Episodes
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
From Glory to Glory (2023): Movement 5) Logos
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
This is the fifth of eleven movements in the updated and expanded 2023 recording of my From Glory to Glory suite.
The opening of John’s gospel represents God the Son as the divine logos, or rational principle behind creation. Only this logos reveals God in person through the incarnation. The lyrics combine an English translation of the opening of John’s gospel, with the Greek terms: Logos (Word), Agathos (Goodness), Veritas (Truth), and Kalos (Beautiful-Good).
From Glory to Glory is available as a high quality wav file album on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/psw_music/sets/from-glory-to-glory-2023
From Glory to Glory is a little under 70 min long suite of contemporary classical music, reflecting on the biblical story and Christian spirituality, drawing upon an eclectic fusion of musical influences. The suite is written for four part choir and an ensemble of instruments. The lyrics are a mixture of English, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew.
In summer 2023 it struck me that my Sibelius 6 software was 13 years old, and that contemporary software would probably be able to reproduce the sound of a choir singing lyrics, rather than simply going “Ah”! Discovering that this was indeed the case, I reached out to find someone who could use my composition files to produce a new recording of From Glory to Glory using contemporary music technology. That person turned out to be Cuban composer Wilma Alba Cal, whose work includes chamber, choir, orchestral and electroacoustic music (see https://wilmaalbacal.com/). Over the summer of 2023, Wilma used my ‘Sibelius 6’ files and scores to make an updated recording of From Glory to Glory that sounds much more realistic than before, and where the choir sing the words on the scores. This was a collaborative process that involved Wilma gathering information on the sounds I had in mind when selecting from the instruments available in Sibelius 6, and several rounds of feedback about various pre and post-sound-mix versions of the tracks.
Instruments: SATB Choir, Gong, Bass Drum, Tubular Bells, Glockenspiel, Vibraphone, Acoustic Guitar, Harp, Two Flutes, Grand Piano, Pipe Organ, Min-Moog Synth Lead, Mellatron Strings, Mellatron Choir, Cello, Electric Bass, Synth Bass.
Track Notes
Movement 1: Trinity. We open with God’s existence prior to creation. A solo piano plays three musical lines, the third of which is generated from the interaction of the first two, representing the way in which God the Father is the “root” of the Divine “triad”, God the Son eternally depends upon the Father, and God the Holy Spirit “proceeds” from the Father and the Son. The piece is also Trinitarian in having three sections. It ends on an unresolved chord, suggesting the eternality of the Godhead.
Movement 2: Light. The angels rejoice in God’s creation of light and “dance” among the stars.
Movement 3: One Sin. This piece draws upon the opening of G.K. Chesterton’s poem “Ecclesiastes”: “There is one sin: to call a green leaf gray, Whereat the sun in heaven shuddereth.” In other words, the fundamental sin is acting as if we were wiser than God, as if moral reality should bend to our choices and desires rather than vice versa. The consequences of sin for relationships between humans and with God is represented by the entry of the minor key and the music becoming broken up.
Movement 4: Weeping Turns to Joy. This setting of words from Psalm 6:6 and 30:5 was composed in July 2021, as a short, stand-alone piece reflecting on the end of Covid 19 restrictions. In August 2023, I decided to add it into this suite, where it neatly represents the Old Testament experiences of exile (“By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion.” – Psalm 137:1) and hope centered upon in the promised coming of God’s messiah.
Movement 5: Logos. The opening of John’s gospel represents God the Son as the divine logos, or rational principle behind creation. Only this logos reveals God in person through the incarnation. The lyrics combine an English translation of the opening of John’s gospel, with the Greek terms: Logos (Word), Agathos (Goodness), Veritas (Truth), and Kalos (Beautiful-Good).
Movement 6: Love. An acapella setting of Jesus’ answer to a scribe’s question about the greatest commandment in Mark 12.
Movement 7: Garden. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus contemplates his calling to be crucified as a sacrifice for sin and prays that his Father might take away this cup of suffering from him. The music uses suspended resolutions and a fluctuating pattern of major and minor notes that gradually become more resolute and hymn-like as Jesus turns his face to the cross, praying that the Father’s will be done on earth.
Movement 8: Agnus Dei. Based on the saying of John the Baptist: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29), the Agnus Dei (Latin for “Lamb of God”) is a traditional liturgical chant that contemplates the meaning of Jesus’ death on the cross in light of his subsequent bodily resurrection from the tomb. Far from being just another failed messiah, Jesus is God’s self-sacrifice of forgiveness in bearing our sin.
Movement 9: Kyrie. A setting of the Latin Kyrie, a traditional prayer for forgiveness, which in English means: “Lord, forgive us, Christ forgive us, Lord forgive us.”
Movement 10: Telos. This piece was inspired by John’s vision of the new heavens and earth in Revelation 21. The choir sing about God’s invitation to the wedding feast of the Lamb (i.e. Jesus Christ) who will wipe away ever tear from our eyes and bring “Shalom” (a Hebrew word meaning peace, wholeness and flourishing).
Movement 11: Gloria. This piece recapitulates the theme of movement one, using it as a setting for the apostle Paul’s comparison between the sufferings of the present world and the glory of the new heavens and earth to come.
For more composition-related information, visit: https://www.peterswilliams.com/composing/
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
From Glory to Glory (2023): Movement 4) Weeping Turns to Joy
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
This is the fourth of eleven movements in the updated and expanded 2023 recording of my From Glory to Glory suite.
This setting of words from Psalm 6:6 and 30:5 was composed in July 2021, as a short, stand-alone piece reflecting on the end of Covid 19 restrictions. In August 2023, I decided to add it into this suite, where it neatly represents the Old Testament experiences of exile (“By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion.” – Psalm 137:1) and hope centered upon in the promised coming of God’s messiah.
From Glory to Glory is available as a high quality wav file album on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/psw_music/sets/from-glory-to-glory-2023
From Glory to Glory is a little under 70 min long suite of contemporary classical music, reflecting on the biblical story and Christian spirituality, drawing upon an eclectic fusion of musical influences. The suite is written for four part choir and an ensemble of instruments. The lyrics are a mixture of English, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew.
In summer 2023 it struck me that my Sibelius 6 software was 13 years old, and that contemporary software would probably be able to reproduce the sound of a choir singing lyrics, rather than simply going “Ah”! Discovering that this was indeed the case, I reached out to find someone who could use my composition files to produce a new recording of From Glory to Glory using contemporary music technology. That person turned out to be Cuban composer Wilma Alba Cal, whose work includes chamber, choir, orchestral and electroacoustic music (see https://wilmaalbacal.com/). Over the summer of 2023, Wilma used my ‘Sibelius 6’ files and scores to make an updated recording of From Glory to Glory that sounds much more realistic than before, and where the choir sing the words on the scores. This was a collaborative process that involved Wilma gathering information on the sounds I had in mind when selecting from the instruments available in Sibelius 6, and several rounds of feedback about various pre and post-sound-mix versions of the tracks.
Instruments: SATB Choir, Gong, Bass Drum, Tubular Bells, Glockenspiel, Vibraphone, Acoustic Guitar, Harp, Two Flutes, Grand Piano, Pipe Organ, Min-Moog Synth Lead, Mellatron Strings, Mellatron Choir, Cello, Electric Bass, Synth Bass.
Track Notes
Movement 1: Trinity. We open with God’s existence prior to creation. A solo piano plays three musical lines, the third of which is generated from the interaction of the first two, representing the way in which God the Father is the “root” of the Divine “triad”, God the Son eternally depends upon the Father, and God the Holy Spirit “proceeds” from the Father and the Son. The piece is also Trinitarian in having three sections. It ends on an unresolved chord, suggesting the eternality of the Godhead.
Movement 2: Light. The angels rejoice in God’s creation of light and “dance” among the stars.
Movement 3: One Sin. This piece draws upon the opening of G.K. Chesterton’s poem “Ecclesiastes”: “There is one sin: to call a green leaf gray, Whereat the sun in heaven shuddereth.” In other words, the fundamental sin is acting as if we were wiser than God, as if moral reality should bend to our choices and desires rather than vice versa. The consequences of sin for relationships between humans and with God is represented by the entry of the minor key and the music becoming broken up.
Movement 4: Weeping Turns to Joy. This setting of words from Psalm 6:6 and 30:5 was composed in July 2021, as a short, stand-alone piece reflecting on the end of Covid 19 restrictions. In August 2023, I decided to add it into this suite, where it neatly represents the Old Testament experiences of exile (“By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion.” – Psalm 137:1) and hope centered upon in the promised coming of God’s messiah.
Movement 5: Logos. The opening of John’s gospel represents God the Son as the divine logos, or rational principle behind creation. Only this logos reveals God in person through the incarnation. The lyrics combine an English translation of the opening of John’s gospel, with the Greek terms: Logos (Word), Agathos (Goodness), Veritas (Truth), and Kalos (Beautiful-Good).
Movement 6: Love. An acapella setting of Jesus’ answer to a scribe’s question about the greatest commandment in Mark 12.
Movement 7: Garden. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus contemplates his calling to be crucified as a sacrifice for sin and prays that his Father might take away this cup of suffering from him. The music uses suspended resolutions and a fluctuating pattern of major and minor notes that gradually become more resolute and hymn-like as Jesus turns his face to the cross, praying that the Father’s will be done on earth.
Movement 8: Agnus Dei. Based on the saying of John the Baptist: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29), the Agnus Dei (Latin for “Lamb of God”) is a traditional liturgical chant that contemplates the meaning of Jesus’ death on the cross in light of his subsequent bodily resurrection from the tomb. Far from being just another failed messiah, Jesus is God’s self-sacrifice of forgiveness in bearing our sin.
Movement 9: Kyrie. A setting of the Latin Kyrie, a traditional prayer for forgiveness, which in English means: “Lord, forgive us, Christ forgive us, Lord forgive us.”
Movement 10: Telos. This piece was inspired by John’s vision of the new heavens and earth in Revelation 21. The choir sing about God’s invitation to the wedding feast of the Lamb (i.e. Jesus Christ) who will wipe away ever tear from our eyes and bring “Shalom” (a Hebrew word meaning peace, wholeness and flourishing).
Movement 11: Gloria. This piece recapitulates the theme of movement one, using it as a setting for the apostle Paul’s comparison between the sufferings of the present world and the glory of the new heavens and earth to come.
For more composition-related information, visit: https://www.peterswilliams.com/composing/
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
From Glory to Glory (2023): Movement 3) Sin
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
This is the third of eleven movements in the updated and expanded 2023 recording of my From Glory to Glory suite.
This piece draws upon the opening of G.K. Chesterton’s poem “Ecclesiastes”: “There is one sin: to call a green leaf gray, Whereat the sun in heaven shuddereth.” In other words, the fundamental sin is acting as if we were wiser than God, as if moral reality should bend to our choices and desires rather than vice versa. The consequences of sin for relationships between humans and with God is represented by the entry of the minor key and the music becoming broken up.
From Glory to Glory is available as a high quality wav file album on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/psw_music/sets/from-glory-to-glory-2023
From Glory to Glory is a little under 70 min long suite of contemporary classical music, reflecting on the biblical story and Christian spirituality, drawing upon an eclectic fusion of musical influences. The suite is written for four part choir and an ensemble of instruments. The lyrics are a mixture of English, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew.
In summer 2023 it struck me that my Sibelius 6 software was 13 years old, and that contemporary software would probably be able to reproduce the sound of a choir singing lyrics, rather than simply going “Ah”! Discovering that this was indeed the case, I reached out to find someone who could use my composition files to produce a new recording of From Glory to Glory using contemporary music technology. That person turned out to be Cuban composer Wilma Alba Cal, whose work includes chamber, choir, orchestral and electroacoustic music (see https://wilmaalbacal.com/). Over the summer of 2023, Wilma used my ‘Sibelius 6’ files and scores to make an updated recording of From Glory to Glory that sounds much more realistic than before, and where the choir sing the words on the scores. This was a collaborative process that involved Wilma gathering information on the sounds I had in mind when selecting from the instruments available in Sibelius 6, and several rounds of feedback about various pre and post-sound-mix versions of the tracks.
Instruments: SATB Choir, Gong, Bass Drum, Tubular Bells, Glockenspiel, Vibraphone, Acoustic Guitar, Harp, Two Flutes, Grand Piano, Pipe Organ, Min-Moog Synth Lead, Mellatron Strings, Mellatron Choir, Cello, Electric Bass, Synth Bass.
Track Notes
Movement 1: Trinity. We open with God’s existence prior to creation. A solo piano plays three musical lines, the third of which is generated from the interaction of the first two, representing the way in which God the Father is the “root” of the Divine “triad”, God the Son eternally depends upon the Father, and God the Holy Spirit “proceeds” from the Father and the Son. The piece is also Trinitarian in having three sections. It ends on an unresolved chord, suggesting the eternality of the Godhead.
Movement 2: Light. The angels rejoice in God’s creation of light and “dance” among the stars.
Movement 3: One Sin. This piece draws upon the opening of G.K. Chesterton’s poem “Ecclesiastes”: “There is one sin: to call a green leaf gray, Whereat the sun in heaven shuddereth.” In other words, the fundamental sin is acting as if we were wiser than God, as if moral reality should bend to our choices and desires rather than vice versa. The consequences of sin for relationships between humans and with God is represented by the entry of the minor key and the music becoming broken up.
Movement 4: Weeping Turns to Joy. This setting of words from Psalm 6:6 and 30:5 was composed in July 2021, as a short, stand-alone piece reflecting on the end of Covid 19 restrictions. In August 2023, I decided to add it into this suite, where it neatly represents the Old Testament experiences of exile (“By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion.” – Psalm 137:1) and hope centered upon in the promised coming of God’s messiah.
Movement 5: Logos. The opening of John’s gospel represents God the Son as the divine logos, or rational principle behind creation. Only this logos reveals God in person through the incarnation. The lyrics combine an English translation of the opening of John’s gospel, with the Greek terms: Logos (Word), Agathos (Goodness), Veritas (Truth), and Kalos (Beautiful-Good).
Movement 6: Love. An acapella setting of Jesus’ answer to a scribe’s question about the greatest commandment in Mark 12.
Movement 7: Garden. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus contemplates his calling to be crucified as a sacrifice for sin and prays that his Father might take away this cup of suffering from him. The music uses suspended resolutions and a fluctuating pattern of major and minor notes that gradually become more resolute and hymn-like as Jesus turns his face to the cross, praying that the Father’s will be done on earth.
Movement 8: Agnus Dei. Based on the saying of John the Baptist: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29), the Agnus Dei (Latin for “Lamb of God”) is a traditional liturgical chant that contemplates the meaning of Jesus’ death on the cross in light of his subsequent bodily resurrection from the tomb. Far from being just another failed messiah, Jesus is God’s self-sacrifice of forgiveness in bearing our sin.
Movement 9: Kyrie. A setting of the Latin Kyrie, a traditional prayer for forgiveness, which in English means: “Lord, forgive us, Christ forgive us, Lord forgive us.”
Movement 10: Telos. This piece was inspired by John’s vision of the new heavens and earth in Revelation 21. The choir sing about God’s invitation to the wedding feast of the Lamb (i.e. Jesus Christ) who will wipe away ever tear from our eyes and bring “Shalom” (a Hebrew word meaning peace, wholeness and flourishing).
Movement 11: Gloria. This piece recapitulates the theme of movement one, using it as a setting for the apostle Paul’s comparison between the sufferings of the present world and the glory of the new heavens and earth to come.
For more composition-related information, visit: https://www.peterswilliams.com/composing/
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
From Glory to Glory (2023): Movement 2) Light
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
This is the second of eleven movements in the updated and expanded 2023 recording of my From Glory to Glory suite.
The angels rejoice in God’s creation of light and “dance” among the stars.
"From Glory to Glory" is available as a high quality wav file album on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/psw_music/sets/from-glory-to-glory-2023
From Glory to Glory is a little under 70 min long suite of contemporary classical music, reflecting on the biblical story and Christian spirituality, drawing upon an eclectic fusion of musical influences. The suite is written for four part choir and an ensemble of instruments. The lyrics are a mixture of English, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew.
In summer 2023 it struck me that my Sibelius 6 software was 13 years old, and that contemporary software would probably be able to reproduce the sound of a choir singing lyrics, rather than simply going “Ah”! Discovering that this was indeed the case, I reached out to find someone who could use my composition files to produce a new recording of From Glory to Glory using contemporary music technology. That person turned out to be Cuban composer Wilma Alba Cal, whose work includes chamber, choir, orchestral and electroacoustic music (see https://wilmaalbacal.com/). Over the summer of 2023, Wilma used my ‘Sibelius 6’ files and scores to make an updated recording of From Glory to Glory that sounds much more realistic than before, and where the choir sing the words on the scores. This was a collaborative process that involved Wilma gathering information on the sounds I had in mind when selecting from the instruments available in Sibelius 6, and several rounds of feedback about various pre and post-sound-mix versions of the tracks.
Instruments: SATB Choir, Gong, Bass Drum, Tubular Bells, Glockenspiel, Vibraphone, Acoustic Guitar, Harp, Two Flutes, Grand Piano, Pipe Organ, Min-Moog Synth Lead, Mellatron Strings, Mellatron Choir, Cello, Electric Bass, Synth Bass.
Track Notes
Movement 1: Trinity. We open with God’s existence prior to creation. A solo piano plays three musical lines, the third of which is generated from the interaction of the first two, representing the way in which God the Father is the “root” of the Divine “triad”, God the Son eternally depends upon the Father, and God the Holy Spirit “proceeds” from the Father and the Son. The piece is also Trinitarian in having three sections. It ends on an unresolved chord, suggesting the eternality of the Godhead.
Movement 2: Light. The angels rejoice in God’s creation of light and “dance” among the stars.
Movement 3: One Sin. This piece draws upon the opening of G.K. Chesterton’s poem “Ecclesiastes”: “There is one sin: to call a green leaf gray, Whereat the sun in heaven shuddereth.” In other words, the fundamental sin is acting as if we were wiser than God, as if moral reality should bend to our choices and desires rather than vice versa. The consequences of sin for relationships between humans and with God is represented by the entry of the minor key and the music becoming broken up.
Movement 4: Weeping Turns to Joy. This setting of words from Psalm 6:6 and 30:5 was composed in July 2021, as a short, stand-alone piece reflecting on the end of Covid 19 restrictions. In August 2023, I decided to add it into this suite, where it neatly represents the Old Testament experiences of exile (“By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion.” – Psalm 137:1) and hope centered upon in the promised coming of God’s messiah.
Movement 5: Logos. The opening of John’s gospel represents God the Son as the divine logos, or rational principle behind creation. Only this logos reveals God in person through the incarnation. The lyrics combine an English translation of the opening of John’s gospel, with the Greek terms: Logos (Word), Agathos (Goodness), Veritas (Truth), and Kalos (Beautiful-Good).
Movement 6: Love. An acapella setting of Jesus’ answer to a scribe’s question about the greatest commandment in Mark 12.
Movement 7: Garden. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus contemplates his calling to be crucified as a sacrifice for sin and prays that his Father might take away this cup of suffering from him. The music uses suspended resolutions and a fluctuating pattern of major and minor notes that gradually become more resolute and hymn-like as Jesus turns his face to the cross, praying that the Father’s will be done on earth.
Movement 8: Agnus Dei. Based on the saying of John the Baptist: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29), the Agnus Dei (Latin for “Lamb of God”) is a traditional liturgical chant that contemplates the meaning of Jesus’ death on the cross in light of his subsequent bodily resurrection from the tomb. Far from being just another failed messiah, Jesus is God’s self-sacrifice of forgiveness in bearing our sin.
Movement 9: Kyrie. A setting of the Latin Kyrie, a traditional prayer for forgiveness, which in English means: “Lord, forgive us, Christ forgive us, Lord forgive us.”
Movement 10: Telos. This piece was inspired by John’s vision of the new heavens and earth in Revelation 21. The choir sing about God’s invitation to the wedding feast of the Lamb (i.e. Jesus Christ) who will wipe away ever tear from our eyes and bring “Shalom” (a Hebrew word meaning peace, wholeness and flourishing).
Movement 11: Gloria. This piece recapitulates the theme of movement one, using it as a setting for the apostle Paul’s comparison between the sufferings of the present world and the glory of the new heavens and earth to come.
For more composition-related information, visit: https://www.peterswilliams.com/composing/
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
From Glory to Glory (2023): Movement 1) Trinity
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
This is the first of eleven movements in the updated and expanded 2023 recording of my From Glory to Glory suite.
We open with God’s existence prior to creation. A solo piano plays three musical lines, the third of which is generated from the interaction of the first two, representing the way in which God the Father is the “root” of the Divine “triad”, God the Son eternally depends upon the Father, and God the Holy Spirit “proceeds” from the Father and the Son. The piece is also Trinitarian in having three sections. It ends on an unresolved chord, suggesting the eternality of the Godhead.
From Glory to Glory is available as a high quality wav file album on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/psw_music/sets/from-glory-to-glory-2023
From Glory to Glory is a little under 70 min long suite of contemporary classical music, reflecting on the biblical story and Christian spirituality, drawing upon an eclectic fusion of musical influences. The suite is written for four part choir and an ensemble of instruments. The lyrics are a mixture of English, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew.
In summer 2023 it struck me that my Sibelius 6 software was 13 years old, and that contemporary software would probably be able to reproduce the sound of a choir singing lyrics, rather than simply going “Ah”! Discovering that this was indeed the case, I reached out to find someone who could use my composition files to produce a new recording of From Glory to Glory using contemporary music technology. That person turned out to be Cuban composer Wilma Alba Cal, whose work includes chamber, choir, orchestral and electroacoustic music (see https://wilmaalbacal.com/). Over the summer of 2023, Wilma used my ‘Sibelius 6’ files and scores to make an updated recording of From Glory to Glory that sounds much more realistic than before, and where the choir sing the words on the scores. This was a collaborative process that involved Wilma gathering information on the sounds I had in mind when selecting from the instruments available in Sibelius 6, and several rounds of feedback about various pre and post-sound-mix versions of the tracks.
Instruments: SATB Choir, Gong, Bass Drum, Tubular Bells, Glockenspiel, Vibraphone, Acoustic Guitar, Harp, Two Flutes, Grand Piano, Pipe Organ, Min-Moog Synth Lead, Mellatron Strings, Mellatron Choir, Cello, Electric Bass, Synth Bass.
Track Notes
Movement 1: Trinity. We open with God’s existence prior to creation. A solo piano plays three musical lines, the third of which is generated from the interaction of the first two, representing the way in which God the Father is the “root” of the Divine “triad”, God the Son eternally depends upon the Father, and God the Holy Spirit “proceeds” from the Father and the Son. The piece is also Trinitarian in having three sections. It ends on an unresolved chord, suggesting the eternality of the Godhead.
Movement 2: Light. The angels rejoice in God’s creation of light and “dance” among the stars.
Movement 3: One Sin. This piece draws upon the opening of G.K. Chesterton’s poem “Ecclesiastes”: “There is one sin: to call a green leaf gray, Whereat the sun in heaven shuddereth.” In other words, the fundamental sin is acting as if we were wiser than God, as if moral reality should bend to our choices and desires rather than vice versa. The consequences of sin for relationships between humans and with God is represented by the entry of the minor key and the music becoming broken up.
Movement 4: Weeping Turns to Joy. This setting of words from Psalm 6:6 and 30:5 was composed in July 2021, as a short, stand-alone piece reflecting on the end of Covid 19 restrictions. In August 2023, I decided to add it into this suite, where it neatly represents the Old Testament experiences of exile (“By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion.” – Psalm 137:1) and hope centered upon in the promised coming of God’s messiah.
Movement 5: Logos. The opening of John’s gospel represents God the Son as the divine logos, or rational principle behind creation. Only this logos reveals God in person through the incarnation. The lyrics combine an English translation of the opening of John’s gospel, with the Greek terms: Logos (Word), Agathos (Goodness), Veritas (Truth), and Kalos (Beautiful-Good).
Movement 6: Love. An acapella setting of Jesus’ answer to a scribe’s question about the greatest commandment in Mark 12.
Movement 7: Garden. In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus contemplates his calling to be crucified as a sacrifice for sin and prays that his Father might take away this cup of suffering from him. The music uses suspended resolutions and a fluctuating pattern of major and minor notes that gradually become more resolute and hymn-like as Jesus turns his face to the cross, praying that the Father’s will be done on earth.
Movement 8: Agnus Dei. Based on the saying of John the Baptist: “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29), the Agnus Dei (Latin for “Lamb of God”) is a traditional liturgical chant that contemplates the meaning of Jesus’ death on the cross in light of his subsequent bodily resurrection from the tomb. Far from being just another failed messiah, Jesus is God’s self-sacrifice of forgiveness in bearing our sin.
Movement 9: Kyrie. A setting of the Latin Kyrie, a traditional prayer for forgiveness, which in English means: “Lord, forgive us, Christ forgive us, Lord forgive us.”
Movement 10: Telos. This piece was inspired by John’s vision of the new heavens and earth in Revelation 21. The choir sing about God’s invitation to the wedding feast of the Lamb (i.e. Jesus Christ) who will wipe away ever tear from our eyes and bring “Shalom” (a Hebrew word meaning peace, wholeness and flourishing).
Movement 11: Gloria. This piece recapitulates the theme of movement one, using it as a setting for the apostle Paul’s comparison between the sufferings of the present world and the glory of the new heavens and earth to come.
For more composition-related information, visit: https://www.peterswilliams.com/composing/
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Introduction to An Informed Cosmos: Essays on Intelligent Design Theory
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Lecture on the main themes of my book An Informed Cosmos: Essays on Intelligent Design Theory (Wipf & Stock, 2023) delivered 29th September 2023 at English L'Abri (www.englishlabri.org/).
Tuesday Oct 03, 2023
Reading Culture in 3D: From Pre-Modernism to Metamodernism
Tuesday Oct 03, 2023
Tuesday Oct 03, 2023
Teaching from the September 2023 'Worldviews & Communication' course UK study tour, delivered in London.
Tuesday Oct 03, 2023
Reading Scripture for Spiritual Formation
Tuesday Oct 03, 2023
Tuesday Oct 03, 2023
Teaching from the September 2023 'Communication & Worldviews' course UK study Tour, delivered at L'abri in Hampshire. Apologies for the poor sound on parts of this recording, I think I need to get a new microphone cable!
Friday Sep 29, 2023
Thinking in 3D: Spirituality, Rhetoric & Transcendental Values
Friday Sep 29, 2023
Friday Sep 29, 2023
Lecture delivered online to 'Worldview & Communication' students at NLA University College on August 16th 2003, introducing a conceptual 'matrix' of concepts to be revisited in talks on the September 2023 UK Study Tour for the course. My teaching is in English, but the recording also contains some comments by my colleagues Bjorn Hinderaker and Lars Dahle in Norwegian.
Tuesday Jun 06, 2023
Tuesday Jun 06, 2023
The last of seven talks from my pre-forum mini-forum on 'Can we Believe in God in an Age of Science?' at the 2023 European Leadership Forum in Poland.
Monday Jun 05, 2023
Monday Jun 05, 2023
The sixth of seven talks from my pre-forum mini-forum on 'Can we Believe in God in an Age of Science?' at the 2023 European Leadership Forum in Poland.
Sunday Jun 04, 2023
Sunday Jun 04, 2023
The fifth of seven talks from my pre-forum mini-forum on 'Can we Believe in God in an Age of Science?' at the 2023 European Leadership Forum in Poland.
Saturday Jun 03, 2023
Saturday Jun 03, 2023
The fourth of seven talks from my pre-forum mini-forum on 'Can we Believe in God in an Age of Science?' at the 2023 European Leadership Forum in Poland.
Friday Jun 02, 2023
Friday Jun 02, 2023
The third of seven talks from my pre-forum mini-forum on 'Can we Believe in God in an Age of Science?' at the 2023 European Leadership Forum in Poland.
Thursday Jun 01, 2023
Thursday Jun 01, 2023
The second of seven talks from my pre-forum mini-forum on 'Can we Believe in God in an Age of Science?' at the 2023 European Leadership Forum in Poland.
Wednesday May 31, 2023
ELF 2023: Can We Believe In God In An Age of Science? Introduction (Part One of Seven)
Wednesday May 31, 2023
Wednesday May 31, 2023
The first of seven talks from my pre-forum mini-forum on 'Can we Believe in God in an Age of Science?' at the 2023 European Leadership Forum in Poland.
Tuesday May 30, 2023
ELF 2023: Evidence for Old Testament History: From Abraham to Solomon
Tuesday May 30, 2023
Tuesday May 30, 2023
Lightly edited audio from my presentation on Old Testament Historicity, contrasting biblical 'minimalism' and biblical 'maximalism', at the 2023 European Leadership Forum in Poland.
Monday May 29, 2023
ELF 2023: Leading and Following in the Footsteps of Christ
Monday May 29, 2023
Monday May 29, 2023
A short talk about Christian leadership and discipleship given to the early morning volunteers meeting at the 2023 European Leadership Forum in Poland.
Tuesday Nov 01, 2022
Grill A Philosopher: Peter S. Williams
Tuesday Nov 01, 2022
Tuesday Nov 01, 2022
An interview with extended Q&A time, hosted by NLA University College Colleagues Rune Tobiassen and Leif Egil at Østsida Free Church (https://frikirken.no/ostsida) in Kristiansand, Norway, on 23rd October 2022.
Tuesday Nov 01, 2022
Veritas 2022: Outgrowing God? Learning from Dawkins’s Failed Arguments
Tuesday Nov 01, 2022
Tuesday Nov 01, 2022
Presentation from the 2022 Veritas Conference (https://veritaskonferansen.no/), held at The Bible School in Grimstad (BIG - https://bibelskolen.no/), Norway, 23rd October 2022.