VOICES OF ADORATION
for SATB choir and chamber orchestra
Composed and Arranged by
Eric Pazdziora
Commissioned and Premiered by
Epworth United Methodist Church Chancel Choir
Gaithersburg, Maryland
Christmas 2023
VOICES OF ADORATION is a presentation of Christmas choral music arrangements and compositions by Dr. Eric Pazdziora in an exciting blend of musical styles and languages, from Gregorian chants to African American spirituals to Scots ballads to Latin rock. Ancient hymns and contemporary carols take on fresh meaning as we come to adore Christ the Lord from places where it may not always be easy to find peace on earth.
– PROGRAM NOTES –
Each of the musical selections in the cantata reflects in a different way on responding to the call to adore Christ the Lord with the voices of people in many different stations of life, including poverty, oppression, grief, war, and enslavement. While these conditions may not seem the best place to find a joyful celebration, the message of Christ offers a powerful spiritual transformation and the hope for peace on earth.
Beginning with a Gregorian plainchant set to an early Christian hymn text, Of the Father’s Love Begotten adores the child in the manger as the incarnation of the eternal Creator. In response, the words of the angels who delivered the first message of Jesus’ birth, Gloria, are sung in Spanish as a joyful blend of ancient liturgy and contemporary Latin rock.
The spiritual Mary Had a Baby was first documented in Saint Helena Island off the coast of South Carolina, representing a version of the Christmas story as told by enslaved African Americans. Its seemingly simple words and music are complicated by the metaphor of a train departing too soon, giving an air of urgency and uncertainty to the journey despite the reassurance that the star of Bethlehem will continue shining all the same.
Mary’s own words are heard in the Magnificat. The familiar verses express Mary’s hope in the God of Hebrew Scriptures who liberates God’s people, uplifting the oppressed and dethroning the rich and powerful. As a young Jewish woman living under Roman occupation, Mary would have been familiar with oppression and found encouragement in these depictions of God for her own calling as God’s servant. Mary’s celebration is expressed in a feisty new setting drawing inspiration from Flamenco and Middle Eastern musical expressions.
From Hevin Heich (Balulalow) is a sixteenth-century translation of Martin Luther’s hymn “Von Himmell hoch” into Scots by James, John, and Robert Wedderburn. These three brothers were early supporters of the Protestant Reformation in Scotland and suffered the loss of their home and livelihoods because of their beliefs. My setting follows the tender imagery of their lyrics to reimagine Luther’s original melody as though it were a Scottish folk lullaby, soothing the infant with the gentle syllables “ba-lu-la-low.”
Another form of musical reinterpretation occurs in Brightest and Best. Reginald Heber’s hymn, depicting the Magi following the star of Bethlehem, was originally written as a Victorian high-church anthem. Instead, my arrangement adapts the melody into the early American style of singing known as Sacred Harp, which used shape notes and angular harmonies to make choral music accessible for congregations without formal musical training. The contrast of styles illustrates the hymn’s own contention that the Christ child is best honored not with the gifts of luxury but in the prayers of the poor.
I Heard the Bells (Wexford Carol) is taken from Longfellow’s poem “Christmas Bells,” published in 1865 during the American Civil War. The war coincided with years of profound personal loss for Longfellow. His beloved wife died tragically in a fire, leaving him to raise their young daughters alone; his eldest son was severely wounded at the battle of New Hope Church; and his lifelong friend Nathaniel Hawthorne died suddenly after a period of illness. In this poem, Longfellow describes “how inexpressibly sad” the holidays had become for him but also finds hope for comfort in the repeated words the angels sang. The traditional Irish “Wexford Carol” illuminates the poem in its wistful, soaring melody.
Finally, the familiar hymn O Come All Ye Faithful serves as a summation, calling every voice to join in adoration of Christ the Lord. The congregation is welcome to add their own voices to the final chorus.