Augsburg Songbook for Men Order songbook: Augsburg 0800676831
Following the success of the Augsburg Choirbook and the Augsburg Easy Choirbook, the Augsburg Choirbook for Men will satisfy the needs of choirs and small ensembles alike. This collection features old and new anthems that should be staples in any choral library.
2. I Want Jesus to Walk with Me Spiritual arranged for TB voices and piano.
Do, Lord, O Do Remember Me Spiritual arranged for TTTB and piano.
A rousing southern praise song that Bruce remembers from his youth in southern West Virginia, singing it with fellow 7th grade choir members on the bus to a choral festival across the mountain in Bluefield. Old time country flavor with a blues bent and Gospel piano accompaniment. Bruce has dedicated these arrangements to Sibyl Keesee (1922-2015), his choir director at Princeton Junior High School, back in 1956.
View score. Listen to midi.
Don’t Be Weary Traveler SATB or TTBB and piano.
Another lesser-known spiritual with perhaps the most elegant melody of any in the call and response style. First made popular by R. Nathaniel Dett (1882-1943) and his Chorale.
Arranged for and dedicated to Teddy Guerrant, the finest pianist I have ever worked with.
View score. Listen to to the Penn State Glee Club.
Come along home to Jesus.
My head got wet with the midnight dew,
Come along home to Jesus.
Angels bear me witness too,
Come along home to Jesus.
I look at the world and the world look new,
Come along home to Jesus.
I look at my hands and they look so too,
Come along home to Jesus.
He’s Got the Whole World in his Hands Spiritual adapted from the arrangement by Margaret Bonds (1913-1972).
For TTBB and piano.
This, the most beloved of all spirituals and the most inspiring, was a signature piece of the great contralto Marian Anderson (1897-1993). The arrangement is a tribute to both of these brilliant and talented American musicians.
View score. Listen to Penn State Glee Club, Lee Wagner, piano. Homecoming 2004.
Listen and watch Marian Anderson sing the Bonds arrangement with orchestra (1953).
Hold On! For TTBB and piano. One of the most vibrant and rhythmic of spirituals. The piano part alone is a rhapsodic set of variations on the tune, moving through keys and textures to amplify the joy and drive of this spiritual with its 6 verses growing in intensity and abandon. Your choir and congregation will love this tour-de-force.
View score. Listen to midi. Listen to Marian Anderson.
(1897-1993)
doors all fastened and the windows pinned.
Keep your hand on the plow. Hold on!
Noah said, you done lost your track,
can’t run straight and keep lookin’ back.
Keep your hand on the plow. Hold on!
If that plow stay ina your hand,
it’ll land you straight in the promised land.
Keep your hand on the plow. Hold on!
(1887-1953)
I Am Bound for the Kingdom For TTBB and piano. Based on the Florence Price arrangement.
"I Am Bound for the Kingdom" is the first of Two Traditional Negro Spirituals which composer-arranger Florence Price (1887-1953) sent to the great American contralto Marian Anderson (1897-1993). In her manuscript Price noted “as sung by Fannie Carter Woods, Chicago, Ill.” Marian Anderson recorded the spiritual in 1964.
View score. Listen to midi. Listen to Marian Anderson on The Bell Telephone Hour 1945.
I am bound for the kingdom. Glory ina my soul.
If you get there before I do, Glory ina my soul.
Look out for me I’m a comin’ too. Glory ina my soul.
I Want Jesus to Walk with Me For TTBB and piano.
“Bruce Trinkley is a master at setting spirituals: his choral writing is not difficult, but interesting and his accompaniments complete. Consider this one for a Sunday in November.” The ostinato rhythm with the melodic motive gives an ever-increasing urgency to the quiet but powerful vocal writing. A moving and devastating experience for singers and listeners alike.”
And Augsburg says: “Many settings of this spiritual are on the market, but this setting by Bruce Trinkley stands out for its creative, yet accessible choral and keyboard writing.”
View score. Listen to midi. Order octavo from Stanton’s.
I Want To Be Ready For TTBB and piano. Joyous, rhythmic and exciting, this well-known spiritual finds a fresh sound in another tour-de-force of arranging. The last verse makes it the perfect spiritual for Pentecost.
For Lawrence Putorek, Jr. and the Glendale Choirs.
View score. Listen to midi.
When Peter was preachin’ at Pentecost, Walk in Jerusalem jus’ like John.
He was endowed with the holy ghost. Walk in Jerusalem jus’ like John.
In Bright Mansions Above For TTBB a capella.
Rarely heard but lovely, simple and easy.
In bright mansions above, in bright mansions above, Lord,
I want to live up yonder in bright mansions above.
View score. Listen to midi.
In the Storm So Long For TTBB and piano. Augsburg 978-1-4514-9251-4
Composer Commentary I first heard this spiritual sung by the great African American contralto Marian Anderson (1897-1993) on a recording played on WQXR in New York City several years ago. It was a spiritual with which I was not familiar but Anderson’s delivery was so heartfelt and compelling that I knew I wanted to make it better known. The verse is in the traditional call and response of African American spirituals with a very powerful chorus. The arrangement is in a simple arch form with a powerful and passionate middle section. It is one of my favorite spirituals and I am quite proud of the arrangement. I hope that conductors, choirs, and congregations will find it inspiring and moving, and I urge performers to track down the Marian Anderson recording for a great example of her art and her expertise in this repertory.
View score and listen to Augsburg Choir. Download TTBB score.
Keep an Eye on Me For TTBB and piano.
An old-time religion gospel spiritual, irresistible, and another one that Bruce remembers from his youth in Mercer County in southern West Virginia. The piano part is a joy and a workout for your collaborative pianist and Bruce has added a countermelody with “Hallelujah!”
View score. Listen to midi.
Now ev’ryone knows it’s hot below,
And people like me would rather not go,
For goodness sakes, Lord, please say no! And keep an eye on me.
Heaven, heaven, heaven is the place I wanna be.
Move somebody over Lord, And make some room for me.
I’ll sing all day and pray all night, Be happy as can be, Just keep an eye, O Lord, just keep an eye on me.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Le’s Have a Union For TTBB and piano.
A spiritual that points the way to rock’n roll and jazz with its driving rhythms. It is a rousing sermon in glorious song with its call to union.
View score. Listen to midi. Listen to Marian Anderson.
Prayin a union, Jesus listenin’, Prayin a union, Jesus died.
Come an’ help me sing! Come an’ help me pray!
‘Cause I got to go to Glory, An' I’m on my way.
Oh, the way is long But my faith is strong
An' I'll make it home to Heaven, Help me sing my song.
Well, I don' feel bad, An’ I don'’feel sad; Lord,
I worry with my crosses An’ I don’t get mad.
Lord, I Want More Religion Pennsylvania Spiritual arranged for TTBB and solo voice unaccompanied.
Professor Samuel Bayard (1908-1997) was a renowned and beloved scholar, researcher and teacher at Penn State. He recorded this "Pennsylvania spiritual" in Greene County, PA in 1930. "Hiram H. White, who sang this characteristic spiritual to me, was the first traditional Pennsylvania singer I encountered, and one of the best." The arrangement is dedicated to the memory of David Hudson, who sang the solo part in the premiere and on the Glee Club recordings of the spiritual.
Download TTBB score. Listen to David on Glee Club Gold.
My Soul’s Been Anchored in the Lord Spiritual arranged for TTBB and piano Hinshaw HMC 1736
One of a trilogy of Trinkley’s spirituals for church or school choir, a rhythmic piece with a driving piano accompaniment.
View score. Listen to midi.
Oh, Wasn’t That a Wide River? Spiritual arranged for TTBB and piano Hinshaw HMC 1734
The second of a trilogy, a spritely spiritual arranged for choir and piano accompaniment.
View score. Listen to midi.
Ride On, King Jesus Spiritual arranged for TTBB and piano Hinshaw HMC 1735
The third of a trilogy, spiritual arrangement with a majestic air, medium level, with lively piano accompaniment.
Also available for TTBB and piano.
View TTBB score. Listen to the men’s chorus version sung by the Penn State Glee Club - from Glee Club Gold.
Soon I Will Be Done TTBB and piano. William Dawson’s version defined the spirited delivery and fast tempo, but I always wanted to do an arrangement that captured the underlying pathos and nobility of the text. Thus, the tempo marking is “Blues, slow and expressive” with the quarter note at 84. Dawson marked his with a half-note at 104. A fresh take on this classic spiritual.
Arranged for Lawrence Putorek, Jr. and the Glendale Choirs.
View score. Listen to midi.
Sweet Canaan TTBB and piano. Arranged for and dedicated to Teddy Guerrant.
From Religious Folk-songs of the Negro (1927) edited by R. Nathaniel Dett (1882-1943).
Another unknown spiritual given a rousing gospel interpretation with a driving accompaniment.
View score. Listen to midi.
Sweet Canaan's happy land,
Pray give me your right hand.
Oh, my brother, did you come for to help me,
Oh, my brother, did you come for to help me?
Pray, give me your right hand.
Oh, my sister, did you come for to help me,
Oh, my sister, did you come for to help me?
Pray, give me your right hand.
Oh, the land I am bound for,
Sweet Canaan's happy land,
Pray give me your right hand.
Trampin’ TTBB and piano. For Lawrence Putorek, Jr. and the Glendale Choirs.
Another spiritual arranged on the magnificent Steinway at the Hambidge Center in the mountains of Georgia. I was inspired also by Marian Anderson’s magnificent and intense recording.
View score. Listen to midi. Listen to Marian Anderson.
I’ve never been to heaven, but I’ve been told, Tryin’ to make heaven my home,
that the streets up there are paved with gold.
If you get there before I do, tryin’ to make heaven my home,
Tell all my friends I’m comin’ too.
Twelve Gates to the City Spiritual arranged for TTBB, optional solo and piano.
Joyful and jazzy, dramatic and rousing version of “Oh, what a beautiful city, Allelu!”
Download score.
Wade in the Water Spiritual arranged for TTBB and piano. Augsburg 978-0-8006-5762-8
This magnificent spiritual was among many that I arranged on the grand old gospel piano in the Garden Studio at the Hambidge Center in Rabun Gap, Georgia. It has the flavor of my beloved southern Appalachians. It is one of my favorite arrangements, both jubilant and cautionary. The piano is integral and, at the end, enigmatic.
View score. Listen to the Glee Club, from Glee Club Gold.
Walking in the Light Spiritual arranged by Bailey Harvey (1906-1991). Transcribed and edited by Bruce Trinkley. TTBB a cappella.
Bailey "Oats" Harvey taught this spiritual by rote to the Columbia Glee Club during the annual fall retreat to Camp Columbia in Connecticut in the 1950s and 1960s. This edition is by Bruce Trinkley as he remembers it being taught by Oats.
View score. Listen to midi.
Weary Traveler Spiritual arranged for TTBB, solo voice and piano. Also available for SATB and for solo voice and piano.
It was always a pleasure to arrange spirituals for tenor David Hudson and pianist Tony Leach - you knew you were going to get a very sensitive and masterful performance from those fine musicians.
The hallmark of this arrangement is an obsessive C flat, a minor 7th above the tonic D flat that gives a haunting cast to the entire piece, and prevails until the final cadence.
Let us cheer the weary traveler along the heavenly way.
View TTBB score. View SATB score. Listen to midi.