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“I tell the story of love, the story of hate, the story that saves, and damns.
I am the incense upon which prayers float to heaven.
I am the smoke which palls over the field of battle where men lie dying with me on their lips.
I am close to the marriage altar, and when the graves open, I stand nearby.
I call the wanderer home, I rescue the soul from the depths.
I open the lips of lovers and through me the dead whisper to the living.
I speak through the birds of the air, the insects of the field,
the crash of the waters on rock-ribbed shores, the sighing of wind in the trees, and I am even heard
by the soul that knows me in the clatter of wheels on city streets.
Through me spirits immortal speak the message that makes the world weep, and laugh, and wonder, and worship.
I know my brother, yet all men are my brothers;
I am of them and they are of me, for I am the instrument of God.
I am music.”
—Anonymous, ca. 1919
Dr. Ronald Arnatt passed away on August 23, 2018. Born in 1930, he had an exceptional professional career spanning both sides of the Atlantic. After receiving his music education at Trinity College, London, and Durham University in England, he emigrated to the United States.
In the United States, Dr. Arnatt held professorial or Director of Music positions at Trinity Church in Boston, Westminster Choir College in Princeton, American University, Christ Church Cathedral in St. Louis, the University of Missouri, and with the St. Louis Chamber Orchestra and Chorus.
He is known internationally for his choral, organ, and brass compositions, many of which are published by ECS Publishing Group. Dr. Arnatt was past President of the American Guild of Organists. His final post was Director of Music and Organist at St. John’s Church in Beverly Farms, Massachusetts.
May both his memory and his musical legacy be blessings.
Stanley M. Hoffman, Ph.D.
Senior Editor, E. C. Schirmer and Galaxy Music
ECS Publishing Group | MorningStar Music | Canticle Distributing
Office: 615 Concord St, Framingham, MA 01702
Headquarters: 1727 Larkin Williams Rd, Fenton, MO 63026
Direct: (508) 620-7400 | Headquarters: (636) 305-0100
The March 2015 issue of Choral Journal features a cover article written by coauthors David Rayl and Zebulon Highben titled “Masters in Miniature: Repertoire by Great Composers for Smaller Choirs.” In this article, the authors suggest that “almost every great composer has written at least one piece that is achievable by choirs with fewer singers and limited resources but is still well crafted, worthy of performance, and typical of its genre and style period.”
This article highlights some of these little-known works by well-known composers, which are categorized into the following subheadings: Renaissance, Baroque, and Classical and Romantic. There is also a section on adapting repertoire for solo voice and comments on performance and programming. A full list of repertoire discussed appears below, and you can read the full article or download and print the PDF here. (Note: You must be an ACDA member logged into acda.org to view the Choral Journal online.)
Can you think of any pieces missing from this list that are little-known works by well-known composers?
Feel free to share your thoughts here on ChoralNet in the comment section or even send in a “Letter to the Editor” for publication in an upcoming issue of Choral Journal. I would love to hear from you! Better still, perhaps you should write an article or column in the Choral Journal. You can contact me at .
Choral Journal writing guidelines can be viewed by clicking here.
| Composer | Title | Scoring | Recommended Edition (see article endnotes for complete citation) |
| Billings, William | Wake Every Breath | canon | CPDL |
| Billings, William | When Jesus Wept | canon | CPDL |
| Blow, John | Sing, Sing, Ye Muses | SATB, 2 violins, continuo | Walton Music |
| Buxtehude, Dietrich | Lord, Keep Us Steadfast in Thy Word (Erhalt uns, Herr) | SATB, 2 violins, continuo | Concordia Publishing |
| Buxtehude, Dietrich | In dulci jubilo | SAB, 2 violins, continuo | IMSLP |
| Crüger, Johann | Awake, My Heart with Gladness (Auf, Auf, mein Herz) | SATB, 2 C insts, continuo | Augsburg Fortress |
| De Sermisy, Claudin | Tant que vivray | SATB | National Music Publishers |
| Dowland, John | Come again, sweet love doth now invite | various | CPDL |
| Dufay, Guillaume | Conditor alme siderum | ATB | CPDL |
| Dufay, Guillaume | Kyrie Orbis Factor | ATB | GIA Publications |
| Farrant, Richard | Call to Remembrance | SATB | Oxford Univ. Press |
| Hassler, Hans Leo | Dixit Maria | SATB | CPDL |
| Hassler, Hans Leo | Missa super Dixit Maria | SATB | IMSLP |
| Haydn, Joseph | Missa brevis Sancti Joannis de Deo | SATB, 2 violins, cello/bass, organ | Various (see endnote 25) |
| Haydn, Joseph | Six Psalm Settings | 3-part, keyboard (opt) | Various (see endnote 27) |
| Isaac, Heinrich | Innsbruck, ich muss dich lassen | SATB | CPDL |
| Leisring, Volckmar | O Filii et Filiae | SATB double choir | Alliance Music |
| Mendelssohn, Felix | Die Nachtigall | SATB | Hinshaw Music |
| Mendelssohn, Felix | Verleih’ uns Frieden | SATB, organ | E. C. Schirmer
|
| Morley, Thomas | Sound Forth the Trumpet in Zion | SAB | GIA Publications |
| Mozart, Wolfgang A. | Kyrie, K. 33 | SATB, continuo | Bärenreiter Verlag |
| Mozart, Wolfgang A. | God Is Our Refuge | SATB | Augsburg Fortress |
| Obrecht, Jacob | Parce, Domine | SAB | GIA Publications |
| Praetorius, Michael | En natus est Emanuel | SATB | Augsburg Fortress |
| Praetorius, Michael | Psallite | SATB | Augsburg Fortress |
| Puccini, Giacomo | Requiem | STB, viola, organ | CPDL |
| Scheidt, Samuel | Remember, Lord (Gedenke, Herr) | SAB, continuo | GIA Publications |
| Schein, Johann Hermann | Christ lag in Todesbanden | SAB, continuo | Tetra/Continuo |
| Schein, Johann Hermann | Eight Chorale Settings from Opella Nova (Part I) | 2-part treble, continuo | Concordia Publishing |
| Schubert, Franz | Mass in C Major | SATB, orchestra | Carus Verlag |
| Schubert, Franz | Mass in G Major | SATB, orchestra | Carus Verlag |
| Schubert, Franz | Antiphonen zum Palmsonntag | SATB | Augsburg Fortress |
| Schütz, Heinrich | Becker Psalter | SATB, continuo (opt) | Augsburg Fortress (see endnote 19) |
| Tallis, Thomas | If Ye Love Me | SATB | Oxford Univ. Press |
| Vulpius, Melchior | Arisen Is Our Blessed Lord (Erstanden ist der heilig Christ) | SATB double choir | Augsburg Fortress |