A BEAUTIFUL, YET SIMPLISTIC, INTERPRETATION OF THE HYMN "AMAZING GRACE". THE HYMN WAS WRITTEN BY JOHN NEWTON, A SLAVESHIP CAPTAIN WHO SAW THROUGH DIVINE GRACE, THE EVILNESS OF HIS ACTS. PERFORMED BY THE TMEA ALL STATE CONCERT BAND. ARR. FRANK TECHELI
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Story behind the song
The hymn Amazing Grace was written by John Newton (1725-1807), a slaveship captain who, after years of transporting slaves across the Atlantic Ocean to the New World, suddenly saw through divine grace the evilness of his acts. Ticheli's interpretation was commissioned by John Whitwell in loving memory of his father, John Harvey Whitwell. Ticheli wrote:
"I wanted my setting of Amazing Grace to reflect the powerful simplicity of the words and melody -- to be sincere, to be direct, to be honest -- and not through the use of novel harmonies and clever tricks, but by traveling traditional paths in search of truth and authenticity."
"I believe that music has the power to take us to a place that words alone cannot. And so my own feelings about Amazing Grace reside in this setting itself. The harmony, texture, orchestration, and form are inseparable, intertwined so as to be perceived as a single expressive entity."
Frank Ticheli was born in 1948 in Monroe, Louisiana. He received his Bachelor of Music in Composition from Southern Methodist University and Masters Degree in Composition and Doctorate of Musical Arts from the University of Michigan. He is Associate Professor of Music at the University of Southern California and is the Composer-in-Residence of the Pacific Symphony Orchestra. He has composed works for bands, wind ensemble, orchestra, chamber ensembles, and the theatre. His music has garnered many prestigious awards including the Goddard Lieberson fellowship and Charles Ives Scholarship from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters; the 1989 Walter Beeler memorial Composition Prize; the Ross Lee Finney Award; and first prize in the 11th annual Symposium for New Band Music in Virginia. The New York Times has described his music as lean and muscular and above all, active, in motion. His music has also been described as being "optimistic and thoughtful" (Los Angeles Times), "brilliantly effective" (Miami Herald) and "powerful, deeply felt crafted with impressive flair and an ear for striking instrumental colors" (South Florida Sun-Sentinel).
Lyrics
Amazing Grace by John Newton
Amazing Grace how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost but now am found
Was blind, but now I see
Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
and grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
the hour I first believed
Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come
Tis grace has brought me safe thus far
and grace will lead me home
When we've been there
Ten thousand years
Bright shining as the sun
We've no less days
to sing God's praise
than when we first begun