NOTES ON THE ALBUM

New American Hymnal is a collection of worship songs, not in a religious sense, but rather for the American civic and cultural experiment.

The enduring power of religion, faith, and hymns is that they bind us to a unifying creed: a set of principles that form the value system for even the most secular of cultures. Perhaps in no other country does religion remain such a curious force than in the United States. Despite our theoretically secular founding, several recent judicial and social policy changes have been driven by Judeo-Christian tenets. It's not a new phenomenon: political-cultural issues have been a steady unifying force for fundamentalists since the rise of the Moral Majority in the 1980s, and the broader idea of mobilizing religion for political ends is a centuries-old strategy.

Yet, on issues of existential and once-in-a-generation importance, such as the threat of climate change, this same American religious establishment is unable, or unwilling, to mount the same kind of organized political effort as it does on polarizing social issues. Why not? Who decides which issues make it onto the battle lines of a religious or political creed, and which do not? Who has the privilege of setting the dominant interpretation?

Let’s decouple the ideas of worship, faith, hymns, and religion from the stigma and sometimes-toxicity of modern American religious institutions. Let’s look at these ideas in a civic and cultural sense. What exactly do we worship as Americans? What do we choose to elevate as themes in our American cultural creed? What values ultimately inform our metaphorical American hymnal?

New American Hymnal is a chance, in my small corner, to join others who are taking a fresh look at what constitutes the creed of American culture, independent of any religion. Nevertheless, I use the metaphor of a hymnal to guide the structure of this work: a nod to the names of existing church worship collections like the New English Hymnal or New Harmonia Sacra. I think of each work as a figurative meditation on an aspect of American civil life. Some works worship the good, some lament the bad, and others act as calls to action. But much like in a literal hymnal, these songs combine their various affects and messages into a unifying set of ideals.

The idea of the hymnal resonates with my own background as a child who grew up playing piano in a Southern Baptist church. I was often brought to tears by the hymns, and they remain one of the most foundational aspects of my musical language. When doctrine failed to convince me, the music would sustain me in the faith for some portion of my life. In college, as a political science major, I became interested in the curious relationships between American religion and politics. My professional musical life, which moved me from the South to New York City and now back to Texas, has allowed me to be a part of many diverse congregations that interpret the same text in strikingly different political and social directions.

Rather than attempt to sort out theological nuances or attempt to advocate for “who is right,” New American Hymnal instead tries to establish a foil: a secular creed based on the idea that certain American values are simply infallible - regardless of how they are interpreted or taught by any given religious group. There are injustices in modern American society that are intrinsically real, and no faith should be able to convince us otherwise based on their chosen religious text. We have real and existential problems ahead of us…problems that affect all of us…problems that exist outside of any religious worldview…problems that will require us to put dogmatic ideals aside and deal with each other in an intelligent manner…

…rising to these challenges requires, among other things, a New American Hymnal.

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 NOTES ON THE MUSIC

My hymnal is essentially a book of worship for the modern American experience, what we could call our civil religion.

The works use the language of the church, with titles like “chorale,” “chant,” “adoration,” and “invocation,” but they deal in secular subjects. In a hymnal, we often find sections of music and text from one hymn recycled and repurposed in another. In the same way, I constructed the works on New American Hymnal to be cross-referential. For instance, the chorale in the third track, which underlays the poignant 1968 speech by Robert F. Kennedy, is used again in two new musical contexts later in the album, becoming a through-line in the broader collection. The melody of “invocation (call to worship)” is used later in “chant (our collective inaction).” In short, I am trying to convey a sense of intra-hymnal unity, and a sense of “album” rather than one of discrete songs.

New American Hymnal represents my third album as a bandleader, and the first full album with this new quartet configuration. My last project, Unamuno Songs and Stories (2021), featured the same rhythm section (Marty Jaffe on bass and Michael Piolet on drums), but only included trumpeter Philip Dizack as a guest on two works. The musical rapport was incredibly special, and so I wrote New American Hymnal with Philip and the full quartet in mind. I invited the incredible Isabel Crespo Pardo to lend their voice to one composition on this album: a setting of an Emily Dickinson poem.

We will soon record a follow-up album containing a new extended work commissioned by the Chamber Music America New Jazz Works program. It has been a blessing to build such a strong musical bond with these artists over the past few years, and I am affirmed and encouraged by the support we have received from arts organizations and audiences alike. My deepest thanks to Marty, Mike, and Philip for their contributions, and to Isabel for sharing your artistry.

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The album begins by invoking the feeling of classic Americana in the hymn “modern gothic” (a reference to the classic Grant Wood painting), but with a slight distortion.

I use three folk-like triadic harmonies as the motivic root of this piece (for the music literate, these are I, IV and V). Each one is paired with a triad from an unrelated key. The piece requires improvisors to utilize the new collection of notes arising from these three “triad pairs.”

The melody consists of five melodic phrases, each played with five bars in between, cutting against the normal four-bar organization of American folk and jazz. When taken together, these harmonic and structural variations on traditional American styles represent the expanding diversity of what constitutes American folklore, and the clashes that come along with such a change. Sometimes the triad pairs will be consonant with one another, but often (as in the exclamatory piano chords in the last melody statement) they will conflict.

Ultimately, the music tries to expand the definition of nostalgic American idealism.

The second track, “invocation (call to worship)” is a short piece meant to give a sense of awakening and invitation, as in the beginning of a church service. This material makes an appearance again in the sixth track, “chant (for our tenuous time).”

The third track, “chorale: RFK on the death of MLK” was inspired by the 1968 speech given by Robert F. Kennedy in Indianapolis after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. The work of Dr. King is timeless, and there are others more qualified than I who have created highly consequential works to celebrate his legacy. Without overshadowing or trivializing this work, I found inspiration in the complementary efforts of Robert F. Kennedy. The work of RFK is much less widely known, at least among my generation, perhaps on account of his relatively short career before his own assassination just months after this speech. As a student of politics, I find him to be an interesting figure in the turbulence of the 1960s. Here was a white man of tremendous family wealth and privilege who, in his own limited historical context, could have easily chosen to be an idle bystander in the movement for civil rights.

And yet, we see RFK evolve tremendously on issues of race over the course of his life, so much so that he would eventually become a clear favorite among both white and prominent Black leaders (perhaps most notably John Lewis) for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. In this speech, which was completely improvised, RFK speaks with a clarity and moral gravity that is difficult to find in a contemporary American politician.

According to accounts of his aides and other primary sources, RFK improvised this speech, having just heard the news on the plane ride into Indianapolis.

The text itself is already hymn-like in its musicality, pacing, and tenor, but I added a three-voice chorale underneath to accentuate its natural flow. This same chorale becomes a sort of leitmotif that unifies the album, returning as the basis of tracks 5 and 8.

I wonder what our American hymnal would look like today had RFK not been assassinated in 1968…had MLK himself not been assassinated only months before, and had John F. Kennedy survived in 1963.

So much of our history and culture hinges on brief yet consequential moments. American society lives in the long-term effects of single events…a fact that is sometimes our greatest strength, yet often times our greatest limiting factor.

As a foil to “chorale (RFK on the death of MLK)”,  the fourth track, “adoration (for all that is good),” is a simple reflection on how far we have come as a nation, despite historical setbacks. I do not think it betrays the struggle for greater equality and social justice to acknowledge the many victories we have had to date. This piece is my offering of affirmation.

The following work, “chorale: disillusionment,” presents the same music used to underscore the RFK speech, but this time with a dystopian sensibility. It is meant to reflect a state of disbelief: that we could once have leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr., RFK, and John F. Kennedy, but now our media and political culture seem obsessed with politicians who deal in ginned-up culture wars, legislative logjams, and petty taunts. Thus, the musical motif of RFK, much like his noble ideals and visions, is warped, bastardized, and twisted.

The sixth track, “chant (for our tenuous time),” imbues a sense of urgency and call to action regarding existential threats to this planet that will affect us all, regardless of country or creed. The work encapsulates the feelings of anger at our inability to confront these issues, and the latent sense of hope that America will eventually act accordingly.

The seventh composition, “hope is the thing with feathers,” is a setting of the classic Emily Dickinson poem, with guest vocalist Isabel Crespo Pardo. Hope is an oft-overused theme in music, but I find the directness of Dickinson’s text to be refreshing and appropriate for a metaphorical “American hymnal.”

Unbeknownst to me on the day of the recording, Isabel does extraordinary bird calls, which you will hear in the beginning and end of the track.

The text of this poem reads:

“Hope” is the thing with feathers -

That perches in the soul -

And sings the tune without the words -

And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -

And sore must be the storm -

That could abash the little Bird

That kept so many warm -

I’ve heard it in the chillest land -

And on the strangest Sea -

Yet - never - in Extremity,

It asked a crumb - of me.

The final track, “chorale (press onward / abide with me),” amalgamates the various emotions and affects from the previous hymns, and it ties the final knot in the through-line of RFK. We leave the listener with a literal hymn, “Abide with Me” by William H. Monk and Henry Francis Lyte, a hymn often sung at funerals and mourning services but also used to appeal to God for strength and comfort.

In this tumultuous era, I find it to be fitting end to New American Hymnal.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS / CREDITS

Dave Meder - piano (all), vocals (tracks 6, 8)
Philip Dizack - trumpet
Marty Jaffe - bass
Michael Piolet - drums
Isabel Crespo Pardo - voice (track 7)

all music composed by Dave Meder (Dave Meder Music - BMI)
© 2023 Dave Meder / Dave Meder Music (BMI)

track 3 includes “Remarks on the Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.” (Robert F. Kennedy, 1968)

speech audio (public domain) accessed via John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum Online Archives

track 7 lyrics drawn from “hope is the thing with feathers” (Emily Dickinson, public domain)
track 8 incorporates “Eventide / Abide With Me” (William Henry Monk / Henry Francis Lyte, public domain)

My profound and everlasting thanks to the following patrons for their invaluable support of my work and creative practice:

Bill and Martha Sando, Susan and Steve Jewell-Larsen, Erdal Paksoy, Loriann Nalangan, Nathan Karakad, Paul Wolfe, Judy Watson, Elaine Spyker, Carole Fiore, Ken Boome

Recorded March 24-25, 2023 by Michael Perez-Cisneros at Big Orange Sheep (Brooklyn, NY).

Mixed/Mastered March 27-28, 2023 by David Darlington at Bass Hit Recording and Production (New York, NY).

I wish to give special thanks:

… to my parents, family and extended family, whose love and support has been truly immeasurable over the years.

… to the numerous fans and supporters who have contributed to this album project and followed my work over the years.

… to the many presenters and venue owners who have taken a chance on me and my work over the past several years.

… to my students who continually inspire me and challenge me.

… to Dean John Richmond, Chair of Jazz Studies Rob Parton, and all my colleagues at the University of North Texas for their steadfast mentorship

… to Bonnie Barrett and the team at Yamaha Artist Services New York for believing in my work, and for providing rehearsal space along with a beautiful CFX concert grand piano for the sessions

My deepest thanks to my wife for her unending love, patience, and support in the many months of coordinating this release (during a pregnancy, no less!).

Dave Meder is a Yamaha Artist. CFX Concert Grand Piano provided by Yamaha Artist Services New York.

This project is funded in part by the Pathways To Jazz grant, a donor advised fund of the Boulder County Arts Alliance. 

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