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Lyrics by William Billings
Majestic God, our muse inspire
And fill us with seraphic fire
Augment our swells, our tones refine
Performance ours, the glory Thine
About the Music
Farewell is a short a cappella choral work set to the text of William Billings’ Invocation. Excellent for opening or closing a concert, it features an introductory section on an “oo” vowel (perfect for working on shape and tone balance in your choir), 8-part splits throughout, and an elegant closing “amen” section.
Behind the Music
“Majestic God, our muse inspire, and fill us with seraphic fire. Augment our swells, our tones refine; performance ours, the glory Thine. Amen.” That was the prayer Dr. Clell Wright would pray over us before every choir concert at Hardin-Simmons University – the text of American composer William Billings’ Invocation. After finding out that Dr. Wright would be leaving the HSU School of Music at the end of the year, the choir decided to give him the best gift it could offer at his last concert – a thank you. What better way to do this than sing the prayer he had been praying over us, for years, back to him? I had the honor of setting such a beautiful text to music for the occasion. At the end of his final concert, we surprised him with the premiere of Farewell. And that’s exactly what it was – a farewell and a thank-you from our school to him.
