“And I Saw a New Heaven”
The music of our tradition, particularly choral and organ music, is interwoven into our liturgies and our traditions in deep, connected ways. Music has a way of helping define a tradition. For Lutherans, hymn singing in the German chorale tradition is a keystone of their worship service. For the Dutch Reformed Church, singing the Psalms is a hallmark of their identity. For the Roman Catholic Church, a preservation of chant connects them to the formation of the early church. In the American non-denominational and Pentecostal traditions, a praise band has become their musical medium. Our musical inheritance from the Church of England is a choral tradition that fosters the highest level of sacred music making. It is a tradition that values the beauty and magnificence of the organ. It is a tradition that nurtures congregational singing, utilizing sacred poetry by some of the most enlightened thinkers ever known. All these facets of our tradition, are why I’m an Episcopalian.
I imagine that every choral director has a list of his or her favorite “top-ten” anthems. I cultivate a list in my mind, which has changed with age and experience. Favorites include John Ireland’s “Greater Love Hath No Man,” two by Mendelssohn, “He Watching O’er Israel,” and “Hear My Prayer,” and Samuel Sebastian Wesley’s “Wash Me Throughly.” Most of the anthems on my top-ten list are offered yearly at Emmauel, so if you’re astute you can probably figure out which anthems they are.
One anthem, however, has been on my list since I first started to find my way into The Episcopal Church. I first heard it at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Phoenix, Arizona, when I was 22 years old. It is a work by Edgar Bainton, “And I Saw a New Heaven,” a setting of Revelation 21:1-4.
21 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
It is the perfect combination of luscious choral writing, beautiful organ accompaniment, and exquisite text-painting. I have heard it performed several times through the years in various parishes, cathedrals, and at Choral Evensong. I was excited to incorporate the piece into our choral repertoire at Emmanuel and ordered it in the first week of my arrival in 2010. I quickly realized that our former Wicks organ was exceedingly inadequate to accompany the work, the acoustic of the church in 2010, which was completely covered in heavy red carpet, unsupportive for such beautiful music, and that it was a bit too ambitious for our choir at the time.
Thankfully, and inspired and guided by God, much has changed in the intervening years. The completion of the organ in 2024 has given our parish an instrument that can handle the organ accompaniment, the choir has grown in number and capability, and the acoustic of our church, with renovations in 2011 and 2014/15, now supports music of almost any kind, and in particular, congregational singing.
Bainton’s (1880-1956) legacy is mainly attached to this very special work, although he composed symphonies, songs, chamber works, and major works for chorus and orchestra. He was born in London and studied with Walford Davies and Sir Charles Villiers Stanford. In the summer of 1914, Bainton was in Germany to attend the Bayreuth Festival. As war broke out, Bainton was arrested as an enemy alien of military age and was sent to the civilian detention camp at Ruhleben where he was put in charge of all the music at the camp. After the war, Bainton returned to Newcastle where he taught at the university. In 1934, Bainton and his family moved to Australia and founded the Sydney Opera School.
Bainton’s anthem is one that is deeply connected with my personal faith, and I find myself humming it or listening to it during times of loss and change. It is comforting, and Bainton puts these words from the Book of Revelation into something other-worldly. In my opinion, it is the perfect All Saints’ Day anthem. Tomorrow, the choir will offer Bainton’s famous anthem as part of our 10 A.M. Eucharist and then again for Choral Evensong at 5 P.M. The choir has worked hard these past two months to incorporate this important pillar of our church’s choral tradition into its repertoire. May you hear these words, connected to this incredibly beautiful music, as a comfort and strength as we remember and celebrate the saints of our lives.