Setting scriptural texts to music isn't easy. Just by the nature of prose, rhyme schemes, regular meter plans, and venerable musical forms mostly cannot be used. Sometimes a composer can make use of short phrases repeating over and over again to provide meter, pattern, and rhyme. Think of Handel writing many of the choruses in "Messiah." He took one or two phrases or even one word and took 5-10 minutes musically expanding them. Think "Hallelujah" or "For Unto Us a Child Is Born."
We don't normally do Baroque stylization in our day. Occasionally though, for emphasis, a composer can get away with phrase repetitions. I find that PHRASE REPETITION is a great way to set scriptural texts. Repeating a phrase of words set to a melodic passage that can be developed is a way to provide pleasing musical structure as well as patterns and rhyme schemes listeners can appreciate.
A few years ago, my friend (Barbara Cramer) asked me to create a song for her to sing using an ancient form of Hebraic poetry. Her brother (John W. Welch) was being honored for finding Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon in 1967. There was a "Chiasmus Jubilee" (50 year anniversary) held at BYU in 2017 where she sang this song.
Chiasmus is a form of Hebraic poetry where the concepts reflect back in contrast to the previous ideas but in reverse order with the climax or most important concept in the center. So, I tried to play around with themes and tonalities that would reflect these contrasts -- darkness turning to light, sin to forgiveness, pain to joy -- going from minor to major and so forth. So, as the text reflected back to a previous thought, I tried to make the musical theme relate back as well, but brighter and more hopeful.
We don't normally do Baroque stylization in our day. Occasionally though, for emphasis, a composer can get away with phrase repetitions. I find that PHRASE REPETITION is a great way to set scriptural texts. Repeating a phrase of words set to a melodic passage that can be developed is a way to provide pleasing musical structure as well as patterns and rhyme schemes listeners can appreciate.
A few years ago, my friend (Barbara Cramer) asked me to create a song for her to sing using an ancient form of Hebraic poetry. Her brother (John W. Welch) was being honored for finding Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon in 1967. There was a "Chiasmus Jubilee" (50 year anniversary) held at BYU in 2017 where she sang this song.
Chiasmus is a form of Hebraic poetry where the concepts reflect back in contrast to the previous ideas but in reverse order with the climax or most important concept in the center. So, I tried to play around with themes and tonalities that would reflect these contrasts -- darkness turning to light, sin to forgiveness, pain to joy -- going from minor to major and so forth. So, as the text reflected back to a previous thought, I tried to make the musical theme relate back as well, but brighter and more hopeful.
The text is taken from Alma 36 where Alma is telling about his conversion. First, Alma recognizes his sins, he feels exquisite pain and guilt. Then the central and most important part of the song is about his turning to Christ, forsaking his sins, and relying on the Atonement. Then, he tells of his feeling great joy and relief through repentance. He is changed and he then wants to share his joy by preaching of Christ.
The song is titled "How Exquisite Was My Joy."
The only way I could make my setting of this scriptural text work is with using phrase repetitions. This helped with meter and structure as well has providing singable melodic ideas.
Other composers feel very strongly that scriptural verses should be set strictly as they are laid out in the book. As a singer, I find those so hard to sing. I enjoy having notes that soar and phrases that can be repeated to provide some pattern and rhyme. To me, that's much more fulfilling.
The song is titled "How Exquisite Was My Joy."
The only way I could make my setting of this scriptural text work is with using phrase repetitions. This helped with meter and structure as well has providing singable melodic ideas.
Other composers feel very strongly that scriptural verses should be set strictly as they are laid out in the book. As a singer, I find those so hard to sing. I enjoy having notes that soar and phrases that can be repeated to provide some pattern and rhyme. To me, that's much more fulfilling.
RSS Feed