The unfortunate circumstances that the Covid-19 Pandemic brought upon the entire world has left lasting implications in the way we interact with our global brothers and sisters. Accompanying this pandemic was one of the most painful illustrations of social unrest and division the United States has seen in recent years. Our country and world felt lost. Through long nights of anger, restlessness, confusion, tears, and bitterness, we are now slowly emerging from the night and awaiting a new day. This concert seeks to capture our shared loss from the past two years and makes a promise that a shining light and new story of hope, faith, and love is ahead.

Lost In the Night, a Finnish folk tune, takes us back to March 2020 where we persistently waited for the tomorrow that never came. The virus continued to spread and the lockdowns remained. We were stuck in darkness. This Christian text points to the light of Jesus Christ, our ultimate source of hope; however, the piece ends with the declamation, “Come and save us soon!” This cry for day and light was a shared sentiment by all throughout the pandemic. As the world continued to wait for the lockdowns to end, the day of freedom seemed further and further away. Philip Silvey’s arrangement of the American folk song Nine Hundred Miles tells the story of the American railroad in the early twentieth century. With travel opportunities greatly scarce back then, the longing for home and family were extremely realistic and genuine. The mantra “miles and miles from home” invokes a similar sentiment that people felt throughout 2020-2021, not knowing when normalcy would return.

Despite our frustrations and anger, we learned to adapt. In many situations, we even found better ways of communicating, improving our work/life balance, and saying “no” to the things that didn’t matter. Churches across the globe virtually opened their doors through livestream when their physical doors remained closed. Rosephanye Powell’s setting of Psalm 115 (Non Nobis, Domine) reminds us that no matter the circumstance, “But to your name, O Lord, should there be praise. Glory to your name.” With this newly gained perspective, we can more freely reflect on the grace and provision which God has blessed us. Canadian composer, Sarah Quartel invites us to remember God’s blessings not just as a cathartic release, but as a way to move forward (I Remember).

In the new story we intend to share, we marry the remembrances that Sarah Quartel writes about with our renewed striving for reconciliation. Our country and world hunger for economic healing, racial and social justice, mercy, and compassion. This longing must start with the individual. Written in 2021, Reconcile serves as a launching point for how reconciliation looks, feels, and sounds. Written with both English and Swahili texts, this piece represent that this is a world issue, and that even though languages can sometimes get our way, music has the ability to penetrate through any culture, time, and space.

I sincerely wish you and your family days of joy and hope ahead. Each one of us has a story to tell about how the last few years have impacted our lives. I pray that God richly blesses you and your family with a new story to tell: filled with the assurance of God’s love and the desire to share his love with one another. All Will Be Well.

Lost in the Night – arr. Kyle Haugen

Lost in the night do the people yet languish,
Longing for morning the darkness to vanquish,
Plaintively heaving a sigh full of anguish.

Will not day come soon?

Must we be vainly awaiting the morrow?
Shall those who have light no light let us borrow,
Giving no heed to our burden of sorrow?

Will you help us soon?

Sorrowing wand’rers, in darkness yet dwelling,
Dawned has the day of a radiance excelling,
Death’s dreaded darkness forever dispelling.

Christ is coming soon!

Nine Hundred Miles – arr. Philip Silvey

Daniel Johnston, soloist

I am walkin’ on this track,
I’ve got tears in my eyes,
I’m try’n’ to read a letter from my home.
And if that train runs me right,
I’ll be home Saturday night,
‘Cause I’m nine hundred miles from my home.
And I hate to hear that lonesome whistle blow,
That long lonesome train whistlin’ down.

Well this train I ride on is a hundred coaches long.
You can hear her whistle blow a million miles.

Non Nobis, Domine – Rosephanye Powell

Non nobis, Domine, tuo da gloriam.
Not to us Lord, but to your name, O Lord, should there be praise.

Sed nomini tuo da gloriam.
Give glory to your name.

I Remember – Sarah Quartel

I remember days of sunshine, days of rain.
I remember knowing spring will come again,
And when I sing I remember all the wonders I have seen:
Waters reaching the horizon, waves that carry you and me.
I remember this, my friend.

I remember golden summers when corn is high.
I remember branches reaching to the sky,
And when I sing I remember all the harvests of the field,
Fruits of love that lie in waiting, all the bounty now revealed.
I remember this, my friend.

In my song there’s a race through a wild green meadow,
The sunshine so bright in my eyes.
In my song there’s a day by the cool of the water,
Knowing that you’re by my side again.

I remember all the loved ones I have known.
I remember all they’ve taught me, how I’ve grown.
When I sing I remember many lives that shared my song,
Brought together in a moment, finding somewhere to belong,
And I remember you, my friend.
I remember, you my friend.

Reconcile – Kyle Pederson

Brittany Johnston and Madeline Hudson-Knowlton, soloists

Forgive me for all the times I stood by,
Turned aside, and when I cast a blind eye down;
I pretended not to see you grieving, not to see you reeling,
But I see you now.

I’ll turn around, my pride laid down,
Hear my apology.
Can we talk together? I want to do better…
May I walk with you, and stay awhile…
Can we reconcile?

Forgive me for all the times I laughed,
Or went on the attack, all at your expense;
Behind your back I undermined what you’re about,
I sold you out, never came to your defense.

Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak;
Courage is what it takes to sit down and listen.
This is the work we’re called to do.
This is the work we all can do.

All Will Be Well – Will Todd

There’s a bloom that never fades.
There’s a dream that stays.
There’s a hope which carries me through all my days.

So I will bring a shining light, a story new to tell.
In the end all things shall pass and all will be well.

I am here beside you.
I am holding you.
I will be the hand of love in all you do.

Sound and technology: Giovanni Barrios and NU Chapel Crew

Department Chair: Naomi Fanshier

Administrative Assistant: Victoria Geck

Ushers: Victoria Geck, Mizue Fells