Program Note

From 1987 until 2017, my father, the Rev. Dr. Bruce Buchanan, served as Associate Pastor for Community Ministries at the First Presbyterian Church of Dallas, where his chief responsibility included acting as Executive Director of The Stewpot, a resource center for those experiencing homelessness in downtown Dallas. When Joshua Taylor, Director of Music for First Presbyterian, Dallas, contacted me about writing a choral work to honor my father at his retirement service, I began compiling texts which I hoped would speak to my dad’s lifetime of seeking justice and mercy for those who needed help, those whom the world viewed as “less than.” The text excerpts are almost entirely from the Psalms, with one reference to the prophet Isaiah and to Proverbs. In addition to the Psalms being a potent source of liturgical poetry that speak to people of many faiths in many times and places, I also feel a sense of connection to them, as my father would read to me from them when I was a baby, as well as before my birth.

The work is cast in three sections. The first focuses on singing of mercy and justice, and extolling the mercy and truth which has been established as an example to follow. The second features four soloists, reciting in plainsong-like tones a series of commandments, in reply to which the choir beseeches: “Hear my teaching, O my people; open your ears to the words of my mouth.” The final section is a spritely, imitative dance, building to a return to the opening, jubilant text.

I Will Sing of Mercy and of Justice was premiered at the retirement service for the Rev. Dr. Bruce Buchanan on November 19 in Dallas, Texas, by the Chancel Choir of the First Presbyterian Church of Dallas, guest conducted by Douglas Buchanan.

— Douglas Buchanan

Audio

I Will Sing of Mercy and of Justice

Video

I Will Sing of Mercy and of Justice
The Choir of St. David's, under the direction of the composer, perform the East Coast premiere of "I will sing of mercy and of justice," by Douglas Buchanan.

I Will Sing of Mercy and of Justice
Douglas Buchanan conducts the World Premiere of "I Will Sing of Mercy and of Justice," commissioned by the First Presbyterian Church of Dallas and performed by the Chancel Choir, in honor of the retirement of the Rev. Dr. Bruce Buchanan, Associate Pastor for Community Ministries