Description
At once easily accessible, Don Phillips' arrangement of Isaac Watts' text and Ralph Hudson's tune is a delight to sing. Notice the shift into triplets on p. 2, this allows the piece to lilt through the first refrain. Crafted after this is a two-part (SB) section that shifts into the parallel minor mode, reflective of the text:

Was it for crimes that I had done He groaned upon the tree?' The exultant refrain, which follows this stanza, places the sopranos and tenors a third higher than the tune, imparting a real sense of joy during this testimonial. The arrangement concludes with a more restrained statement of the phrase, "…and now I am happy all the day, at the cross."

Editor's Notes
Though scored for SATB, the arrangement only becomes true four-part harmony during the last section--p. 4. The other moments of SATB are really a two-part divisi: SA / TB, S / B, or ST / AB. This will aid rehearsal in that less time will be required to learn all the parts. Therefore, more time can be given to choral blend on the vowels, and to interpretation with dynamics and rhythmic nuance.

An alternative to the scored voicing, one could enlist a soloist to sing the opening stanza, with the choir joining on p. 2--this personalizes the text even more: "…for sinners such as I." Also, begin with a testimony from a choir member or congregant on the "transforming power of Christ" that will lead into the choral testimony found in this work.

User License
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