New setting of “O Clavis David” available

I’ve just finished a new setting of the Advent antiphon “O Clavis David” which is available for purchase from my website, http://nicholasweininger.com/scores. If you’re a choral director looking ahead to planning your fall season program and thinking about what pieces might effectively respond to our extraordinary times and also be appropriate for the Christmas season, I invite you to consider this piece. I’m happy to send a perusal score if you’re interested; email nweininger (at) pobox (dot) com if you’d like one.

The text is set in Latin; the English translation is

O Key of David, and scepter of the house of Israel,
Who opens, and no one can shut; shuts, and no one can open;
Come and free the captive from the prison house
who sits in darkness and the shadow of death.

I hope my setting will resonate with all those of us who feel like captives in the shadow of death today. The piece uses a driving 5/4 rhythm to dramatically illuminate the urgency of the call for liberation, and is both exciting and accessible; it’s SATB with limited divisi, about 4 to 4 1/2 minutes long, suitable for high school, college, and adult ensembles.

With best wishes to all for continued safety and health,
Nicholas Weininger