Praying Twice

The Fifth Sunday of Easter April 29, 2018 In the next three editions of Praying Twice, we'll focus on some of the people who provide musical leadership for worship at Trinity Cathedral. At today's 10:30 Eucharist, you will hear festive Easter music played by our Handbell Ensemble. Bells have long been associated with Easter joy. Throughout the season, you have heard Trinity's historic tower bells, small bells (and occasional sets of car keys) rung during the Gloria in excelsis at the Great Vigil of Easter, and even a bell stop ( zimbelstern ) on our pipe organ.  Handbells were originally invented to allow ringers to practice long, complicated tower bell peals without disturbing the entire neighborhood. By the 20th century, composers began writing music specifically for groups of ringers. In addition, handbells play a role in liturgical music, accompanying psalms, hymns, and chants. Our Trinity Cathedral Handbell Ensemble is directed by Janeen Jensen a...

The Fourth Sunday of Easter April 22, 2018 The Fourth Sunday of Easter is often called "Good Shepherd Sunday." The lessons reflect the image of Christ as the Good Shepherd. Psalm 23 is appointed for this day. Many favorite hymns and anthems incorporate this theme, and we will sing several of them today. Our offertory anthem is a lyrical, contemporary setting by William Bradley Roberts - "Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us." The Rev. Dr. Roberts is Professor of Church Music and Virginia Theological Seminary and a widely respected composer of church music. The gentle, lyrical melody floats peacefully over a serene organ accompaniment. Listen to a recording:  Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us A favorite hymn for this day is "The King of love my shepherd is" ( St. Columba ), a lovely Irish tune paired with a metrical paraphrase of Psalm 23. It is a hymn often requested for funerals, but it is also especially suited to this day. We will sing it during C...

The Third Sunday of Easter April 15, 2018 Sing to the Lord a new song!    -Psalm 96 Easter - a celebration of new life in Christ - serves as the perfect season for the creation and offering of new music. Our cathedral celebrates Nebraska composers, and we're blessed by a wealth of talent in this state. Today, our Cathedral Choir sings an anthem by Omaha composer and organist Michael McCabe. McCabe began his study of piano and organ as a child. As a student at Creighton University, McCabe was appointed university organist and choir director. During a 20 year military career, various assignments provided McCabe with unique opportunities to study with leaders in the field of Anglican church music, including Leo Sowerby, David McK. Williams, Thomas Matthews, and Dale Wood. McCabe has served numerous churches, including Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. As a published composer, McCabe was elected to ASCAP in 1972, and his ASCAP credits include NBC Television, ...

The Second Sunday of Easter April 8, 2018 In the Episcopal Church, Easter isn't a day - it's a season. The Great Fifty Days of Easter continue through the Day of Pentecost. The season is marked by festive music and joyful worship. "Alleluias" have returned and appear throughout the liturgy from the opening acclamation to the dismissal. The Paschal candle burns brightly throughout the season. The season is set apart through our service music which is used throughout the Great Fifty Days. We sing the Gloria in excelsis (Glory to God in the highest) and Sanctus (Holy, holy, holy) from the festive mass setting by William Mathias. Instead of a sequence hymn, we sing an Alleluia before the reading of the gospel. In this ancient tradition, the choir sings a verse related to the specific gospel lesson for each Sunday, and the congregation frames that verse with joyful alleluias before and after. The Fraction Anthem (sung at the breaking of the bread) specifically ...

Easter Day April 1, 2018 Alleluia! Christ is risen! This morning's offertory anthem - "Easter Chorale" by Samuel Barber - was composed for the dedication of the bell tower at Washington National Cathedral in 1964. Barber was intrigued by images of God in creation, and his setting of Pack Browning's poem captures the energy of new life brought forth by our "Source and Spring." This 20th century masterpiece is one of my favorite Easter choral compositions. If you visit my office, you'll see this poem hanging on my wall, framed with a photograph of Nebraska's sandhill cranes. May your life be filled with light and renewal this Easter! T he morning light renews the sky. Across the air the birds ignite Like sparks to take this blaze of day Through all the precincts of the night. Alleluia! Alleluia! The fires of dawn refresh our eyes. We watch the world grow wide and bright And praise our newly risen Light. The winter land receives th...

Sunday, March 25, 2018 The Sunday of the Passion: Palm Sunday Today marks the beginning of Holy Week. In this morning's liturgy, we literally step into the story of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. We wave palm branches and sing "Hosanna to the Son of David." Trumpet fanfares sound, and the mighty organ soars. The mood then quickly shifts as we join in a dramatic reading of the Passion Gospel. We remember Jesus' final days on earth and his betrayal by his friends. We walk with Jesus to Golgotha and watch him die on the cross. Episcopalians sing what we believe. Today's Holy Week hymns have lasted for centuries because of their ability to communicate the greatest story ever told in ways that move us beyond words. For many of us, these texts and tunes are deeply embedded in our memory: All glory, laud, and honor to thee, Redeemer, King! t o whom the lips of children their sweet hosannas ring. Ah, holy Jesus...by foes derided, by thine ...

The Fifth Sunday in Lent March 18, 2018 As the season of Lent progresses, our liturgy and music increasingly sharpen our focus on Jesus' suffering and death on the cross. Today, we will sing one of the great English hymns on this theme - "When I survey the wondrous cross" by Isaac Watts (1674-1748). When Watts was born in England, most "hymns" were metrical paraphrases of psalms. Watts moved beyond merely paraphrasing the Bible to creating original poetry. His hymns are considered to be some of the greatest in the English language, and they helped to establish the importance of hymn singing in the Anglican tradition. While using vocabulary immediately accessible to the singer, Watts' hymns make artful use of poetic devices. His hymns often begin with a powerful opening line designed to grab the singer's attention and set the stage for all that follows. His use of imagery draws singers into the scene: "See from his head, his hands, his...