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June 2000 Table of Contents
Musical Insight
Welcome To Our World
An Interview wih Claire Cloninger and Robert Sterling
Communicator: How did you choose the title song for "Welcome to Our World?"
RS: The idea to use Chris Rice's wonderful Christmas song, "Welcome to Our World," as the centerpiece for a new choral cantata actually came from Dave Guthrie and Bruce Cokeroft at Word. I was aware of the song and it's growing popularity. It has a beautiful, haunting melody, and the lyric encompasses God's complete mission of mercy - from Jesus' coming to earth to his ultimate purpose on the cross, so I agreed with Dave and Bruce that it would make a good anchor for a Christmas work. Still, the matter wasn't settled until Claire came on board.
CC: I remember, at my first hearing of the song, being tremendously moved by the powerful content of the lyrics. But what really excited me when Bruce and Dave suggested that we use it was the thematic strength it offered.
Communicator: What is the thematic thread that ties the Christmas story together in this telling?
RS: Claire pretty much deserves all the credit for that.
CC: I think the word "Welcome" just sort of leaped out at me. I thought of the joy we experience each year in welcoming the season as we welcome friends and families into our homes. I thought of what a small welcoming party actually greeted our Savior the night of his birth. I thought of our willingness to open our hearts and personally welcome him into the center of our lives. And, of course, I thought of the fact that he will return to earth as a reigning and victorious redeemer finally to receive the welcome he deserves, when every knee will bow and every tongue confess his Lordship.
Communicator: Can you give any examples of ways you experienced God's help and guidance in the writing/ arranging/ recording of the musical?
CC: I'm never more aware of God's help than when I'm creating. There I am in the beginning with nothing but a blank mind and a blank page. Maybe I jump in and try coming up with something on my own, but sooner or later I end up yelling, "Help, God!!!" And amazingly, he always does. Also, I think one of the most important ways God helps us in this process is to create a microcosm of the Body of Christ, combining the gifts of all the people involved (the writers, arrangers, technicians, musicians, drama people, etc.) and bringing forth out of all those components something that is, hopefully, beautiful and meaningful and important.
Communicator: What challenges do you think "Welcome to Our World" offers to music ministers and choirs?
RS: As we wrote this work, Claire and I made a conscious effort to give "Welcome to Our World" a broad appeal. We wanted it to speak to a lot of different people, musically - to reach a wide audience. That's why you'll find an Irish influence in the bombastic opener, followed by a breezy jazz waltz. We've got a dynamite processional - which may be my personal favorite. Then there's a ballad ("Once Again") by Claire and Lowell Alexander that all your male soloists will be fighting over to sing. We also included the popular P&W tune, "Come, Now is the Time to Worship and a very soulful rendition of "Joy to the World." I believe that choirs and audiences will really enjoy the variety.
As for its challenges - I have always believed that choral music doesn't have to be difficult to sound good. Overall, "Welcome to Our World" is very accessible to most choirs. I pulled out all the gospel stops on "Joy to the World' - but any choir familiar with the Brooklyn Tab's material will feel right at home. We've included children's choir, but the parts are simple, and optional for ladies if you don't want to use kids in your program. And anybody performing this with live orchestra will hopefully find the orchestrations fun to play, and really not too difficult.
Communicator: What opportunities might the musical offer to churches?
CC: I could see "Welcome to Our World" creating an opportunity for friendship evangelism. It is such a warm, welcoming work; it presents a perfect occasion for inviting friends and neighbors in to share the hospitality of the season and the good news of the Gospel.
Communicator: What was the biggest challenge you faced in creating "Welcome to Our World"?
RS: To be perfectly honest, after writing choral music for 20 years, the biggest challenge is to write one more Christmas cantata that is somehow different from all the others you've written.
CC: But you always do it, Robert. I've been watching your work for nearly two decades and it's never repetitious. And I think "Welcome to Our World" particularly is like a breath of fresh air.
RS: Well, it helped us to have such a strong anchor song for the work. And it really helped me to have Claire as a writing partner. She makes the process easy. She's so talented, and - unlike me - always upbeat and positive. (I'm more of the "Eeyore" type.)
CC: That's what I mean about God blending the gifts of the people involved. He knew we needed a Tigger and an Eeeyore to keep things balanced.
RS: Another challenge for me is time.
CC: Yes! There's never enough.
RS: Interestingly though, because time became so crunched near the recording deadline, we ended up with what may be the best song in the collection - Lowell and Claire's ballad. I had already begun arranging and orchestrating, and couldn't break away to write that one last song. So, being the great guy that I am, I hooked Claire up with my buddy Lowell Alexander, and they turned out "Once Again" - which is one of those songs that I can truly say, "I wish I had written that."
Communicator: What was the high point of creating the work?
RS: There are several high points for me in creating a work like this. It's always a "high" to finish the writing - because I start every project completely convinced that I will never be able to write even one more decent song ever again as long as I live. Then, after a lonely month or so of orchestrating and arranging, it's always a kick to do the recording sessions. The first time you hear your music being played by a 40-piece studio orchestra is always a blast. That never gets old.
CC: I'd have to say "ditto" to that. Writing is a very lonely job, which for an extrovert like me can be almost painful. So that first day in the studio, hearing the parts of the musical puzzle begin to take shape and sing back to you - that's a tremendous high!
RS: I'm also looking forward to the "high" of hearing the work performed in front of a live audience which is something I don't get to experience that often. And finally over a period of time, if I'm lucky and the musical really connects with churches and their congregations, I enjoy getting word back that the music I helped create made a difference in someone's life.
CC: That's the pay-off for sure.
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