O God Our Help in Ages Past Op. 137 Cover Image

O God Our Help in Ages Past Op. 137: Choral Works (inc. Oratorios)

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O God Our Help in Ages Past Op. 137 Cover Image
O God Our Help in Ages Past Op. 137: Choral Works (inc. Oratorios)

O God Our Help in Ages Past Op. 137: Choral Works (inc. Oratorios)

By Alan Hovhaness

Item: 98-EP6363
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Description

A 3-minute setting of a text by Isaac Watts based on Psalm 90 for choir SATB and organ (or piano). This is an early work in the Alan Hovhaness catalogue dating from 1928, and displays a confident and direct musical style. Edition Peters vocal score.

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Additional Details
Series: Edition Peters
Publisher: Edition Peters
Page Count: 8
ISBN10: 0-30-071234-0
ISBN13: 979-0-30-071234-5
SKU: 98-EP6363

More about this title

About the Composer: Alan Hovhaness

Alan Hovhaness (1911-2000) was an American composer of Armenian descent whose prolific catalog encompasses over 500 works across symphonies, concertos, chamber music, and choral literature. His compositional voice emerged early and remained distinctive throughout his career: rooted in Armenian folk traditions and Eastern Orthodox liturgical music, yet shaped by his study of Western classical forms. Hovhaness brought a meditative, spiritual quality to everything he wrote, whether drawing on Byzantine chant or exploring modal harmonies that gave his music an timeless, contemplative character.

His choral works hold a special place in his output. Unlike some twentieth-century composers who treated the voice experimentally, Hovhaness wrote for choir with directness and sincerity, creating music that serves the text and remains accessible to singers while maintaining artistic substance. Early works like this 1928 setting of Isaac Watts demonstrate the confident command of choral texture that would define his legacy in sacred and secular choral music.

Why we love this

Hovhaness brings genuine spiritual weight to this Watts text without resorting to harmonic complexity or dramatic gesturing. The 1928 vintage puts it at a moment when his voice was crystallizing, and the result is a setting that sits comfortably for singers while sounding unmistakably personal. Organists and pianists will appreciate writing that supports rather than overwhelms the choir.

What to expect

The music feels unhurried and grave, with the kind of luminous harmony you find in Eastern Orthodox practice. Hovhaness sets Watts's sturdy text with a clarity that lets meaning emerge, building moments of mild intensity without melodrama. There is something genuinely restful about it, in the best sense of that word.

Who it's for

This eight-page vocal score works for SATB choirs at the intermediate level and above. Directors seeking substantial yet accessible sacred repertoire will find it particularly useful, as will those programming music that reflects twentieth-century American choral writing without requiring extended rehearsal on complex rhythms or unusual harmonies.

How to get the most out of it

  • Honor the meditative quality of the harmonic language by resisting the urge to rush through longer note values; the modal inflections need time to register with listeners.
  • Balance the organ (or piano) accompaniment as a genuine partner rather than mere support, particularly in passages where it carries harmonic color independent of the vocal lines.
  • Shape phrases through text inflection and natural breathing rather than conventional dynamic swells; Hovhaness's directness works best when the poetry drives the music forward.

How to use it

This works beautifully in a service of worship or a concert program centered on American sacred music. Its brevity (three minutes) makes it ideal as a choral introit or as part of a larger liturgical sequence, and its spiritual seriousness pairs well with both traditional hymn-based repertoire and modern choral works that address prayer and reflection.

Skills your students will build

  • Singing with sustained tone and focused intensity in modal harmonic contexts
  • Balancing SATB voicing when harmonic movement is gentle rather than dramatic
  • Responding to text with emotional restraint and natural phrasing

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