Tag: 2020s

Frank Ticheli | Earth Song (Young New Yorkers Chorus)

American composer Frank Ticheli on his 2004 work, Earth Song: “‘ … the music … first appeared in a work called Sanctuary, for wind ensemble,'” (FredBock.com). “‘As I worked on that piece, I just kept thinking this music is just begging to be sung by a chorus. The music is so vocal in and of itself. It was also written during a time when we were sort of stuck in the Iraq War when everyone – regardless of what political side they were on – was tired of that war, and so Earth Song was written to be very pro-peace. I guess you could also say anti-war and anti-violence. It was a cry and a prayer for peace.

Earth Song means different things to different people. I know for me, it sprang out of an intense weariness of war and a wish for peace. The second half of the poem talks about music as a comforting force and a refuge. When I was bullied as a kid, music was my refuge. I often thought about bullies in relation to this piece as well, because that’s where violence starts. But music is a place where people can find acceptance and love – and it can often be their saving grace. And it’s not just choir that people can find that comfort – it’s band, it’s orchestra… it’s just people coming together to make music.'”

This 2025 performance by the Young New Yorkers Chorus was conducted by Justin Duckworth. Earth Song is built primarily in F major. But at 2:50, a soft-spoken but profound G major chord breaks the spell; a repeated E major chord then upends the tonality yet again as the piece draws to an end.

Many thanks to longtime contributor Mark B. for this beautiful piece — his fourth submission to MotD!

Sing, Be, Live, See.
This dark stormy hour,
The wind, it stirs.
The scorched earth
Cries out in vain:
O war and power,
You blind and blur,
The torn heart
Cries out in pain.
But music and singing
Have been my refuge,
And music and singing
Shall be my light.
A light of song
Shining Strong: Alleluia!
Through darkness, pain, and strife, I’ll
Sing, Be, Live, See…
Peace.

Gabriel Kahane | Limping Waltz

“Gabriel Kahane is a singer/songwriter, pianist, composer, and musical polymath equally at home in classical, theater, jazz, and adult pop settings,” (Qobuz). “He has written large-scale orchestral works, piano sonatas, string quartets, and song cycles as well as intimate singer/songwriter fare, and has collaborated with everyone from Elvis Costello and Rufus Wainwright to the Kronos Quartet and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He first came to national attention in 2006 for his playful Craigslistlieder, which set personal ads to theatrical piano accompaniment (he would later take on celebrity tweets.)”

Kahane has gone on to work with artists such as Pekka Kuusisto, Andrew Bird, Chris Thile, his father pianist Jeffrey Kahane, Sufjan Stevens, Sam Amidon, Aiofe O’Donovan, and ensembles including the American Composers Orchestra, the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Kansas City Symphony, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the string quartet Brooklyn Rider, and the Aspen Music Festival. He’s served as the Oregon Symphony’s Creative Chair.

According to the notes he includes with this Instagram post from earlier today, Kahane’s “Limping Waltz” has yet to be formally released. It begins with a verse with a subtly but constantly shifting harmonic backdrop. Instagram doesn’t provide timeslates, but the tune’s chorus, starting with the lyric “But hey kid,” and running through “listen, it’s urgent,” provides a comparatively peaceful respite in a straightforward B major before the unsettled verse returns.

NOTE: we’re getting reports that this post won’t play predictably. Very, odd. Please search on Instagram for Gabriel Kahane’s January 22 post. It makes us really appreciate the relative ease of working with Youtube. Our apologies!

Brent Jones | Praise in the Choir Stand

“Recorded live at Friendship Baptist in Yorba Linda, California, Brent Jones and the Best Life Choir’s rafter-raising ‘Praise in the Choir Stand’ (2025) offers Sunday morning gospel chock full of R&B influences,” (Journal of Gospel Music). “There’s a swaggering confidence in Jones’s voice, a gospel impresario on the best of terms with the musicians, singers, and the congregation. The full-throated Best Life Choir—which is so good, it should have received co-billing on the album cover—thunders its support like an ‘80s mass choir, especially on the title track … Like Jones’ previous release Live Your Best Life, Praise in the Choir Stand offers the spiritual and physical thrill of a live gospel program.”

After a start in Bb minor, there’s a shift to C# minor at 1:28 which persists to the end — through a grand pause and a huge sonic buildup by the ensemble.

Tim Minchin | I Wouldn’t Like You

“I Wouldn’t Like You,” from Australian comedian/musician Tim Minchin’s 2025 release Time Machine, “begins as a tender piano ballad, gently unfolding with Minchin’s signature lyrical wit and emotional nuance, before gradually building into a more guitar-driven, alt-rock finish,” (Amnplify). “At its heart, the track is a wry and quietly romantic ode to loving someone exactly as they are, quirks, contradictions and all. With lines like ‘I wouldn’t like you if you weren’t like you,‘ Minchin delivers a love song that’s both offbeat and sincere, playfully rejecting perfection in favour of authenticity. It’s equal parts dry humour and heartfelt truth, wrapped in a deceptively simple melody that swells with feeling as the track evolves. 

Tim Minchin said: ‘Of all the tunes on this record that have been reinvented, this one has had the most successful vibe update. I always thought this was a keeper, but now with Evan’s loping groove, and the pure undeniable jank of Jak’s guitar in the chorus… I love it.’ The track adds a new layer to the growing portrait painted by Time Machine, a curated anthology of previously unreleased material. This collection of 11 songs offers a glimpse into the mind of the songwriter Tim was before global acclaim, showcasing a raw, witty, and deeply human side of his artistry.”

The intro verses are built in Bb major; the pre-chorus (0:49) and brief chorus (1:14) shift to the closely-related key of Eb major. At 1:26, the cycle repeats.

Andrea Bocelli & Pentatonix | Do You Hear What I Hear?

MotD holiday favorite Pentatonix and Andrea Bocelli collaborated on a cover of “Do You Hear What I Hear” for the deluxe edition of Bocelli’s 2022 album A Family Christmas, which also features his two children Matteo and Virginia. The track begins C and shifts up a half step to Db at 2:00.

Matt Boyd | Where Are You Christmas? (feat. Katherine McPhee & Pia Toscano)

The Nashville-based singer Matt Boyd covered “Where Are You Christmas?” for his holiday EP Feels Like Christmas, released earlier this year. The track features former American Idol contestants Katherine McPhee and Pia Toscano. The song starts in Bb, shifts to C at 2:33, and moves to D at 2:50.