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Excerpt from a review by Nigel Simeone in the June Issue of International Record Guide of an anthology CD called AMERICAN DECLARATIONS by the St. Louis Chamber Chorus on the Regent label:
"...which is followed... by a rarity by a much more familiar name. Miklos Rozsa composed his setting of The Lord is My Shepherd in 1972. It's a substantial work lasting almost nine minutes which uses the choir in a thoroughly resourceful and often hauntingly beautiful way. Having now heard it (the booklet claims this is a first recording on CD), I'm baffled that this piece isn't better known: it's strikingly effective and explores the virtuoso possibilities of a good chamber choir to impressive effect."
http://www.amazon.com/American-Declarations-Saint-Chamber-Chorus/dp/B00IUMZDT8/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1405140232&sr=1-1&keywords=american+declarations
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Thank you, Terra.
Well, whaddya know? I knew about the Intrada Twelve Choruses, but because they didn't call it Twelve Choruses Plus One I had no idea that the Psalm opus had been tacked on at the end of it. (Makes me wish all the more that they had recorded "To Everything There Is a Season," which I think would have made a much more suitable companion piece than the film-related songs, and which still cries out to make its first appearance on a CD.)
Oh well, the more the merrier, and it'll be good to hear two interpretations of a Rozsa piece we've never heard before in ANY interpretation. I'll count my blessings.
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Makes me wish all the more that they had recorded "To Everything There Is a Season," which I think would have made a much more suitable companion piece than the film-related songs, and which still cries out to make its first appearance on a CD ...
The Rozsa Society website has full PDfs of all recording lists and up-to-date info on new recordings, concerts, broadcasts, you name it, even old issues of PMS mag. Plus tons of archive material and interviews etc. and a forum to blether at.
'To Everything' is a good piece, and maybe should've been there, but it's not more apt than the 23rd. Psalm. The 12 choruses are not 'songs' except in the TECHNICAL sense, but short hymns for church performances, specifically designed for that purpose. They aren't film pieces despite their origin.
The 'Sermon on the Mount' is the Beatitudes, the Lord's Prayer is what it is etc., and the other pieces were adapted as church hymns with lyrics by a Catholic prist. The 23rd. Psalm is in the same 'faith' bracket, whilst 'To Everything' which comes from Ecclesiastes is a different kind of scripture, 'wisdom literature' and though biblical, more humanistic, universal and a general artwork as music. They've both had plenty of settings by plenty of composers, but the 23rd. is closer to the 12 choruses in nature.
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William, your points about the 12 choruses are well taken, especially about the Lord's Prayer.
I didn't even remember that the Lord's prayer was one of them; I haven't listened to the Varese choruses for many, many years, and what's stuck in my memory was an overall impression of words being set to themes which originally hadn't been composed for that purpose. I certainly don't object to ANY music having originated in a film -- hello, what's the name of this website? -- and when I said that the Ecclesiastes piece would have been more appropriate I was thinking mainly, I guess, of the fact that both pieces were settings of actual Scripture. Obviously, the Lord's Prayer would also fit into that definition. But not the other 11 choruses. Anyhow, for whatever it's worth, that's where my head was at when I wrote my post.
BTW, I'm well aware of the PMS recorded offerings, and over the years I've bought many of them. (The last I looked, which admittedly was a long time ago, "To Everything There is as Season" was not on the list, and I've been very vocal with the Society in expressing my wish for its inclusion.) I happen to be a charter member of the Society, and my writing appears in several of those back issues. For further response to your very apt mention of the PMS website, see below:
***
Mr. Knight, you don't end your sentence with a question mark, but there is a simple answer, and that is: No.
Which is to say, for better or worse, I almost never go to Facebook, even to my own page, and for some reason I've fallen out of my long-held habit of going to the Rozsa website. To be honest, I do often wonder what I'm missing over there, and often think I should go back to take a look, and I'm sure I will one of these days, but there's only so much time, and so many things I must be doing. Meanwhile, I've relied ion FSM to keep me apprised of news of Rozsa (and of course all the other composers who've contributed to cinema).
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Obviously, the Lord's Prayer would also fit into that definition. But not the other 11 choruses. Anyhow, for whatever it's worth, that's where my head was at when I wrote my post.
I don't want to be a stickler on this, Preston, but the 'Sermon on the Mount' is entirely based on the Beatitudes from the gospels (and is considerably expanded in terms of thematic development from that in the film), the 'Christ Theme' lyric is only 'Allelulia' and the 'King of Kings' theme is just 'Hosanna'. So only EIGHT have original lyrics.
But even those eight (or at least six of them) were lyricised as church hymns (one was a Hungarian poem for children), for that specific purpose. Just about every well-known hymn out there through history was put to an earlier tune.
One might not like those lyrics, but they're no worse than many that appear in church hymnals in every denomination. The reason I stress this is that there regularly appear posts here and elsewhere that suggest the whole thing is syrupy or weak, some of them are, but it's clear that the posters clearly haven't listened to or read the actual lyrics. That strikes me as the sort of thing that generally wrecks sales for the undecided. Varese never released them, by the way, it was Prometheus, and the first issue was legit.
You'd be surprised too at the general 'denominational' prejudices that turn up in critiques of these things, I've noticed. And of course the whole 'church' thing is a turn-off for some. But it expands the music to a whole new audience and use.
I happen to be a charter member of the Society, and my writing appears in several of those back issues. For further response to your very apt mention of the PMS website, see below:
I'm well aware of it, Preston, I pitch these posts at a more general readership if it's to pep a release. Not personal!
Meanwhile, I've relied on FSM to keep me appraised of news of Rozsa (and of course all the other composers who've contributed to cinema).
It may be that you haven't been there since all the revamping? Some of your own articles might even be in the PMS early downloadable catalogue?
http://www.miklosrozsa.org/
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