Premiered by Choral Chameleon in Brooklyn, NY. Vince Peterson, director.

Lyrics: To Autumn, by William Blake

O Autumn, laden with fruit, and stained
With the blood of the grape, pass not, but stay
Beneath my shady roof; there thou may rest,
And tune thy jolly voice to my fresh pipe,
And all the daughters of the year shall dance!
Sing now the lusty song of fruits and flowers.

The narrow bud opens her beauties to
The sun, and love runs in her thrilling veins;
Blossoms hang round the brows of Morning, and
Flourish down the bright cheek of modest Eve,
Till clust’ring Summer breaks forth into singing,
And feather’d clouds strew flowers round her head.

“The spirits of the air live on the smells
Of fruit; and Joy, with pinions light, roves round
The gardens, or sits singing in the trees.”

Thus sang the jolly Autumn as he sat;
Then rose, girded himself, and o’er the bleak
Hills fled from our sight; but left his golden load.

To Autumn

Drop, drop, slow tears,
And bathe those beauteous feet,
Which brought from Heav’n
The news and Prince of Peace.

Cease not, wet tears,
His mercies to entreat;
To cry for vengeance:
Sin doth never cease.

In your deep floods
Drown all my faults and fears;
Nor let His eye see
Sin, but through my tears.

Phineas Fletcher

Drop, Drop, Slow Tears (strings/harp)

When You Lose You Win

Performance of my 2017 piece, "As Big As Mill-Weels", written for Holly Roadfeldt. Performed at Fryderyk Chopin University of Music on May 11th, 2017 by Artur Słotwiński.

As Big As Mill-Wheels (2017)

Elephant Ivory Electric Company

Twister by Lisa Neher
Performed by Durward Ensemble
Michelle Blair, Conductor
Live Performance at Grand View University, Des Moines, Iowa

Durward Fall 2017

Twister by Lisa Neher

Original soundtrack for "Corruptor." Composed by Garrett Hope.

You Made Me Do This

SATB a cappella setting of John 10: 14-15 in Latin – "I am the Good Shepherd, I know my sheep and my sheep know me...".  Commissioned by Roderick Blyth for his wife Natalie on the occasion of their 20th wedding anniversary.

14 I am the good shepherd: and I know mine, and mine know me. 15 As the Father knoweth me, and I know the Father: and I lay down my life for my sheep.

Ego Sum Pastor Bonus

Using original poetry by composer Timothy Michael Powell with quotes by Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong, Christa McCauliffe and poet John Muir, A World Without Boundaries dramatically advocates for robust space exploration and the interconnectivity of all mankind by celebrating scientists and astronauts as saint-like heroes. To purchase, please visit www.TimothyMichaelPowell.com

A World Without Boundaries

This piece was inspired by my journey on the Camino de Santiago in the summer of 2018, and it is dedicated, broadly, to all those who find themselves on a difficult journey, whether external or internal.

"Wildernesses" sets several texts: primarily, a poem from Rabindranath Tagore's "Gitanjali"; secondarily, responses from pilgrims who walked the Camino de Santiago when asked why they completed it; and finally, the words "for you, kiddo," which I found scribbled on at least a dozen signposts while walking the Camino.

Commissioned by the Wicker Park Choral Singers, completed in November 2018, and premiered by the ensemble on June 1, 2019.

Mark's Farewell Concert (6/1/19)

Through the Wildernesses of Worlds — double choir a cappella

Composed by Forrest Pierce (b 1972) in 2013, "Gratitude sutra"
sets the "Prayer for the great family" by Gary Snyder, after a Mohawk prayer. This concert recording was made on 14 December 2019 at Holy Rosary Catholic Church in West Seattle. The soloists are Mitchell Baier, Amy Korver, Fred Seymour, and Kirsten Lysen.

Here is the text:

Gratitude to Mother Earth:
Sailing through night and day,
And to her soil: rich, rare, and sweet.
In our minds so be it.

Gratitude to plants:
The sun-facing, light-changing leaf
And fine root-hairs;
Standing still through wind and rain;
Their dance is in the flowing spiral grain.
In our minds so be it.

Gratitude to air:
Bearing the soaring swift
And the silent owl at dawn;
Breath of our song,
Clear spirit breeze.
In our minds so be it.

Gratitude to wild beings:
Our brothers, teaching secrets,
Freedoms and ways;
Who share with us their milk;
Self-complete, brave, and aware.
In our minds so be it.

Gratitude to water:
Clouds, lakes, rivers, glaciers;
Holding or releasing;
Streaming through all
Our bodies salty seas.
In our minds so be it.

Gratitude to the sun:
Blinding pulsing light
Through trunks of trees,
Through mists, warming caves
Where bears and snakes sleep,
He who wakes us.
In our minds so be it.

Gratitude to the Great Sky:
Who holds billions of stars,
And goes yet beyond that,
Beyond all powers and thoughts
And yet is within us.

Grandfather Space.
The mind is his wife.

So be it.

Drop, Drop, Slow Tears (strings/harp)

Kurt Knecht

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