A Blessing: 3-Part Mixed Choral Octavo

Name: A Blessing: 3-Part Mixed Choral Octavo
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 00-16323
Price: 2.95 USD
Availability: InStock

Music by Sherri Porterfield

Item: 00-16323

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A masterful new choral setting of a moving, anonymous text: "May God grant you his grace to stand tall in the sunlight..." Optional oboe is a haunting and powerful addition to your perfomance. Strong piano accompaniment adds drive and a rhythmic pulse.

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Series: Alfred Choral Designs

Publisher: Alfred Music

Page Count: 12

UPC: 038081136790

SKU: 00-16323

Instrumentation: Opt. Oboe

More about this title

About the Composer: Sherri Porterfield

Sherri Porterfield directs choirs at Cedar Park Middle School in Cedar Park, Texas, and has previously taught in Missouri and Kansas. Her ensembles have earned numerous first-place and sweepstakes awards at competitions and performed at several state music educators conventions. She has served as an adjunct assistant professor of music education at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and has maintained an active composition practice for over two decades.

Porterfield has had more than 175 choral compositions published through Alfred Music and other major publishers, earning ASCAP awards annually since 1997 for her contributions to the field. A native of Poplar Bluff, Missouri, she holds a B.S.E. in music education from the University of Memphis and a Master of Music in choral conducting from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She has worked extensively as a clinician and guest conductor with honor choirs across the United States and holds memberships in the Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Choral Directors Association, Music Educators National Conference, and American Choral Directors Association.

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Why we love this

Porterfield's setting treats a timeless blessing with genuine emotional depth while keeping the 3-part texture accessible and singable. The optional oboe part offers real musical substance for schools that have the instrumentation available, but the piece stands powerfully on its own with voices and piano alone.

What to expect

The piece inhabits a quiet, reflective space before opening into something uplifting and affirmative. Porterfield's piano writing propels the text forward with gentle rhythmic energy, while the optional oboe adds a contemplative, almost ethereal quality to key moments.

Who it's for

Middle and high school choirs seeking a thoughtful sacred piece for graduation or other ceremonial occasions. The 3-part SAB voicing makes it accessible to younger singers while maintaining the musical sophistication that engages developing ensembles.

How to get the most out of it

Allow the piano accompaniment to establish the rhythmic foundation early in rehearsals; its drive shapes how the voices find their forward motion.
Balance the SAB lines so the soprano melody remains audible without forcing; the piece's power comes from transparency, not volume.
If you include the optional oboe, position it to support rather than dominate the initial phrase, letting the oboe's sustained tone deepen the emotional arc over time.
Work the text's imagery carefully with your singers. Encourage them to feel the progression from blessing to standing tall, which will naturally shape phrasing and dynamics.

How to use it

Place this near the close of a graduation concert as a benediction or blessing, or feature it as an opener that sets a reflective tone for a larger program. Its moderate length and manageable technical demands make it an ideal anchor piece when you need to balance performance time with rehearsal efficiency.