Set to a moving text from Walt Whitman’s poem I Sing the Body Electric, Beautiful, Curious, Breathing, Laughing captures the simple, profound joy of being with people we care about. It’s a celebration of connection, presence, and the beauty of shared human experience – a message I believe resonates deeply in our world today.
Continue reading “Beautiful, Curious, Breathing, Laughing”
A fun, boppy, composition suitable for performance in church. The lyrics of the Chorus read:
And we thank you Lord Jesus for the things you’ve done,
We’ve got a new heart from you and a new spirit too,
and we will shout all your praises from the highest of heights
For we are cleansed of our sins by the Lord Jesus Christ.
This is an original composition by Ben Clapton. It was written with a Salvation Army Songsters group in mind, but is suitable for all choral groups.
A driving arrangement of this wonderful hymn. The inspiration for this version came from playing this hymn at a young men’s spiritual retreat, where they would shout out an echo of the word “Power” in the chorus. This arrangement is an attempt to capture that passion and energy.
The choral parts include some syncopation, but the higher difficulty is due in the most part to the piano accompaniment.
SATB and Piano. List price: US$4.99. Buy it here.
This song draws on 1 John 4:12, the Lord’s Prayer, and also a devotional by Joyce Meyer (although, I didn’t read the devotional, just liked the title). This is a choral arrangement of the recorded track, available at benclapton.id.au
At the end of a Songsters rehearsal last night, I was asked from a musical perspective what I think of the Songsters. The Songsters is the Salvation Army choir, and it’s very different to any choir I’ve sung in before. However, there is a wealth of music there that fulfills me Musically, Lyrically and Spiritually. Continue reading “Count Your Blessings”
Today we look at the premiere of a piece commissioned by Princess Edomnd de Polignac. Her original request was for “a piece for soloists, choir, orchestra (perhaps with Polish text) – a king of Polish requiem.” Karol Szymanowski composed his Stabat Mater, premiered on this day in 1929.
Ben Clapton 