Libretto for 'From Darkness to Light' - December 3 and 4, 2011

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From Darkness to Light
December 3-4, 2011
Libretto

Coventry Carol

16th Century/Med.; Michael McGlynn, arr.

Lully, lulla, thou little tiny child, By by. luly lullay. (R)

O sisters two, how may we do for to preserve this day
This poor youngling, for whom we do sing By by, lully lullay. R
Herod the King, in his raging, charged he hath this day
His men of might, in his own sight, all young children to slay. R
That woe is me, poor child for thee, and ever morn and day.
For thy parting neither say nor sing By by, lully lullay. R

Requiem

Eliza Gilkyson; Craig Hella Johnson, arr.

mother mary, full of grace, awaken
all our homes are gone, our loved ones taken
taken by the sea

mother mary, calm our fears, have mercy
drowning in a sea of tears, have mercy
hear our mournful plea

our world has been shaken, we wander our homelands forsaken
in the dark night of the soul bring some comfort to us all,
o mother mary come and carry us in your embrace
that our sorrows may be faced

mary, fill the glass to overflowing
illuminate the path where we are going
have mercy on us all

in fun’ral fires burning each flame to your myst’ry returning
in the dark night of the soul your shattered dreamers, make them whole,
o mother mary find us where we’ve fallen out of grace,
lead us to a higher place

in the dark night of the soul our broken hearts you can make whole,
o mother mary come and carry us in your embrace,
let us see your gentle face, mary,

Veiled in Darkness

Glenn Rudolph

Still the earth in darkness lies,
Up from death’s dark vale arise
Voices of a world in grief,
Prayers of men who seek relief;
Now our darkness pierce again,
“Peace on earth, goodwill to men.”

Light of light, we humbly pray,
Shine upon Thy world today;
Break the gloom of our dark night,
Fill our souls with love and light,
Send thy blessed word again,
“Peace on earth, goodwill to men.”

Suite Noël
Wayne Eastwood

1a. Dialogue & Recitative: Isaiah 35: 1, 4, 5a

Dialogue

Then the parch’d land

Behold, in that day . . .

and the wilderness

your words will strengthen weary hands . . .

will be glad for them.

and mend the feeble knee;

Recitative

Say to them who are fearful of heart, “Be strong, fear not.”

Out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see!

1b. Chorus: Come, We Shepherds text by Richard Crashaw

Come, we shepherds, whose blest sight
Hath met Love’s noon in night;
Come lift up our song,
And wake the sun that lies too long.

To all our world of wellstol’n joy
He slept, and dreamt of no such thing,
While we found out Heav’n’s fairer eye,
And kissed the cradle of our King;

Tell him he rises now too late
To show us aught worth looking at.
Tell him we can show him more
Than he e’er show’d to mortal sight,
Than he himself e’er saw before,
Which to be seen needs not his light.

We saw Thee in balmy nest
Young dawn of our eternal day;
We saw Thine eyes break from the East,
And chase the trembling shades away:

No, no, not yet to seek
Where to repose His royal head;
See, see His newbloom’d cheek
‘Twixt mother’s breasts is gone to bed.

We saw Thee in balmy nest,
We saw Thine eyes break from the East,
We saw Thee by Thine own sweet light.

2a. Recitative and Dialogue: Isaiah 35: 1, 5b, 7

Then the dry place will flow’r,

and blossom as the rose.

the desert shall rejoice,

and fill’d with song and delight;

the solitary place will sing and be glad for them;
Lo, the deaf ears open.
Behold, the deaf ears will open.

2b. Solo and Chorus: Behold, the Father Is His Daughter’s Son

text from The Nativity of Christ by Robert Southwell

Behold, the father is his daughter’s son,
The bird that built the nest is hatched therein,
The old of years an hour hath not outrun,
Eternal life to live doth now begin.

The Word is dumb, the mirth of heav’n doth weep,
Might feeble is, and force doth faintly creep.
From death, from deafness, from despairs
This life, this light, this Word, this joy repairs.

O dying souls, behold your living spring;
O dazzled eyes, behold your sun of grace;
Dull ears, attend what word this Word doth bring;
Up, heavy hearts, with joy your joy embrace.

3a. Dialogue: Isaiah 35: 6

Then, then the lame man,

Then leap, leap as a hart,

And the crippled girl,

leap as a hart doth the lame,

And all shackled men and women,
With new-made feet, behold, the halt shall dance for joy!

3b. Chorus: Give Your Baby Finest Dancing Feet

text by Wayne Eastwood

Give your baby finest dancing feet,
Then he will want to dance with me;
Just a look at my dancing,
Dancing, prancing feet,
These will do!

Put his feet into the perfect shoes,
So he will never, never fall,
For he must dance at his judgment
‘Til he cannot dance at all.

If never I mind the sacrifice,
Still, never he mind the tree;
We’ll dance the steps though my legs fail,
His strong arms wrapp’d ‘round me.

Grant him grace and boundless charity,
Sturdy legs, and steady knee,
And kiss the baby’s feet just once,
Then he’ll be ready,
Ready to dance with me!

4a. Recitative: Isaiah 35: 5-6a

The shall the eyes of the blind be open’d,
And the ears of the deaf unstopp’d,
Then shall the lame leap as the hart, as the hart leaps,
Then the tongue of the dumb shall sing!

4b. Chorus: How Can It Be?

text: Carol to the Gift of God, William Barney

How can it be? The voice that gave both cord and tongue their powers.
How can it stoop to bind itself, inhabit throats like ours?
Alleluia, Sing alleluia,
Sing all, sing alleluia.

We who are dust motes in the sun
That He should magnify
Us with His love, such shining song I cannot reason why.

To see if it be safe for us,
This voice should taste of death!
Test the thin garment of our days
By putting on our breath!

Come, brothers, sisters, sing for joy!
Sing alleluia for joy!
The gift of God, made known wrapp’d in tissue and in trim
As mortal as our own!

Alleluia, Sing all alleluia.

Intermission

Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow

Traditional Spiritual;
Carl Davis, arr.

Follow, follow, Rise up, shepherd, and follow,
Follow the star of Bethlehem.

1. There’s a star in the East on Christmas morn.
It will lead to the place where the Savior’s born.
Leave your sheep and leave your lambs.
Leave your ewes and leave your rams.

2. If you take good heed of the angel’s words,
You’ll forget your flock, you’ll forget your herds.
Leave your sheep and leave your lambs.
Leave your ewes and leave your rams.

Follow, follow, Rise up, shepherd, and follow,
Follow the star of Bethlehem.

People, Look East

French carol; Drew Collins, arr.

People, look east, the time is near of the crowning of the year.
Make your house fair as you are able:
Trim the hearth and set the table.
People, look east and sing today: Love, the Guest, is on the way.
People, look east!
Furrows, be glad Though earth is bare,
One more seed is planted there
Give up your strength the seed to nourish,
That in course the flower may flourish
O, people, look east and sing today: Love, the Rose, is on the way.
Stars, keep the watch. When night is dim
One more light the bowl shall brim,
Shining beyond the frosty weather,
Bright as sun and moon together.
People, look east and sing today: Love, the Star, is on the way.
Angels, announce with shouts of mirth
Him who brings new life to earth!
Set ev’ry peak and valley humming
with the word: “The Lord is coming.”
People, look east and sing today: Love, the Lord, is on the way.

O magnum mysterium

(sung in Latin)

Ivo Antognini*

O great mystery, and wondrous sacrament,
That animals should see the new-born Lord lying in their manger!

Blessed is the Virgin whose womb was worthy to bear the Lord Jesus Christ.
Alleluia!

* Ivo Antognini is Schola Cantorum on Hudson's 2011-12 Featured Composer

O Nata Lux

(sung in Latin)

Peppie Calvar

O born light of light, Jesus, redeemer of the world,
Mercifully deem worthy and accept The praises and prayers of your supplicants.

Thou who once deigned to be clothed in flesh for the sake of the lost ones,
Grant us to be made members of your holy body.

Lord of the Dance

Michael McCarthy

I danced in the morning when the world was begun,
And I danced in the moon and the stars and the sun,
And I came down from heaven and I danced on the earth;
At Bethlehem I had my birth.

Dance, then, wherever you may be; I am the Lord of the dance, said He,
And I’ll lead you all, wherever you may be, And I’ll lead you all in the dance, said He.

I danced for the scribe and the Pharisee,
But they wold not dance and they wouldn’t follow Me;
I danced for the fishermen, for James and John;
They came with Me and the dance went on. (Dance, then . . . )

I danced on the Sabbath and I cured the lame;
The holy people said it was a shame.
They whipped and they stripped and they hung Me high,
And they left Me there on a cross to die. (Dance, then . . . )

I danced on a Friday when the sky turned black;
It’s hard to dance with the devil on your back
They buried My body and they thought I’d gone:
But I am the dance and I still go on. (Dance, then . . . )

They cut me down and I leap up high;
I am the life that will never, never die;
I’ll live in you if you’ll live in Me:
I am the Lord of the Dance, said He. (Dance, then . . . )

Sure On This Shining Night

Morten Lauridsen

Sure on this shining night of starmade shadows round,
Kindness must watch for me this side the ground, on the shining night.

The late year lies down the north,
All is healed, all is health.
High summer holds the earth. Hearts are whole.
I weep for wonder wand’ring far alone of shadows on the stars.

Sure on this . . .

Hope for Resolution

Paul Caldwell/Sean Ivory

Of the Father’s love begotten, E’er the worlds began to be.

He is Alpha and Omega, He the source, the ending he.
Of the things that are, that have been, and that future years shall see,
Evermore and evermore.

Oh, that birth, forever blessed, when the virgin full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving, bare the Saviour of our race.
And the babe, the world’s redeemer, first revealed his sacred face,
Evermore and evermore.

O ye heights of heav’n adore him, Angel hosts his praises sing,
Pow’rs, dominions bow before him, And extol our God and King.
Let no tongue on earth be silent, ev’ry voice in concert ring
Evermore and evermore.

Sung in Zulu:

Nation, do not cry.
Jehovah will protect us.
We will attain freedom.
Jehovah will protect us.