How Good It Is to Sing Praises

Instrumentation

SATB (no divisi) and organ

Duration

3'30"

Performance Information

Written for Anderson Hills Church

Score

View the score

Program Notes

After I joined the Anderson Hills Church choir in February 2024, the choir director invited me to write something for the choir to sing. Since most of the choral music I write is too difficult for an amateur choir, I decided to write a piece that still used an interesting harmonic vocabulary, but kept that harmony mostly in the accompaniment so that it was easier to sing. At lunch after church on Sunday, my wife and I discussed what text I should set, and we decided on Psalm 147. I wrote this much faster than I usually write; I was done on the following Tuesday night! And I’m happy to report that both the organist and the choir director quite liked the piece.