MARK ALBURGER, 2022: April 10

Giotto (1267-1337) - Entry into Jerusalem (1303, the painter also memorialized in

The Decameron - Sixth Day, Op. 257 (2016)
Novel V. Messer Forese da Rabatta and Master Giotto deride one another's scurvy appearance)

Time to

ride off

towards

Davis Community Presbyterian Church

for a

double frond of Palm Sunday services,

warming up to (and later performing twice)

Orlando Gibbons (1583-1625)

Drop, Drop, Slow Tears (1623).

We begin in the narthex

with the Gregorian Chant

Hosanna Filio David (c. 600)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QotYtpW8Qx4

although we sing in English as Hosanna to the Son of David, with me to cue our talented bass soloist for the first phrase -- however, at the last second, the keyboard app on the phone goes silent. Luckily, he and I have reasonably decent relative pitch and pitch-memory, so I sing the note (our version has been transposed to F Mixolydian, and wiped out of a couple of phrases such that the 7th degree is lacking, so might as well be F Major) and we proceed apace. As our first ensuing hymn is

Melchior Teschner (1584-1635) - All Glory, Laud, and Honor (1613) -- here in Bb Major, we're confirmed as to have been on the tonal money... this as a processional, with one of the tenors most carfeully negotiating the distance towards the end...

Opening remarks and sermon are by Rev. Dr. Elizabeth Griswold, with the readings from aforementioned tenor as

Zechariah 9: 9-10b

9
Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion!
    Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!
Lo, your king comes to you;
    triumphant and victorious is he,
humble and riding on a donkey,
    on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
10
He will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
    and the war-horse from Jerusalem;
and the battle bow shall be cut off,
    and he shall command peace to the nations;

[interesting that the rest of the verse has not been selected:
"his dominion shall be from sea to sea,
    and from the River to the ends of the earth.":
Too authoritarian? What River -- Jordan? Nile? Euphrates/Tigris?]

and

Luke 19:23-40

28 After he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.

29 When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, 30 saying, “Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ just say this, ‘The Lord needs it.’” 32 So those who were sent departed and found it as he had told them. 33 As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 They said, “The Lord needs it.” 35 Then they brought it to Jesus; and after throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. 36 As he rode along, people kept spreading their cloaks on the road. 37 As he was now approaching the path down from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the deeds of power that they had seen, 38 saying,

“Blessed is the king
    who comes in the name of the Lord!
Peace in heaven,
    and glory in the highest heaven!”

39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, order your disciples to stop.” 40 He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.”

***

The same liturgist also delivers the Invitation to Give, with no less than 4 recitations of the acronym DCC (Davis Community Church), one of which is intially uttered as DVC (Diablo Valley College), despite the personal pencil underlining of all the interior "C"s. That's the way it goes...

After the benediction of the first service,

the second is fast upon us, and nicely filmed, with a very appropriate acknowledgement at the onset re Native American land.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_-Ez21uQck

This time,

the Introit goes off without a hitch (i.e. the app tone works, somewhat mysteriously, after having fiddled [keyboarded?] around with it during the break),

as does the procession (I'm going w/ the Wikipedia date of the Melchior, however),

with that bald guy

towards the finale.

As before,

second hymn is the anonymous Hosanna, Loud Hosanna (1774, found in the Wittenberg Gesangbuch der Herzog) but now

the children's sermon follows. And, once more, after the Message,

that guy holds forth,

this time, almost allowing Christ to sit on the cloak-covered ground, rather than donkey (but, at least corrected in time).

The Gibbons is

well-executed once more, and, following,

the Invitation as

well + the closing, marvelous (looking toward the sobriety of Passion Week)

Hans Leo Hassler (1564-1612) -

O Sacred Head, Now Wounded (1600, harm. 1727 by J.S. Bach, 1685-1750).

Hosanna

excelsis (well, guess that's more the Christmas locution)!...

Return, via

somewhat trafficky

I-80

and

Sequoia,

to create a new edition of

Aerial Requiem, Op. 27 (1985)
X. Agnus Dei

after having learned on Musescore how to make vocal staves and font larger (without enlarging piano part or other fonts), and re-establishing pedal as being at beginning only, without release...

Also do an initial update of

Symphony No. 3 ("Recycled"), Op. 75 (1999)

on the Works site,

produce the Violin I-II part for

plus dream up more

Book of Dreams, 2022, Op. 376 (2022)
     April 9-10
          6am Preserving and Editing a 5/8 Measure in a Book of Dreams Piece Several Days Past;
               On a Sequoia Sidewalk; Elisa Accomplishing All Things...

All on the 47th day of summer, high again down, this time 4, to 78 (locally and in Davis), the birthday of Lew Wallace (1827-1905, the author above in his Union General uniform),