Views from the Choir Loft

Catholic Composer Brian J. Nelson To Appear On EWTN

Corpus Christi Watershed · October 15, 2013

RIAN J. NELSON (biography), a Catholic composer and convert to the Faith living and working in Lawrence, Kansas will appear on The Journey Home program with host Marcus Brodi on Monday, November 4 at 7pm on EWTN to discuss his journey to the Catholic Church. Originally from a Methodist and then Evangelical background, Brian was received into full communion with the Catholic Church in the Jubilee Year 2000 in St. Paul, Minnesota. He graduated from the University of Kansas with a Doctorate of Musical Arts in Composition in 2011 and currently works as the Director of Sacred Liturgy and Music at the St. Lawrence Catholic Campus Center. To date, his music is represented on two professional CDs (both widely available online):

1. Responsorial Psalms for Advent and Christmas (Nelson Music 2009)

2. Vocalise – Instrumental & Vocal Music of Brian J. Nelson (Nelson Music 2010)

Check out his website for lovely images, beautiful musical excerpts, and interesting blog posts:

* * Nelson Music Website • The official site for composer Brian J. Nelson

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

William Byrd • Simple “Agnus Dei” Canon

Time flies! Back in July, I posted a PDF setting of a perfect canon by William Byrd (d. 1623) arranged as an AGNUS DEI for three voices. Last Sunday, we sang that arrangement with our volunteer choir. To hear a ‘live’ recording of it, click here (Mp3). In my humble opinion, this would be a perfect piece for a choir just beginning to experiment with polyphony.

—Jeff Ostrowski

“Glory To God” • (For Choir + Congregation)

I wish to thank everyone for the nice comments I received vis-à-vis my Glory To God setting for Choir & Congregation. A gentleman with a musical doctorate from Indiana University wrote: “Love this setting so much. And I will pray, as you asked, for your return to composition more fully. You are very very good.” A female choir director wrote: “I love your harmonizations, your musicality, and the wonderful interplay you have with dissonance and consonance in your music. So fun to listen to, and great for intellect, heart, and soul!” A young woman from California wrote: “Thank you for releasing your new Glory To God in honor of Saint Noel Chabanel. I'm enjoying reading through the various parts and listening to your recordings.”

—Jeff Ostrowski

William Byrd • “Mass for Five Voices”

Our volunteer choir is learning the “Sanctus” from William Byrd’s Mass for Five Voices. You can hear a short excerpt (recorded last Sunday) but please ignore the sound of babies crying: Mp3 recording. We still have work to do—but we’re on the right track. Once we have some of the tuning issues fixed, I desire to use it as an example proving volunteers can sing complicated polyphony. — One of our volunteer choirs also sang that SANCTUS on 24 September 2023, and you can listen to how that came out.

—Jeff Ostrowski