Todd, Will - Gloria in excelsis (SSA & Piano or Organ)
for upper voices (SSA) & organ or piano
Text: Latin (Christian Mass)
Duration: 4 minutes
Difficulty: 2/5
Commissioned by the American Choral Directors Association for the Middle School/Junior High School Honor Choir, conducted by Elena Sharkova. First performed on 28 February 2015 at the ACDA Convention, Salt Lake City, Utah. Sponsored by Classical Movements Inc
Composer's note
This setting of the Gloria requires precision and lots of rhythmic energy in the first and last sections, contrasting with lyrical singing in the central ballad section. In the outer sections the organ should have grandeur, without swamping the voices and in the middle section as much colour as possible as the melody builds.
Reviews
"Singers will need to work to achieve the rhythmic precision the outer sections demand, but it would make an effective concert piece, accessible to a good school choir." (David Lindley, Organists' Review, Dec 2015)
Text
Gloria in excelsis Deo, et in terra pax hominibus bonæ voluntatis. Laudamus te. Benedicimus te. Adoramus te. Glorificamus te. Gratias agimus tibi propter magnam gloriam tuam. Domine Deus, Rex cælestis, Deus Pater omnipotens. Domine Fili unigenite, Jesu Christe. Domine Deus, Agnus Dei, Filius Patris. Qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis. Qui tollis peccata mundi, suscipe deprecationem nostram. Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris, miserere nobis. Quoniam tu solus Sanctus. Tu solus Dominus. Tu solus Altissimus, Jesu Christe. Cum Sancto Spiritu, in gloria Dei Patris. Amen
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will. We praise you. We bless you. We adore you. We glorify you. We give you thanks for your great glory. Lord God, heavenly King, O God, almighty Father. Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son. Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father. You take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us. You take away the sins of the world, receive our prayer. You are seated at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us. For you alone are the Holy One. You alone are the Lord. You alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ. With the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
from the Christian Mass
Will Todd
Will Todd is a UK-based performer and composer whose music spans a variety of styles and genres. Best known for his choral works, his 2003 jazz mass setting Mass in Blue has been performed more than eighty times since its premiere by choirs in the UK, Europe and the USA. Other notable works for choir range from large scale oratorios such as Saint Cuthbert (recorded by the Hallé Orchestra in 2002) to the anthem Stay with Me Lord, commissioned for The Sixteen. He has worked on operas and stageworks for OperaGenesis at the Royal Opera House and the National Opera Studio, and his 2009 Jazz Concerto for Clarinet, written for Emma Johnson, has been performed in the UK, USA and Finland. As a performer, Will Todd leads his own Will Todd Trio from the piano and was recently an invited guest artist at the Lincoln Center in New York.