AN INDIGO CHRISTMAS…
THE WORK OF CHRISTMAS

Welcome Note

Welcome to An Indigo Christmas…The Work of Christmas. The word indigo calls to mind many things – colour, spirituality, mood, reverence, blues, soul, synthesis, unity, invocation, and ritual. Newton designated indigo as one of the seven prismatic or primary colours, and as such, it has a unique harmonic vibration and energy that seems fitting to surround a concert of Christmas and seasonal music with a distinct Afrocentric vibe.

Tonight, there are two significant threads that run through our performance. The first is tied to the theme of the concert – The Work of Christmas, taken from the poem which bears its name, and written by The Rev. Dr. Howard W. Thurman whose 125^th Anniversary of birth we celebrate this evening.

Howard Washington Thurman (November 18, 1899 – April 10, 1981) was an American author, philosopher, theologian, Christian mystic, educator, and civil rights leader. As a prominent religious figure, he played a leading role in many social justice movements and organisations of the twentieth century.

In 1923, Thurman graduated from Morehouse College as valedictorian. In 1925, he was ordained as a Baptist minister at First Baptist Church of Roanoke, Virginia, while still a student at Rochester Theological Seminary (now Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School). He graduated from Rochester Theological Seminary in May 1926 as valedictorian in a class of twenty-nine students. From June 1926 until the fall of 1928, Thurman served as pastor of Mount Zion Baptist Church in Oberlin, Ohio. In the fall of 1928, he moved to Atlanta, Georgia, where he had a joint appointment to Morehouse College and Spelman College in philosophy and religion.

Thurman was selected as the first dean of Rankin Chapel at Howard University in the Washington, DC in 1932. He served there from 1932 to 1944, serving also on the faculty of the Howard University School of Divinity. In 1944, Thurman left his tenured position at Howard to help the Fellowship of Reconciliation establish the Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples also known as The Fellowship Church in San Francisco – the first major interracial, interdenominational church in the United States. He served as co-pastor with a white minister, Alfred Fisk. In 1953, Dr. Thurman was invited to Boston University, where he became the dean of Marsh Chapel (1953–1965). He was the first black dean of a chapel at a majority-white university or college in the United States, serving also on the faculty of Boston University School of Theology.

Howard Thurman travelled broadly, heading Christian missions and meeting with world figures. In 1935-36 he led a six-month delegation of African Americans invited to India for meetings, where, at Bardoli, he met and spoke with Mahatma Gandhi. When Thurman asked Gandhi what message he should take back to the United States, Gandhi said he regretted not having made nonviolence more visible as a practice worldwide and remarked “It may be through the Negroes that the unadulterated message of nonviolence will be delivered to the world”.

Thurman was a prolific author, writing twenty books on theology, religion, and philosophy – the most famous of his works being ‘Jesus and the Disinherited’ (1949). Thurman’s theology of radical nonviolence influenced and shaped a generation of civil rights activists, and he was a key mentor to leaders within the civil rights movement, including Martin Luther King Jr. Howard Thurman had been a classmate and friend of King’s father at Morehouse College. King visited Thurman while he attended Boston University, and Thurman in turn mentored his former classmate’s son and his friends. He served as spiritual advisor to King, Sherwood Eddy, James Farmer, A. J. Muste, and Pauli Murray. At Boston University, Thurman also taught Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, who cited Thurman as among the teachers who first compelled him to explore mystical trends beyond Judaism.

Tonight, we offer two settings of Howard Thurman’s poem ‘The Work of Christmas’ which encapsulates some of his theological, philosophical and social justice insights. The first setting concludes the first half of the concert and is the last movement of ‘Three Songs for Christmas’ – three short poems of Thurman set to music for The Nathaniel Dett Chorale by the American composer Damien Geter which has its premiere tonight. The second setting is by the British Canadian composer and Director of Music at St. James Cathedral, Toronto – Thomas Bell, and concludes the evening’s performance.

The second thread that runs through tonight’s concert is the sub-theme of ‘Light’ – Light that dispels the darkness of Injustice – of Ignorance, of Intolerance, of Indifference. I trust that as you enjoy the thrilling voices, harmonies, and rhythms tonight that you will indeed be infused with Light and inspired to participate in The Work of Christmas – which is the work of Love. Welcome to the 26^th annual An Indigo Christmas concert.

Peace, Love and Light.

Brainerd Blyden-Taylor
Artistic Director

AN INDIGO CHRISTMAS…
THE WORK OF CHRISTMAS

Saturday, December 14, 2024, 8:00 PM
Grace Church on-the-Hill
300 Lonsdale Road, Toronto, ON

The Nathaniel Dett Chorale
Brainerd Blyden-Taylor, Artistic Director

PROGRAMME

Welcome & Opening Remarks

Tonight Eternity Alone | René Clausen (b. 1953)
Kaisha Lee & Karen Weigold, sopranos

Light | Greg Jasperse (b. 1968)
Alida Doornberg & Claire Jun, sopranos
Jenna Cowans & Ianjai Mounsey-Ndemo, altos
Nicholas Gough & Adam Wicks, tenors
Matheus Coelho, baritone; Wade Bray & Martin Gomes, basses

O Nata Lux | Christopher Ducasse (b. 1993)

The Saviour’s Birth | Based on Negro Spiritual Melodies, arr. Marques L. A. Garrett

Three Songs for Christmas (World Premiere) | Damien Geter (b. 1980)

1. The Sacrament of Christmas
2. This Is Christmas
3. The Work of Christmas

INTERMISSION

Lo, How A Rose E’er Blooming (Canadian Premiere) | arr. Greg Jasperse (b. 1968)
Wade Bray, collaborative pianist 

Negro Bell Carol | Adapted from folk sources, Willis Laurence James (1900-1966)
Benjamin MacDonald, tenor

 Oh, Po’ Little Jesus (Canadian Premiere) | Negro Spiritual, arr. Brandon Waddles ((b. 1988)

 Is A Light Shinin’ in the Heavens | Adapted from folk sources, Robert L. Morris (b. 1941)

Rockin’ Jerusalem | Negro Spiritual, arr. Robert L. Morris

The Work of Christmas | Thomas Bell (b. 1962)
Claire Jun & Gisele Kulak, sopranos

PROGRAMME TEXT

Tonight Eternity Alone – René Clausen 

Tonight eternity alone is near,
The sunset, and the darkening blue,
There is no space for fear,
Only the wonder of its truth.
~ Thomas S. Jones Jr. (1882-1932), modified from ‘Dusk at Sea’

Light – Greg Jasperse

Light, Light, Light,
Divining Light, Light of Truth, Illuminating Light,
Warming Light, Softening Light, Soothing Light,
Serene, Revealing Light.
Light which pierces the dark shadows of Ignorance,
The shadows of Intolerance, of Indifference.
Night falls…I awaken from Darkness
I awaken to Peace, to Love, to Life, to Hope,
To deep Knowing – to Light
~Greg Jasperse (b. 1968)

O Nata Lux – Christopher Ducasse

O nata lux, de lumine,
Jesu redemptor saeculi,
Dignare clemens supplicum
Laudes preces que sumere.
Qui carne quondam contegi
Dignatus es pro perditis,
Nos membra confer effici
Tui beati corporis.

O Light born of Light,
Jesus, redeemer of the world,
With loving-kindness deign to receive
Suppliant praise and prayer.
Thou who once deigned to be clothed in flesh
For the sake of the lost,
Grant us to be members
Of Thy blessed body
~Anonymous, office hymn at Lauds on the Feast of the Transfiguration

The Saviour’s Birth – Marques L. A. Garrett

Hodie Christus natus est:
Today Christ is born;
hodie Salvator apparuit.
today the Saviour has appeared.

There’s a star in the East on Christmas morn,
Rise up, shepherd, and follow,
It will lead to the place where the Saviour’s born
Rise up, shepherd, and follow. 

Follow, follow, rise up, shepherd, and follow.
Follow the star of Bethlehem.
Oh, Rise up, shepherd, and follow.

Venite, venite in Bethlehem:
Come, O come to Bethlehem:
Mary had a baby, Yes, Lord.
What did she name Him? Yes, Lord!
She name Him King Jesus, Yes, Lord!
Natum videte Regem Angelorum.
See the new-born King of Angels.

If you take good head to the Angel’s word,
Rise up, shepherd, and follow,
You’ll forget your flock, you’ll forget your herd.
Rise up, shepherd, and follow,
Leave your flocks and leave your lambs,
Oh, Rise up, shepherd, and follow,
Leave your sheep and leave your rams. 
Oh, Rise up, shepherd, and follow.

Puer natus est nobis,
A boy is born to us,
Puer natus est in Bethlehem,
A boy is born in Bethlehem,
Hic jacet in praesepio
Here he lies in a manger,
Et vocabitur nomen ejus,
And his name shall be called:
Magni consilii Angelus.
The Angel of great council. 
Oh, Mary, what you gonna call yo’ pretty little baby?
There’s a star in the East.
Oh, Rise up, shepherd, and follow. Rise!
~from Negro Spirituals, and traditional Latin

Three Songs for Christmas – Damien Geter

1. The Sacrament of Christmas
   

I make an act of faith toward all humankind,
Where doubts would linger and suspicions brood.
I make an act of joy toward all sad hearts,
Where laughter pales and tears abound.
I make an act of strength toward feeble things,
Where life grows dim and death draws near.
I make an act of trust toward all of life,
Where fears preside and distrust keeps watch.
I make an act of love toward friend and foe,
Where trust is weak and hate burns bright.
I make a deed to God of all my days –
And look out on life with quiet eyes.

2. This is Christmas

The evergreen singing aloud its poem of constant renewal,
The festive mood spreading lilting magic everywhere,
The gifts of recollection calling to heart the graces of life,
The star in the sky calling to mind the wisdom of hope,
The warmth of candlelight glowing against the darkness,
The birth of a child linking past to future,
The symbol of love absorbing all violence.
This is Christmas.

3. The Work of Christmas

When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flocks,
The work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among people,
To make music in the heart.

[When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flocks,
The work of Christmas begins.]
~Howard Thurman (1899-1981)

INTERMISSION

Lo, How A Rose E’er Blooming – arr. Greg Jasperse

Lo, how a Rose e’er blooming
From tender stem hath sprung!
Of Jesse’s lineage coming
As those of old have sung.
It came, a flow’ret bright,
Amid the cold of winter
When half-spent was the night.

 Isaiah ‘twas foretold it,
The Rose I have in mind:
With Mary, we behold it,
The virgin mother kind.
To show God’s love aright
She bore to us a Saviour
When half-spent was the night.

 This Flow’r, whose fragrance tender
With sweetness fills the air,
Dispels with glorious splendour
The darkness everywhere.
True One, yet very God,
From sin and death He saves us
And lightens every load
~15^th Century German Carol, trans. Theodore Baker (1851-1934)

Negro Bell Carol – Willis Laurence James

Ding, Dong, Boong, Bim,
Go, angels, ring ding dong bells in glory.
Ring gold and silver bells in heaven bright.
The gold bells say ding,
The silver bells say dong
For my sweet Jesus’ birthday song.

Ring, golden bells, in glory Christmas mornin’
Ring ding dong bells in every land
To tell everybody a wonder has been done:
In Bethlehem is born the Son,
Newborn baby in Bethlehem.

O holy Jesus, so meek and so mild,
Born here so lowly, sweet Mary’s child.

Babe in a manger, no home but a stall,
Came from the Kingdom, with mercy for all. 

Go, angels, ring dem gold and silver bells,
Sweet golden bells! Sweet silver bells!
Ring, angels, ring! Ding Dong.
~Willis Laurence James, adapted from African American folk sources

Oh, Po’ Little Jesus – Brandon Waddles 

Oh, po’ little Jesus.
Dis ol’ worl’ gonna break your heart
Dere be no place to lay your head, my Lord.
Oh, po’ little Jesus.

Oh, Mary she de’ mother
Mary, she bow down and cry
For dere’s no place to lay his head, my Lord.
Oh, po’ little Jesus.

Come down, all you holy angels!
Sing roun’ him with your golden harps
For some day he will die to save dis world
Oh, po’ little Jesus.
~Traditional Negro Spiritual

Is a Light Shinin’ in the Heavens – Robert L. Morris

Light, is a light, shine, shinin’!
Is a light shinin’ in the heavens?
Is a light shinin’ in the heavens?
Is a light shinin’ in the heavens?
Please shine for me.

Come! Come! Come! Come! Fight!
Bring no weapon, bring light! O Lord
I come this night, I come to fight,
I bring no weapon. I bring the light.
On my knees, the light pass by
Thought my soul was gonna rise, to rise and fly.

Is a light shinin’, shinin’ Lord!
Is a light shinin’ in the heavens? Shinin’
Is a light shinin’ in the heavens?
Is a light shinin’ in the heavens?
Is a light shinin’ in the heavens?
Please shine for me. O Lord!

God made the stars to show their light,
And the moon to glow by night,
God made the sun to shine by day
From Heaven’s gate it shows the way!

O my good Lord! O my good Lord!

Is a light shinin’ in the heavens? A Light shinin’,
O my good Lord! Is a light shinin’ in the heavens?
Is a light shinin’ in the heavens? Lord!
Please shine for me.
~Robert L. Morris, adapted from various African American folk sources

Rockin’ Jerusalem – Robert L. Morris

O Mary! O Martha! O Mary ring dem bells!
I hear archangels a-rockin’ Jerusalem
I hear archangels a-ringin’ dem bells!

Church gettin’ higher!
Rockin’ Jerusalem!
Church getting’ higher!
Ringin’ dem bells!

Listen to the Lamb! 
New Jerusalem!
~Traditional Negro Spiritual

The Work of Christmas – Thomas Bell

When the song of the angels is stilled,
When the star in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home,
When the shepherds are back with their flock,
Then the work of Christmas begins:
To find the lost,
To heal the broken,
To free the prisoners,
To rebuild the nations,
To bring peace among the peoples,
And to make music in the heart.

[When the song of the angels has ceased,
Then the work of Christmas begins.]
~Howard Thurman (1899-1981)

THE NATHANIEL DETT CHORALE

The multi-faceted vocalists of The Nathaniel Dett Chorale perform all styles and genres of music as appropriate to the traditions of Africa and its Diasporas. The Chorale’s mission is to build bridges of understanding, appreciation, and acceptance between communities of people through the medium of Afrocentric choral music.

Founder D. Brainerd Blyden-Taylor named The Nathaniel Dett Chorale after internationally renowned African Canadian composer R. Nathaniel Dett (1882-1943) to draw attention to Dett’s legacy, to the breadth of Afrocentric choral music, and to be a professional choral ensemble where persons of African heritage can be well represented.  Currently in its 26th Season, The Nathaniel Dett Chorale is also Artist in Residence at The Harriet Tubman Institute for Research on Africa and its Diasporas at York University.

D. Brainerd Blyden-Taylor

Brainerd Blyden-Taylor is the Founder, Artistic Director and Conductor of The Nathaniel Dett Chorale, Canada’s first professional chamber choir dedicated to the creation, preservation, and performance of Afrocentric choral music of all genres. Mr. Blyden Taylor has worked extensively as an educator at the university, public school, and community levels; and was awarded the degree Doctor of Laws (honoris causa) from York University, Toronto for his service to education. He is in demand as a guest conductor, clinician, adjudicator, and lecturer, both nationally and internationally. Mr. Blyden-Taylor is also an active and dedicated church musician.

Despite our best efforts to avoid errors and omissions, mistakes can occur. If your name is listed incorrectly, misspelled or missed inadvertently, we apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused. We would appreciate being notified of any errors. Please send an e-mail to info@nathanieldettchorale.org