Composed for the Dedication of the Cathedral’s South Transept. This addition of space led to a dramatic disposition of forces: The school Glee Clubs with fanfare trumpets in the North Transept balcony; the Men & Boys Choir with chamber orchestra in the South balcony, and the full Choral Society with organ and timpani in the Great Choir.
D No: 804
Text - Author or Scripture: Libretto from the Book of Daniel & the Song of the Three Children (Apocrypha) complied by Leonard Ellinwood (1905-1994)
Performing Forces: See NOTES
Date Published: CE 93
Date of Composition: 1962
Notes: The text is from the Songs of the Three Holy Children in the Apocrypha and the Book of Daniel, selected by Dr. Leonard Ellinwood, a distinguished musicologist on the staff of the Library of Congress and a member of the cathedral choir. It was written for the dedication of the South Transept on November 18, 1962. The title page carries this dedication: This work is offered to the Glory of God in thanksgiving for the labor and the creative gifts of all who carried and set and carved the stones, all who directed them in their labors, and particularly for the special talent of Philip Hubert Frohman Cathedral Architect.
There are thirty-one bosses that knit together the massive stone net of the vaulting ribs in the South Transept of the Washington Cathedral. The five largest are ninety feet above the center aisle, and separate the four bays. The twenty-six smaller ones gather each bay’s ribs (arches) and combine all with the central bosses. Contemplation of this large piece of the building took the decade-and-a-half following World War II, during which all building activity had stopped. Its dedication was a momentous occasion for The Very Reverend Francis B. Sayre, Jr., the fifth dean of the cathedral, and a joyous one for the entire cathedral family.
Carved on each of those thirty-one bosses are scenes sculpted by Heinz Warneke depicting the themes of the thirty-one verses of the canticle “O all ye works of the Lord, bless ye the Lord.” (Its Latin title is Benedicite, omnia opera Domini. This song and one that precedes it, “Blessed art thou, O Lord God of our Fathers,” (Benedictus es, Domine), are found in the Apocryphal book, “Songs of the Three Holy Children.”
From chapter three of the Old Testament Book of Daniel the familiar story of Nebuchadnezzar’s demand that all his subjects worship his golden idol, and the defiance of that decree by Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego was expanded to include their two songs found in the Apocrypha. Composition of this work began in late August, and chorus parts were completed by October in order that rehearsals could begin. The full score was finished and the instrumental parts copied during that month.
The service of dedication planned was a grand one and all the cathedral clergy, the Chapter and Building Committee members, and scores of the workmen were to be in honored attendance. Three musical organizations were to participate, and in this music each had a separate and equally important part to sing. The cathedral main floor interior was a third larger, and the gallery of the South transept presented a whole new and spacious acoustical area to be used. All of these considerations helped shape the dramatic nature of the music and its performance. During the prelude, the first procession of the Cathedral Choral Society went into the Great Choir and the Glee Clubs of the cathedral schools followed down the center aisle but turned left at the crossing, and proceeded up and into the North Transept Balcony. During the opening hymn the procession of honored guests and the cathedral choir and clergy entered, the choir going into its stalls in the first bay of the Great Choir. The office of Evening Prayer was sung. The sermon was given by The Very Reverend Provost H.C.N. Williams of the Cathedral of Saint Michael, Coventry, England. (At that time he was engaged in finishing the building of that dramatic and modern cathedral, to stand adjacent to the ruins of the old cathedral which was fire-bombed to complete destruction early in W. W. II.)
After the offertory the Dedication began with a small procession to Stations for scripture and prayer which were made at the Crossing and the South Porch, and then returning to the Crossing where the final Dedication prayers were read. This rubric introduced “The Fiery Furnace”; Then shall all be seated to hear the festival setting of the scriptures which are the theme of the keystone carvings in the Clerestory of the South Transept. Three powerful unison trumpet calls sounded in the North balcony and were immediately echoed by an orchestral statement in the South. The reverberation was gathered up in a powerful chord that fired off the two-hundred voices of the Cathedral Choral Society singing “Nebuchadnezzar the King made an image of gold!” It was instantly heard that the opening of the South Transept space had made a dramatical and beautiful increase in the acoustical dimensions of the cathedral.
In 1964 Ronald Arnatt conducted The Fiery Furnace in the Art Museum in St. Louis for the triennial Convention of the Episcopal Church. The Benedicite has been used on several occasions in cathedral services, notable among them May 7, 1964 for the dedication of the central tower, and later on the occasion of the dedication of National Cathedral Association Pilgrim Observation Gallery.
PERFORMANCE NOTES Coro I— The collective word “coro” designates a group of voices and instruments. This chorus should be the largest in number, and the larger the organ, the better. Four timpani are needed, and a very large suspended cymbal. One player can handle the part. In the first performance Norman Scribner directed the two-hundred voices of the Cathedral Choral Society, located in the Great Choir. Coro II—This choir might consist of younger voices. In the first performance it was the combined glee clubs of the National Cathedral School for Girls and the St. Albans School for Boys under the direction of the composer. It should be about one-half to two-thirds the size of Coro I. The three trumpets (herald or ceremonial, if available) are in C in the score. The parts are in B flat. There should be a separation between this group and Coro I to enhance the antiphonal effect of part 2, the Benedictus es, Domine. Coro II sang in the North Transept Balcony. Coro III— In the first performance these singers were the cathedral choir of twenty-four men and thirty boys, directed by Paul Callaway. It was a highly skilled (professional level) choir, and one is needed for the demanding writing. If such a group is not available the ideal choice will be a chamber ensemble of twenty-one exceptionally able singers—five sopranos, four altos, five tenors and seven basses. In the first performance it sang from the new South Transept Balcony. (If one stage and one conductor are used, this choir should be placed between the other two on the stage.)
In the score the trumpet and horn are written in C. (The horn is in the alto, “viola” clef.) Parts are in B flat for the trumpet, and F for the horn. The first bassoon part is in the tenor clef in several places. The percussion part can be played by one very skilled and agile player using a trap set with a pedal bass drum and cymbal; xylophone and glockenspiel are also needed. Space limitation in the South gallery dictated writing it that way, but two players are preferable, and will be more comfortable, since mallets are used in several places. Also, a very large bass drum would be more effective than the smaller pedal drum in a trap set. There is enough work for two players. (Perf. time is 28 minutes.)
N. B.—The excellent piano reduction for the Benedicite omnia opera was created in 1964 by Norman Scribner, Music Director of the Choral Arts Society of Washington, D.C..
There are thirty-one bosses that knit together the massive stone net of the vaulting ribs in the South Transept of the Washington Cathedral. The five largest are ninety feet above the center aisle, and separate the four bays. The twenty-six smaller ones gather each bay’s ribs (arches) and combine all with the central bosses. Contemplation of this large piece of the building took the decade-and-a-half following World War II, during which all building activity had stopped. Its dedication was a momentous occasion for The Very Reverend Francis B. Sayre, Jr., the fifth dean of the cathedral, and a joyous one for the entire cathedral family.
Carved on each of those thirty-one bosses are scenes sculpted by Heinz Warneke depicting the themes of the thirty-one verses of the canticle “O all ye works of the Lord, bless ye the Lord.” (Its Latin title is Benedicite, omnia opera Domini. This song and one that precedes it, “Blessed art thou, O Lord God of our Fathers,” (Benedictus es, Domine), are found in the Apocryphal book, “Songs of the Three Holy Children.”
From chapter three of the Old Testament Book of Daniel the familiar story of Nebuchadnezzar’s demand that all his subjects worship his golden idol, and the defiance of that decree by Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego was expanded to include their two songs found in the Apocrypha. Composition of this work began in late August, and chorus parts were completed by October in order that rehearsals could begin. The full score was finished and the instrumental parts copied during that month.
The service of dedication planned was a grand one and all the cathedral clergy, the Chapter and Building Committee members, and scores of the workmen were to be in honored attendance. Three musical organizations were to participate, and in this music each had a separate and equally important part to sing. The cathedral main floor interior was a third larger, and the gallery of the South transept presented a whole new and spacious acoustical area to be used. All of these considerations helped shape the dramatic nature of the music and its performance. During the prelude, the first procession of the Cathedral Choral Society went into the Great Choir and the Glee Clubs of the cathedral schools followed down the center aisle but turned left at the crossing, and proceeded up and into the North Transept Balcony. During the opening hymn the procession of honored guests and the cathedral choir and clergy entered, the choir going into its stalls in the first bay of the Great Choir. The office of Evening Prayer was sung. The sermon was given by The Very Reverend Provost H.C.N. Williams of the Cathedral of Saint Michael, Coventry, England. (At that time he was engaged in finishing the building of that dramatic and modern cathedral, to stand adjacent to the ruins of the old cathedral which was fire-bombed to complete destruction early in W. W. II.)
After the offertory the Dedication began with a small procession to Stations for scripture and prayer which were made at the Crossing and the South Porch, and then returning to the Crossing where the final Dedication prayers were read. This rubric introduced “The Fiery Furnace”; Then shall all be seated to hear the festival setting of the scriptures which are the theme of the keystone carvings in the Clerestory of the South Transept. Three powerful unison trumpet calls sounded in the North balcony and were immediately echoed by an orchestral statement in the South. The reverberation was gathered up in a powerful chord that fired off the two-hundred voices of the Cathedral Choral Society singing “Nebuchadnezzar the King made an image of gold!” It was instantly heard that the opening of the South Transept space had made a dramatical and beautiful increase in the acoustical dimensions of the cathedral.
In 1964 Ronald Arnatt conducted The Fiery Furnace in the Art Museum in St. Louis for the triennial Convention of the Episcopal Church. The Benedicite has been used on several occasions in cathedral services, notable among them May 7, 1964 for the dedication of the central tower, and later on the occasion of the dedication of National Cathedral Association Pilgrim Observation Gallery.
PERFORMANCE NOTES Coro I— The collective word “coro” designates a group of voices and instruments. This chorus should be the largest in number, and the larger the organ, the better. Four timpani are needed, and a very large suspended cymbal. One player can handle the part. In the first performance Norman Scribner directed the two-hundred voices of the Cathedral Choral Society, located in the Great Choir. Coro II—This choir might consist of younger voices. In the first performance it was the combined glee clubs of the National Cathedral School for Girls and the St. Albans School for Boys under the direction of the composer. It should be about one-half to two-thirds the size of Coro I. The three trumpets (herald or ceremonial, if available) are in C in the score. The parts are in B flat. There should be a separation between this group and Coro I to enhance the antiphonal effect of part 2, the Benedictus es, Domine. Coro II sang in the North Transept Balcony. Coro III— In the first performance these singers were the cathedral choir of twenty-four men and thirty boys, directed by Paul Callaway. It was a highly skilled (professional level) choir, and one is needed for the demanding writing. If such a group is not available the ideal choice will be a chamber ensemble of twenty-one exceptionally able singers—five sopranos, four altos, five tenors and seven basses. In the first performance it sang from the new South Transept Balcony. (If one stage and one conductor are used, this choir should be placed between the other two on the stage.)
In the score the trumpet and horn are written in C. (The horn is in the alto, “viola” clef.) Parts are in B flat for the trumpet, and F for the horn. The first bassoon part is in the tenor clef in several places. The percussion part can be played by one very skilled and agile player using a trap set with a pedal bass drum and cymbal; xylophone and glockenspiel are also needed. Space limitation in the South gallery dictated writing it that way, but two players are preferable, and will be more comfortable, since mallets are used in several places. Also, a very large bass drum would be more effective than the smaller pedal drum in a trap set. There is enough work for two players. (Perf. time is 28 minutes.)
N. B.—The excellent piano reduction for the Benedicite omnia opera was created in 1964 by Norman Scribner, Music Director of the Choral Arts Society of Washington, D.C..
The audio is of the first performance, recorded live (but in mono).
The Benedicite, Omnia Opera was separately recorded for the Dedication of the South Transept in 1964 with Wayne conducting.
Categorized as: 800 Extended Works
Tagged as: orchestra chamber, SATB