Michael Bryson's Mwanga M'kali Aita (The Bright Light Calls) is an arrangement of Swahili proverbs and original lyrics. An empowering piece with a world music feel, it carries an uplifting message: "Unity is strength; reach for the stars!"

Based on the poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar, composer Patrick Vu's poignant A Golden Day is a passionate and stirring choral composition. Fashioned in a modern a cappella style with moving, close harmonies, the bittersweet lyrics recount a love found and lost on "a golden day:"

I found you, and I lost you,

All on a gleaming day.

The day was filled with sunshine,

And the land was full of May.

A golden bird was singing

Its melody divine,

I found you, and I loved you,

And all the world was mine.

I found you, and I lost you,

All on a golden day,

But when I dream of you, (my) dear,

It is always brimming May.

Joseph Piontek's Bluestem is an original composition with a spirited Americana style that utilizes bluegrass folk songs elements combined with an uplifting text:

 

Where green adorns the rolling hills far as the eye can see,

there's room to lay down all your worries and space to let your soul run free.

Where golden rays streak through the skies and set the fields alight,

like flowers you'll turn toward the sun and gather strength to last the night.

When shadows grow and winds blow,

just lift your eyes up to the skies and the stars will lead you home.

 

Run, run, through the bluestem grass.

Sunlight on your face, feel its warm embrace 'til the day has come to pass.

Run, run, let your heart run free.

Race through the fields of green, like golden beams,

'til you're where you're meant to be.

 

The river runs, the river bends, its currents crash and play.

Be like the water cold and clear, and flow until you find your way.

The pale blue sky that hangs above the rivers down below,

holds clouds, and light, and singing birds

whose songs wake you to dawn's warm glow.

 

When shadows grow and winds blow, just lift your eyes up to the skies

and the stars will lead you home.

 

Run, run, through the bluestem grass.

Sunlight on your face, feel its warm embrace 'til the day has come to pass.

Run, run, let your heart run free.

Race through the fields of green, like golden beams,

'til you're where you're meant to be.

 

You can't outrun the storm. You can't hold back the night.

When blackened skies let lightning fly, be brave and hold hope tight.

You will outlast the rains. You'll see the sunshine bright.

In golden fields the dark will yield to morning's light.

You'll find your way back home. The stars will lead you home.

You'll find your way back home. The starts will lead you home.

 

Run, run, through the bluestem grass.

Sunlight on your face, feel its warm embrace 'til the day has come to pass.

Run, run, let your heart run free.

Race through the fields of green, like golden beams,

'til you're where you're meant to be.

Composer Ken Steven writes, "Hela Rotan (Pulling the Vine) is a popular Indonesian folksong from the island of Maluku (Moluccas). It tells about the traditional game of tug of war of the people of Maluku using rattan (Hela Rotan—pulling the rattan or vine). In this game, even though we compete, the party who wins or loses will get a prize, namely: togetherness. Hela Rotan is a call to live in togetherness, even though there are differences that attract each other." Full choral divisi, and ostinato-based close harmonies create an exciting drive for this Indonesian folk song setting.

Composer Rosephanye Powell is a favorite here at JMU! Her new gospel work, Love Will Find a Way, points us all in the right direction! Energetic, dynamic, with multiple opportunities for solos and improvisation, this work is a beautiful addition to the contemporary choral canon.