Stephen Paulus, The Road Home

We are not done with the subject of American choral music yet (and of course we never will be). William Billings and Eric Whitacre provide some nice bookends, chronologically at least, for some further discussion. Choral music has proven to be one of the best genres for composers to explore the avant garde and, particularly with sacred choral music, to incorporate traditional forms and sonorities into contemporary works.

Stephen Paulus (1949-2014) wrote for just about every ensemble imaginable. He was widely acclaimed and had his works performed by premier orchestras and top-notch solists. He wrote 12 operas and 55 orchestral works. And he also wrote over 400 works for chorus.

Our little singing ensemble in Bowie, Texas sang “The Road Home” on many occasions. We sang for enjoyment and made it a habit to take on works at the very edge of our abilities (and sometimes a little beyond). But we were comfortable with “The Road Home” and never tired of it.

Paulus is perhaps better known for his “Pilgrim’s Hymn” from the opera The Three Hermits. It was performed at the funerals of Presidents Reagan and Ford, and I recommend you listen to it. But Paulus, writing about his composition of “The Road Home,” noted that it was catching up with “Pilgrim’s Hymn” in popularity.

“The Road Home” is based on a simple folk tune found in The Southern Harmony Songbook of 1835, which included some of William Billings’ works as well. Paulus retains the simplicity of melody and style and works with the harmonies to highlight rather than obscure the simplicity. Writing about the work, he concluded

It is just more evidence that often the most powerful and beautiful message is a simple one.