrae, and The Sixteen.
Welcome to St. Jerome’s Church. We’re glad you could join us for tonight’s concert. We’ve
put a lot of work into it and we hope you will enjoy it. Please silence your cell phones
and any other noise-making devices you may have in the moments before the
concert begins. Restrooms are accessible through the Gold Room stairs (clearly indicated
in the church foyer); the women’s restroom is at the bottom of the stairs, while the men’s
restroom is through a hallway at the far left edge of the Gold Room. There is also a single-
user/“family” restroom through the small room in the church foyer.

While admission to tonight’s concert is free of charge, the scores and licenses we need in
order to do this are not. If you are able to donate, we would greatly appreciate it. Should
you choose to, you can place cash or checks in the donation box on the table at the entrance
to the church, or donate by credit/debit card. Checks should be made out to “Lux
Choir, Inc.” Donations are tax-deductible to the full extent permitted by law under
IRC sections 501(c)(3) and 170. You can also donate securely online at ChoirLux.com/
support. Your support means a great deal to us.

Thank you for coming.

All songs conducted by Robby Napoli, except O magnum mysterium, conducted by Tommy Rust. Program
notes by John-Paul Teti, Robby Napoli, and Austin Nikirk, except for “My Lord Has Come,” adapted from the
note on the composer’s website. Latin translations by John-Paul Teti. “Maria durch ein Dornwald ging”
translated by Lucas Barkley. Special thanks to our parents and friends, and to St. Jerome’s Church and Rev.
Hahn for letting us perform here. Thank you to the Franciscan Monastery of the Holy Land in America for
recording space. Thank you to Frank Napoli for photography and especially to John Vengrouskie, our sound
engineer, without whom we wouldn’t have our recordings. Thank you to St. Jerome Academy for rehearsal
space.

JOHN JACOB NILES (1892-1980)
I Wonder As I Wander
arr. Andrew Carter (b. 1939). Loosely based on an Appalachian folk carol.
Eby Buscher, soloist

I Wonder As I Wander, one of the most beloved American carols, was constructed by prolific
American folksong collector John Jacob Niles from a fragment he discovered after it was
sung by a young girl at a meeting of Evangelical Christians in Murphy, North Carolina. In
this arrangement by British composer Andrew Carter, the haunting melody is set in the first
and third verses over choral accompaniment of various kinds, while the second verse is set
in a more exciting full choral arrangement.

TEXT
I wonder as I wander out under the sky,
How Jesus the savior did come for to die
For poor orn’ry people like you and like I,
I wonder as I wander out under the sky.

When Mary birthed Jesus, all in a cow’s stall

Came wise men and farmers and shepherds and all.
Then high from God’s heaven a star’s light did fall
And the promise of ages it then did recall

If Jesus had wanted for any wee thing:

A star in the sky or a bird on the wing
Or all of God’s angels in heaven for to sing
He surely could have it, for he was the king.

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JONATHAN LANE (b. 1958)
There Is No Rose of Such Virtue
15th century English text. Author unknown.
Austin Nikirk, Margot Cohen, John Mullan, and Tommy Rust, soloists

The text of There is No Rose of Such Virtue is taken from the Trinity carol roll (a manuscript
of 13 English carols), where it appears, along with a melody and harmonization. The 13
carols on the roll are the oldest surviving polyphonic music (music with multiple voices) in
English. Although Lane takes only the words from the Trinity carol version, this
composition is similarly light and simple.

TEXT
There is no rose of such virtue as is the rose that bare Jesu.
Alleluia.

For in this rose contained was heaven and earth in little space.
Res miranda. [Marvelous thing.]

By that rose we may well see that he is God in persons three.

Pares forma. [Equal in form.]

The angels sungen [i.e. sung] the shepherds to, “Gloria in excelsis Deo.”
Gaudeamus. [Let us rejoice.]

Leave we all this worldly mirth and follow we this joyful birth.
Transeamus. [Let us turn.]

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ARVO PÄRT (b. 1935)
O Weisheit (from Sieben Magnificat-Antiphonen)
Magnificat antiphon for Vespers on December 17

The O antiphons are one of the most well-known Christian liturgical texts. They are a set of
short verses prayed as part of the Vespers (evening prayer) service in the 7 days before
Christmas in many Christian traditions. The famed O come, O come Emmanuel text is a
paraphrase of these antiphons. Because the verses are recited before the Magnificat prayer
(which Pärt has also famously set to music), they are sometimes known as the Magnificat
Antiphons, and it is under this title that Arvo Pärt set all seven (in a German translation
rather than the original Latin). This is the first one: O wisdom; in Latin, O sapientiae; in
German, O Weisheit. The piece is classic Pärt: the choir is treated almost like bells and the
rhythm is simple and in full service to the text.

TEXT
O Weisheit, hervorgegangen aus dem Munde des Höchsten,
die Welt umspannst du einem Ende zum andern,
in Kraft und Milde ordnest du alles:
O komm und offenbare uns den Weg der Weisheit und der Einsicht,
O Weisheit.

TRANSLATION
O wisdom, proceeding from the mouth of the most high,
You encircle the world from one end to the other.
You order all things with might and mercy.
O come to us and reveal the way of wisdom and understanding,
O wisdom.

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GUSTAV HOLST (1874-1934)
In The Bleak Midwinter
Christina Rossetti (1830-1894)

This beloved hymn portrays the birth of Christ. Christina Rossetti’s text, with its “bleak”
midwinter and frozen landscape, is not representative of mild Palestinian winters, but its
vivid imagery was relatable for the English parishioners it was composed for. Gustav Holst
set the poem to music in 1906, and it quickly became a classic across denominations. The
irregular meter requires the occasional melismatic setting, like on the word “snow” in the
first verse, but Holst was able to keep all four verses almost entirely strophic, like a
traditional hymn.

TEXT
In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone.
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
In the bleak midwinter, long, long ago.

God, heaven cannot hold him, nor the Earth sustain;

Heaven and Earth shall flee away when he comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter, a stable place sufficed:
the Lord God almighty, Jesus Christ.

Angels and archangels, may have gathered there;

Cherubim and seraphim thronged the air.
But his mother only, in her maiden bliss,
worshipped the beloved with a kiss.

What can I give him, poor as I am?

If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb.
If I were a wise man, I would do my part.
Yet what can I give him? Give my heart.

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HERBERT HOWELLS (1892-1983)
Sing Lullaby
Text by F.W. Harvey (1888-1957)

Howells was a British composer known for his large body of works for Anglican church
choirs and services. Sing Lullaby comes from a set of three “Carol-Anthems.” The
composer writes: “This was the third in the set. Here too a poet found the verses for me.
F.W. Harvey, the Gloucestershire poet, friend of Ivor Gurney had written and published the
poem only a short time before this setting was made.” The beginning of the piece creates a
soothing lulling theme under the melody, contrasted by the treatment of the second stanza
of the poem, which alludes to Jesus’ crucifixion.

TEXT
Sing lullaby, The naked blackthorn’s growing
While snow doth gently fall, To weave his diadem.
Sing lullaby To Jesus Sing lullaby to Jesus
Born in an oxen stall. While thickly snow doth fall.
Sing lullaby to Jesus Sing lullaby to Jesus
Born now in Bethlehem. The Saviour of all.
Sing lullaby.

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TRADITIONAL GERMAN CAROL
Maria durch ein Dornwald ging
arr. Stefan Claas (b. 1950)

Maria durch ein Dornwald ging is a German Christmas carol of murky origins, published no
later than 1850. Stefan Claas’s setting of his home country’s carol sets three verses,
featuring just the tenors and basses, then only the sopranos and altos, and finally the full
choir in the last verse. This final verse begins on the same note, and gradually peels off into
a robust major chord on the Greek liturgical phrase “Kyrie eleison”—“Lord, have mercy.”

TEXT TRANSLATION
Maria durch ein Dornwald ging. Mary walked through a thorny wood.
Kyrie eleison. Lord, have mercy.
Maria durch ein Dornwald ging, Mary walked through a thorny wood,
der hat in sieben Jahr kein Laub getragen. That had not borne leaf for seven years.
Jesus und Maria. Jesus and Mary.

Was trug Maria unter ihrem Herzen? What does Mary carry under her heart?
Kyrie eleison. Lord, have mercy.
Ein kleines Kindlein ohne Schmerzen, das A little child without pains—
trug Maria unter ihrem Herzen: That is what Mary carries under her heart.
Jesus und Maria. Jesus and Mary.

Da haben die Dornen Rosen getragen. Then the thorn [bushes] grew roses.
Kyrie eleison. Lord, have mercy.
Als das Kindlein durch den Wald getragen, As the little child traveled through the
da haben die Dornen Rosen getragen. wood,
Jesus und Maria. Then the thorn [bushes] grew roses.
Jesus and Mary.

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FRANZ BIEBL (1906-2001)
Ave Maria (Angelus Domini)
Traditional Catholic text
Zach Taylor and Robby Napoli, soloists

German composer Franz Biebl’s Ave Maria is really a setting of a longer traditional Catholic
prayer called the Angelus, which includes the full text of the Ave Maria interwoven with
other texts depicting Mary’s agreement to be the mother of God. The composition was
brought to the US by the Cornell University Glee Club after they met Biebl at a radio station
while on tour in Germany and has enjoyed widespread popularity ever since.

TEXT TRANSLATION
Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariae The angel of the Lord announced to Mary,
Et concepit de Spiritu Sancto: And she conceived through the Holy Spirit.

Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum, Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.
Benedicta tu in mulieribus et benedictus Blessed are you among women, and blessed is
fructus ventris tui, Jesus. the fruit of your womb, Jesus.

Maria dixit: “Ecce ancilla Domini. Fiat mihi Mary said: “Behold the handmaid of the
secundum verbum tuum.” Ave Maria… Lord. Let this be done to me according to
your word.” Hail Mary…

Et verbum caro factum est et habitavit in And the word was made flesh and lived
nobis. among us.

Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum, Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.
Benedicta tu in mulieribus et benedictus Blessed are you among women, and blessed is
fructus ventris tui, Jesus. Sancta Maria, mater the fruit of your womb, Jesus. Holy Mary,
Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc et in mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and in
hora mortis nostrae. Amen. the hour of our deaths. Amen.
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FRANZ X. GRUBER (1787-1863)
Silent Night
arr. Jonathan Rathbone (b. 1975). Original German text by Joseph Mohr (1792-1848).
Verses 1 and 2 trans. by J.F. Young (1820-1885), verse 3 trans. by Elizabeth Poston (1905-1987).

Silent Night is one of the most famous carols of all time, and recently celebrated its 200th
anniversary (on December 24, 2018). The lyrics were written by Joseph Mohr, who walked 3
kilometers from his home on Christmas Eve to bring it to his friend Franz Gruber and asked
him to compose a simple melody for it that could be played on the guitar. The piece was
premiered at mass that night and has been of the most beloved Christmas carols ever since.
This gorgeous, simple arrangement by Jonathan Rathbone begins with a soprano and alto
arrangement, then transitions to the tenors and basses, before combining in 8 parts for a
rich third verse.

TEXT
Silent night, holy night, all is calm, all is bright.
Round yon virgin mother and child, holy infant so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace, sleep in heavenly peace.

Silent night, holy night; shepherds quake at the sight.

Glories stream from heaven afar, heavenly hosts sing “Alleluia”
Jesus the savior is born, Jesus the savior is born.

Silent night, holy night, holy babe, smiles alight

Radiant from thy innocent face in this saving hour of thy grace,
Jesus, Lord, at thy birth, Jesus, Lord, at thy birth.

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JOHN RUTTER (b. 1945)
There Is A Flower
Text by John Audelay (15th century)
Eby Buscher, soloist

John Rutter’s There is a Flower was written for George Guest and the choir at St. John’s
College in Cambridge to be performed for an Advent carol service. The opening soprano
solo recalls the English tradition of young boy sopranos. The piece then ‘blossoms’ while
recounting the story of Jesus from his conception, through his birth and the visit of the
three kings. In the fifth verse, the piece grows again into the angels’ song of ‘Alleluia’ at the
birth of Christ.

TEXT
There is a flower sprung of a tree When Gabriel this maid did meet,
The root thereof is called Jesse, With ‘Ave Maria’ he did greet;
A flower of price; Between them two this flower was set
There is none such in paradise. And safe was kept, no man should wit,
’Til on a day in Bethlem it could spread and
spray.

This flower is fair and fresh of hue, When that fair flower began to spread
It fadeth never, but ever is new; And his sweet blossom began to *bed [bud],
The blessed branch this flower on grew Then rich and poor of every land,
Was Mary mild that bare Jesu; They marvelled how this flower might spread
A flower of grace; Till kinges three
Against all sorrow, it is solace. That blessed flower came to see.

The seed thereof was Goddes sand [God's gift], Angels there came from heaven’s tower
That God himself sowed with his hand, To look upon this freshele [fresh] flower,
In Nazareth that holy land, How fair he was in his colour
Amidst her arbour a maiden found; And how sweet in his savour
This blessed flower And to behold how such a flower might spring
Sprang never but in Mary’s bower. in gold.

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BENJAMIN BRITTEN (1913-1976)
Sweet Was The Song
Text from William Ballet’s “Lute Book”

This setting for treble voices is actually Britten’s second setting of this melody, the first
being an SATB arrangement in the Christ’s Nativity Suite. The revision masterfully adjusts
the harmonies to fit into the closer range of upper voices. The refrain that repeats
throughout the song, “lulla, lullaby,” is harmonized by the outer parts, painting an awe-
filled vision of Mary’s song, while the middle voice carries the melody. A Marian text, this
poem evokes both the Magnificat and the birth of Jesus in two separate but related
strophes.

TEXT
Sweet was the song the virgin sung,
When she to Bethlem Juda came,
And was delivered of a son,
That blessed Jesus hath to name.
Lulla, lulla, lulla, lullaby,
Lulla, lulla, lulla, lullaby,
Sweet Babe, sang she.
My son and eke a saviour born,
Who hast vouchsafed from on high
To visit us that were forlorn.
Lalula, lalula, lalulaby,
Sweet Babe, sang she,
And rocked Him sweetly on her knee.

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MORTEN LAURIDSEN (b. 1943)
O magnum mysterium
Responsorial chant from the Matins of Christmas

One of the most celebrated and well-known choral pieces by a living composer,
Morten Lauridsen’s O Magnum Mysterium is a serene setting of a common
Christmas text and perfectly depicts the “great mystery” of Jesus’s birth. The piece
is filled with examples of text-painting, though the most striking use of it comes on
the word virgo. Lauridsen writes here a dissonant note—the only note of this sort in
the entire piece—used very specifically in this instance to foreshadow the Virgin
Mary’s pain at her son’s crucifixion years after his birth.

TEXT TRANSLATION
O magnum mysterium, O great mystery
et admirabile sacramentum and wondrous sacrament
ut animalia viderent Dominum natum that animals should see the newborn Lord
jacentem in praesepio. lying in their manger.

Beata Virgo Blessed [is] the virgin

cujus viscera meruerunt portare Dominum whose womb merited to carry Christ the
Christum. Alleluia! Lord. Alleluia!

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THOMAS TALLIS (~1505-1585)
O nata lux
Chant from Lauds for the Feast of the Transfiguration

Thomas Tallis is one of the most prolific composers of his era, and is often credited
with beginning the long and rich history of choral music in the United Kingdom.
Aside from William Byrd, he was the only composer in England in his lifetime
granted the privilege of publishing his music. In O Nata Lux, Tallis sets a prayer to
Jesus, the “light born of light”, a reference to the Transfiguration, in which Christ
appeared with Moses and Elijah, all cloaked in light, in front of three of his disciples.

TEXT TRANSLATION
O nata lux de lumine, O light born of light,
Jesu redemptor saeculi, Jesus, redeemer of the world,
Dignare clemens supplicum With loving kindness deign to receive
Laudes precesque sumere. Suppliant praise and prayer.

Qui carne quondam contegi You who once deigned to be clothed in flesh
Dignatus es pro perditis, For the sake of the lost,
Nos membra confer effici Grant to us that we may be members
Tui beati corporis. Amen. Of your blessed body. Amen.

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MICHAEL PRAETORIUS (~1571-1621)
Es ist ein Ros entsprungen
Anonymous

Though the author of this text is unknown, we do know that this Christmas hymn first
appeared in print in 1599. Based on the text of Isaiah 11:1, the text references Isaiah
foretelling the birth of Jesus. The most popular harmonization was written in 1609 by
German composer Michael Praetorius; the piece can also be sung as a canon. The melody
has been used as the base for many choral and instrumental works, including one of
Brahms’s 11 Chorale Preludes, op. 122. The hymn is more commonly known to English
speakers as “Lo, How A Rose E’er Blooming,” or “A Spotless Rose”.

TEXT TRANSLATION
Es ist ein Ros entsprungen aus einer Wurzel A rose has sprung up from a tender root,
zart, wie uns die Alten sungen, von Jesse As the old ones sang to us, its strain came
kam die Art und hat ein Blümlein bracht from Jesse, and it has brought forth a flower
mitten im kalten Winter wohl zu der halben in the middle of the cold winter at half the
Nacht. night.

Das Röslein, das ich meine, davon Jesaia The little rose that I mean, of which Isaiah
sagt, hat uns gebracht alleine Marie, told, is Mary, the pure, who brought us the
die reine Magd. Aus Gottes ewgem Rat hat flower. Through God’s eternal counsel, she
sie ein Kind geboren wohl zu der halben has borne a child at half the night.
Nacht.

Das Blümelein so kleine, das duftet uns so The flower, so small, that smells so sweet to
süss, mit seinem hellen Scheine vertreibt us—with its bright gleam, it dispels the
die Finnsternis: Wahr’ Mensch und wahrer darkness. True man and true God, it helps
Gott, hilft uns aus allem Leide, rettet von us from all trouble, saves us from sin and
Sünd und Tod. death.

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TRADITIONAL ENGLISH CAROL
Coventry Carol
arr. Ola Gjeilo (b. 1978) Eby Buscher, soloist

The Coventry Carol is an English carol that dates to the 16th century. It gets its name from
the town of Coventry, where it was originally performed as part of a mystery play. The text
refers to the Massacre of the Innocents, in which King Herod feels threatened after the
Magi inform him that they have come to worship a king, and decides to have all children
under the age of three executed. The original music contains an extremely jarring
dissonance in one line, unusual for music of the day but quite fitting for the horrifying
subject matter. Here, however, Gjeilo takes the melody and writes a waltz-like choral
accompaniment around it, which eventually grows into his trademark thick eight-part
texture, which somehow retains the coldness necessary for the brutal text.

TEXT
Lully, lullay, Thou little tiny Child, by, by, lully, lullay.
O sisters, too, how may we do for to preserve this day
This poor youngling for whom we sing, ‘By by, lully, lullay’?

Herod the King, in his raging, charged he hath this day

His men of might in his own sight all children young to slay.
Then woe is me, poor child, for thee, and ever mourn and say:
For thy parting, nor [i.e. neither] say nor sing, ‘By by, lully lullay’.

Lully, lullay, Thou little tiny Child, by, by, lully, lullay.

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WILL TODD (b. 1970)
My Lord Has Come
Text by the composer

This heartfelt setting of words by the composer begins with a very soft drone over which
the sopranos introduce the expressive melody. This melody is passed around the choir
throughout the piece, never straying from its calm and content nature except to accentuate
God’s love for the speaker, further brought out by the poet by breaking the strophic form of
the text.

TEXT
Shepherds, called by angels, called by love and angels;
No place for them but a stable.
My Lord has come.

Sages, searching for stars, searching for love in heaven;

No place for them but a stable.
My Lord has come.

His love will hold me, his love will cherish me, love will cradle me.

Lead me, lead me to see him, sages and shepherds and angels;
No place for me but a stable.
My Lord has come.

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