Evening Service in A (Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis)

Byron Adams shares musical materials betweens his Preces and Responses and his Magnificat and Nunc dimittis, creating a particularly unified Evensong service. Unison lines alternate with straightforward homophonic phrases throughout the Magnificat. Interesting, deceptive phrase extensions keep the piece moving along, and the altered chord tones are always carefully prepared in the voice leading. A memorable thematic flutter in the organ part marks the laundry list of “He hath” statements alternating between treble and bass voices. The Nunc dimittis features a lyric tenor solo with no participation by the full choir until the Gloria Patri. The accompaniment is low in register and could obscure the solo line easily. The juxtaposition of unrelated chords and tonal centers found in the Magnificat becomes a defining feature of this canticle. The Gloria Patri is extremely similar to the one at the end of the Magnificat, but important alterations achieve a completely new effect. The tenor soloist re-enters at the Amen, rounding out this beautiful composition.
The Journal of the Association of Anglican Musicians
November 2013
Also mentioned- Robert Powell’s Magnificat and Nunc dimittis “The Good Shepherd Service”