Choral Choir (SSA) - Level 3 - Digital Download
SKU: A0.988130
Composed by Fanny Hensel (née Mendelssohn). Arranged by Olivia Sparkhall. Christmas,Holiday,Romantic Period,Sacred. Octavo. 7 pages. Olivia Sparkhall #6463161. Published by Olivia Sparkhall (A0.988130).
Music for Advent and Christmas Carol Services and Concerts
Prayer on Christmas Eve (Gebet in der Christnacht) for SSA and piano* - Hensel arr. Sparkhall (choral music)
Perfect for Advent or Christmas
*Gebet in der Christnacht for SATB (a cappella) is available exclusively from Multitude of Voyces:
About the composer
For years, Fanny Hensel has been known as the sister of Felix Mendelssohn. Since the discovery of many of her compositions, some previously published in Felix’s name, she has become more widely recognised in her own right.
About the piece
Gebet in der Christnacht is a solo song from 1823. Here it is arranged for SSA, showcasing the teenaged composer’s use of harmony that became synonymous with the early Romantics. (See also my a cappella SATB arrangement).
Gebet in der Christnacht (Prayer on Christmas Eve) is one of at least eight songs Hensel composed in 1823 which sets poems by Wilhelm Müller. It is from the cycle Johannes und Esther. (Im Frühling zu lesen.) (John and Esther. (To read in the spring.))
https://youtu.be/Q_fd7fEtQis
About the arranger
Olivia Sparkhall studied composition at Durham University with Paul Archbold, composing for the Northern Sinfonietta and Flower Quartet as part of her studies. Since moving to South West England, she has focused primarily on writing vocal music, notably for BBC One’s Songs of Praise programme. Recent commissions have been for International Women’s Day services in 2018 (Lux Aeterna) and 2019 (Faith and Hope). She was short-listed in the Cappella Nova competition in 2018 for Dona Nobis Pacem. The SATB version of Prayer on Christmas Eve (Gebet in der Christnacht) is published by Multitude of Voyces in their anthologies of sacred music, Volume 1, available here: [https://stainer.co.uk]
