Wondrous Love

Paul Halley – Composer’s notes – Wondrous Love recording

Tracks 1 – 5, 'Love Songs for Springtime'
‘The Love Songs for Springtime were commissioned by the Ottawa Choral Society in 1985, and were dedicated to its conductor and my mentor, Brian Law. The texts, most of which are anonymous, have become so popular that they are now a part of the English folk tradition. They speak of various aspects of love, unrequited and otherwise, and seemed to call for a light-hearted approach with music that could be danced to, or at least would encourage some foot-tapping.’

Track 6, ‘Gloria in Excelsis Deo’

‘This piece was composed in 1969 for the Choir of St. Matthew’s Church, Ottawa, and its director, Brian Law. I had been a chorister at St. Matthew’s since the age of eight and became assistant organist when my voice changed. Brian asked me to compose a setting of the Gloria In Excelsis Deo that could be sung as an antiphon for the Gospel reading on Christmas Eve. The only requirements were that the piece be jubilant and no more than a minute in length.’

Track 7, ‘Christe Qui Lux Es Et Dies’

‘During my tenure as Director of Music at The Cathedral of St. John The Divine, I was asked to compose this piece in honor of the birthday of Pamela Morton, wife of the Dean of the Cathedral. Since this composition was to be premiered at a Sunday Vespers service, I chose the sixth-century Latin hymn, “O Christ Who Art Both Light and Day”, along with the traditional plainsong, and combined it with an original text written for the occasion by the late Canon Edward N. West, Sub-Dean of the Cathedral. When the composition was published, the words “Te, te Pamela” were changed to “Vir egregie” (“Honorable man”) in order to give the piece a more universal appeal.’

Recording soloists on track 7: Floyd Higgins, Nathaniel Rogers, Bruce Fifer, Peter Coulianos, Marilyn Holcomb, Julie Bickford

Track 8, ‘Jesu, The Very Thought of Thee’

‘The hymn on which this anthem is based has been one of my favorites since I was a young chorister. In certain hymns the text and the music are independently beautiful enough, but when put together achieve an emotional power that can be breathtaking. The matching of this twelfth-century Latin text with Gordon Slater’s gorgeous melody, ‘St. Botolph’, is such an example. When Noel Edison, Founder/Director of the Elora Festival Singers, asked me to compose this “hymn anthem” I was a little intimidated at first by the prospect of working with something already so complete. However, my inability to resist another opportunity for a descant and some re-harmonizing won out in the end.’

Track 9, ‘Verbum Caro Factum Est’

‘Wayne Abercrombie commissioned this piece for the chamber choir of Williams College to be sung during the Service of Nine Lessons and Carols in the college chapel. The text comes from the ninth lesson taken from the first chapter of the Gospel According to St. John. The idea of the Word being made flesh suggested to me the marriage of the mystical with the earthly. Hence the use of two choirs, one worldly and boisterous singing the main body of the text, and the other ethereal and distant singing the Alleluias. In this particular performance, the antiphonal choir was accompanied by an unexpected but welcome chorus of birds.’

Recording soloists on track 9: Vanessa Halley

Track 10, ‘What Stood Will Stand’

‘Wendell Berry is a personal hero of mine, not only for his poetry and his bold essays of social criticism, but also as an example of a man who seems to have gone father than most in integrating his thinking with his living. He came to the Cathedral (of St. John the Divine) a couple of times while I was Director of Music, and at one Sunday service he gave the sermon. I was honored to compose an anthem for that occasion using one of Wendell’s poems from “Sabbaths” and interpolating Alleluias and that part of the Nicene Creed which reads, “We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen”.’

Recording soloists on track 10: Wilbur Pauley, Bruce Fifer, Samantha Halley, Emily Werne

Track 11, ‘Wondrous Love’

‘The Easter morning service at the Cathedral (of St. John The Divine) was always a thrilling moment in the church year. With over three thousand people in attendance, three choirs, brass, tympani and the magnificent Cathedral organ, it was also a musical paradise for me as a composer. One of the simplest and most powerful combinations of text and music for the Easter liturgy is the American folk hymn, “Wondrous Love”. The opening acapella verses are taken straight from “The Southern Harmony” (1835) with its hallmark of parallel fourths and fifths and plenty of raw energy. I then took the music from the ‘meeting house’ into the ‘cathedral’ where it received ‘the grand treatment’ inspired by the words, “And when from death I’m free, I’ll sing on, I’ll sing on.”’