Title: Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken

Composer/Arranger/Text
Joseph Haydn
(tune: AUSTRIAN HYMN )
Timothy Shepard
John Newton

Instrumentation
SATB Choir,
2 Trumpets,
2 Trombones,
Tuba
OR Organ only

Liturgical Use
General

Scores Available
Choral score, Choral score with organ reduction, a full score

A Brass fanfare begins this glorious anthem based on Joseph Haydn's tune AUSTRIA and John Newton's hymn. Three stanzas are set here; they are loud, soft, loud separated by an introduction, 2 interludes and a coda. If only a nice formula were the key to beauty, church musicians would not have to wade through tons of trees to find a worthwhile anthem. It is the second stanza that sets this anthem apart. The choral writing paints a flowing river, the faintness from thirst, the surprise of grace in lush harmonic motion. Although the synthesizer does not really do justice to the choral voices, the audio file (MP3) gives a pretty decent idea of what could happen. Click "Listen To Score" above, (it's free.)