Mcneil Robinson As Choral Musician a Survey of His Choral Works for the Christian and Jewish Traditions Jason Allen Wright University of South Carolina
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University of South Carolina Scholar Commons Theses and Dissertations 2017 Mcneil Robinson as Choral Musician A Survey of his Choral Works for the Christian and Jewish Traditions Jason Allen Wright University of South Carolina Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd Part of the Music Commons Recommended Citation Wright, J. A.(2017). Mcneil Robinson as Choral Musician A Survey of his Choral Works for the Christian and Jewish Traditions. (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/4210 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you by Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. MCNEIL ROBINSON AS CHORAL MUSICIAN A SURVEY OF HIS CHORAL WORKS FOR THE CHRISTIAN AND JEWISH TRADITIONS by Jason Allen Wright Bachelor of Music East Carolina University, 2003 Master of Music University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2004 Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Musical Arts in Conducting School of Music University of South Carolina 2017 Accepted by: Larry Wyatt, Major Professor Alicia Walker, Committee Member Andrew Gowan, Committee Member Julie Hubbert, Committee Member Cheryl L. Addy, Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School © Copyright by Jason Allen Wright, 2017 All Rights Reserved. ii DEDICATION This document is dedicated to God, who knew me before I was born and gave me the gift of music. To my parents, Tommy A. and Ruby N. Wright, who gave me life and who continue to love and support me throughout my life and musical journey. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS To Neil, your choral music serves as the inspiration for this body of work. May your legacy and your compositions stand as a testament to your love, commitment, and dedication to the art of music. To Robert McCormick and John Bradford Bohl who first introduced me to Neil’s choral music while visiting St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, K-Street in Washington, DC. To Neil’s former students: Kyle Babin, Christopher Creaghan, Phillip Lamb, Robert McCormick, Paul Murray, Edward Thompson, F. Anthony Thurman, and Andrew Yeargin who have provided me with a wealth of knowledge and have encouraged me along this process. A special thank you to Christopher Creaghan who truly got me started on this project by pointing me in the right directions and was available for assistance at all times. To the choral singers of The Church of St. Mary the Virgin (Catherine Aks, Julianna Baird, Fred Epting, Judith Malafronte, Jan Opalach, and Nancy Wertsch), Park Avenue Synagogue (Elliott Levine), Park Avenue Christian Church (Elaine Cunningham, Georga Osbourne, Myrna Payne, and Estella Pate), and Holy Trinity Catholic Church (Michelle Repella), in the City of New York for their insight on Neil as a person, church musician, and composer. iv To Father David Lowry, Cantor David Lefkowitz, Cantor Azi Schwartz, John Payne, and Monsignor Leonard for their insight on Neil as a person and professional musician of the church and synagogue. To Dr. Robert Sirota, for his insights on Neil as an academic at Manhattan School of Music. To Wayne Leupold and the staff of The Wayne Leupold Archive in North Carolina for their generosity and help while researching his choral music in their archive. To Neil’s wife Cristina Robinson who added a personal touch to who Neil was and the inspiration behind the music. To my conducting teachers both past and present Daniel Bara, Welborn Young, William Carroll, Larry Wyatt, Alicia Walker, and Neil Casey. Thank you for giving of yourselves to prepare a future generation of conductors. To my mentors both past and present Cindy Joy, Mary Lou Young, Philip Young, Janette Fishell, and Karen Kennedy, who have given me a wealth of knowledge beyond what could ever be learned in a classroom. To my dearest friend, Michael Boney, who knows me better than myself, has challenged me each day to be a better person and musician, and who has lead by example. To my friend R. Monty Bennett, who assisted me with the Jewish compositions. To my partner, Nicholas Ruden whose love, encouragement, and support has been immeasurable. To my dogs Lady Adeline and Sir Windsor, who sat at my feet throughout this entire process, nudging me to finish so that we could go out and play. v ABSTRACT McNeil Robinson II (1943-2015), internationally renowned organist and composer, was born in Birmingham, Alabama and educated at Birmingham Southern College, Mannes College of Music, and the Juilliard School. Robinson served at several iconic and celebrated churches and at a synagogue in the City of New York including: the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, the Church of the Holy Family (United Nations), Park Avenue Christian Church, Park Avenue Synagogue, and Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church. As an academic, Robinson was chair of the organ department and a professor of music at Manhattan School of Music. Over the course of these appointments, Robinson composed music for organ solo, organ and orchestra, choral, and solo voice with organ and orchestra accompaniment. Other compositions include music for a film, a play, and an unfinished opera. Robinson composed sixty choral compositions along with a wealth of service music for both the Christian and Jewish traditions. These compositions include anthems, Missa brevis, hymns, and psalm responsorials. Although, much of the choral music was written for use in his own parish and synagogue, other works were commissions received from other houses of worship across the United States and abroad, including a commission by the Archbishop of Canterbury in England, and for the concert stage. Robinson’s compositional teachers and influences include: Vincent Persichetti, Yehudi Wyner, and Virgil Thomson, with influences of Igor Stravinsky, Olivier Messiaen, and Maurice Duruflé. Robinson’s choral compositions can be categorized as post-Neoclassical, serial, and conservative with elements of contemplativeand Romantic vi style-characteristics. This document aims to provide a comprehensive look at composer McNeil Robinson, with an emphasis on his choral composition. Chapter One will provide a biographical sketch of Robinson’s life and career. Chapter Two contains conversations with family, academics, formers students, clergy, singers, and other professionals in the field. Chapter Three introduces Robinson as a choral musician. Chapter Four outlines Robinson’s compositional style. Chapters Five is a survey of Robinson’s choral music for the Christian tradition. Chapter Six discusses Robinson and Park Avenue Synagogue. Chapter Seven is a survey of Robinson’s choral music for the Jewish Tradition. Chapter Eight serves as a conclusion. The appendixes will outline a list of supplemental materials, which includes: a catalogue of works, bulletin from Robinson’s memorial service (containing his musical compositions), a video of his memorial service, a video interview of Robinson with the NYC American Guild of Organists, an audio recording of Robinson speaking about Jewish music and his tenure at Park Avenue Synagogue, and a video of the author’s lecture-recital. The appendix continues with the Leupold Archive inventory list, Robinson’s obituary, submitted themes for improvisation, list of commissions and premieres at Park Avenue Synagogue, and DMA recital programs and brief biographical sketch of the author. vii PREFACE I was first introduced to the choral music of McNeil Robinson in 2009. It was in early November, I was visiting my friend John Bradford Bohl, who served as the Assistant Director of Music and Organist at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Washington, DC. Their choir, under the direction of Robert McCormick, was preparing to record their upcoming compact disc We Sing of God (2010), which featured Robinson’s Missa Brevis (1996). I admired his style so much that when I got back home to North Carolina, I contacted Lois Fyfe Music in Nashville, Tennessee and ordered his published works. When the pieces arrived, I played through them at the piano. His soaring melodic structures, harmonic language, and manner of text setting gave me the same experience that I had first encounter when hearing his Missa Brevis. It was in the fall of 2015 that I began to ponder what I might use as the subject of my document, many ideas surfaced; however, I kept returning to the choral pieces of McNeil Robinson that I owned. I contacted Robert McCormick to run my idea by him; he was immediately thrilled that someone was taking up this project. Robert gave me some preliminary contacts and resources to start my research, including Christopher Creaghan’s contact information who I will mention later. It was only when I read F. Anthony Thurman’s doctoral dissertation from Manhattan School of Music that I learned of McNeil’s complete oeuvre from the list of compositions in the appendix. From that list I learned that many of Robinson’s choral composition are no longer in publication, some have never been published, and a few are lost. viii Thankfully Robinson entrusted his compositions to Christopher Creaghan, who he often referred to as “my scribe.” Following Robinson’s death, Creaghan categorized his choral music and prepared it to be sent to the Wayne Leupold Archives in Colfax, North Carolina where it is now available for perusal and research. At the publication of this document, plans are in process to in the near future record a commercial compact disc of Robinson’s choral music.