Sacred Music Drama
The Producer's Guide Second Edition
by
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The repertoire with its detailed annotations found in this book fills a long standing void by acquainting directors, students, performers and interested readers with the numerous sacred music dramas which are available. The following shows a small portion of the Table of Contents and sample annotations of repertoire presented in this book.
TABLE OF CONTENTSPREFACE
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
SETTING THE STAGE – AN INTRODUCTION TO SACRED MUSIC DRAMA
The Purpose for this Research
Some Historical Aspects of Sacred Music Drama
Pre-Christian Greek Drama
Liturgical Music Drama
The Mystery Plays
Handel The Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries
The Twentieth Century Beyond the Twentieth Century
DESCRIPTION OF ANNOTATIONS AND APPENDICES
ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THIS BOOK
THE MUSIC DRAMA REPERTOIRE
JOHN ADAMS
El Niño
SAMUEL ADLER
The Wrestler
NOA AIN
The Outcast
EUGEN D’ALBERT
Der Golem – The Golem
WILLIAM P. ALEXANDER
Samson at Gaza
DOMINICK ARGENTO
Jonah and the Whale
The Masque of Angels
PIETRO ARIA
Jericho Road
MALCOLM ARNOLD
Song of Simeon
JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH
Johannes Passion – St. John Passion
Matthaeus Passion – St. Matthew Passion
GRANVILLE BANTOCK
The Pilgrim’s Progress
SEYMOUR BARAB
Father of the Child
Only A Miracle
(ETC.)
Annotation examples:
Good King Wenceslas
Music by Richard James Shephard (b. 1949). A Chancel opera in English with libretto by Mark Schweizer loosely based on and incorporating the well known hymn text by John Mason Neale (1818-1866). This carol is set to the 14th century tune “Tempus adest floridum,” found in Piae Cantiones (1582). A second carol incorporated into the opera is “Thus Angels Sung,” text by George Wither (1588-1667) and set to Song 34 by Orlando Gibbons (1583-1625).
Premiered Christmas 1997 at First United Methodist Church, Hopkinsville, KY according to librettist, Mark Schweizer. St. James Press CD/DVD press release information of Good King Wenceslas states in the acknowledgment section that “Our thanks to Dr. Allen Henderson and the Austin Peay University Opera Workshop for their work in bringing these operas to life. The faculty and students in the voice, choral and orchestral departments have been invaluable both in the premieres and the recordings of these new works.”
Tonal; conventional harmonies; melodic material is both original as well as derived from existing carols and hymns.
One act. Setting is the castle and surrounding grounds of Good King Wenceslas, 922-929 A. D. Duration: 30 minutes.
Roles: STEPHEN (treble – top F4), the page; MOTHER (sop); CHANCELLOR (ten – D2-A3); GOOD KING WENCESLAS (bs); ANGEL (sop); SHEPHERD GIRL (sop); KASPAR (ten); BALTHAZAR (bar); MELCHIOR (bar – top F3). Mother/Angel and Chancellor/Kaspar may be sung by the same persons.
Chorus: SATB – parts need not be memorized and should be performed as a Greek chorus, outside the action.
Orchestration: Several instrumental adaptations are available: full orchestra, chamber ensemble, or piano alone. The opera was originally composed for a small instrumental chamber ensemble: ob, hrn, bsn, pia, perc (vib may be played on an electronic keyboard).
Synopsis: The story centers around a rude and spoiled young page, Stephen, who is celebrating his birthday. Good King Wenceslas summons Stephen and informs him that he will be embarking on a journey with the King to bring food, drink, and fuel to a poor peasant. Stephen grumbles and complains incessantly as he makes the journey with the King. The weather turns bad, and they soon lose their way in the storm. They find shelter, and as Stephen watches over the sleeping King, an angel disguised as an old woman appears to Stephen and tells him a story. A mystery play unfolds which reveals a story about selfless giving to the Christ child. Stephen’s selfish heart is changed and he completes the journey in great joy with Good King Wenceslas offering “charity toward the upright.”
Materials: SJMP – piano/vocal score and orchestra parts are available for purchase.
Notes: May be performed in either a house of worship or theatre, with or without sets, and is musically accessible for professional and amateur singers alike.
Die Schuldigkeit des ersten Gebotes –The Obligation of the First Commandment
Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1751). A Sacred Opera with text in German based on Matthew 22:37-40.
Premiered March 12, 1767 in Salzburg.
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About the Book
“The indelible imprint of sacred music drama throughout history is undeniable . . . and its resurgence in the twentieth and twentieth-first centuries stirs the curiosity.”
Carl Gerbrandt, in pursuing these issues, has brought to our fingertips a stimulating historical perspective on sacred music drama as well as an extensively annotated list of repertoire. Years of research have gone into providing information on centuries of sacred music dramas/operas which for the most part have been known to very few.
Included in these pages of his Second Edition are over 330 sacred music dramas/operas, each with scholarly and practical information that will be of interest and great value to the opera director, the performer, the scholar, the conductor and the church musician. Gerbrandt's SETTING THE STAGE section is an enlightening overview of sacred music history. The repertoire selected includes works from the Middle Ages to works being written today. Each work is reviewed with regard to the source of libretto, the style and difficulty of its musical content, the date and location of the first performance, the number of acts and scenes, and the performance length of the work. Additionally, each role is listed by name and voicing, and in most cases, the vocal range is indicated. The choral demands, orchestrations and dance requirements are identified. A thorough plot synopsis as well as the location of scores and parts is given.
Ten appendices cross-reference textual sources and topical content while assisting in the selection of works for worship services or theatrical performances. Select contact information of publishers and composers in also included.
Sacred Music Drama: The Producer’s Guide fills a long standing void by acquainting directors, students, performers and interested readers with the numerous sacred music dramas which are available.
About the Author
Dr. Carl Gerbrandt is Professor Emeritus of Opera and Voice at the University of Northern Colorado. Prior to his work at UNC, Dr. Gerbrandt held opera directing positions at Peabody Conservatory of Music of Johns Hopkins University, Southern Baptist Seminary where he began their Sacred Music Drama program, and Tabor College.
While he made his mark in the field of operatic performance, Gerbrandt has also presented many recitals, masterclasses, and choral workshops nationwide, while having performed over seventy opera and oratorio roles. He has appeared as bass soloist with the Annapolis Naval Academy in filmings of Handel’s Messiah, and frequently sung with major symphonies and opera companies throughout the country.
Gerbrandt made his professional directing debut at Washington D.C.'s Kennedy Center in Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail. Additionally, his staged production of Mendelssohn’s Elijah was filmed by PBS-TV and broadcast nationwide. He has staged over 40 operas, and his “Opera in Education” productions have been seen at three national music conventions and by thousands of young people.
In 1990, Dr. Gerbrandt held a Visiting Scholar position at Cambridge University, England. He has edited The Songs of Louis Cheslock, a collection of the complete songs of the late American composer. In 2004, he returned to Cambridge as a Visiting Fellow, traveling repeatedly to Spain to research Zarzuela, the highly popular Spanish operetta form.
Conductor of the heralded Greeley Chorale from 1987-2005, Dr. Gerbrandt directed the 100-voice choir on five International concert tours and presented 10 world premieres.
Dr. Gerbrandt holds conducting and performances degrees from Tabor College and Wichita State University, and a doctoral degree in Voice Performance from Peabody Conservatory of Music. Post-doctoral studies in voice and opera were taken at Nordwestdeutsche Musikakademie in Detmold, Germany.