UU Music
As a member of a Unitarian Universalist congregation, I have written some compositions that have been successfully used in worship services by a number of UU congregations and I am happy to make them available to anyone. All I ask is that you credit me in any written program as well as notify me of the performance by email at Music@DarrellCourtley.com or via the form on my Contact page. You may also freely make printed copies for distribution, provided the copyright marking remains. Thanks.
- Stop and Give Thanks (Offertory Song) (pdf)
- Stop and Give Thanks (mp3 - live recording)
- Meditation (short, SATB with clarinet obligatto) (pdf)
- Meditation (mp3 - synthesized)
I have also written an extended work, "VARIATIONS ON THE MASS, a liberal interpretation". Click on the following links for more information.
VARIATIONS ON THE MASS, a liberal interpretation
This composition debuted at the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship in Morristown, New Jersey, on October 22, 1995. Over the years it has been performed there several more times, as well as at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Monmouth County in Lincroft, NJ and the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Shenandoah Valley in Stephens City, Virginia.
It is written for 3 or 4 part choir, vocal soloists, and a small ensemble which typically includes a trumpet, saxophone/clarinet, trombone, keyboard, bass and drums. The entire composition takes about 35 minutes and works well as the basis for a Sunday Morning service. I welcome the opportunity to work with any congregations that might like to perform it, and am willing to re-orchestrate it for their available musicians. Please contact me for further information. (Return to top)
It is written for 3 or 4 part choir, vocal soloists, and a small ensemble which typically includes a trumpet, saxophone/clarinet, trombone, keyboard, bass and drums. The entire composition takes about 35 minutes and works well as the basis for a Sunday Morning service. I welcome the opportunity to work with any congregations that might like to perform it, and am willing to re-orchestrate it for their available musicians. Please contact me for further information. (Return to top)
Why did I write a Mass? In spite of my “Unitarian Universalist atheism”, I have been married to a Roman Catholic from a large family for most of my life. As a result, I attend many Catholic weddings and funerals, most of which include a Mass. At first, I found the Catholic Mass either irrelevant to me or even offensive, depending, I suppose, on how defensive I was feeling about my own beliefs. But over the years I either mellowed or matured, and found myself feeling more respectful of this ancient ritual that is so meaningful to so many people and which has also been such an important part of Western music. So when I was asked by the chair of our Sunday Services committee if I would consider putting together a Sunday morning program made up entirely of music, I thought, “Well, why not write a Mass? So what if I’m not Catholic. After all, Bach was a Lutheran and Leonard Bernstein a Jew, and that didn’t stop them!”
But how could I integrate this traditional Christian text, form and structure with my own beliefs and personal aversion to ritual without disrespecting either Christianity or myself? And what musical style should it have? My musical tastes have always been pretty eclectic.
In the end, I quit worrying and just let it happen. Each section begins with some of the traditional words of the Mass in Latin, which I set in similarly traditional “church-like” choral styles, and then continues with my personal response or restatement in English, using whatever musical style seems appropriate.
Although I wrote this in an attempt to integrate my religious liberalism with my wife’s Roman Catholicism, I have come to realize that I was also looking for some connection with my own Protestant religious roots. What I had previously seen as distinct and separate moments – I was a Christian; I became an anti-church atheist; I am a Unitarian Universalist – are really not separate events at all. Who I was is part of who I am.
We “UU’s” are part of a very special religious tradition, one that is particularly open to finding commonalities. When I look at the face of the classical violinist Itzahk Perlman in obvious rapture when making music and compare it to the face of B.B. King when he is playing the blues, there is no doubt in my mind that, although they use different musical language, they are having a very similar personal experience. Similarly, I firmly believe that underneath differences in ritual, customs, language, and theology, there is a common experience that we, as humans, frequently label “religious.” This shared experience is something that we, as Unitarian-Universalists, can celebrate. (Return to top)
But how could I integrate this traditional Christian text, form and structure with my own beliefs and personal aversion to ritual without disrespecting either Christianity or myself? And what musical style should it have? My musical tastes have always been pretty eclectic.
In the end, I quit worrying and just let it happen. Each section begins with some of the traditional words of the Mass in Latin, which I set in similarly traditional “church-like” choral styles, and then continues with my personal response or restatement in English, using whatever musical style seems appropriate.
Although I wrote this in an attempt to integrate my religious liberalism with my wife’s Roman Catholicism, I have come to realize that I was also looking for some connection with my own Protestant religious roots. What I had previously seen as distinct and separate moments – I was a Christian; I became an anti-church atheist; I am a Unitarian Universalist – are really not separate events at all. Who I was is part of who I am.
We “UU’s” are part of a very special religious tradition, one that is particularly open to finding commonalities. When I look at the face of the classical violinist Itzahk Perlman in obvious rapture when making music and compare it to the face of B.B. King when he is playing the blues, there is no doubt in my mind that, although they use different musical language, they are having a very similar personal experience. Similarly, I firmly believe that underneath differences in ritual, customs, language, and theology, there is a common experience that we, as humans, frequently label “religious.” This shared experience is something that we, as Unitarian-Universalists, can celebrate. (Return to top)
Here is a recording of the performance from November 24, 2013 by the choirs at the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship in Morristown, New Jersey, under the direction of Dr. Jim Blanton.
You can also find a recording of the performance from May 20, 2012 by the choir at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Monmouth County in Lincroft, NJ, under the direction of Elaine Held at this link.