Minstrel boy (TTBB) | Julian David Bryson | MusicSpoke

Minstrel Boy Old Irish Air, The Moreen Arranged by Julian David Bryson TTBB Choir, Solo Tenor, and Piano

This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.

Text The minstrel boy to the war is gone, In the ranks of death you’ll find him.

His father’s sword he hath girded on, And his wild harp slung behind him.

“Land of Song!” cried the warrior bard, “Though all the world betrays thee, One sword, at least, thy rights shall guard, One faithful harp shall praise thee!”

Minstrel fell! But the foeman’s chain Could not bring that proud soul under; The harp he loved never spoke again, For he tore its chords asunder, And said, “No chains shall sully thee, Thou soul of love and bravery!

Thy songs were made for the pure and free; They shall never sound in slavery!”

Program Notes Thomas Moore’s lyrics describe an iconic “warrior bard,” committed to defending not only land, but ideals.

For him, freedom of thought, speech, and art was more important than his life, and this strong and creative soul preferred death to oppression.

While this tune has long been associated with memorials for first responders, I also see it as a call to arms for artists. Through images, sound, and other media, we offer unique perspectives on the world around us. We challenge prejudice, power, and ignorance. In short, we engage in cultural warfare, inspiring people to think deeply and critically about their world.

In this setting, the opening stanza floats above an accompaniment reminiscent of plucking harp strings. A wall of sound develops, ushering in the crucial statement of praise and defiance. Another crescendo, undergirded by diatonic cluster chords in the piano sets up the death blow, but as in any good action movie, time slows to a crawl. Here, the audience focuses not on the warrior, but on his primary weapon—the harp. What follows clarifies that the nation’s true loss is in stripping a powerful and creative voice from its future. Indeed, lost future accomplishments are the true, greatest, and often unnoticed cost of war.

Join all artists on the battlefield of ideas with harp and song and voices.

—J.D.B.

SATB setting premiered March 13, 2010 by the Huntsville Community Chorus Association TTBB setting premiered February 25, 2014 by the University of Kentucky Men’s Chorus

Cover image by Ruth Archer, https://pixabay.com/en/users/LunarSeaArt‐4038246/ This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.

Comissioned by the University of Kentucky Men's Chorus, Dr. Jefferson Johnson, director

Minstrel Boy Dedicated to Linda Mixon for her unwavering belief in and support of the power of music.

Thomas Moore (1779-1852)

The Moreen, Irish Air Arranged by Julian David Bryson

q = 60 pp

  T                            tm* tm tm tm tm tm tm tm... tm tm

pp

B

tm tm tm

tm tm

tm tm...

tm tm tm



     

tm tm...

                                    tm* tm tm tm tm tm tm tm... *tm is pronounced with a dental "t" and long "u" sound as in, "plume". Close immediately to the "m", q = 60 but maintain cavernous space inside your mouth. The sound should mimic a plucked, Irish harp.

Piano

    

ppp

     

  Solo     7

T

B

Piano





   

 





mp



The

         

 



min mp sub. pp





 

 



 

      

strel

           

boy

to the war

 



 is

gone,

   

  in

the

    

mp sub. pp

                                      

mp

    



 

 

sub. p

 

 

 

 



   

 

   

Copyright © 2013 Julian David Bryson All rights reserved. Licensed through MusicSpoke.com.

License is non-transferrable. Director should have a copy of the license to legally use this music.

This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.

4

   Solo     ranks 13

T

T



 of

   

death



  



you'll find



him



(m)











hm

                                   

p

    

p

                                  B  

Piano

   

    

  Solo      19

T

 pp    



His

          tm tm tm tm

T

mp

 









   

 

   

 

   



fa

Piano

p

ther's sword he hath gird - ed



 

on,

And his





wild harp

     slung

be - hind













   

    

    

   

   

    

   

tm tm...

tm

tm tm

tm tm tm tm tm...

   

-





         B     tm

     



tm... tm...

   

   

 

 

 

    

    

   

 



      

   

       

   

                           This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.



 



     him

5

27

Solo

T

T

B

                 hm

   B   

Piano

        

   T     ah 34

T

B









(m)















oo



oh

   

       





    







oo

  

oh

ah

                               



 

 

 

    



f



     

"Land of Song!"cried the war rior bard,

f

             

   

   

   





f

  

"Land of Song!"cried the war rior

               B  

   

 

 

 

   

  

    

"Though all the world

mf

     

f

   

   be - trays

 

thee,

    

    



bard, "Though all the world be - trays



 

    



   One

  

mp

One mp

  

thee,

  

 

mp





 

                 visit MusicSpoke.com  to purchase  This score is not licensed forperformance. Please performance copies.



 

   Piano

 

 

 

 

f

 

 

 





6

  T      sword, 45

T

B

tm

 



 

 

 



 

tm

tm tm

tm

tm...

at

     sword, p

 

least,

at tm

tm

least,

         

thy

rights

tm tm

tm

    p

    

  T     praise      praise

shall

guard,



 shall

guard,

 

tm

tm...

B

B

Piano

One

faith

 -

ful

   One

faith

 



 

harp

 -



ful

harp

tm tm tm

tm...







 

 

 

   

 

   





















thee!"

shall

             



thee!"

shall

                 

51

T

  

tm tm tm tm...

              tm

Piano

rights

          

tm tm tm tm tm tm tm p tm tm tm tm tm

B

thy





              

       



 



      

                                    











                     This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.



   

 

7

   T     Ah!

    

T

But the foe - man's chain

     

    



ff

Ah!

B



ff

58











        

ff            B  

-

        







       mp

der; The harp he



Min - strel fell! But the foe - man's chain could notbring that proud soul un







-



Piano

ff

   

 

   T    68

T

p

      spoke a

B









  



 -



gain,







mp

  And niente mp

 

(n)

And

         





 



  

to silence



      

mp



p



 

     



said,"No chains

shall

 

mp

sul - ly thee,

Thou

     

    

said, "No

loved nev - er



             

Oo



chains shall

sul - ly thee, Thou

mp

For he tore its

Oo

  B        

ppp



ppp

 

     

 

   

der;

Min - strel fell! But the foe - man's chain

                 



Oo

But the foe - man's chain could notbring that proud soul un

ff             

ppp

chords a sun -

  

niente

 



 





 



to silence









der;

Thou





 

       

Oo

 





to silence

 









 

 

Piano

                      This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.

 

 

Thou



8

     78

T

T

B

soul

'ry!



  

of

love

and brav -





  

  

   

soul

of love

and brav -

 

    



 B  

Piano



    

   

  

   





'ry! Thy mp

 

B

 

    

  

 

 

 

   

 

  

mf



They shall nev - er





nev

- er



v'ry!"

Sla

f

-

     sound

in sla

sound





in sla

    



 

 

  

-



They shall nev - er

mp



v'ry!



v'ry!"

v'ry!"

sla -

     sound

in sla -

Sla -

v'ry!



free

They shall







 v'ry!"

 v'ry!"

v'ry!



  

ff

  

    

"Land of Song!" cried the war - rior

 

  

ff

   

Sla - v'ry! "Land of Song!" cried the war - rior

ff

    

   

Sla - v'ry! "Land of Song!" cried the war - rior

 

                               copies.

This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance

 

Piano

              

A tempo

 

     

molto rit.

  

mf



   

 

           

  

"Land of Song!" cried the war - rior

    Sla -

 

A tempo

     



 -



 

molto rit.

-



p

 



 

     

mp

  

 



songs were made for the pure and

     



They shall nev - er

         

   

  T         sound in sla

B



p

   

 mp           

87

T







ff

 

 

          

A tempo

rit.

97              T     bard,"Though all the world be - trays thee,           T         bard,"Though all the world be - trays thee,                B 

bard,"Though all

B

    

 

the world

    

bard,"Though all

      Piano

 

     

   Solo        T    

  B  



T

B

the world

            

107

        

 

 

  

                

 

       

rit.



  



 mp    



 mp   









    



harp

thee!"



shallpraise



    



     

 

 

A tempo   







  

One sword,

       





Oo p

Oo

 



  



        

        





 

One sword,

thee,

be - trays

 



thee,

  

  



guard, One faith - ful

Piano

be - trays

9

p

 

    

at

least, thy rights shall

     

at

least, thy rights shall









mp







pp           One faith - ful

harp





 









 











 











  

















              

This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.



shall praise





10

  Solo      thee!"

117

T

              tm...

 B  



 

      

         

rit.

   

tm...

    

    

  

 

   

to silence

   

    

    

  

 

rit.

Piano

    

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

ppp

           T            121

             B             

             

    

 

         

  

           Piano           This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.

     

to silence

to silence

If you enjoyed Minstrel Boy, please also consider the following works for mixed or TTBB chorus from my catalog, available at or coming soon to MusicSpoke.com:

Commissioned to celebrate the ordination of a deacon, All Things New (SATB Choir and String Quartet or Piano) speaks to the human desire to improve ourselves and our world. Built upon a handful of symbolic musical motives, this piece yearns, grows, and eventually comes to rest transformed and inspired.

Fire and Ice (SSATB, a cappella) along with Quibbles and Quirks for wind quintet and Conflictions for brass quintet, began as exercises in counterpoint. Though I didn’t conceive of them as a set, upon further reflection, I see them as having remarkable similarities. All are for five voices, involve imitation, and represent conversations. Fire and Ice, in particular, takes the well-known poem and weaves it into a dialogue—at times an argument—inviting both choir and audience to take sides. Because the text is so familiar, I didn’t concern myself with clarity in its setting, instead focusing on the similar vowel sounds central to key words. This leaves the conclusion up to the audience’s decision, even as late as the final chord, where both fire and ice sound simultaneously.

Lacrimas (SATB with mezzo-soprano solo, a cappella) weaves the familiar Psalm text, "They that sow in tears will reap in joy" into a poignant moment from St. Augustine's confessions: "And sending out tears, where I was holding them in, so that they should flow so smoothly, they spread out beneath my heart and it rests on them." Musically, the piece develops in waves that emanate from the opening “sobbing” gesture. The University of Alabama in Huntsville Chamber Choir premiered the work under the direction of Dr. Erin Colwitz-Dehning as part of the Huntsville New Music Festival of 2011.

O nata lux (SATB, a cappella): On September 12, 2001, members of the University of Tennessee Concert Choir walked into our choir room in a state of shock. Reeling from the previous day’s attacks, none of us really wanted to rehearse, but somehow we knew it was exactly where we needed to be. After warm-ups, we sang Morten Lauridsen’s setting of O nata lux, which we had just begun to learn. Suddenly, the music took on a new meaning and ushered in a memorable hour of sharing, crying, and healing. Something about the line, “for the sake of the lost ones” stuck with me, and over the next several days, I developed my own musical response to both the tragedy and text that had invaded all of our lives. I am humbled by so many beautiful settings of this prayer and in some ways feel ill-equipped to offer yet one more. However, I continue to count it among my favorite compositions.

This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.

Winner of the 2013 American Choral Directors Association Brock Memorial Student Composition Competition, Redemption Mass (SATB chorus, wind quintet, piano, and percussion) is a tuneful, rhythmic, and inspiring setting of traditional and nontraditional texts. The simple, yet haunting Kyrie evokes ancient chants, while the rhythmically driving Gloria uses overlapping ostinato paints a picture of the Heavenly throne room described in Isaiah 6 and Revelation 4. Credo is an exuberant statement of faith filled with text painting, while the most accessible movement, Sanctus, is an uplifting song of praise again referencing the scene in Isaiah 6. Finally, Agnus Dei recalls themes from previous movements of the Mass against a stunning wall of sound, erupting into a passionate plea for peace.

This accessible setting of We Are the Music Makers (SATB and piano) brings O'Shaughnessy's famous text to life through lush harmonies, word painting, and exciting fanfares. Dedicated to the Randolph High School Class of 2011, it was premiered by their Concert Choir during their Commencement ceremonies.

Commissioned and premiered by Louisville's Youth Performing Arts School Gentlemen's Ensemble, under the direction of Jacob Cook, for the Intercollegiate Male Chorus Festival of 2014 hosted by Rutgers University. ‌with music‌ (TTBB, SATB, or SSAA Choir and Piano) combines two previously unpublished songs by Kentucky Composer (and graduate of Louisville's Manual High School) John Jacob Niles. Come Gentle Dark and Epitaph provide a poignant look into the composer's later views on life and death interwoven with beautiful melodies and subtle harmonic surprises.

This score is not licensed for performance. Please visit MusicSpoke.com to purchase performance copies.