SKU: A0.751056

O Perfect Love – This hymn of probably the lesser-known tune, called Highwood, is often sung at weddings or funerals. The arrangement here is for both Orchestra and/or Concert Band with parts for Harp and Optional Piano (Both shown on the score). The only percussion part is for the Timpani. Various combinations of instrumentals from a small group with the keyboard to the full Orchestra are possible. There is a descant part for Oboe, Clarinet, or Trumpet in the final verse.

Grade = 3 Duration = 2:25 mins. The MP3 was recorded with NotePerformer 3.

Introduction – Verse 1: Oboe Solo, Strings, Piano, and Harp.

Verse 2: +Woodwinds.

Verse 3: +All Brass plus the Descant for Oboe, Clarinet, and Trumpet (Full Orchestra) plus Timpani.

Tune: Highwood Meter: Irregular Style: Early 20th Century Composer: Richard Runciman Terry (1865 – 1938) Lyricist: Dorothy Blomfield Gurney (1867 – 1936)

The lyrics:

O perfect Love, all human thought transcending, lowly we kneel in prayer before thy throne, that theirs may be the love which knows no ending, whom thou forevermore dost join in one.

O perfect Life, be thou their full assurance of tender charity and steadfast faith, of patient hope and quiet, brave endurance, with childlike trust that fears not pain nor death.

Grant them the joy which brightens earthly sorrow; grant them the peace which calms all earthly strife, and to life’s day the glorious unknown morrow that dawns upon eternal love and life.

SKU: A0.1018920

Programme Notes:

 It is said that the darkest hour of the night comes just before the dawn. – Thomas Fuller

 Mornings are powerful and evocative moments. The chorus of birds, one species after another, unite in a wild and genuine polyphony while the dew and mist evaporate upon the rising of the sun, encouraging goosebumps and shivers from an open window, tempered or exhilarated by a cup of coffee. Have you ever actively witnessed the sun’s sultry and intense ascension from the cradle of the horizon? That is what this piece, Aubade, or Dawn Song, is about. An aubade is the twin of a night-time serenade; an aubade is a love song originating amongst the medieval Provençal troubadours, depicting the morning departure between two lovers. An aubade is a song in honor of the slow cosmic percolation of a late summer morning. On a personal level, the composer is reminded of his own experiences camping in Northern Canada as a young man–a simpler and less demanding time.

 This piece formally begins the series I composed during the Covid-19 quarantine conditions of 2020, to serve as potential contemporary preludes for each of Ludwig van Beethoven’s nine symphonies–his two hundred and fiftieth anniversary was this year!–though they can all stand on their own on any program. The connection, in this case, is with his first symphony; I envisioned, once my piece concludes, his beautiful drawn-out chords presenting themselves–the dawn of his special genius.

About the Composer:

 Benjamin Sajo (b. 1988) is a Canadian composer of contemporary classical music, as well as an educator. Since developing a fiercely independent creative voice upon the completion of his studies at Western (2010) and McGill Universities (2013), he continues to find inspiration from the intersection of mythology, art, and nature upon the contemporary human experience. In 2019, he released his premiere album of original music, The Great War Sextet: Canadian War Poetry with Trombone & Strings, with support from the Ontario Arts Council. He is a member of SOCAN and the League of Canadian Composers.

SKU: A0.1018901

Programme Notes:

 It is said that the darkest hour of the night comes just before the dawn. – Thomas Fuller

 Mornings are powerful and evocative moments. The chorus of birds, one species after another, unite in a wild and genuine polyphony while the dew and mist evaporate upon the rising of the sun, encouraging goosebumps and shivers from an open window, tempered or exhilarated by a cup of coffee. Have you ever actively witnessed the sun’s sultry and intense ascension from the cradle of the horizon? That is what this piece, Aubade, or Dawn Song, is about. An aubade is the twin of a night-time serenade; an aubade is a love song originating amongst the medieval Provençal troubadours, depicting the morning departure between two lovers. An aubade is a song in honor of the slow cosmic percolation of a late summer morning. On a personal level, the composer is reminded of his own experiences camping in Northern Canada as a young man–a simpler and less demanding time.

 This piece formally begins the series I composed during the Covid-19 quarantine conditions of 2020, to serve as potential contemporary preludes for each of Ludwig van Beethoven’s nine symphonies–his two hundred and fiftieth anniversary was this year!–though they can all stand on their own on any program. The connection, in this case, is with his first symphony; I envisioned, once my piece concludes, his beautiful drawn-out chords presenting themselves–the dawn of his special genius.

About the Composer:

 Benjamin Sajo (b. 1988) is a Canadian composer of contemporary classical music, as well as an educator. Since developing a fiercely independent creative voice upon the completion of his studies at Western (2010) and McGill Universities (2013), he continues to find inspiration from the intersection of mythology, art, and nature upon the contemporary human experience. In 2019, he released his premiere album of original music, The Great War Sextet: Canadian War Poetry with Trombone & Strings, with support from the Ontario Arts Council. He is a member of SOCAN and the League of Canadian Composers.