Jeffrey Verkuilen, AAGO
Memorial Presbyterian Church, Appleton
Lobe den Herren, den mächtigen König der Ehren (Praise to the Lord the Almighty), from Cantata
No. 137 (BWV 137) for the twelfth Sunday after Trinity
Johann
Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750), Transcribed by Gerald Near
Spring Song
Alfred Hollins (1865 – 1942)
Sinfonia from Solomon (“Arrival of the Queen of
George Frideric Handel (1685 – 1759), Arranged
by Stainton de B.
In Mystery
and Wonder (The Casavant
Diptych)
Dan Locklair (1949 - )
I.
Aria (“God
moves in a mysterious way…”)
II.
Toccata
(“…His wonders to perform…”)
“In
Mystery and Wonder (The Casavant Diptych)” was
composed in late 2003, commissioned by Casavant
Frères, this instrument’s builder, in honor of the organ company’s 125th anniversary. Multiple premiers of one or both movements
occurred during the November 13, 2004 anniversary weekend; Jeff played this at
Our Lady of Lourdes Church in De Pere in conjunction with a West De Pere High
School choral concert.
Symbolism
abounds in both movements, especially in the use of “C” and “F”, note codes for
“Casavant Frères”, including
alterations on these pitches by accidentals (sharps and flats) or by enharmonic
spellings. The Toccata, for instance,
closes on a B major chord (B/D#/F#), which is the enharmonic equivalent of Cb major (Cb/Eb/Gb).
The
subtitle of each movement comes from the first two lines of a hymn written in
1774 by Englishman William Cowper, “God Moves in a Mysterious Way”,
reportedly the writer’s last hymn. The unsubstantiated story behind the hymn is
that Cowper, who often struggled with depression, decided to commit suicide by
drowning himself in the River Thames. A
thick fog that came down, preventing Cowper’s cab driver from finding the
river. The driver eventually let Cowper
out, surprisingly on Cowper’s own doorstep.
The hymn is traditionally set to the tune