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Program Notes

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"Run in such a way..." is a reflection on Joy. I was thinking of the quote by the 1924 Scottish Olympic runner, Eric Liddell: “I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast! And when I run I feel His pleasure.”

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The phrase, “Run in such a way…” is borrowed from a passage in the New Testament Book of I Corinthians chapter 9 verse 24. This setting work for Band is a musical impression of the passage I learned during my childhood days at Sunday School.

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(I Corinthians 9:24-27 CBV) “Don’t you know that the runners in a stadium all race, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way to win the prize. Now everyone who competes exercises self-control in everything. They do it to receive a perishable crown, but we an imperishable crown. So I do not run like one who runs aimlessly or box like one beating the air. Instead, I discipline my body and bring it under strict control, so that after preaching to others, I will not be disqualified.”

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In 1972, the “Jogging” craze of the time caught my attention during my 8th-grade year of JrHigh. When I learned that the PE teacher was going to give an “A” to the first four students to complete the warm-up run, I thought, I could at least try for that. Being rewarded with an “A” was a motivating factor for sure. It took some time to get in shape enough to be one of the first four, but the daily trying paid off to the point where it became a consistent “A”.

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Comments

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"Just finished listening to your piece (Run in such a way...")! Well done, and sounds very accessible for HS strings. I can well imagine that they will want to really dig in on this because of the excellent rhythm features and figures throughout. Bravo!"

Gerry Willis Composer

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Instrumentation

Violin 1

Violin 2

Viola

Cello

String Bass