Anton Dvorak (1841–1904) was a Czech composer whose deep engagement with folk music and spiritual traditions shaped his entire compositional voice. He spent formative years in America, where he encountered African American spirituals and folk melodies that profoundly influenced his harmonic language and melodic sensibility, evident in works like his "New World" Symphony and his arrangement of this beloved spiritual.
Why we love this
Leavitt's arrangement honors the spiritual's inherent dignity while giving your choir genuine musical substance to sink their teeth into. The writing balances accessibility with sophistication, allowing even developing ensembles to convey the emotional weight of this essential American hymn without requiring virtuosic technique.
What to expect
There's a quiet urgency here, a sense of secret hope and spiritual resilience woven into gentle, rolling harmonies. The arrangement maintains the spiritual's contemplative warmth while Dvorak's harmonic language adds harmonic color and emotional complexity that elevates the familiar melody into something richer without obscuring its essential character.
Who it's for
This octavo serves mixed choirs preparing concert, festival, or service music repertoire. The piece suits ensembles with intermediate vocal control and choral reading skills who want to engage meaningfully with the African American spiritual tradition.
How to get the most out of it
Shape the opening statement of "Steal Away" with intention in your soprano line; this melody is the emotional anchor, so let it breathe rather than rush through the first phrase.
Find the underlying pulse beneath the spiritual's natural rubato quality. Your rhythm section and inner voices provide essential structural support that prevents the piece from drifting.
Treat the text painting with specificity. The yearning in "steal away" differs dramatically from the affirmation in "to Jesus." Your dynamic choices and vowel production should reflect that emotional arc.
Balance the four parts so that harmonic shifts land clearly. With 9 pages and layered textures, muddiness often comes from uneven voice distribution rather than choice of dynamics.
How to use it
Position this as a centerpiece for a concert program exploring American spirituals or sacred music heritage. The piece also works effectively as a thoughtful standalone moment in a service context, where its 9 pages allow for substantive musical statement without overwhelming a liturgical structure.
Skills your students will build
Sustaining lyrical phrasing across longer phrases without loss of vocal line shape
Balancing SATB texture so harmonic movement is audible and intentional
Responding to text inflection and emotional shifts within a single spiritual
Reading and executing Dvorak's chromatic and extended harmonic language
Developing musicality in music from non-Western traditions and African American sacred music
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