Magnificat + Nunc DIMITTIS (SATB divisi)
Magnificat Demo with score
Text from Luke 1:45-56; Luke 2:29-32
Duration: 6:30 + 2:40
Mary’s prayer from the book of Luke is one of the most
widely set texts in Christianity. So, it was a text I didn’t
really want to approach, in light of such a vibrant tradition.
So many composers have such beautiful settings of this
text, and this made me a bit trepid to add a setting of my
own.
Request a perusal Score
That is, until I took a trip to England to study British
Choral music. Of course, the Magnificat and the Nunc
Dimittis are a huge part of the Anglican tradition, even to
this day. While I was in England, I heard many settings of
these texts, but for the first time, I heard them in the venues
they were meant to be heard. The experience was surreal.
Even while I was still on that trip, I already had sketches
for a setting - having been inspired mostly by the cathedrals.
I wanted to create a setting of the text that reflected the
architecture of those incredible houses of worship - with the
sturdy foundation at the bottom, high-and-lofty arcs reaching
to the heavens, and beautiful, ornate tapestries and sculptures
lining the walls - beauty that was there to reflect the glory
and beauty of God.
I hope that perhaps these features may be audible in this
setting. That listening to it may transport the hearer to these
beautiful locations in England. That the beauty of the
textures, reflects the glory and beauty of God. And that,
with Mary, we might also be able to say “My soul doth
magnify the Lord.”
