The Spirit Of The Lord

Commissioned by Oasis Chorale, Wendell Nisly, Conductor, in honor of Dr. Jana Nisly and La Clinica de las Buenas Nuevas, El Salvador. The opening motive pairs the lower three parts in parallel triads with the soprano floating above them on an pedal tone E with octave changes and ornamented with notes a fourth and fifth apart. Although the pitches remain constant in the soprano, the lower voices explore multiple tonalities in the short opening section. The different key areas hinted at in the opening are developed more fully in the body of the piece as the text specifies in more detail the types of things that would happen with the influence of the Spirit of the Lord. At the completion of the text, the soprano voice leads us into a more extended meditation on the opening line.