Psalm Offering 6 was composed in 1986 for Dr. Maurice A. Jones. Maurie Jones taught at the College of St. Catherine in St Paul, MN. Maurie directed the “Chorale” of St. Kates, taught voice practicums, and subbed for Dr. Al Biales teaching Music History. He was the finest professor I ever had, and the finest director I have ever had. When I graduated from the University of St. Thomas, Maurie became my mentor and over time a good friend. Along with his academic career, Maurie was also a thespian and at home on the stage, starring in a number of musical roles. He died on Holy Thursday, 1986.
Maurie’s doctoral thesis was the development of the American musical in the 19th century. His doctoral work centered around a piece written for American theater entitled, “The Haymakers.” In the Fall of 1986, Maurie planned on taking the Chorale to the State of Israel to sing at Christmas. There was a television news story about Maurie’s plans to tour with the Chorale. Maurie looked very ill, and Ruthie and I exchanged looks that said it all. By 1985, AIDS had reached pandemic levels among the Gay community. The tour of the Chorale was scrapped. One would never have guessed that Maurie was a homosexual. When he died, the College of St. Catherine announced the cause of death as Legionnaire’s Disease. The music community of the St. Paul and Minneapolis knew that Maurie had died from AIDS.
When I heard through the musical grapevine that Maurie was seriously ill, I began work on this composition. Shortly after Christmas of 1985, I finished the composition of this Psalm Offering for Maurie, recorded it and sent the recording and music to Maurie. On Holy Thursday, Maurie had died.
The music has elements of what I think is musical Americana. It has neo-classical/early romantic period elements, along with the music that is often associated as uniquely American. It is like the fusion of Rembrandt with Grandma Moses, or the German poet, Friedrich Schiller with American poet, Walt Whitman. The Classic period’s Alberti bass in the left hand, to the arpeggios of the Romantic period joined with a melody I consider Americana. The musical elements were such that I hoped that Maurie might appreciate.
A brief word about homosexuality. I have always believed that our sexual orientation is more about how God created us rather than some conscious choice that we make as individuals. In the Arts, in whatever form it may be, there has always been a number of artists who are homosexual. Over the years I have had the pleasure and honor of working with many men and women who are gay. There was only one time I made a disparaging remark about the gay community, and sadly, it was to Maurie. It was 1983 and there had been accusations about child sex abuse in Jordan, MN. A friend of mine lost his teaching position for having propositioned some high school students while drunk. I told Maurie that I was fine with the gay community, I just didn’t want anyone from the community hitting on me. I regretted my words before they left my mouth. It was an asinine thing to say, and the hurt look in Maurie’s eyes said it all. I have never forgiven myself for saying that to a man I so admired and loved. My words sinned against a fine community of men and women. Never will I ever do that again. God only creates good, not evil. We tend to forget this.
Dear Bob.
I have reason to remember Maurie on a regular basis to this day because I am privileged to sing with Saint Paul Vocal Forum. The artistic director,Karin Barrett, studied voice under Maurie as did I, if only briefly. She shares the intuitive sense of care he had for all who got to really know him. Thank you for your sharing and confession. You are not alone in feeling regret over having said something disparaging about homosexuality. I have too. My hope is that I have grown wiser with age and that Maurie’s soul and those Of others like him forgive.
Peace.
Phil Soucheray
Hi Phil,
What a joy to hear from you! You must tell me how you found this entry about Maurie. The analogy I use about blogs, is that it is quite familiar to that of a dog marking his/her territory so that other dogs know the dog in question had been there before them. A blog is my way of “lifting my leg on the world” and letting the rest of the world know I passed by.
As I get older and my body falls apart (I feel a bit akin to the zombie’s in the old Michael Jackson “Thriller” video … you are walking down the street and an arm falls off), I have begun to think of what kind of legacy I am leaving behind me. In 2011, a MRSA infection almost took me out, and as I was sitting around at Christmas (I was completely without a left hip due to the infection), I wondered what kind of Christmas present I could give Ruth. I shaved my mustache (she has hated that thing for 30 years), and I began to write poetry about her from the time we began to court. I attached some old photos to the poems, and had my daughter-in-law print it up and put it in a 3 ring binder for Ruth. Thus began the now 5 volume collection of poems about our life together. It is a bit of our history for our kids.
This past late summer, when my orthopedic surgeon informed me that my right hip, my right knee, and my right shoulder all needed replacing (my response was, “What the hell!!”) and I was again sitting on my butt following the replacement of my right hip (the right knee gets replaced in August), I went through the “green tote” that contained a lot of the music I have written over 45 years, and began to transfer note by note, dynamic by dynamic all the handwritten music into a digital program called Finale. I have transferred nearly all the piano music I have written since 1970. I have called his music from the get go, Psalm Offerings, a musical prayer. I wrote them either as a present for someone or in memory of someone. It is my way of “lighting a candle” as a prayer intention for them. Along with the music I started to write something about the person for whom the music was written. This is what you have seen on my blog. It is my musical legacy for posterity. At Easter I presented to Ruthie and each of my kids all the music and the stories about the people for whom they were written (along with the recording of that music) as a present. They received 5 collections or Opuses of that music. Since February, I have newly composed another 12 Psalm Offerings, mostly for the living as a gift. My kids will each receive a Psalm Offering as my gift to them on my birthday.
I have begun composing a new Opus of what might best be called Psalm Offering Lamentations. I don’t know if you remember singing Poulenc’s Christmas Motets. Poulenc also composed a set of Motets for Holy Week. After the horrific gun violence of last week, the first Psalm Offering was written in memory of those who have died by gun violence. It is a bit esoteric and avantgarde. the composing came viscerally.
On a little bit of a lighter note, do you remember Dave Waite. He had the lead in a couple of operas that Maurie was involved in at St Kate’s during Interim when we were in college. Dave and I were very good friends. He was very talented and very entertaining. He was also not always reliable for the mundane things of life, and sometimes his stories were all bullshit. Psalm Offering 4 Opus 4 is dedicated to Dave. It is on my blog. I mention this because, as with most folks, I lost touch with Dave the summer after Maurie had died. He had been married, sung in the zurich opera, got divorced was back in the states, worked a bit with Sarah Purcell and the Boston Opera, and was seeking a MBA degree at St. Thomas. Anyway, having posted Dave’s story and his music on the blog, his widow contacted me. Dave had remarried an organist for one of the Lutheran Church’s in Minneapolis. Her name is Gerta. She is a German expatriot who immmigrated to the United States, studied organ at the U of M, and played for peanuts as a church musician (the Lutherans are as stingy as the Catholics apparently when it comes to paying for musicians). She accompanied Dave for a couple of concerts, they fell in love, got married and lived happily ever after until he died suddenly in 2004. Gerta has since remarried, and lives now in Iowa. She works as a law clerk now … a much more lucrative career.
Would like to catch up with you if you have the time. Let me know if it is possible.
Peace,
Bob