Philip Orr

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Prop65

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SATB chorus, 2 C tpts, 2 tbns, organ; 1'25"
Mixed meters (7/8, 5/8, 4/8, 3/4, 4/4, 2/4, 6/8); Tempo: e = 240 throughout
Language: English; Dedication: To the Choir of Grace Episcopal Church, Trumbull, CT
*The astounding boldness of the Resurrection is declaimed in emphatic rhythms, shifting modes and irregular meters.

Easter Fanfare

SATB Octavo

TBB, harp; ca. 4'15"
Meter: 6/8; Tempo: With movement, q. = 48
Language: English
*"Three Kings of Orient" was written, with "Love Came Down at Christmas," for the men in a choral concert that would also feature harp with women's voices and with mixed choir. This recasting of the familiar hymn means to convey the sense of journey, not only of the Magi from Eastern lands, but of the Child through his life, death and resurrection, as interpreted in the prophetic symbolism of the precious gifts. The introduction, solo verses, and doxological tutti chorus each add dramatic tension through increased melodic, harmonic and modal alterations until all are at last releasedwith the Magi beholding the Starinto the single, slow-motion, major-mode refrain that follows the travelers toward the distant horizon.

Three Kings of Orient

TBB Octavo

TBB, treble recorder, harp; ca. 2'30"
Meter: 4/4; Tempo: Smoothly, lovingly, q = 88
Language: English
*This piece was written, with "Three Kings of Orient," for the men in a choral concert that would also feature harp with women's voices and with mixed choir. While the color of the recorder is much preferred in the context, a flute or an organ flute stop may be substituted so long as balance is maintained. INCLUDED RECORDER PART: both Medium and Advanced versions of the recorder part are included and either may be used with flute or organ as well.

Love Came Down At Christmas

For 2-part treble chorus, piano, and optional hand percussion (guiro, cabasa, afuche, maracas, cowbell, agogo, woodblock, lummy sticks). David the singer, pray-er, dancer, and praiser is brought to life with a nice helping of salsa accompaniment. Instances of vocal harmony are in parallel thirds. Hot stuff!

When the Spirit of the Lord Moves in My Soul

SATB, unaccompanied; ca. 2'55"
Meter: mixed; Tempo: Freely, q = ca. 40
Language: English; Dedication: To Jean H. Moffitt
*The familiar but mystical text by George Herbert (1593-1633) is chromatically set until the last phrase, which cascades diatonically to the end. Eight measures of alto divisi. Suitable both for concert and liturgical use (appropriate for Easter V [Year A], Pentecost, the feast of SS. Philip and James [May 1], and burial services).

Come, My Way, My Truth, My Life

[Available in SAB and SATB versions  this is SAB.] 
For SAB choir, soloist ad lib, and piano. This Gospel-style anthem has many scriptural ties, and may be useful throughout the church year as well as in services of commissioning and Ordination.

I Have Decided

[Available in SAB and SATB versions  this is SATB.] 
For SATB choir, soloist ad lib, and piano. This Gospel-style anthem has many scriptural ties, and may be useful throughout the church year as well as in services of commissioning and Ordination.

SATB Choral Kit

Ensemble

Lead sheet in concert key plus Bb &amp; Eb transpositions.

Who Will Care

Flexible Instrumentation

"For Houston Person." Lead sheet in concert key plus Bb &amp; Eb transpositions

Such A Long Way From Home

Keepin' On

Original version in quadruple meter. Lead sheet in concert key plus Bb &amp; Eb transpositions.

Her Hymn

"Remembering Freddie Hubbard." Lead sheet in concert key plus Bb &amp; Eb transpositions.

Gone Now

Performance time: ca. 3'. Forces: Voice and piano. Vocal range: Soprano or Mezzo-soprano (D4-F5). Tempo: "Rubato, with motion;" "Bossa nova." Language: English. Dedication: For Susan Gaylord *From the time I first read it in the late 1990s, this extract from Hope is a Blind Bard by Sister Maura Eichner, SSND (1915-2009) presented both an enticement and a caveat: savor the elemental, and don't overdo it. After a lengthy gestation and a decade of composing as many songs as choral works, the solo voice medium finally focused the text for me: the intuited opening melodic gesture suggested the (to me) elemental, savory, cycle-of-fifths-in-a-bossanova setting, and the floating rhythms of the melody addressed the don't overdo it' concern. The fact that the final melodic note and harmony feel open and unresolved suggests that the ideas of the text are a continuing state of being, or at least, of practice; indeed, harmonically and aesthetically, it's possible to reprise the entire song immediately, I believe without attracting suspicion or ire. If you try this in performance, let me know your responses.

Eat Bread. Drink Wine.

High/Medium Solo

Voice (Baritone (D3-F4)) and piano; 3:50
Tempo: Freely, flowing (q = 76)
Language: English; Dedicated to the memory of Hugh O'Reilly, a good and kind man, by Ingrid Sacknowitz
*Written at a period when I was immersed in the works of Jason Robert Brown, Adam Guettel, Stephen Sondheim and other contemporary musical theater composers, "The Heart of the Eternal" is a recasting of, "Souls of men, why will ye scatter," by the prominent Oxford Movement hymnist, Frederick William Faber (1814-1863). (This text enjoyed, and continues to enjoy, greater popularity in the version beginning with the second stanza, "There's a wideness in God's mercy.") In addition to retuning some words for modern ears and rearranging some stanzas for narrative force toward the intended commission (for a memorial service), the major reworking is in the adoption of contemporary music language and verse-and-refrain song form to capture the warmth and fervent love for Faber's hearers in his earnest invitation.

The Heart of the Eternal

Baritone Solo

Voice (Soprano [B3-Ab5]) and piano; 2:45
Tempo: Mixed Gospel Church and Blues (q = 56 initially)
Language: English; Dedication: For Susan Gaylord in her Jubilee Year
*Sister Mary Appassionata's outrageous myth ultimately conveys the sanctity and wonder of physical intimacy. The vocal style is classical throughout, though characterized by a stern preaching' affect, some matter-of-fact explanations, and the tones of warm compassion. The accompaniment blends various 20th century styles. Performers must consider the degree to which humor may or may not play a part in the beliefs or invention behind the character's expressions; I've tone-painted in styles that make dramatic sense to me.

Sister Mary Appassionata Lectures the Eighth Grade Boys and Girls: The Family Jewels

Soprano Solo

SAB chorus, piano; 2'20"
Meter: 3/4; Tempo: With motion and intensity, q = 104
Language: English; Dedication: For the Choir of Calvary Baptist Church, Hopewell, NJ
*Christian music ministry performs both a pastoral role and a prophetic one, with the same piece of music often supporting both. This quintessentially Protestant hymn has been a source of hope and assurance for worshipers gathered and in private for much of two centuries, but its refrain ending, "All other ground is sinking sand," has sounded to me like an alarm or warning that, like the parable it refers to, is meant to be heeded. This new setting makes a fresh and compelling medium for it.

All Other Ground

SAB Octavo

Voice (mezzo-soprano [G3-G5]) and piano; ca. 2'50"
Tempo: Spacious, q = 58
Language: English; Dedication: For Susan Gaylord
*The text builds through a long series of activities, small to large, contemplative to active, particular to universal, individual to societal and international, for the goal of "one great peace." The encouragement to intentionally harness one's efforts, thoughts, and manner of living toward the well-being of the entire human family is needed in every time, even our own.

This Thread I Weave

Mezzo-Soprano Solo

Mixed chorus, multi-clarinetist, piano; ca. 14 mins
Language: English; Dedication: To the Westminster Singers, Allen Crowell, conductor
*A catalog of seven musical styles setting seven clothing items: "Your 15 minutes" (Bernstein meets Ellington, SATB); "Velvet Rose Hat" (Mozart sonata, SA/SSAA); "The Sudan Club" (1930s popular music, SAATB &amp; tenor solo); "British Unflappability" (atonal avant-garde, TTBB); "Vintage T-shirts" (1980s funk, SATB); "Pamplona" (fandango, SATB &amp; narrator); "Clay Hill" (Copland-esque Americana, SATB).
If your only acquaintance with J. Peterman is through reruns (or original broadcasts!) of Seinfeld, you've missed something. The J. Peterman Company is a direct-mail and internet retail clothier founded in 1987 by the aforesaid Mr. Peterman, and back in the day, when this music was written, the US Postal Service was delivering Peterman's quirky, oblong catalog monthly to your mailbox, with its evocative hand-painted illustrations and romantic/impressionist/surreal merchandise descriptions that very nearly made the, say, $5 handkerchief, worth the $25 they asked for it.  Many of these descriptions seemed plainly obvious to me as subjects for musical text painting; I selected seven from catalog #44 (their "owner's manual") to make a small musical galleryenjoy the tour!

The J. Peterman Company Owner's Manual No. 44b

SATB Full Score

Voice Subcategory

SSATTBB unaccompanied; ca. 3'30"
Meter: 3/2; Tempo: Samba, h = 96
Language: Latin; Dedication: To the Westminster Chapel Choir 2006, and the irrepressible Sun Min Lee, director
*For several years in the first decade of the current century, I performed annual concerts of Christmas- and winter-themed songs in a variety of musical styles. As a Norteamericano, the idea of warm-climate holidays was particularly fascinating to me: What if Jesus had been born in Brazil instead of Palestine? Then (with a few historo-geographic manipulations), what if the angel chorus proclaimed their Good News in a samba? (Angels can syncopate, yes?) Thus, and hence. 
The first and last sections largely rely on layered ostinati framed by two harmonies oscillating via common tones (C and G, shared between C major seven and A-flat major seven). The center section adopts a dramatic homorhythmic texture with dense harmonies to emphasize the idea of "and in Earth, peace." Following the exciting buildup and grand climax, the angel voices slowly absorb back into the silent, holy night.

Gloria In Excelsis Deo

SSATTBB Octavo

Performance time: 2'25"
Reginald Heber's communion prayer in a direct, urgent interpretation. Harmonic surprises spark the essentially E major tonal palette. The first presentation may be sung by high male or female soloist, unison sopranos or tenors, or unison trebles. The organ accompaniment is readily adaptable to the piano.

Bread of the World

Global Sections - CORE [DO NOT TOUCH]*

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