Hallelujah Chorus
George Frederic Handel arr. Roger Longfield
Handel composed Messiah without getting much sleep or even eating much food. When his assistants brought him his meals, they were often left uneaten. His servants would often find him in tears as he composed. When he completed Hallelujah, he reportedly told his servant, “I did think I did see all Heaven before me, and the great God Himself seated on His throne, with His company of Angels.”
Although the first performance in Dublin on April 13, 1742, was a huge success, Messiah wasn’t met with the same excitement in London the following season. Six scheduled performances were cancelled by Handel in 1743, Messiah was completely removed from the 1744 schedule, and it wasn’t performed in London until 1749.
In another reversal of fortunes, London’s Foundling Hospital held a fundraising concert, where Handel performed a mix of new music and well as older pieces including the Hallelujah chorus. At the time, Messiah was still somewhat unknown to London audiences, but the concert was so well received that Handel was invited back the next year, where he performed the entire Messiah oratorio. Performances of Messiah became an Eastertime tradition at the Foundling Hospital until the 1770s. Earnings from many early performances of the oratorio were used to help the poor, needy, orphaned, widowed, and sick.
In 1910 the Tabernacle Choir made its first recordings, which included the “Hallelujah” chorus; this was most likely the first recording of Messiah music outside of England. It was also the first recording of a Messiah piece to use an established choir, as all early recordings were made using temporary choirs comprised of provisional singers.
Text for Hallelujah comes from the book of Revelation in the New Testament. Revelation 19:6: “Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.” Revelation 19:16: “And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.” Revelation 11:15 reads, “And he shall reign for ever and ever.”
– Program Note from thetabernaclechoir.org
Greensleeves
Arr. Alfred Reed
It is generally agreed that the melody we know as Greensleeves is probably the second oldest piece of secular music in our Western culture, its origins having been traced back to about 1360. While we are not certain this was the original title, it is known that in the latter 14th century, English ladies wore gowns with great billowing sleeves, and the lyrics that have come down to us speak of a lover’s lament over his lady’s cruel treatment of him by a lady clad in a dress of green sleeves.
By the time of William Shakespeare, this song had already become a classic and he made use of it in two of his plays, most notably in the Merry Wives of Windsor. Over 300 years later, the English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams used this melody as an intermezzo between two acts of his opera Sir John in Love, which was based on the same play. Since then the tune has been adapted as the basis for at least one Christmas carol (What Child Is This?), several popular songs, and even by the Swingle Singers on one of their albums. In addition, it has been performed instrumentally by groups of all sizes and styles from full symphony orchestra to small jazz and rock groups.
This arrangement is a symphonic development of this 600-year-old classic melody adapted for the full resources of the modern wind orchestra or concert band.
– Program Note from score
A Hanukkah Festival
Arr. Chris Bernotas
A Hanukkah Festival is a medley of three traditional Hanukkah songs, Sevivon, Maoz Tzur, and Hanukkah. Sevivon has a dramatic melody and is written with a variety of accompaniment leading to a brief, but impressive, clarinet cadenza that leads into Maoz Tzur. This traditional piece is scored with full, rich voicings along with the beautiful melody. Hanukkah is the festival of lights and the last section of the piece. It is a bright playful march with an exciting conclusion.
– Program Note from publisher
The Toymaker’s Workshop
Rebecca Jarvis
This charming holiday novelty piece opens with Bavarian-style folk melodies. As the picture of the workshop is painted by the melodies, we become acquainted with the “toys” as portrayed by all members of the band–winds, brass, and percussion. Percussionists quickly alternate between traditional and accessory instruments while winds and brass add humor with glissandos, color punches, and imitation.
– Program Note from Score
Pacem
Robert Spittal
As is the case with most of my compositions, I wrote Pacem – A Hymn for Peace for a friend who also happens to be a musician. The work was composed for Patrick Brooks and his wind ensemble at Idaho State University. The thematic structures of the piece are based on the second movement of my Consort for Ten Winds, which impressed at a chamber recording session I led in 1999. I intended Consort to be a contemporary reflection of older music, and for the second movement to reflect the beautiful, imitative motet style of the Renaissance composers I admire, such as Josquin Des Prez and Palestrina. While many of the stylistic and inherently lyrical elements of Consort are retained in Pacem (the title in Latin for “peace”), the large-scale instrumental forces of the symphonic wind ensemble presented opportunities to expand the music proportions of Pacem. Rather than simply an “arrangement” of the earlier chamber work. Pacem became an original piece unto itself. The musical propositions of Pacem range from the introspective to the epic, reflecting the scope of humanity’s persistent, hopeful and often difficult struggle toward the realization of personal and universal peace.
Pacem is a musical expression of humankind’s desire for universal peace among all people, as well as the personal peace that comes from within. “Pacem” is the Latin word for “peace.” The choice of Latin is significant for two reasons: 1) as a kind of tribute to the Franco-Flemish Renaissance composers, whose music strongly influenced this work, and 2) as a symbol of the universality of humankind’s desire for peace –- a collective desire that cuts across geographic, religious, ethnic, historical, or other boundaries. The reflective, more peaceful moments in the work represent our hope for personal peace. The stronger, maestoso statements of the main theme convey a hopeful optimism for the realization of peace among all people. Other statements are more conflicted and ambiguous and remind us that achieving universal peace requires persistence and struggle, and that it remains an unrealized challenge in the world.
– Program Note by composer
Highlights from Disney’s Frozen
Robert Lopez, Kristen Anderson-Lopez arr. Sean O’Loughlin
Hailed as one of Disney’s best animated films ever, Frozen is quickly establishing itself as a classic with a heartwarming story, stunning visuals and magnificent songs. This impressive concert medley features Vuelie, Do You Want to Build a Snowman?, For the First Time in Forever, and Let It Go.
–Program Note from publisher
Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring
Johann Sebastian Bach
Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring is the popular English title of the chorale from the 1723 Advent cantata Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben (Heart and Mouth and Deed and Life), BWV 147, by Johann Sebastian Bach. The chorale occurs twice in the cantata, with different texts each time (neither of which matches the English): as its sixth movement, Wohl mir, dass ich Jesum habe (It is well for me that I have Jesus), and again as its tenth movement, Jesus bleibet meine Freude (Jesus Remains My Joy). The English title derives from famous piano transcriptions made by Myra Hess, in 1926 for piano solo and in 1934 for piano duet, as published by Oxford University Press. Whether played instrumentally or sung in German or English, the chorale is often heard at weddings and during Advent, Christmas, and Easter. Bach composed a four-part setting with independent orchestral accompaniment of two stanzas of the hymn Jesu, meiner Seelen Wonne, which had been written by Martin Janus in 1661 and was commonly sung to a Johann Schop melody, Werde munter, mein Gemüthe.
– Program Note from Wikipedia
A Christmas Festival
Leroy Anderson
A Christmas Festival was written by Leroy Anderson and first recorded on October 27, 1952.
When asked why he wrote this piece, Anderson said, “Well, I was trying to write a Christmas festival. You see, there are all types of things that have been written for various occasions and in this particular case I was working at the time for the Boston Pops, I was the arranger and orchestrator for them for years, and they wanted to record a special concert number, using Christmas songs, carols and other Christmas music, for records, so they asked, Arthur Fiedler asked me to do a concert overture, and this is how it came about. I selected the ones that were the most popular and best known, and then I took them and tried to give instrumental treatment to them; in other words, it’s not a medley, that isn’t what we wanted to do here, certainly what I didn’t want to do. I rather took the themes and built you might say a concert overture, around the Christmas songs. They’re not just carols because in this we end with ‘Jingle Bells’, that is, of course, a secular song, it’s not a carol, but it’s associated so much with the gaiety and spirit of Christmas that you certainly couldn’t leave it out.”
A Christmas Festival is a medley of eight carols: Joy to the World, Deck the Halls, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, Good King Wenceslas, Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, Silent Night, Jingle Bells, and O Come All Ye Faithful.
– Program note by Sam Bradfield
Sleigh Ride
Leroy Anderson
Leroy Anderson (1908-1975) got the idea for the theme of Sleigh Ride as he dug in his Woodbury, Connecticut, yard for water pipes during a heat wave in 1946. As he dug and the perspiration soaked his clothes, he thought of a tall glass of ice water to quench his thirst, a thought that turned to winter and snow and then to racing over the countryside in a horse-drawn sleigh with a sharp, wintry breeze whipping across his cheeks. With those thoughts in mind, the composer conjured up a melody.
Anderson’s new ‘holiday’ miniature premiered at a May 1948 concert of the Boston Pops. It was such an immediate hit with the public that several recorded versions appeared within a year, including one with Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops and one with the composer conducting.
– Program note from the Clinton Symphony Orchestra