Full Orchestra - Digital Download SKU: A0.1008372 Composed by Claude Debussy. Arranged by Arkady Leytush. 20th Century. Score and parts. 24 pages. Arkady Leytush #4849769. Published by Arkady Leytush (A0.1008372). Estampes (Engravings) is the title of the triptych of three pieces which Debussy put together in 1903. The first complete performance was given on 9 January 1904 in the Salle Erard, Paris, by the young Spanish pianist Ricardo Viñes, who was already emerging as the prime interpreter of the new French music of Debussy and Ravel. The first two pieces were completed in 1903, but the third derives from an earlier group of pieces from 1894, collectively titled Images, which remained unpublished until 60 years after Debussy’s death, when they were printed as Images (oubliées). Estampes marks an expansion of Debussy’s keyboard style: he was apparently spurred to fuse neo-Lisztian technique with a sensitive, impressionistic pictorial impulse under the impact of discovering Ravel’s Jeux d’eau, published in 1902. The opening movement, ‘Pagodes’, is Debussy’s first pianistic evocation of the Orient and is essentially a fixed contemplation of its object, as in a Chinese print. This static impression is partly caused by Debussy’s use of long pedal-points, partly by his almost constant preoccupation with pentatonic melodies which subvert the sense of harmonic movement. He uses such pentatonic fragments in many different ways: in delicate arabesques, in two-part counterpoint, in canon, harmonized in fourths and fifths and as an underpinning for pattering, gamelan-like ostinato writing. Altogether the piece reflects the decisive impression made on him by hearing Javanese and Cambodian musicians at the 1889 Paris Exposition, which he had striven for years to incorporate effectively in music. In its final bars the music begins to dissolve into elaborate filigree. Just as ‘Pagodes’ was his first Oriental piece, so ‘La soirée dans Grenade’ was the first of Debussy’s evocations of Spain-that preternatural embodiment of an ‘imaginary Andalusia’ which would inspire Manuel de Falla, the native Spaniard, to go back to his country and create a true modern Spanish music based on Debussyan principles. Debussy’s personal acquaintance with Spain was virtually non-existent (he had spent a day just over the border at San Sebastian) and it is possible that one model for the piece was Ravel’s Habanera. Yet he wrote of this piece (to his friend Pierre Louÿs, to whom it was dedicated), ‘if this isn’t the music they play in Granada, so much the worse for Granada!’-and there is no debate about the absolute authenticity of Debussy’s use of Spanish idioms here. Falla himself pronounced it ‘characteristically Spanish in every detail’. ‘La soirée dans Grenade’ is founded on an ostinato that echoes the rhythm of the habanera and is present almost throughout. Beginning and ending in almost complete silence, this dark nocturne of warm summer nights builds powerfully to its climaxes. The melodic material ranges from a doleful Moorish chant with a distinctly oriental character to a stamping, vivacious dance-measure, taking in brief suggestions of guitar strumming and perfumed Impressionist haze. There is even a hint of castanets near the end. The piece fades out in a coda that seems to distil all the melancholy of the Moorish theme and a last few distant chords of the guitar.  â€˜Jardins sous la pluie’ is based on the children’s song ‘Nous n’rons plus au bois’ (We shan’t go to the woods): its original 1894 form was in fact entitled Quelques aspects de ‘Nous n’rons plus au bois’. The two versions are really two distinct treatments of the same set of ideas, but in ‘Jardins sous la pluie’ Estampes the earlier piece has been entirely rethought. The whole conception is more impressionistic, and subtilized. The teeming semiquaver motion is more all-pervasive, the tunes (for Debussy has added a second children’s song for treatment, ‘Do, do, l’enfant do’) more elusive and tinged sometimes with melancholy or nostalgia. Th.

Full Orchestra - Level 4 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1043121 By Barry Manilow. By Bruce Johnston. Arranged by Kevin Riley. 20th Century,Pop. Score and parts. 57 pages. Kevin Riley #647831. Published by Kevin Riley (A0.1043121). I Write the Songs is a popular song written by Bruce Johnston in 1975 and released on his album Going Public in 1977. Barry Manilow's version reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 1976 after spending two weeks atop the Billboard adult contemporary chart in December 1975. It won a Grammy Award for Song of the Year and was nominated for Record of the Year in 1977. Billboard ranked it as the No. 13 song of 1976. The original version was recorded by Captain & Tennille, who worked with Johnston in the early 1970s with the Beach Boys. It appears on their 1975 album Love Will Keep Us Together. The first release of I Write the Songs as a single was by teen idol David Cassidy from his 1975 solo album The Higher They Climb, which was also produced by Johnston. Cassidy's version reached number 11 on the UK Singles Chart in August of that year. Johnston has stated that, for him, the I in the song is God, and that songs come from the spirit of creativity in everyone. He has said that the song is not about his Beach Boys bandmate Brian Wilson. Manilow was initially reluctant to record the song, stating in his autobiography Sweet Life: The problem with the song was that if you didn't listen carefully to the lyric, you would think that the singer was singing about himself. It could be misinterpreted as a monumental ego trip.[3] After persuasion by Clive Davis, then president of Arista Records, Manilow recorded the song, and his version of I Write the Songs was the first single taken from the album Tryin' to Get the Feeling. It first charted on the Billboard Hot 100 on November 15, 1975, reaching the top of the chart nine weeks later, on January 17, 1976. Cash Box said of Manilow's version Good work Barry describing the song as melodic, ballad-like beginning grows into an operatic crescendo, all done in clear production that all age groups will appreciate.

Full Orchestra - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.747202 Composed by Christopher R. Brown. Christian,Gospel,Praise & Worship,Sacred. Score and parts. 101 pages. Christopher Brown #4725429. Published by Christopher Brown (A0.747202). About the song: Satan has been decisively defeated. In every battle with the devil, 1 John 4:4 assures us that God is greater. When we feel trapped in sin, God is greater. When we are tempted to doubt, God is greater. When we face trials, God is  greater. When we experience great loss or disappointment, God is greater still. He is able to strengthen, help, comfort, and uphold our souls by His power and might regardless of the circumstances in which we find ourselves. This is reason for hope, joy, and praise even in the darkest valley.Can be performed with piano accompaniment only, OR with additional band members (rhythm chart included), OR with full orchestra.Please Note:You can purchase individual copies of the choral score separately on Sheet Music Plus. Performance of this piece requires the purchase of one choral score per singer.Included in your Purchase:Full ScoreChoral Score (SATB with Solo)Piano AccompanimentRhythm ChartDrumsetFlute 1, 2Oboe (opt. Soprano Sax doubles)Clarinet 1, 2Horn 1, 2 (opt. Alto Sax doubles)Trumpet 1, 2Trumpet 3Trombone 1, 2 (opt. Tenor Sax doubles)Trombone 3/ Tuba (opt. Bari Sax doubles)Percussion 1, 2HarpViolin 1, 2ViolaCelloString Bass (opt. Bass Clarinet/ Bassoon doubles)Lyrics:Verse 1When it seems there’s no way out,He can make a way.In the darkness of my doubt,He’s the light of day.Ev’ry trial that I face,Comes with His mercy and His grace.Pre-Chorus 1Greater is He Who lives in me.Stronger than the plans of ev’ry enemy.From sin and death I’ve been set free.He set me free!Chorus 1This is my hope when I’m walking through the valley of the shadow.This is my joy in the sorrow and the pain.This is the Truth when I’m caught up in the middle of the battle.Greater is He that is in me.Verse 2When my world begins to shake,He’s unshakable.When my circumstances change,He’s unchangeable.In ev’ry storm and crashing wave,My God is powerful to save.Pre-Chorus 2Greater is He Who lives in me.Stronger than the plans of ev’ry enemy.From sin and death I’ve been set free.He set me free!Chorus 2This is my hope when I’m walking through the valley of the shadow.This is my joy in the sorrow and the pain.This is the Truth when I’m caught up in the middle of the battle.Greater is He that is in me.Bridge 1There isn’t any other,Who has the power, power.The King of Kings, and Lord of Lords,We lift Him higher, higher.Bridge 2We raise our voices louder,Our God is stronger, stronger.The King of Kings, and Lord of Lords,We lift Him higher, higher.Chorus 3This is my hope when I’m walking through the valley of the shadow.This is my joy in the sorrow and the pain.This is the Truth when I’m caught up in the middle of the battle.Greater is He,Greater is He,Greater is He that is in me.

Full Orchestra - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.747198 Composed by Christopher R. Brown. Christian,Gospel,Praise & Worship,Sacred. Score and parts. 77 pages. Christopher Brown #4628085. Published by Christopher Brown (A0.747198). About the song: In John 14, Jesus says, I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. We are severely mistaken if we think that any other road leads to peace with God. No amount of good deeds could pay for the debt we owe. But we are also mistaken if we think that we are too far gone from Christ's reach. This song is a message for both the self-righteous and the hopeless. There is a Way that leads to life forevermore with our Heavenly Father, and His Name is Jesus Christ. All who enter through the gate of Christ by faith will be saved. He came that you might have life, and have it to the full. Rejoice! If you can believe, believe!Can be performed with piano accompaniment only, OR with additional band members (rhythm chart included), OR with full orchestra.Please Note:You can purchase individual copies of the choral score separately on Sheet Music Plus. Performance of this piece requires the purchase of one choral score per singer.Included in your Purchase:Full ScoreChoral Score (SATB with Solo)Piano AccompanimentRhythm ChartDrumsetFlute 1, 2Oboe (opt. Soprano Sax doubles)Clarinet 1, 2Horn 1, 2 (opt. Alto Sax doubles)Trumpet 1, 2Trumpet 3Trombone 1, 2 (opt. Tenor Sax doubles)Trombone 3/ Tuba (opt. Bari Sax doubles)Percussion 1, 2HarpViolin 1, 2ViolaCelloString Bass (opt. Bass Clarinet/ Bassoon doubles)Lyrics:Verse 1There’s a way that seems right to the human eye,A path that we think is best.We pretend to go on believing,That a good life can pass the test.But the best that we have to offer,Is no more than a filthy rag.When we stand before God, the Father,There is only one Name that will save.Chorus 1Jesus is The Way,Jesus is The Truth,Jesus is The Life for me and you.Jesus is The Door,And all who enter through,Will be saved and be made new.Jesus is The Way.Verse 2We were shackled in chains of sin and shame,Walking blinded by selfish gain.Every turn led to disappointment,Wanting more with each passing day.Prechorus 2But the blood of a precious Saviour,Can remove every guilty stain.He will carry your ev’ry burden,There is hope in Him today!Chorus 2Jesus is The Way,Jesus is The Truth,Jesus is The Life for me and you.Jesus is The Door,And all who enter through,Will be saved and be made new.Jesus is The Way,Jesus is The Way.BridgeStraight and narrow is the road that leads to life forevermore,There’s only One Who paid the price,The perfect, spotless sacrifice,Only Jesus Christ!Chorus 3Jesus is The Way,Jesus is The Truth,Jesus is The Life for me and you.Jesus is The Door,And all who enter through,Will be saved and be made new.Jesus is The Way,Jesus is The Way,Jesus is The Way!

Full Orchestra - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1122569 By Fritz Stanley. By SAILING, Godfrey Marks, Fritz Stanley. Arranged by Fritz Stanley. Children,Traditional. Score and parts. 29 pages. MicStanley #723604. Published by MicStanley (A0.1122569). A nursery rhyme song SAILING by Godfrey Marks, words by Fritz Stanley, arranged for children song by Fritz Stanley in full orchestra with conductor score and parts. The song is about learning A, B, C, and D.

Full Orchestra - Digital Download SKU: A0.1008374 Composed by Claude Debussy. Arranged by Arkady Leytush. 20th Century. Score and parts. 24 pages. Arkady Leytush #4849775. Published by Arkady Leytush (A0.1008374). Estampes (Engravings) is the title of the triptych of three pieces which Debussy put together in 1903. The first complete performance was given on 9 January 1904 in the Salle Erard, Paris, by the young Spanish pianist Ricardo Viñes, who was already emerging as the prime interpreter of the new French music of Debussy and Ravel. The first two pieces were completed in 1903, but the third derives from an earlier group of pieces from 1894, collectively titled Images, which remained unpublished until 60 years after Debussy’s death, when they were printed as Images (oubliées). Estampes marks an expansion of Debussy’s keyboard style: he was apparently spurred to fuse neo-Lisztian technique with a sensitive, impressionistic pictorial impulse under the impact of discovering Ravel’s Jeux d’eau, published in 1902. The opening movement, ‘Pagodes’, is Debussy’s first pianistic evocation of the Orient and is essentially a fixed contemplation of its object, as in a Chinese print. This static impression is partly caused by Debussy’s use of long pedal-points, partly by his almost constant preoccupation with pentatonic melodies which subvert the sense of harmonic movement. He uses such pentatonic fragments in many different ways: in delicate arabesques, in two-part counterpoint, in canon, harmonized in fourths and fifths and as an underpinning for pattering, gamelan-like ostinato writing. Altogether the piece reflects the decisive impression made on him by hearing Javanese and Cambodian musicians at the 1889 Paris Exposition, which he had striven for years to incorporate effectively in music. In its final bars the music begins to dissolve into elaborate filigree.Just as ‘Pagodes’ was his first Oriental piece, so ‘La soirée dans Grenade’ was the first of Debussy’s evocations of Spain-that preternatural embodiment of an ‘imaginary Andalusia’ which would inspire Manuel de Falla, the native Spaniard, to go back to his country and create a true modern Spanish music based on Debussyan principles. Debussy’s personal acquaintance with Spain was virtually non-existent (he had spent a day just over the border at San Sebastian) and it is possible that one model for the piece was Ravel’s Habanera. Yet he wrote of this piece (to his friend Pierre Louÿs, to whom it was dedicated), ‘if this isn’t the music they play in Granada, so much the worse for Granada!’-and there is no debate about the absolute authenticity of Debussy’s use of Spanish idioms here. Falla himself pronounced it ‘characteristically Spanish in every detail’. ‘La soirée dans Grenade’ is founded on an ostinato that echoes the rhythm of the habanera and is present almost throughout. Beginning and ending in almost complete silence, this dark nocturne of warm summer nights builds powerfully to its climaxes. The melodic material ranges from a doleful Moorish chant with a distinctly oriental character to a stamping, vivacious dance-measure, taking in brief suggestions of guitar strumming and perfumed Impressionist haze. There is even a hint of castanets near the end. The piece fades out in a coda that seems to distil all the melancholy of the Moorish theme and a last few distant chords of the guitar. â€˜Jardins sous la pluie’ is based on the children’s song ‘Nous n’rons plus au bois’ (We shan’t go to the woods): its original 1894 form was in fact entitled Quelques aspects de ‘Nous n’rons plus au bois’. The two versions are really two distinct treatments of the same set of ideas, but in ‘Jardins sous la pluie’ Estampes the earlier piece has been entirely rethought. The whole conception is more impressionistic, and subtilized. The teeming semiquaver motion is more all-pervasive, the tunes (for Debussy has added a second children’s song for treatment, ‘Do, do, l’enfant do’) more elusive and tinged sometimes with melancholy or nostalgia. The ending of the piece is entirely new. What it loses, perha.

Full Orchestra - Digital Download SKU: A0.1008375 Composed by Claude Debussy. Arranged by Arkady Leytush. 20th Century. Score and parts. 39 pages. Arkady Leytush #4885449. Published by Arkady Leytush (A0.1008375). Estampes (Engravings) is the title of the triptych of three pieces which Debussy put together in 1903. The first complete performance was given on 9 January 1904 in the Salle Erard, Paris, by the young Spanish pianist Ricardo Viñes, who was already emerging as the prime interpreter of the new French music of Debussy and Ravel. The first two pieces were completed in 1903, but the third derives from an earlier group of pieces from 1894, collectively titled Images, which remained unpublished until 60 years after Debussy’s death, when they were printed as Images (oubliées). Estampes marks an expansion of Debussy’s keyboard style: he was apparently spurred to fuse neo-Lisztian technique with a sensitive, impressionistic pictorial impulse under the impact of discovering Ravel’s Jeux d’eau, published in 1902. The opening movement, ‘Pagodes’, is Debussy’s first pianistic evocation of the Orient and is essentially a fixed contemplation of its object, as in a Chinese print. This static impression is partly caused by Debussy’s use of long pedal-points, partly by his almost constant preoccupation with pentatonic melodies which subvert the sense of harmonic movement. He uses such pentatonic fragments in many different ways: in delicate arabesques, in two-part counterpoint, in canon, harmonized in fourths and fifths and as an underpinning for pattering, gamelan-like ostinato writing. Altogether the piece reflects the decisive impression made on him by hearing Javanese and Cambodian musicians at the 1889 Paris Exposition, which he had striven for years to incorporate effectively in music. In its final bars the music begins to dissolve into elaborate filigree.Just as ‘Pagodes’ was his first Oriental piece, so ‘La soirée dans Grenade’ was the first of Debussy’s evocations of Spain-that preternatural embodiment of an ‘imaginary Andalusia’ which would inspire Manuel de Falla, the native Spaniard, to go back to his country and create a true modern Spanish music based on Debussyan principles. Debussy’s personal acquaintance with Spain was virtually non-existent (he had spent a day just over the border at San Sebastian) and it is possible that one model for the piece was Ravel’s Habanera. Yet he wrote of this piece (to his friend Pierre Louÿs, to whom it was dedicated), ‘if this isn’t the music they play in Granada, so much the worse for Granada!’-and there is no debate about the absolute authenticity of Debussy’s use of Spanish idioms here. Falla himself pronounced it ‘characteristically Spanish in every detail’. ‘La soirée dans Grenade’ is founded on an ostinato that echoes the rhythm of the habanera and is present almost throughout. Beginning and ending in almost complete silence, this dark nocturne of warm summer nights builds powerfully to its climaxes. The melodic material ranges from a doleful Moorish chant with a distinctly oriental character to a stamping, vivacious dance-measure, taking in brief suggestions of guitar strumming and perfumed Impressionist haze. There is even a hint of castanets near the end. The piece fades out in a coda that seems to distil all the melancholy of the Moorish theme and a last few distant chords of the guitar. â€˜Jardins sous la pluie’ is based on the children’s song ‘Nous n’rons plus au bois’ (We shan’t go to the woods): its original 1894 form was in fact entitled Quelques aspects de ‘Nous n’rons plus au bois’. The two versions are really two distinct treatments of the same set of ideas, but in ‘Jardins sous la pluie’ Estampes the earlier piece has been entirely rethought. The whole conception is more impressionistic, and subtilized. The teeming semiquaver motion is more all-pervasive, the tunes (for Debussy has added a second children’s song for treatment, ‘Do, do, l’enfant do’) more elusive and tinged sometimes with melancholy or nostalgia. The ending of the piece is entirely new. What it loses, perha.

Full Orchestra - Level 4 - Digital Download SKU: A0.869295 Composed by Thomas Oboe Lee. 20th Century,Baroque,Classical,Contemporary,Romantic Period. Score and parts. 149 pages. Thomas Oboe Lee #431379. Published by Thomas Oboe Lee (A0.869295). Instrumentation: 3222-4231-timp-2perc-hp-chorus-strings Program note:It has been a wonderful two years of thinking, learning and working on my Continental Harmony Project with the Bangor Symphony Orchestra. It is a rare occasion that a composer in the 21st century would receive a commission to write a musical work of such scale: a 40-minute piece for symphony orchestra, 200-plus chorus and a ballet company.   At the Bangor Public Library I found some wonderful evocative 19th century texts for the chorus about the city of Bangor and its environs: the Penobscot River, Mt. Ktaadn, the logging industry, the native American culture, etc.   At times I felt overwhelmed, but most of the times I was exuberant and quite inspired by the music that came forth in the process.   The premiere is less than a month away, and I am looking forward to it. Susan Jonason, Executive Director of the Bangor Symphony, has made the occasion a very public one: a free concert on a Saturday evening! I hope the audience will go home humming the tunes from the work as they walk into the crisp, cool Bangor night.Formally the work is in five movements. The first, third and fifth movements are choral, and the two in between are orchestral.   In the premiere, the Robinson Ballet will dance in the orchestral movements.  The first movement is about the Penobscot River from winter to spring. The melting of the ice is a harbinger of things to come: warmer weather, for instance; but it has also contributed to a lot of flooding in the city of Bangor and its surroundings.The second movement is a waltz, a grand 19th century ballroom waltz for the ladies of the rich lumber barons. They come to the ball showing off their latest hats and gowns from London, Paris and Milan.The third movement is about the woods and the people who work in them. Thoreau’s text about Mt. Ktaadn is full of awesome thoughts about how nature is beautiful, yet unkind to man.   It is followed by a J.G. Whittier lyric entitled The Logger’s Boast. The original song had twenty stanzas to it. I whittled it down to five. I don’t know what the original song sounded like, so I made up my own version of a lumberjack’s drinking song.The fourth movement is a wild, drunken polka. After a long week of working in the woods the lumbermen come back to the city and spend all their earnings on booze, women and gambling. And they dance the night away …The last movement begins with a funeral march for Joe Attien, a native American who was Thoreau’s guide when he came up here in the 1900’s. The work ends with a rousing march, a centennial hymn to the city of Bangor.   God bless our city Bangor, now! On this its birthday morn …NB: The two ballet movements, II. La Valse and IV. Drunken Polka, are optional.

Full Orchestra - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.747214 Composed by Christopher R. Brown. Christian,Gospel,Praise & Worship,Sacred. Score and parts. 83 pages. Christopher Brown #4756795. Published by Christopher Brown (A0.747214). About the song: In Psalm 22:22, David writes, I will praise You to all my brothers; I will stand up before the congregation and testify to the wonderful things You have done. Again, in Psalm 66:16, the psalmist says, Come and listen, all you who fear God, and I will tell you what He did for me. Jesus, after healing a man with a demon, commands the man to go home... and report the great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you. The testimony of a life changed by God's love and His great mercy is a powerful tool for both spreading the Good News and resisting temptation. It is good for us to remember and proclaim, both personally and collectively, the great things the Lord has done.Can be performed with piano accompaniment only, OR with additional band members (rhythm chart included), OR with full orchestra.Please Note:You can purchase individual copies of the choral score separately on Sheet Music Plus. Performance of this piece requires the purchase of one choral score per singer.Included in your Purchase:Full ScoreChoral Score (SATB with Solo)Piano AccompanimentRhythm ChartDrumsetFlute 1, 2Oboe (opt. Soprano Sax doubles)Clarinet 1, 2Horn 1, 2 (opt. Alto Sax doubles)Trumpet 1, 2Trumpet 3Trombone 1, 2 (opt. Tenor Sax doubles)Trombone 3/ Tuba (opt. Bari Sax doubles)Percussion 1, 2HarpViolin 1, 2ViolaCelloString Bass (opt. Bass Clarinet/ Bassoon doubles)Lyrics:Verse 1Let me tell you a story of grace,How the Son of Man died in my place.Raised to life, all my sin was erased.Praise the Name of the Lord.Verse 2Many times I have asked of the Lord,On my knees I have prayed and implored.In the waiting my soul is restored,Praise the Name of the Lord.Chorus 1This is what the Lord has done for me,Paid my debt and set this captive free.Mercy flowed down at Calvary,This is what the Lord has done for me.Verse 3When I’m tempted to fear the unknown,I’m reminded I don’t walk alone.Christ is with me and He’ll lead me home,Praise the Name of the Lord.Chorus 2This is what the Lord has done for me,Paid my debt and set this captive free.Mercy flowed down at Calvary,This is what the Lord has done for me.BridgeOpened these blind eyes to see,Softened this heart to believe,Pardoned my sin on a tree,Now I stand redeemed.Key Change (up whole tone)Chorus 3This is what the Lord has done for me,Paid my debt and set this captive free.Mercy flowed down at Calvary,This is what the Lord has done for me.Chorus 4This is what the Lord has done for me,Paid my debt and set this captive free.Mercy flowed down at Calvary,This is what the Lord has done for me.This is what the Lord has done for me.

Full orchestra - Grade 1 - Digital Download SKU: IZ.OMW171 Composed by Traditional. Arranged by Marsha Chusmir Shapiro. Score and Parts. 67 pages. Imagine Music - Digital #OMW171. Published by Imagine Music - Digital (IZ.OMW171). 9 x 12 in inches.Feel the Spirit is an arrangement of four pre-Civil War spirituals which were sung by slaves inAmerica. These wereChristian songs which described Bible stories (Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho) or about living with the spiritof God (Every Time I Feel the Spirit). Sometimes the spirituals described the hardships of slavery (NobodyKnows the Trouble I've Seen). Most interestingly, some spirituals had hidden meanings. In Swing Low, SweetChariot it appears that the singer is talking about dying and going to heaven, but in actuality, home refers to aplace of freedom, and crossing the river Jordan means overcoming the obstacles to freedom.