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June 2002 Table of Contents
Musical Insight
Agnus Dei
Lamb of God, Born to Us
An Interview with David Hamilton, Dennis and Karla Worley
The creators of Word Music's new Christmas musical Agnus Dei have backgrounds ranging from music ministry to live concert
performances. David Hamilton, Dennis and Karla Worley all bring unique talents to the table. Last month, The Communicator sat down with the three creators to find out more about their new project.
How did you arrive at the concept for Agnus Dei?
DH: I remember vividly the day that Dennis Worley was at my house sitting in a chair in my studio. We had been working on a recording for Brentwood Baptist Church, and he told me about the idea of putting together a major Christmas work based on the songs of Michael W. Smith. I was sold on it right then and there.
It has been a real privilege and a joy to be a part of Michael’s music-making experiences and his ministry. I did
all of the arranging for orchestra on his Freedom instrumental recording and spent several weeks on the road with him playing keyboards and directing his Christmas tour in 2000. Most recetly, I orchestrated and conducted the score Michael wrote for the movie, Joshua. And this past year, I had a life-changing experience arranging and playing on his live Worship recording. I will never forget that night of worship and how God was at work.
I have sung and played the song, "Agnus Dei," hundreds of times and seen God work in powerful ways through its simple
and moving strains. Even though it is not specifically a Christmas song, it seemed like the obvious choice as the centerpiece for this choral project.
I believe Agnus Dei is a worship experience with power and depth that has something important to say from beginning to
end. It celebrates the incredible mystery and wonder of the incarnation and speaks clearly of why Christ came for us. It also offers the participant and listener the opportunity to express both worship and thanksgiving to God for what He has done and who He is.
KW: David Hamilton came into our lives through Brentwood Baptist, where Dennis is Minister of Worship and David is
pianist. (Aren't WE lucky?) We have come to admire his talent at the keyboard and love his sensitive heart for worship. He has an uncanny ability to interpret musically what is going on theologically in a given moment.
Dennis, David, and I each bring such different objectives and experience to the table. I am thinking theologically about the content and what goes in between the songs. David is thinking of settings and transitions. Dennis is the "reality" guy: How long is it? Does it flow? Is it do-able?
When we sat down together the first time to discuss this project, it was our consensus that the title song should be "Agnus Dei," because that chorus has made its way into the body of praise and worship liturgy that many churches use now. It is not specifically a "Christmas" song, but because it is vertically directed (to God), we felt it should be the pinnacle of the work. Of course, we had to ask ourselves, "How does it fit with these other songs, not being a Christmas song?"
In the Anglican liturgy, the "Agnus Dei" is that portion of text sung during the Eucharist (communion) just after the congregation partakes of the bread. The words "Agnus Dei" mean "lamb of God." The liturgical text comes from John's salutation recorded in John 1:29. The text says:
Lord have mercy,
Christ have mercy,
Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.
At first glance, this might seem like a more appropriate "Easter" text. However, Christmas IS the season when we celebrate the Incarnation -- that the Word became flesh (the bread of life, His body broken for us.) The angels' announcement at Jesus' birth was, "Unto you is born this day a Savior." The salvation accomplished on the cross was already being proclaimed -- even celebrated -- at his birth. So finally, we were able to articulate that we wanted this musical to be about the "Agnus Dei," the Lamb of God, born
for us.
What makes Agnus Dei unique among all of the other Christmas musicals that are available?
DH: For the most part, Agnus Dei is unique because of the power of the songs. One after the other, these are great melodies and lyrics put together in a masterful way. It occurs to me that most of the songs we decided to use are actually relatively "old" in this "song of the month" mentality, which we unfortunately are often faced with. All of us who write songs aspire to write something that would be sung and impact listeners years from now.
The piece "This Is Love" is one of the few places in this work where I contributed some of my own music. I thought it would be unique (and also a powerful statement) for the choir to sing the Scripture narrative in one spot. As it turned out, Karla found several Scriptures that really sum everything up, and I knew that should be what the choir would sing. I don’t know of too many other Christmas musicals where the choir "sings" the narration.
There are a few unique technical things going on, such as the inclusion of some guide tracks with programmed rhythm loops on the accompaniment CD. That will help those who choose to use it create a rhythm section sound that is very close to the recording. It will also give the more pop songs a "current" feel.
KW: I think there are several things that set Agnus Dei apart from other Christmas works available this season:
First, the quality of the musical material -- Michael's songs are not only popular, but they are well written. David Hamilton's settings are, quite frankly, outstanding. One of the goals we articulated at the outset of this project was to create reasonable, sing-able vocal arrangements and set them in exquisite, unusual orchestrations.
Among the other Christmas works this season, Agnus Dei is also unique theologically. It is liturgical, in that the people -- the choir, the congregation -- are engaged with God in the work of worship. It is worshipful, in that the participants not only listen to, but respond to God's words and his character.
What challenges did you face in the development of this project?
DH: There were many challenges for me in arranging and recording this project. Without a doubt, the biggest one was trying to figure how to use all of the songs. I really didn’t want to "short change" any of them, but realistically I knew I had to find ways to put some of them together and edit out sections. That’s always hard for any arranger to do.
KW: I think our primary challenge was to create musical settings that matched the standard of musical quality that Michael's recordings have. This task fell on David. He had to write efficient charts. In other words, he had to use his instruments wisely. What we ended up with was a work that provides moments of contrast, gives the ear a rest here and there, so that the full-throttle moments are necessary and welcomed by the listener.
DW: As a Worship Minister in the local church, I am charged with the responsibility of choosing the "right" Christmas work for my church and worship ministry to present for my church and my community. Therefore, I must take the time to examine the theological content, the musicality of the work, and "picture" how it will look and sound with "my team" presenting it. That's what I did throughout this entire creative process. Those were the questions I asked, and the thoughts running through my head.
How did you decide what approach to take and how did the songs of Michael W. Smith influence that decision?
DH: Dennis and I talked a lot about the approach we should take. Throughout the project Dennis was a constant encourager and sounding board for my ideas. He helped me to strike the balance between writing emotionally and inspirationally and yet practically. I tried to write from my heart and my instincts while staying true to what Michael originally wrote and all the while keeping the church musician in mind. Over the years, I think Michael has been able to uniquely blend elements of pop and classical music together, particularly in his Christmas music. In keeping with that, I decided to arrange the orchestrations with a mix of symphonic orchestral styles and more pop/rhythm based styles.
KW: I muddled about quite a bit at first, trying to get a handle on the common thread in the text. As I studied Michael's songs, I realized that they almost all have one thing in common: they announce the Good News. Many of Michael's songs focus on the angels' message: "Unto you is born." They are also worship songs, in that they almost always respond, "Glory to God!" So the work began to follow that formula: something is announced by God's messenger, and then the people respond. In the beginning of the work, the news is bad: we have all sinned. Our response is, "Lord have mercy. Come, Immanuel." But as the news gets better, our response becomes, "Glory!" and of course, finally, "Worthy is the Lamb!"
What is your favorite moment in Agnus Dei? Is there a particular song or passage that has special meaning to you?
DH: One of my favorite moments is the transition into "No Eye Had Seen/ All Is Well." There is something about those Scriptures and making that key change at the last moment into what I think is one of Michael’s best songs ever -- "All Is Well" -- that impacts me still every time -- and I’ve probably heard it a thousand times now.
KW: One of my favorite moments happens just after the choir has sung the "Lord Have Mercy" section and pleaded, "O come, O come, Immanuel". The Narrator begins to speak the prophecy of Isaiah: "Comfort, comfort my people." And underneath this promise that God will have mercy on us, you first hear the theme being played, "Alleluia! Alleluia! For the Lord God almighty reigns!" It is like a foreshadowing, a glimpse beyond the curtain of heaven. Yes, man has sinned. Yes, a Lamb will be required. But God will triumph!
DW: I think David's "treatment" of the song "Agnus Dei" is extraordinary for several reasons. He gives us time to worship through this song. It is not so much about the feature title selection of the musical. It is about a critical point in the work, and he captured the mystery and the awe of this incredible worship song.
While recording the vocals, one of the singers made a suggestion about "where to take a breath" in a particular phrase. In my opinion, it was something very subtle, but very profound. We are used to singing the phrase: "Holy, holy, (breath) are You Lord, God almighty." (That breath almost makes it sound like we are "asking" if the Lord is God almighty, rather than communicating to Him that He is Lord, God almighty). So, you will note as you listen, that we recorded that phrase to be: Holy, (breath), holy are You
Lord, God almighty. It may seem insignificant to some, but to me, it was/is a powerful statement!
What did you learn from each other through the writing process? How has the experience of writing this musical changed you?
DH: I have learned so much about worship this past year. I think writing this project helped to me to grow even more in that area. I have learned so much about the broadness of what worshiping God means. It is not about a particular style or way of doing something as much as it is about the state of mind and heart of the worshiper, and the glory of who God is and what He does. I’m moved by the words in Psalm 19 that "the heavens are telling the glory of God." They speak without making a sound!
KW: This was an unusual work for me, in terms of my participation. There were no lyrics to be written, as Michael's songs already existed. There was no drama or narration to be "created," we decided from early on that the only narration involved would be scripture. So my role was to shape the progress of theological thought -- where the work takes you in the process of hearing from and responding to God. I spent a lot of my time looking up scriptures, checking theology, studying liturgy -- tracing the line of conversation in history between God and his people.
Unexpectedly, I came away from this work with a greater anticipation for heaven. You almost have to read this work backward theologically to really get its full impact. Here's what I mean: At the end of time, the work of salvation and reconciliation will be finally done. The peek into eternity that we have in John's Revelation tells us that the worshipers will be gathered around the throne, and the song they will sing is, "Hallelujah! For the Lord, God Almighty reigns! Worthy is the Lamb!" It is a celebration
of the completion of God's work.
What is your message for the music ministers who will present this work, the singers who will sing it, and the believers, or non-believers who will experience it?
DH: My hope is that everyone who works to prepare this music and then presents it to an audience of both believers and non- believers will find the joy of putting themselves aside and worshiping God with every part of their being—knowing that when we do that, God works in mighty and powerful ways beyond what we can imagine. Worship becomes a weapon to drive away fear and depression. It opens the door for God to heal and restore and the great, joyous news of what happened at Christmas becomes very real to all who hear it.
DW: I want to encourage music ministers, choirs, worship leaders, and church musicians to be about creating the right environment for worship. If you are not sure that you are already doing that, then ask God to show you . . . ask Him to surround you with people who can tell you, and then be sure you are willing to listen to them. That's the collaborative process at work . . . actually, that's the Body of Christ at work. When presenting Agnus Dei as your Christmas work this year, I hope that God will do a
incredible thing in you and for you through the process of learning it and presenting it . . . the kind of thing that you know in your heart, "Only God could have done that!"
David Hamilton -- composer, arranger, and producer;
Karla Worley -- writer, author, and worship leader/speaker
Dennis Worley -- Minister of Worship
all serve at Brentwood Baptist Church in Brentwood, Tennessee.
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