After a two-year hiatus while I worked on other projects, my Holy GhostWriter plunked me back into hymn-writing this year, with an exciting new twist!
Thanks to Facebook groups, YouTube, and the Hymn Society in the US & Canada, I’ve connected with several composers to work on new musical settings for texts I originally published with public domain tunes and for some brand new texts. In addition, I’ve written melodies for a couple of my newest hymns, with harmonization help from Diva Daughter, Theresa Olin (aka The Inexorable Juggernaut of Music Theory).
It’s been quite a roller coaster ride, careening up, down, and around the learning curve of collaboration. I mean, it’s one thing to tweak a hundred-year-old tune written by a guy who is, shall we say, in no position to argue with my choices. It’s quite another to communicate and negotiate with a living composer who brings a different vision and style to my lyrics, and who is as new to the art of collaboration as I am. Fortunately, my HGW has blessed me with partners who possess a gracious heart as well as musical skills.
Our newest pieces are not going public yet, in order to preserve eligibility for competitions and publishers which require unpublished work. Stay tuned for those!
Meanwhile, I hope you’ll enjoy the lovely new setting written by talented young composer Jared Bernotski for my text “How Long Is the Longest Night.” Jared himself sings HLITLN, accompanied by Cade Johnson, in this video. (Lyrics below.)
Come chat about my music, my ministry, my writing, my plans for world domination … well, maybe not that one … at the 2018 Colorscape Chenango Arts Festival in beautiful Norwich, New York. The festival runs the whole weekend after Labor Day, but you can find me Sunday, September 9 from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM in the Literary Arts Tent outside Guernsey Memorial Library (3 Court Street).
New bookmarks are on the way, to hand out at my book table. Do you like the design? If they arrive in time, I’ll add tassels in various colors for an extra spiffy touch.
