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Compositions for church and
concert hall
Fraser's continually expanding catalogue of compositions
includes many works for the church and a smaller number for
the concert hall.
Here are details of some of Fraser’s
more popular pieces. Sample copies of any of the works
listed below may be requested, free of charge, and can be sent electronically as a PDF or in
the post. Full sets can also be purchased – contact FW for details.
Fraser is always delighted to receive enquiries about prospective
commissions. Do get in touch to discuss
your exact requirements.
Some
Advent and Christmas repertoire
•
The Infant King duration
4’30” At first glance a sweet
lullaby about the baby Jesus; on closer inspection a fairly dark text about
the future he will grow into: ‘soon comes the Cross, the nails, the
piercing’... The music also therefore combines these two themes, with some
dissonance and drama in the second and third verses in particular. But Christmas
is a time primarily of celebration of the miraculous birth, and the words ‘sing
lullaby’ dominate the setting. The final verse looks forward to the glory
of Easter. The choral parts are not overly demanding; a short soprano solo
is optional. The keyboard part can be effectively realised on organ or
piano.
Text: Sing lullaby,
lullaby baby now reclining; hush, do not wake the Infant King!
Angels are watching, stars are shining over the
place where he is lying: Sing lullaby!
Soon will come sorrow with the morning, soon will
come bitter grief and wailing: sing lullaby.
Soon comes the Cross, the nails, the piercing; over the grave where he is
lying: sing lullaby.
Is the babe awaking? Hush, do not wake the Infant
King!
Dreaming of Easter, gladsome morning! Conquering death, its bondage
breaking! Sing lullaby!
•
Song of the Midnight Hour duration 4’00” This piece was written for that very
specific moment during Midnight Mass when the bells chime midnight – the
moment, symbollically at least, of the birth of Christ. Thus, ideally it
should begin at around 11.57pm so that the climax of the piece arrives as
the bells ring in Christmas Day! Before that, though, the work opens with a
cold, sparse depiction of the deep frost and layered snow (in the bleak
midwinter), during which we imagine the bare stable in a flurry of iciness,
followed by a period of increasing tension as the great moment appears
(heaven and earth shall flee away when he comes to reign); then,
climactially, there is a dramatic depiction of the earth-shattering moment
when God entered the world and a jubilant proclamation of the news. The
soprano writing is particularly suited to boys’ voices, although the work
can just as effectively be performed by any type of soprano singers! There
is a restraint about the choral writing that makes this piece suprisingly
manageable (your choir probably can sing this!); the organ part is more
involved (and demands colourful registration and lots of power at the end)
but will not trouble a competent player.
Text: In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan: earth
stood hard as iron, water like a stone: Snow had fallen, snow on snow; snow
on snow: Our God, heaven cannot hold him, nor earth
sustain; heaven and earth shall flee away when he comes to reign: he
comes to reign... Christ is born! Christ is born in Bethlehem! Alleluia!
Alleluia! Alleluia! (Christina Rossetti)
• The angel Gabriel duration 4’30” A highly idiomatic setting for girls’
voices and organ/piano of the famous Basque carol. There are musical images
of the angel himself and of Mary’s rapture in the opening sections, the
first verse sung being by a soloist and the second by the chorus. In the
final verse (and Christian folk throughout the world will ever say: ‘Most
highly favoured lady’), the girls split into four parts (all singing the
same material but at different times), which creates a beautiful image of
people all over the world singing the same Gloria! to
the mother of God. The keyboard part, equally suited to organ or piano,
provides an interesting, bluesey underlay for the girls. Opening the final
verse, there are short (and entirely optional) solo lines for up to six
girls – a lovely moment for a number of girls to shine! Don’t forget, too,
that this text is surprisingly flexible: it fits Advent and Christmas but also
the Annunciation on 25 March, when the angel brought Mary the glad tidings!
Text: The angel Gabriel from heaven came,
his wings as drifted snow, his eyes as flame;
"All hail," said he, "thou lowly maiden Mary,
most highly favoured lady," Gloria!
"For know a
blessèd Mother thou shalt be,
all generations laud and honour thee,
thy Son shall be Emmanuel, by seers foretold,
most highly favoured lady," Gloria!
Then gentle Mary
meekly bowed her head,
"To me be as it pleaseth God," she said,
"my soul shall laud and magnify his holy Name."
Most highly favoured lady, Gloria!
Of her, Emmanuel,
the Christ, was born
in Bethlehem, all on a Christmas morn,
and Christian folk throughout the world will ever say--
"Most highly favoured lady," Gloria! (Basque carol, trans. Sabine Baring-Gould)
• Matin and Vesper Responsories
duration 3’00”
each These two Responds
for Advent Sunday are set to atmospheric music that heightens the Advent
sense of expectation. For much of each setting the tenors and basses
provide a carpet of sustained notes, which rises and falls as the upper voices
intone the text. Both build towards the ‘Glory be to the Father’, which
itself then subsides into the acoustic. The pieces share harmonic and
melodic material and so are particularly suitable as ‘bookends’ for an
Advent Procession; they were used in this way at their first performance on
Advent Sunday 2007.
Text: Matin Responsory: I look from afar:
and lo, I see the power of God coming, and a cloud covering the whole
earth. Go ye out to meet him and say: Tell us, art thou he that should come
to reign over thy people Israel? High and low, rich and poor, one with
another. Hear, O thou shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a
sheep. Stir up thy strength, O Lord, and come to reign over thy people
Israel. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and
to the Holy Spirit.
Vesper Responsory: Judah and
Jerusalem, fear not, nor be dismayed. Tomorrow go ye forth, and the Lord,
he will be with you. Stand ye still, and ye shall
see the salvation of the Lord. Glory be to the
Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. (Matin
& Vesper Responds for Advent Sunday)
Other
music
•
A Voice from afar duration
5’30” The piece was written for
the funeral of a priest who had been a member of the Newman Society;
Newman’s text speaks upliftingly of consolation and comfort, and as such the
piece is suitable for any memorial or funeral service. It would also suit
an All Souls’ remembrance occasion. Most importantly, the extended soprano
solo – which requires great expression and an often ethereal tone – gives
voice to the text. The men play a very simple role, softly repeating the
plainsong ‘Requiem aeternam’ (Eternal rest) almost like a mantra, a prayer
for the salvation of the deceased. Around this the organ shimmers and the
soprano soars. Here is some of FW’s most involved organ writing so far; the
player needs a good head for chords and an instrument with 16’, 8’ and 4’
strings and flutes.
Text: Requiem aeternam... (Office for the Burial of the Dead)
Weep not for me;— Be blithe as wont, nor tinge
with gloom
The stream of love that circles home, Light hearts and free!
Joy in the gifts Heaven’s bounty lends; Nor miss my face, dear
friends!
I still am near;— Watching the smiles I prized on earth,
Your converse mild, your blameless mirth; Now too I hear
Of whisper’d sounds the tale complete, Low prayers, and musings sweet.
A sea before The
Throne is spread;—its pure still glass
Pictures all earth-scenes as they pass. We, on its shore,
Share, in the bosom of our rest, God's knowledge, and are blest. (John Henry Newman)
•
The Third Service: Magnificat and Nunc dimittis duration 8’00” This setting, in English, of the
evening canticles was written, as the First Service, for the boys of Saint
Bartholomew’s to learn in a 25-minute rehearsal (which they did!), and
similarly the (S)ATB incarnations of it are well within the capabilities of
most choirs. The organ plays a ‘binding’ role, linking choral phrases with
modulations and mood-setting. As with much of FW’s music, a colourful
instrument is desirable – the score calls at various points for strings, a
16’ manual stop, and biting reeds. But a great virtue is its flexibility;
the score can be effectively realised on the piano too. There is
versatility in the choral parts as well: the three incarnations of this
service are for trebles only (First), ATB (Second) and SATB (Third), so
there is a setting for every situation! In particular, the First is a very
useful setting for more junior choristers to cut their teeth on, as each
choral phrase contains only one real (manageable) rhythmic or melodic
challenge.
•
God be in my head duration 1’30” An intimate, restrained setting of this
short ancient text. The music is set for SATB with occasional divisions for
sopranos and basses. Beauty can be found in its flowing melodic lines,
aching suspensions and subtle chromaticism. Suitable for use as an introit
on any occasion, or as a short anthem during a service of blessing or
dedication.
Text: God be in my
head, and in my understanding; God be in mine eyes, and in my looking; God
be in my mouth, and in my speaking; God be in my heart, and in my thinking;
God be at mine end, and at my departing.
(The Sarum Primer)
•
The Reproaches duration 5’30” A very dramatic setting for
unaccompanied choir of this Good Friday text, depicting the desertion of
Christ by his followers and his loneliness on the Cross. There are
extensive solos for soprano and alto (originally conceived for
counter-tenor but just as effective with contralto), sometimes underpinned
by the chorus and sometimes, starkly, not – an effect something like
Britten’s “voice of God” in his second Canticle. The harmonic language is
dissonant, making extensive use of the minor second and tritone (the
Devil’s interval!). The piece was written for the choir of St Matthew’s in
Sheffield, by whom it was first sung on Good Friday 2008. Since then it has
received a number of performances both in concert and in divine worship;
the writing is challenging but intuitive and therefore readily accessible
to competent choirs.
Text: O my people, what
have I done to you? How have I offended you? Answer me! I led you out of
Egypt from slavery to freedom, but you led your Saviour to the cross. Holy
God, holy and strong; Holy and Immortal One, have mercy on us. For forty
years I led you safely through the desert; I fed you with manna from
heaven, and brought you to a land of plenty, but you led your Saviour to
the Cross. Holy God, holy and strong; Holy and Immortal One, have mercy on
us. What can I do more for you, and have not done? I planted you as my choicest
vine, but you yielded only bitterness. When I was thirsty you gave me
vinegar to drink, and you pierced your Saviour with a lance. Holy God, holy
and strong; Holy and Immortal One, have mercy on us.
•
They shall grow not old duration 1’30” A very early setting for SATB with
divisi of these words that have become closely associated with
Remembrancetide.
Text: They shall grow
not old as we that are left grow old; age shall not weary them, nor the
years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will
remember them. (Laurence Binyon)
•
The Candle Mass duration 15’ This setting has a fairly involved
organ part and interesting solos for two sopranos and baritone. The choral
parts are simpler and could be managed by a competent SATB choir.
•
Jesu, the very thought of thee duration 4’ Written for unaccompanied double choir
singing in a good acoustic, with melismatic word-painting and a rich
harmonic language.
Text: Jesus, the very
thought of thee with sweetness fills my breast; but sweeter far thy face to
see, and in thy presence rest. (Bernard of Clairvaux, trans. Edward
Caswall)
Some
other works
A CAPPELLA
• Preces and Responses for Men's Voices (for Saint John's
Ranmoor)
• There is no Rose (SATB)
• Come, Holy Ghost (for Pentecost
at Saint Bartholomew’s)
• One star made
infinite (an atmospheric setting of
words by Traherne)
• I know that my
Redeemer liveth (SATB + Bar solo; personally one of my
favourites!)
• I heard a voice from
heaven (SATB + S solo)
ACCOMPANIED
• Communion Service for Easter Day for Choir, Organ and Brass
(SATB 2tpt flg org) (for St John's, Ranmoor)
• Meditations (a
song for soprano + piano to marvellous words by Traherne)
• Concerto for piano and string
orchestra (first
movement – will be finished one day!)
• Communion Service
for Men's Voices (for St John's, Ranmoor)
• The first evening service for
trebles (Magnificat and Nunc dimittis) f.p. 12 October 2008
• Acclamation (brass quartet and
organ, could do with another hearing one day please!)
Also, there is a fairly large catalogue of ‘lit bits’ –
descants, Alleluias, hymn reharmonisations, Anglican chants and so on –
which can be made available free
of charge. Here is a selection; please feel free to use as you wish:
[download]
A selection of FW’s Anglican chants
[download] Descant for Come down, O Love
divine
[download] Descant for Now the green blade
riseth
[download] Descant for Praise, my soul, the
King of heaven
[download] Eight-part
Amen
[download] Gospel Acclamation for Easter
Day
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