Imagining the Triduum in Song: Triduum 2004

In the spring of 2004, my college voice teacher and liturgical music mentor, Michael Burgo, offered me the chance to compose, arrange, and direct music for Noon Mass on Easter Sunday at St. Ignatius Church, which sits on the corner of Boston College's campus.  Mike is the Director of Music there.

I was thrilled by the opportunity, and I really can't express just how formative an experience this was and just how grateful I am for the opportunity Mike afforded me.

He also makes fantastic kibbi (really, it was the best I've ever had).

As part of the Mass, I composed for the first time a musical reflection on the Triduum, which was played by a small wind ensemble I put together for the celebration (N.B. with limited rehearsal, so there are a couple of performance glitches along the way).

After that year, I continued the practice of composing one such piece every year until 2010, when I came to Fordham and no longer had a market for such works.

These reflections intend to lead the listener through the warmth and light Holy Thursday and the horror and injustice of Good Friday to the glory of Easter Sunday.  In this version, I used Middle Eastern musical motifs for Holy Thursday, a slow, somber chorale, for Good Friday, and a bit of pomp for the Resurrection event of Easter.  Although the performance isn't 100% on-target, and although this is much less mature than the 2007-2010 versions to come, it's enough to convey the message of the piece.

Unfortunately, I don't have recordings of all the pieces, like the ones from 2005 and 2006 that I wrote while working on Pine Ridge Indian reservation in South Dakota.  But the ones I have, I'll post - and I hope you enjoy them all!

Stay tuned for more, and please share/+1 if you like what you hear!