Closer to the Flame: Choral Octavo SoundTrax CD

Lantz captures something genuinely American in this piece without resorting to quotation or pastiche. The metric shifts never feel awkward or experimental because the accompaniment tracks the choir through every change, which means your singers stay confident and the music breathes naturally. The recorded accompaniment on this SoundTrax CD removes the barrier between conception and performance, letting you focus on musicality rather than tracking down a rehearsal pianist.

The piece radiates quiet optimism. The melody sits comfortably in the middle voice, inviting singers to inhabit the text rather than strain for high notes, while the buoyant harmonic rhythm beneath it suggests motion without urgency. The accompaniment weaves gently through metric shifts that feel like natural conversational turns rather than compositional obstacles.

This octavo works for choirs of mixed voices at the high school or adult community level. The contemporary folk sensibility and hopeful character make it equally at home on a concert program or in a casual performance context, and the recorded accompaniment means you can perform it confidently even without a full pit band.

• Balance the choir carefully against the recorded accompaniment during your first rehearsals; the arrangement is generous with instrumental detail, so ask singers to find their pitch and line before worrying about blend with the track.
• Let the metric changes breathe rather than rushing through them. Lantz writes them to feel inevitable, not surprising, so conduct them as natural phrases rather than technical hurdles.
• Encourage soloists and section leaders to listen closely to how the mandolin and guitar voice the harmonies. These parts offer clear models for how upper and middle voices should sit together.
• When you're ready to add the optional parts (mandolin/guitar, bass, violin), start with just the bass to anchor the rhythm and melody. The recorded accompaniment already provides a full harmonic foundation.

Pair this with other contemporary secular works to build a concert set that feels cohesive and modern, or use it as a bridge piece between a heavier classical selection and an upbeat spiritual or folk arrangement. It works especially well in spring concerts where programs tend toward lighter, renewal-themed material, and its accessible character makes it ideal for community sings or non-auditioned ensemble performances.

• Reading and singing through metric changes (transitions between time signatures)
• Balancing ensemble sound against a recorded accompaniment track
• Interpreting text-driven phrasing in a contemporary idiom
• Listening to instrumental obbligatos as harmonic and melodic models