Psalmprovisation 122, Movement Two

Psalm 122 is the Psalm appointed for the First Sunday of Advent (Revised Common Lectionary)

This movement pertains to vs. 3-5:

3 Jerusalem is built like a city
that is closely compacted together.
4 That is where the tribes go up—
the tribes of the Lord—
to praise the name of the Lord
according to the statute given to Israel.
5 There stand the thrones for judgment,
the thrones of the house of David.

The 'Psalmprovisation' series is 'quasi-improvisatory' - the melodic themes are generally premeditated and is the 'orchestration' and overall structure.

The intent is ultimately create a composition for each of the 150 psalms. In almost all cases I employ organ along with electronic instrumentation and in some cases percussion and 'found' audio.

The individual movements tend to be programmatic although the "affekt" might strike the listener as odd or even misplaced, either because my theological take on the psalms is considered by some to be unconventional and/or because I am exploring unconventional (some would say) harmonies and rhythms.

I am fully aware this won' t be everyone's 'cup of tea' so I'll thank the HW community for its indulgence and the chance to be heard.

In this particular piece the organ is first heard playing a pedal tone underneath the opening 'fanfare.' I use the cornet against the piano and bass in the middle section and finally we hear organ flutes with synthesizer underpinning at the end.