San Diego Master Chorale – Songs of Ascent

In 2016, the SD Master Chorale performed the San Diego premiere of Shawn Kirchner’s Songs of Ascent. To close our 60th season, we return to this beautiful setting of the series of Psalms (120 to 134) traditionally known as Shir Hama’aloth (translated as “Song of Ascents” but also known as the “Songs of Degrees” or “Steps” or even “Pilgrim Songs”). The composer has revised this setting for chorus, soloists, strings, and harp in recent years to elaborate on an already meaningful narrative that nurtures a sense of reverence and awe and invests in the growth of the human soul through unity and acceptance. In the composer’s words, “Getting to Jerusalem means reconnecting, finding your way back to that center that represents reverence for this creation. And it’s tradition and religion that have perpetuated the connection to the eternal.”