Gabriel's Message, for soprano and organ
A setting of the traditional Basque Christmas carol.
My sister and I often come out to visit my parents in Los Angeles for Christmas, and everyone in the church always asks her to sing O Holy Night, with me accompanying. Of course she does a lovely rendition of it, but she's tired of it by now, so she asked me to come up with something new to take its place. She suggested Gabriel's Message, and when we got together to talk about the kind of piece she was looking for, we discovered that we were both on the same wavelength. She sings the carol with a straightforward, unaffected style, as the repeating figures in the organ keep time. The middle section soars, but then returns to simplicity at the end, as gentle Mary bows her head. It was a pleasure to create this piece with her.