And Can It Be That I Should Gain: SATB Choral Octavo

Purifoy's treatment of this beloved Easter hymn text moves beyond predictable harmonization. The seven-page setting gives the material room to breathe across varied textures and harmonic approaches, offering your choir a version that feels fresh without abandoning the reverence the text deserves.

The piece carries the contemplative gravity of its text while inviting interpretive color through Purifoy's harmonic choices. Singers navigate moments of lush consonance alongside passages that ask them to track a more complex vertical architecture, creating engagement from inside the parts.

This octavo works for choirs with solid fundamental skills in blend and intonation, whether preparing Easter liturgical services or secular concerts. The seven-page length and harmonic sophistication position it for intermediate to advanced community and collegiate ensembles.

• Establish the harmonic language early in rehearsals by working the chord progressions as voicing drills before tackling full sections; this anchors singers' intonation through the more colorful moments.
• Balance transparency between parts by having each section sing its line independently first, then gradually layer voices to hear how Purifoy's writing creates density without muddiness.
• Shape phrases by identifying where harmonic motion naturally wants to move forward or settle; avoid a static, hymn-like pulse that undercuts the compositional intent.

Pair this with other Easter or spring concert material to anchor a thematic program around resurrection texts, or program it as a contrasting choral moment in a mixed concert that already includes secular or instrumental works. Its substantial length makes it a centerpiece rather than an opening number.

• Voice independence within complex harmonic environments
• Sustained line singing across longer phrase structures
• Intonation accuracy in non-traditional chord progressions
• Balance between vocal blend and distinctly tracked part lines