Category: Live

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Art Music Commissions Live

25, for orchestra (World Premiere)

This spring, I had the great good fortune to compose a new piece for the Calvin Community Symphony’s 25th-anniversary concert. Below are the program notes:

It may seem obvious—even unimaginative—to name a piece commissioned for a 25th anniversary concert “25.” What is perhaps less obvious is that the composition is in a 25/8 meter*.

One 8th note per year is not only a fitting starting place for a 25th anniversary piece, but it continues my long term exploration of rhythm. My compositions often draw on the rhythmic vitality of African, Celtic, Pop, and Minimalist music. In “25” you can hear the uneven rhythms of Eastern Europe folk music, Medieval dances, or even the Genevan Psalter.

If you listen carefully, you will also hear echoes of Ravel’s “Boléro.” Instead of Ravel’s famous snare drum rhythm, “25” begins with brushed snare, immediately announcing its connection to dance rhythms of our day, especially jazz. On top of the brushed snare, a series of solo instruments enter one at a time—flute, clarinet, etc—the beginning of a wedge that grows in volume, intensity, and range throughout the whole composition. Speaking of intensity, the piannisimo brushed snare rhythm morphs and grows throughout the piece, making a brash recapitulation at the drum set near the end.

Heartfelt thanks are due Maestro Varineau and the musicians of the Calvin Community Symphony for the love they’ve shown this new composition. Thank you for making me part of your 25th anniversary!

—Greg Scheer

*Technically, the piece is in a consistent four-measure pattern: 6/8+7/8+6/8+3/4. I’m nerdy enough to take on the challenge of composing in an odd meter, but not stupid enough to make the musicians read a 25/8 time signature!

Maestro John Varineau and the Calvin Community Symphony
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Church Congregational Songs Live Retuned hymn

O One with God the Father @ Church of the Servant

From this blog, you may get the impression that my compositional life has been dormant. On the contrary! I have been so busy composing new music that I haven’t had time to document my musical activities here. Over the next few days, I will try to catch up on the backlog of recordings that have never quite made it to my blog.

First up is this recording of “O One with God the Father.” You’ll remember the song first made its appearance in this blog in 2018. A few months later, my friends at Church of the Servant (my “alma mater” church) sang it in one of their services.

One of the tests of a congregational song is whether it can thrive outside its original context. In the church where a song is written, the people may be emotionally attached to the song because they know the writer, or they may have extra help learning the song. When a song is sung at a new church, it is just a song. That’s when you find out if it “has legs.” It sounds to me like this new song worked pretty well at COS. Maybe it has a future!

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Church Congregational Songs Live

“Feed Us, Lord” in Denver

You never know if a song is going to travel. I’ve written hundreds of songs, but there’s just no predicting which one will grab people’s attention or even get the opportunity to be heard at all. I guess it’s a little like fishing.

“Feed Us, Lord” is a little communion chorus I wrote a number of years ago. Think of it as Taizé meets praise ballad–it’s simple and repetitive enough to be sung during communion.

If I remember correctly, I submitted it to the “cattle call” for the United Methodist Worship and Song hymnal. These preliminary calls for submissions regularly receive 2,000 – 5,000 songs that the poor committee members have to sift through. I would like to think they chose my song because of its superior craftsmanship and theological acumen, but I’m pretty sure it was actually for two very practical reasons: 1. There aren’t a lot of contemporary(ish) songs for the Lord’s Supper. 2. It only takes up a half page.

From there it was picked up by the Presbyterian Glory to God hymnal. And from there it ended up in a YouTube video of Central Presbyterian Church of Denver’s communion.

This, my friends, his how a song travels.

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Choir Church Commissions Congregational Songs Live Psalms

Blessed Beyond Measure: Premiere at Trinity Lutheran, Owatonna MN

This Sunday (4/28/19) was the premiere of “Psalm 84: Blessed Beyond Measure” at Trinity Lutheran Church in Owatonna, MN. The piece was commissioned for their 100th-year celebration service, which was held in a local arena. It was so beautiful to see 125 singers and instrumentalists of all stripes performing together.

Here is a link to the Facebook video: https://www.facebook.com/tlcowatonna/videos/405895356658711/?t=2430

And here is the song’s original post where you can find a leadsheet and some background: https://musicblog.gregscheer.com/2019/03/22/psalm-84-blessed-beyond-measure/

Below is the first page of the full score. If you want to peruse the score or get the organ/piano accompaniment, just email me.

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Congregational Songs Jazz Live Psalms

“Joy Inside My Tears” at Calvin College’s Chapel

Paul Ryan periodically asks me to speak/sing at Calvin’s chapel. On January 14, 2019 my theme was “Joy Inside My Tears,” in which I explored the paradoxes of the Christian’s emotional life in scripture and song. Just in case you don’t want to listen raptly to all 20+ minutes, here is the outline:

  • Prelude: “Joy Inside My Tears” from Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life
  • 2:00 Blah, blah, blah
  • 3:15 We Worship You (Scheer)
  • 7:00 More blah, blah, blah
  • 10:20 Psalm 30: I Worship You, O Lord (text: Seddon/Seerveld, tune: Norman L. Warren) A new jazz arrangement written especially for this chapel.
  • 15:00 Expanded blah, blah, blah
  • 23:50 Psalm 126: All Those Who Are Weeping (a beautiful song by Bifrost Arts)
  • Postlude: “People’s Parties” from Joni Mitchell’s Court and Spark

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Commissions Congregational Songs Live

Prayer of Jonah at Western Seminary

The first performance of “Prayer of Jonah” took place in December at Western Seminary. The song begins at 27:54 in this video, but the whole enactment of the book of Jonah is well worth watching. The next performance will be at the Calvin Worship Symposium during the Thursday and Friday Vesper services, 4:15pm in Gezon Auditorium.

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Art Music Choir Church Live

Blessed Be!

Update 9/16/20: Sheet music for this song can now be downloaded here.

It’s hard to believe that this piece is 23 years old! This setting of the song of Zechariah (Luke 1:67-79) was written when I lived in Pittsburgh and is performed here by the Duquesne University Choir under the direction of Brady Allred.

You can email me for music (edit: see link above). It comes in a variety of flavors: a cappella, SATB/Piano, or with brass and rhythm section; the rap is optional (and yes, I’m serious: there is a rap). You can also email me if you want to commission the rest of the movements that would complete this set. It’s going to be amazing and I know you want in!

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Choir Church Congregational Songs Live Psalms

As the Deer: Greenville, SC

I just found this video of Murray Freedman and the Westminster Presbyterian Church Chancel Choir singing my anthem, “As the Deer.” Good to know that my music has made it’s way to South Carolina!

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Arrangement Choir Church Commissions Congregational Songs Live Psalms

Wen Ti at the 2018 Calvin Worship Symposium

Last fall I was commissioned to write an arrangement of the Chinese folk song “Wen Ti” (聞笛) for the 2018 Calvin Worship Symposium. This beautiful tune often appears in hymnals with the benediction text “May the Lord, Mighty God.”

The idea for this concluding communion service was to weave the song throughout the service with new texts that fit different liturgical moments. Scroll through the video above to hear the different sections of the piece:

11:47 Call to Worship: “Lift Your Eyes unto the Hills” (based on Psalm 121 and 124)
21:44 Assurance of Pardon: “God Is Gracious to Forgive” (evoking Colossians 1:12-15)
1:22:56 Doxology “To the One Who’s Shown Us Love” (from Revelation 1:4-6)

I’m currently reworking this for publication in GIA’s Calvin choral series.

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Art Music Commissions Live Rock and/or Roll

Swampzilla at Rockford High School/Middle School

I had the great pleasure of composing a new piece for the Rockford School orchestras this spring. Directors Erin De Young and Allison Holden wanted a piece that would work for their combined orchestras: 6th grade through 10th. That’s a huge range of ability levels.

Part of the fun of this commission was that I got to work with the students as I developed the piece. We started by talking about the composition process and getting a chance to hear each group play. Then I composed three sketches for them to try out and decide which they liked best.

We decided to go with “Swampzilla”–essentially a rock and roll piece for orchestra. “Swampzilla” is a fictional “hideous marsh man with a heart of gold.” The piece starts (programmatically speaking) with Swampzilla rising from the twilight mist, dancing surprisingly well for a creature that has just risen from the fetid slough. There’s a slower section in the middle, which is the love theme for Zilla and his love, Gator Girl. And then the two lovers dance off into the evening mists.

The premiere was incredible. The combined orchestra had over 200 players packed onto the stage, wings, and the first few rows of the audience seating! The score had simplified parts for the younger players and solo parts for the very best older players. They all got to slap their strings to create a backbeat. The auditorium was packed, too, with well over 1000 people. You can hear from the applause at the end that they loved it. It’s hard not to love 200 young people rocking out a piece called “Swampzilla.”