Composer’s note

I’ve always felt an affinity with this text because it describes so perfectly why I love, and indeed have always loved, singing. As a child I sang constantly and probably drove everyone round the bend, but it made me feel better. I count my blessings every day that I get to sing for a living but I still get enormous pleasure from singing for the pure joy of it. Happily, I seem to have passed this on to my children.

The origins of these words are not known for certain and, though ostensibly they hold a Christian message, they can also be interpreted as a testament to the power of singing. Whatever tumult and strife one is facing, however loud the roar of the storm or dark the winter nights, singing has always been a source of great comfort and a powerful way of bringing people together, in good times and in bad.

I would urge choirs who sing this piece to pronounce the words in as natural a way as possible, that is to say not too ‘churchy’. There’s no need for rolled rs here! When it comes to bars 13 and 30, please encourage your choir to smile collectively as this will result in precisely the right sound. If they can keeping singing with an inner smile for the whole of verse 3 too then all the better. It’s extraordinary what a difference this makes.

My setting was commissioned by a church choir in Virginia, USA, in memory of someone called Margery Bowes Dakin whose catch-phrase was “let’s do some singing!” I never met Margery but I am certain we would have got along famously as this is my catch-phrase too.