A rough in-performance recording of a short piece I wrote in the spring of 2013, now available from Alliance Music.

From the inside cover:
 “Lord, afford a spring to me
   Let me feel like what I see
   Speak, and by thy gracious voice
   Make my drooping soul rejoice”
                           - John Newton
   Kindly Spring Again is Here (1779)

This piece was composed on the request of Jay Carter, director of the Schola Cantorum of William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri. It aims to evoke both the immediate freshness that spring brings, as well as the possibilities inherent in the coming of a new season, whether that change be actual or spiritual.
Throughout the piece, choirs should maintain a sweet and delicate sound, especially in the melody as sung by the upper parts. The piece is designed to leave room for the individual and group artistry of the director and choir to flourish, so do not be afraid to be flexible with the tempo and interpretation.
What should result is a natural, organic artistic offering, one that lifts the soul and nourishes the heart.                        
                                                                                      Stewart Duncan

Truly this piece is a wonderful example of how the maximum effect can be achieved with the most modest means.
Soloist and chorus should sing the lines with delicacy and a particular sensitivity to the rhythm of the text. Be sure to let the final unison note float away into the silence and try to dissuade listeners from applauding too soon!
                              
                                                                                   Simon Carrington 
Available for purchase online here:
http://www.jwpepper.com/Lord-Afford-a-Spring-to-Me/10459220.item#.U2YYlV5q7y8

and here:
http://www.alliancemusic.com/product.cfm?iProductID=1144

"Lord, Afford a Spring to Me" - Grace & Holy Trinity Cathedral Choir

Commissioned by William Jewell College and composed by Stewart Duncan to celebrate 40 years of the Pillsbury Music Center and the leadership of Drs. Don and Helen Brown. Performed at the 2014 William Jewell College Choral Reunion by the William Jewell Concert Choir and audience members, with Dr. Ann Marie Rigler on the organ. 

Tune: PILLSBURY, 11.10.11.10.11.10
Text: "Create New Worlds" - Terry W. York, ascap

Create New Worlds

"Within These Walls" is the second in my triptych of short pieces on John Newton hymn texts, published by Alliance Music on Simon Carrington's choral series. 

“Within these walls let holy peace,
And love, and concord dwell;
Here give the troubled conscience ease,
The wounded spirit heal.”
–John Newton
Olney Hymns, Book II, Ordinances, Hymn XLIII

This piece continues my work on short settings of John Newton's hymn texts, following Lord, Afford a Spring to Me (AMP 0934). The text is found in Newton's Olney Hymns titled “Hymn XIII – On opening a place for social prayer”, and is built around the idea of marking a space as a place for worship. Adding the phrase “Lord, hear our prayer” to Newton's text is an intentional suggestion that when we gather for worship, we are both offering our praises to God and asking that he receive our needs and desires in His mercy. The supplication of the added text speaks to the fact that often, when we come to worship, we are in need of reassurance, fulfillment, or healing and may find praise hard to muster.

Available from Alliance (http://www.alliancemusic.com/product.cfm?iProductID=1196) and J.W. Pepper (http://www.jwpepper.com/Within-These-Walls/10509274.item#.VShJzlxFqhY)

The William Jewell College Concert Choir recorded the work in Gano Chapel, at William Jewell, in Liberty, MO.

Within These Walls

A live recording of the William Jewell College Concert Choir's performance  in the Lady Chapel of Ely Cathedral. The performance was part of William Jewell's 2015 England & Scotland Choir Tour. 

Within These Walls is published by Alliance Music and is available for purchase:

Alliance
http://www.alliancemusic.com/product.cfm?iProductID=1196

J.W. Pepper
http://www.jwpepper.com/Within-These-Walls/10509274.item#.VXCJ6FxFqhY

Within These Walls - Live in Ely Cathedral

The world premiere of Christus Est Vita (Hymnus to the Feast of St. Stephen), commissioned by St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna and sung here by the St. Stephen's Domchor in their October 31st concert. I made the recording myself at the premiere. Christus Est Vita was later performed on Austrian radio and later in the year.

Christus Est Vita - World Premiere at St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna

ABOUT THE MUSIC
The Choir of Worcester College, Oxford premieres Stewart Duncan's new setting of "There is no rose," the winner of Worcester's 2016 Carol Composition Contest. 

ABOUT THE COMPOSER
Stewart Duncan, ASCAP, is a Bloomington, Indiana-based composer pursuing his Ph.D. in Musicology from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University. Duncan graduated from William Jewell College in Liberty, Missouri in 2015 with a B.A. in Oxbridge Honors Music History, and was the resident Music Scholar at Grace & Holy Trinity Cathedral in Kansas City. Stewart studied with Dr. Ian Coleman and Dr. Anthony Maglione at William Jewell, as well as with Dr. Steven Grahl at New College, Oxford. His works have been premiered by the Choir of St. John's College, Oxford, the Choir of St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna, and the Choir of Worcester College, Oxford. At home, his works have been performed by the Concert Choir, Schola Cantorum, and Chamber Orchestra of William Jewell College, and by the Choir of Grace & Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kansas City. Duncan is published exclusively by Alliance Music. ​

Video credit: Katie Carlson of the Oxford University Filmmaking Foundation

For more information, visit: http://stewartcduncan.wixsite.com/composer/rose

TEXT
There is no rose of such virtue
As is the rose that bare Jesu;
Alleluia.
​
For in this rose contained was
Heaven and earth in little space;
Res miranda.
​
By that rose we may well see
That He is God in persons three;
Pari forma.
​
Now leave we all this worldly mirth
And follow we this joyful birth;
Transeamus.

Worcester College Carol Service 2016

There is No Rose - Choir of Worcester College, Oxford

A new demo recording of "Lord, Afford a Spring to Me" by the William Jewell College Concert Choir, under the direction of Dr. Anthony Maglione. 

"Lord, Afford a Spring to Me" is available from Alliance Music at http://www.alliancemusic.com/product.cfm?iProductID=1144

From JW Pepper: https://www.jwpepper.com/Lord-Afford-a-Spring-to-Me/10459220.item#/

From Sheet Music Plus: http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/lord-afford-a-spring-to-me-sheet-music/19973406

Lord, Afford a Spring to Me

"Behold Adam" was a finalist in Caritas Chamber Choir's 2017 Young Composer Contest. The competition called for settings of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales; this piece set a portion of the Monk's Tale, rendered in the composer's own prose. The Monk's Tale tells a series of short stories of historical figures undone by their own greed, and Adam's section focuses on his fall from power and honor by his own vice.
​
Along with the five other finalists, "Behold Adam" was performed by Caritas in Canterbury on July 8th, 2017, at the University of Kent. This recording was made by fellow finalist Sam Ritter, whose piece "Radix malorum est cupiditas" was also premiered.

Behold Adam - World Premiere by Caritas Chamber Choir, Canterbury, UK

Commissioned by Second Baptist Church of Liberty, MO, in celebration of their 175th anniversary. Premiered on May 6th, 2018, by the Second Baptist Church Choir and Brass with the composer conducting. 

Scored for chorus, organ, brass quartet (2 Bb trumpets, 2 trombones), treble handbells, and timpani.

The text is adapted from Psalm 126:

1. When the Lord restored the fortunes of[a] Zion,
    we were like those who dreamed.[b]
2 Our mouths were filled with laughter,
    our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
    “The Lord has done great things for them.”
3 The Lord has done great things for us,
    and we are filled with joy.

The Lord Has Done Great Things For Us - Second Baptist Church Anniversary Commission

Commissioned by MJ Stockton for Te Deum in 2017, premiered on October 14th, 2018, "Peace Like a River" honors the memory of Carol Lynn Stockton. It takes as its text Isaiah 66:12-14, using the Lord's imagery of mothering and nourishing in those verses as a comfort. 

This recording is of the premiere performance on October 14th, directed by Matthew Shepard. The concert, named "To Life", also included music by Leonard Bernstein (Chichester Psalms), and world premieres by Karen Siegel and Stewart Duncan, as well as works by David Lang and Aaron Jay Kernis.

More information on Te Deum, one of Kansas City's premier choirs, can be found at https://www.te-deum.org.

Peace Like A River - Te Deum, commissioned in memory of Carol Lynn Stockton

A pro studio recording of my arrangement of The First Noel, available from Alliance Music here: http://www.alliancemusic.com/product.cfm?iProductID=1261&fbclid=IwAR3ahj49YSFlnvNv6Uw2gggR11Ydg2AL3BoGL67WTyscKH887ICSUeCbG2c

The First Noel

Stewart Duncan is Assistant Teaching Professor of Musicology at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He received his Ph.D in Musicology from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University. Prior to moving to Indiana, Stewart graduated from William Jewell College in Liberty, MO in 2015 with a B.A. in Oxbridge Music History, and was the resident Music Scholar at Grace & Holy Trinity Cathedral in Kansas City.  Stewart studied with Dr. Ian Coleman and Dr. Anthony Maglione at William Jewell, as well as with Dr. Steven Grahl at New College, Oxford. His choral works have been premiered by the Choir of St. John's College, Oxford, the Choir of St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna, Te Deum Chamber Choir, the Concert Choir and Schola Cantorum of William Jewell College, and by the Choir of Grace & Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kansas City. Stewart is published exclusively by Alliance Music.

Stewart C. Duncan, composer

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