Can You See the Star? Cover Image

Can You See the Star?: SATB Choral Octavo

$1.75 USD
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Can You See the Star? Cover Image
Can You See the Star?: SATB Choral Octavo

Can You See the Star?: SATB Choral Octavo

Words and music by Sally K. Albrecht and Jay Althouse

Item: 00-30984
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Description
A multi-use choral featuring two texts---one for Christmas and one for general use. The minor key echo-format melody on the verses contrasts with a sparkling major key sound on the chorus. Percussion parts are available free, online. Church or school use.

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Additional Details
Series: Alfred Choral Designs
Publisher: Alfred Music
Page Count: 12
UPC: 038081337562
SKU: 00-30984

More about this title

About the Composer: Sally K. Albrecht

Sally K. Albrecht

Sally K. Albrecht brings decades of experience as both a composer and conductor, with a particular gift for creating music that moves bodies as well as hearts. Since 1987, she has been a consistent recipient of the ASCAP Special Music Award, and her catalog now includes more than 600 published choral works alongside 75 larger-scale songbooks and musicals. She has led honor choirs at prestigious venues including Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and The Kennedy Center, and spent over 30 years as Director of School Choral, Vocal, and Elementary Publications at major educational publishers, most recently Alfred Music.

Albrecht holds degrees from Rollins College (B.A. in Music and Theater, 1976), the University of Miami (M.A. in Drama, 1977, and M.M. in Accompanying, 1979). She has taught at Oakland University in Michigan, Jersey City State College in New Jersey, and Meredith College in North Carolina. In 2021, she received the Distinguished Alumna Award from both the University of Miami Frost School of Music and Rollins College, where she currently serves on the Board of Trustees. She resides in Wake Forest, North Carolina, with her husband Jay Althouse, also a composer and arranger.

Why we love this

The dual-text design makes this a genuinely versatile piece. You can sing it as a Christmas carol in December and then program it again in spring or during a general concert using the alternate text, stretching the value of your rehearsal investment. The contrast between the introspective minor-key verses and the bright, shimmering major-key chorus gives singers a satisfying musical journey within a compact form.

What to expect

The piece unfolds like a quiet conversation that gradually opens into light. Minor-key verses feel reflective and intimate, as if asking a question or sharing a private moment, while the chorus bursts into warmth and clarity. The shift is gradual enough to feel natural but distinct enough to create genuine musical surprise.

Who it's for

High school and college choirs, church choirs, and community ensembles seeking repertoire that works across multiple seasons and contexts. The SATB voicing is accessible to mixed choirs of moderate skill while offering enough musical substance to engage more advanced singers.

How to get the most out of it

  • Shape the minor-key verses with the echo-format melody to highlight the call-and-response interplay; let the second statement breathe slightly differently than the first.
  • Brighten your vowel placement moving into the chorus to match the shift to major key; the musical transformation should feel organic, not jarring.
  • Download the free percussion parts online and add light instrumentation to the chorus sections for textural contrast and to support the major-key shift.
  • Balance the sustained notes in the major key carefully so the harmony sparkles without overwhelming the melody line.

How to use it

Program this as a centerpiece for a December concert or holiday service, or use the alternate text to place it strategically in a spring concert where you want a moment of brightness without resorting to novelty selections. Its compact length makes it an ideal companion to longer sacred works or secular Christmas standards.

Skills your students will build

  • Singing in parallel minor and major keys within a single piece
  • Interpreting echo-format melody with attention to repetition and variation
  • Balancing sustained harmony in major key without oversinging
  • Transitioning between contrasting modal/tonal centers while maintaining musicality

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