A few weeks ago, I was thinking about what I should write for another collection of flex music. I was flipping through a binder of music that I have played with my wife Ashley and came across a transcription of an African American Spiritual. I realized in that moment that I would like to spend some time with this music and reflect. And I thought to myself, I think others will want to spend time with this music as well.
And so I went searching for Spirituals that I thought would work well for flexible instrumentation, and started (and it turns out, ended) my search with arrangements by Harry T. Burleigh, a composer and vocalist who, among many other things, created stirring arrangements of African American Spirituals in the early 20th century.
I chose three Spirituals - Down by the Riverside, Deep River, and I Want to be Ready, and I’m pleased to offer this new collection: Three Spirituals, a collection of arrangements scored for 8-part flexible instrumentation. These spirituals are adaptations of arrangements by Harry T. Burleigh, whose early 20th-century settings of African American Spirituals are as relevant today as they were 100 years ago.