for SATB chorus, with harp or piano

text by G. K. Chesterton

Music from Duke Chapel Series
MorningStar Music, 50-0241

Written for the 2021 Christmas Eve service of Nine Lessons and Carols at Duke University Chapel., this setting of G. K. Chesterton’s beloved Christmas poem juxtaposes a haunting original melody, sung by the chorus, with phrases of the English carol “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen,” played by the harp.

Winner of the 2023 Weiger Lepke-Sims Family Sacred Music Award from the American Harp Society.

A JW Pepper Editors’ Choice selection.

for SATB chorus, and organ or strings

text by Madeleine L’Engle

Music from Duke Chapel Series
MorningStar Music, 50-5026

listen

This is a setting of Madeleine L'Engle’s poem “For Lent, 1966,” as it appears in The Ordering of Love: New and Collected Poems of Madeleine L’Engle. Appropriate for any time during the Lenten season, the poem reflects on the tension between the desire to choose one’s own Lenten discipline, and the openness to Christ’s calling that is a mark of discipleship. The music explores that paradox through tension in the choral harmonies and the accompaniment, which may be played by organ or string quartet (separate string score available from the publisher).

for SATB chorus and piano

text by Thomas Ken
music by ZMH, with Ubi caritas

GIA Choral Series, G-8408

listen (excerpt)

"This serene and prayerful entreaty contains powerful imagery of what a church is for all who enter. It opens with simple two-part singing that effortlessly develops into commanding four-part choral writing. At its end the piece appropriately quotes the plainsong chant Ubi caritas et amor ('Where there is charity and love, God is there.')"
       ~ Publisher's website

Commissioned by the Choir of Chapel in the Pines (NC) Presbyterian Church, Jeremy Nabors, director, for the dedication of the church's new building, January 22, 2012.

for SATB chorus with assembly, organ, and brass quartet

text by Brian Wren
tune from Psalmodia Evangelica, 1789, arr. ZMH

St. Olaf Choral Series
Augsburg Fortress, 9781451451580

listen

Paired with the tune TRURO, Brian Wren's beloved hymn is a staple on Easter Sunday in many churches. This arrangement incorporates brass quartet on the festive opening stanzas but moves to a quieter, slower affect for the inner stanzas' description of the world's strife. As the tempo gradually increases, a muted trumpet representing "the Spirit's call" propels the assembly and the full brass to rejoin the choir in a joyful, exuberant finale.

Brass quartet parts (2 B-flat/C trumpets; 2 trombones or 1 horn/1 trombone) are available as a separate download here.

Dedicated to the Rev. Dr. Jeffrey S. O'Neill upon his retirement from First Presbyterian Church, Lansing, MI.

for SATB chorus with assembly, organ, handbells or handchimes, and oboe

text by Anne LeCroy
tune by Richard Dirksen, arr. ZMH

Washington National Cathedral Series
MorningStar Music, 50-5915

Rich in imagery, Anne LeCroy's evening hymn is perfectly matched with this chant-like tune (INNISFREE FARM) by Richard Dirksen.

In this setting, "Highben creates an atmosphere of peaceful adoration. Random ringing from the handbells begins the setting, joined by a quiet organ accompaniment and an unadorned woodwind melody. After a unison stanza with organ, the women sing stanza 2...crowned by gentle bell tones and supported by organ. Highben incorporates the congregation...on stanza 3, where all men sing in unison below a two-part descant sung by the choir women. All sing in unison again on stanza 4, with a woodwind descant, before the choir sings stanza 5, in four-part a cappella harmony. To conclude, the random ringing returns, and bells and voices fade to nothing at the end of the piece ('now and forever')."  
       ~ Cross Accent review, March 2013

Dedicated to Catherine Rodland.

for SATB chorus with assembly, organ, and oboe (or other C inst.)

text by Delores Dufner, OSB
tune from The Sacred Harp, 1844, arr. by ZMH

Augsburg Fortress, 9780800621414

listen

In Dufner's text, Christ calls all weary travelers and burdened believers to drink from his well of life. In this arrangement, a recurring eighth-note motive in the organ and oboe parts depicts the "ever-flowing fountain" Dufner so eloquently describes, while the expanding melodic arches of the melody pull the singers forward toward the "joy no tongue can tell." 

The choir introduces the hymn, singing the first stanza. Subsequent stanzas alternate between full assembly (women, men, all) and chorus, with everyone singing the refrains. 

Composed for the Hymn Festival of the 25th annual Lutheran Summer Music Academy and Festival, July 2007 at Gustavus Adolphus College, St. Peter, MN.

for SATB chorus, oboe, and percussion

text and music by ZMH

Colla Voce, 15-95000

Three short character pieces on humorous poems, based upon and inspired by the numerous maxims in the English language that have similar meanings or use similar language to make contradictory claims. Each of the three pieces loosely imitates a genre or style of choral music. If, then is buoyant and energetic, bouncing along like an English Christmas carol. So they say is stark and minimalist, and should be sung with a pure, round tone. Last word(s) is akin to a folk song: warm, nostalgic, and a bit clichéd,like the aphorims that comprise its lyrics.

Featured at the 2014 West Chester University Choral Symposium, the 2014 Rodney Eichenberger Conductor's Clinic, and the 2014 New Mexico All-State Choral Reading Session.

Commissioned for the choirs of Chapel Hill (NC) High School, Jeremy Nabors, director.

for SATB divisi chorus, unaccompanied

text by Malcolm Guite

Music from Duke Chapel Series
MorningStar Music, 50-4071

“Easter Dawn” is a sonnet by the British poet Malcolm Guite, from his anthology Sounding the Seasons. The poem evocatively imagines Mary’s encounter with the risen Jesus from the gospel of John, connecting sight with sound, night with day, and grief with love.

The gentle musical setting faithfully interprets the text: A flowing, chant-inspired melody, alternating high and low voices, and modulations between warm and bright keys culminate in a joyful polyphonic “Alleluia.”

For the Duke University Chapel Choir.

for SATB chorus with assembly, organ, and 2 trumpets

text by Susan R. Briehl, after Psalm 46
tune (PER CRUCEM) and arr. by ZMH

Augsburg Choral Hymn Series
Augsburg Fortress, 9781506447223

listen

This hymn anthem sets one of two tunes commissioned for Susan Briehl's text "God Alone Be Praised," inspired by Psalm 46. The text, tunes, and anthem settings were commissioned by the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians, in honor of its 30th anniversary (1986-2016) and the 500th anniversary of the Reformation (1517-2017).

A finalist for the 2018-19 American Prize in Choral Composition.

For the other tune (AD LUCEM) and setting, click here.

for SATB chorus with assembly, organ, and violin or C instrument

Psalm 46, adapt. ZMH

Augsburg Fortress, 9781506495262

This setting of Psalm 46 employs dramatic text-painting to illustrate the emotional shifts in this beloved psalm. The four-part antiphon may include assembly participation. Suitable for the season of Lent or Reformation Sunday.

Commissioned in honor of the 500th anniversary of the Reformation by Zion Lutheran Church, Ann Arbor, Michigan, for the Southeast Michigan Synod’s Luther Community Choir.

for SATB chorus with assembly, optional children's chorus, organ, and handbells

text by Robert L. Edwards
tune (NOKOMIS) and arr. by ZMH

MorningStar Music, 50-6082

An original tune for this text that celebrates God's abundant blessings and calls us to responsible stewardship of our time, talents, and relationships. The children's chorus part, which can also be sung by the adult choir sopranos, quotes a fragment of Now Thank We All Our God/NUN DANKET ALLE GOTT. Appropriate for the fall festivals or services that highlight themes of thanksgiving and/or stewardship.

Commissioned by Lake Nokomis Lutheran Church (Minneapolis, MN) in celebration of its 100th anniversary, All Saints Sunday 2012.

for SATB chorus, unaccompanied

text by Charles Wesley

St. Olaf Choral Series
Augsburg Fortress, 9781506447315

listen

Charles Wesley's "Morning Hymn" ("Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies") first appeared in the 1740 collection Hymns and Sacred Poems. It is paired here with a richly harmonized, original melody that is reminiscent of a folk hymn.

For Carol Carver and Jane Knappe, in deep gratitude for their stewardship of the church's music.

A JW Pepper Editors’ Choice selection.

A Finalist for the 2018-19 American Prize in Choral Composition.

for SATB chorus with assembly, organ, and oboe

text by Susan R. Briehl
tune (WEST LEESTAD) and arr. by ZMH

Augsburg Choral Hymn Series
Augsburg Fortress 9781506408736

listen

Lift Up Your Heads/WEST LEESTAD was commissioned in 2013 by the Institute of Liturgical Studies at Valparaiso University as the inaugural hymn in their Christus Rex Hymn Commission Series. The series extends the church's rich treasury of congregational song by commissioning poets and composers to craft new texts and tunes to supplement those days, seasons, and occasions for which the number of existing hymn choices is slim. Lift Up Your Heads was written with the pericopes of Easter 2C in mind, but is useful on many occasions, especially in relationship to Baptism and Communion.

This concertato setting was written to expose Lift Up Your Heads to a broader audience. The choir sings the second and third stanzas independently, and the assembly joins on the first and fourth stanzas.

for SATB chorus, unaccompanied

text adapted from Romans 14:8-9

Augsburg Fortress, 9781506479842

This brief, graceful motet based on Romans 14 works best as a choral benediction; the multifold Amen coda could also be sung following intercessory prayers. Thematically appropriate for All Saints Sunday and throughout the Easter season.

Commissioned by the family of the Reverend Mary Gene Boteler, to honor her ministry and celebrate the occasion of her sixty-fifth birthday.

for SATB chorus with assembly, organ, and oboe (or C inst.)

text and tune by Les Petites Soeurs de Jésus,
trans. Stephen Somerville, arr. by ZMH

St. Olaf Choral Series
Augsburg Fortress, 9781506465463

listen

Lord Jesus, You Shall Be My Song was created in 1961 by members of Les Petites Soeurs de Jésus (“The Little Sisters of Jesus”), a global contemplative order that “seeks to be a sign of love to people who are rejected.”* The hymn also has associations with L’Arche communities. It is both a promise to bear witness to the love of Christ, and a prayer for courage throughout life’s journey.

With its tender ritornello and graceful harmonies, this setting honors the gentle confidence of the source material. Assembly may join the chorus on stanzas 2 and 4.

Commissioned by St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, Waukesha, WI, in honor of Rev. Kathy Boadwine and her 39 years or ordained ministry.

A JW Pepper Editors’ Choice selection.

*Paul Westermeyer, Hymnal Companion to Evangelical Lutheran Worship (Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2010).

for SATB chorus, unaccompanied

text by Claudia Hernaman

Music from Duke Chapel Series
MorningStar Music, 50-5121

Claudia Hernaman’s well-known text is paired with the tune DETROIT (Supplement to Kentucky Harmony, 1820). This rugged, a cappella setting is introduced by the bass voices singing the first stanza, before growing to a rich four-part harmonization. Appropriate for Ash Wednesday or any Sunday in the season of Lent.

Commissioned to honor the inspiring leadership of Jeremy Nabors, Director of Music Ministry, Chapel of the Pines Presbyterian Church, Chatham County, North Carolina.

for SATB chorus with assembly, organ, flute, clarinet, and drum

text by Ken Bible
tune by F. Seguin, 1856, arr. by ZMH

Augsburg Choral Hymn Series
Augsburg Fortress, 9780800679286

listen

A Renaissance-inspired setting of this French carol (UN FLAMBEAU) with a twentieth-century text by Ken Bible. The contrapuntal instrument parts add a buoyant character to the first and third stanzas; the choir sings the second stanza in a simple four-part setting. A perfect Christmas concertato for the smaller choir.

for SSAATTBB chorus, unaccompanied

text by Christina Rossetti

Luther College Music Series
MorningStar Music, 50-5215

listen

A stirring, lush setting of the poem A Song for the Least of All Saints that uses a variety of compositional techniques to illustrate the devotional imagery of Rossetti's text. Most appropriate for collegiate choruses, or advanced church, school, or community choirs.

"Perfect choral writing of a kind...comforting and tender, the aleatoric measure proving that this music is no anachronism. When the harmony finally settles, the sound is magical." ~ The American Prize

Winner of the 2011 Raabe Prize for Excellence in Sacred Composition from the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians.

A Finalist for the 2014-15 American Prize in Choral Composition.

for SSAATTBB chorus, unaccompanied

John 1:5, Latin Vulgate

E. C. Schirmer, No. 8705

The text of Lux in tenebris—a single verse from the prologue to the gospel of John—was chosen in conjunction with the commissioning party, who requested a sacred text with universal appeal to address the hopes and fears that all people share. The composition elaborates on the text's juxtaposition between the darkness of despair and the light of hope. Dissonant, layered ostinati built on fragments of the text illustrate the omnipresent darkness (mm. 1-25); the second half of the piece changes key and meter, employing the entire text to emphasize the persistent shining and eternal triumph of the light.

Lux in tenebris was premiered in December 2016 by the Chamber Singers of First Community Church (Columbus, Ohio) at the church’s annual Candlelight Christmas concert, and reprised for the Holy Week Tenebrae service in April 2017.

In celebration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of Gwen and Aaron Carmack.

for SATB chorus with assembly and optional children's choir, organ, viola, and handbells

texts by Paul Gerhardt and Cecil Frances Alexander
tunes by Johann Ebeling and Henry J. Gauntlett, arr. by ZMH

Augsburg Fortress, 9780800664152

listen

This Christmas concertato combines All This Night My Heart Rejoices/WARUM SOLLT ICH, sung by the choirs, with Once in Royal David's City/IRBY, sung by the assembly. The assembly's two stanzas of Once in Royal... respond to the text sung by the choir. The children's choir (or soprano section) sings the melody of WARUM SOLLT ICH.

Written for Christmas Eve 2007 at Westwood Lutheran Church (Minneapolis, MN), and dedicated to Dr. Kristina Langlois, friend and colleague.

for SATB chorus and percussion

text by Edward Mote
tune by William Bradbury, arr. by ZMH

Augsburg Fortress, 9781451462395

listen

A lively, rhythmic setting of the traditional hymn text, paired with Bradbury's tune THE SOLID ROCK. Each successive stanza adds additional voice parts and percussion instruments, building exuberance and energy.

For the 2012 Lutheran Summer Music Academy & Festival, and dedicated to our chaplain, Wayne Weissenbuehler.

for SATB chorus with assembly, organ, and solo trumpet

text by Martin Luther
tune by Johann Walter, arr. by ZMH

St. Olaf Choral Series
Augsburg Fortress, 9781451492569

listen

Composer commentary: "Over the last several years, Now to the Holy Spirit Let Us Pray has become one of my favorite chorales. I enjoy the imagery Luther uses to describe the Holy Spirit, its nod to the communion liturgy (namely the Kyrie), and its reminder that the Spirit makes Christ known to us and forms us in community throughout our whole life’s journey. The tune by Johann Walter, NUN BITTEN WIR, is both comforting (the gentle melodic line moves almost exclusively by whole steps and thirds) and bold (the dotted rhythm and unexpected metrical “shift” in the third phrase), perfectly capturing the both/and nature of Luther’s words."

"This setting was written in honor of my teacher, Paul Westermeyer, upon his retirement from Luther Seminary and the ending of the Master of Sacred Music degree program there. I’ve tried to highlight the comforting aspect of the text in my interpretation of the second stanza, while the text’s boldness is illuminated in the third and fourth stanzas and through the use of trumpet (including the quote of EIN FESTE BURG in stanza 3). The key change from E-flat to G major is both a nod to the third person of the Trinity as well as a representation of the Spirit’s 'transcendent comfort.'"
       ~ Publisher's website

for SATB chorus with assembly, organ, and solo trumpet

text by Sarah E. Taylor
tune by H. Barrie Cabena, arr. by ZMH

Augsburg Choral Hymn Series
Augsburg Fortress, 9781451462425

listen

H. Barrie Cabena's tune ATKINSON was written to accompany this text, and first published in Lutheran Book of Worship (1978). The strong melody starts on the fifth degree, descends an octave by thirds and fourths, then travels (mostly stepwise) back to tonic. The choir sings stanzas 2 and 3, depicting our need for healing and compassion through a movement to the relative minor and back again. A proclamatory, triumphant hymn appropriate for any celebratory service, but especially occasions focused on the work of the Holy Spirit, including ordinations and Reformation.

Commissioned by University Lutheran Church, East Lansing, MI, in honor of Kristie Wiggert and her 40 years of service as organist and director of music.

for SATB chorus with assembly, handbells, and oboe

text by Eleanor Farjeon
French carol, arr. by ZMH

MorningStar Music, 50-9310

listen

A joyful setting of this hopeful Advent text paired with the French carol tune BESANCON. The oboe, drum, and handbell accompaniment offer a jaunty ritornello between stanzas. Appropriate for worship services, lessons and carols, and holiday concerts.

Dedicated to S. Blake Duncan, oboist, in thanksgiving for his fifteen years of service (1995-2009) teaching and performing at Lutheran Summer Music.

for SATB divisi chorus, cello or alto saxophone, and handbells

Latin text by The Venerable Bede

American Colleges & Universities Choral Series
Morning Star Music, 50-2685

listen

"After an emotive opening by the solo cello, the choir enters with rich chords against an original chant melody sung by a soloist. Handbells or handchimes then enter with random pitches that add to the mysterious and meditative nature of this piece. The choir takes the text, in time, and with a gentle lilt, with the cello adding elaborative phrases. A soprano descant soars above all for a rapturous climax on 'Alleluia' before the texture dissipates to a sublime ending."                                                ~ publisher's website

Commissioned by the Valley Chamber Chorale of Stillwater, Minnesota, Carol Carver, Artistic Director.

A finalist for the 2018-19 American Prize in Choral Composition.

for SATB chorus, soloist, and percussion

Kjos Music, Ed. 9183

listen

PDF sample

This energetic and rhythmic setting of Psalm 100 alternates between 6/8 and 3/4 measures, propelled by a driving percussion accompaniment (bongos or congas). The lyrical middle section features a soprano or tenor soloist.

Commissioned by Adam Biehl in honor of Suzy Biehl and Emily Lane, in celebration of fifteen years together as a family.

for SATB chorus and flute

text by Teresa of Avila, translated by ZMH

MorningStar Music, 50-8918

"Simple yet elegant... The harmonies are gorgeous, and the voice leading makes the romantic tinged melodies relatively easy to accomplish. The text projects a sense of comfort, and the composer gives two alternate endings, leaving it to the director to decide if it is better for the piece to resolve harmonically, or leave the listener 'hanging' on the dominant."
       ~ Creator Magazine

"Near-ideal in its text painting, lovingly set forth."
       ~ The American Prize

A finalist for the 2014-15 American Prize in Choral Composition.

for SATB chorus, unaccompanied

text and music by ZMH

Augsburg Fortress, 9781451402520

listen

A reflection on the coming of Christ, with a gentle melody reminiscent of a folk ballad. Appropriate for the Advent and Christmas seasons.

The Lord Shall Come is [magical]...built of such kindly shapes, one cannot resist its spell. Lovely." 
       ~ The American Prize

For the Westwood Lutheran A Cappella Choir and dedicated to Amanda Lynn, with love on her birthday.

A Finalist for the 2014-15 American Prize in Choral Composition.

for SATB, organ or piano, and flute or oboe

text by Joseph L. Addison, based upon Psalm 19

Presbyterian Association of Musicians Choral Series
MorningStar Music, 50-8871

This anthem sets Joseph L. Addison's nineteenth-century paraphrase of Psalm 19, which enumerates the ways creation praises God. The newly composed music invokes the spirit of an American shape-note tune, and uses a buoyant instrumental ritornello to connect the stanzas. The accompaniment may be played on organ or piano, with flute or oboe obbligato. 

Commissioned by First Presbyterian Church of Harbor Springs, Michigan, in honor and appreciation of Peter D. Sims, Director of Music.

for SATB chorus, unaccompanied

text adapted from Acts 1:5, Isaiah 11:2, and Psalm 72:18

Augsburg Fortress, 9781506413983

listen

The traditional baptismal blessing adapted from Isaiah 11:2 is set here in a sweet, gentle motet appropriate for baptisms, services of confirmation and affirmation of baptism, the season of Advent, or as a general benediction. In the latter case, the motet can be performed without the opening chant if desired.

Composer commentary:
"The Spirit of the Lord was written for the baptism of our daughter on Advent 2A, when the appointed texts from the Revised Common Lectionary include the story of John the Baptist from Matthew’s gospel, and the Isaiah 11 passage from which the traditional baptismal blessing (invoking the spirit of the Lord to rest upon the baptized) is adapted. They were the perfect texts for a baptism, and inspired me to create this motet. The opening chant text from Acts 1:5 connects Christ’s baptism to our own. The final line of text, taken from the psalm for Advent 2A, turns the blessing around, as we thankfully sing, 'Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who alone has done wondrous things.'"

A JW Pepper Editors’ Choice selection.

for SATB divisi chorus and optional organ

Latin text from a 4th century blessing for musicians

MorningStar Music, 50-5207

A musical meditation on the relationship between singing and believing. A repeated, Taizé-like section in the middle of the work serves as accompaniment to spoken narration, which may include prayers, psalm verses, or quotations about music, faith, or belief.

Also available for SSAA and TTBB voices.

Composed for the Chapel Choir of the 30th annual Lutheran Summer Music Academy and Festival.

for SATB (or SAB) chorus, unaccompanied

North American folk song and
African-American spiritual, arr. ZMH

St. Olaf Choral Series
Augsburg Fortress, 9780806698342

listen

A haunting quodlibet combining the spiritual I Want Jesus to Walk with Me with the folk song I'm Just a Poor Wayfaring Stranger. Conductors of smaller choirs may choose to omit the tenor line, and perform as an SAB anthem.

For the Luther Seminary Schola Cantorum, with thanks to Paul and Kris.

for SATB divisi chorus, unaccompanied

text from a 15th century carol

Colla Voce, 15-94840

listen

A fast, rhythmic setting of this medieval English carol. Excellent opening piece for a high school or collegiate holiday concert (approximate length: 1:30).

Commissioned for the 75th anniversary of the Saginaw (MI) Choral Society.

for SATB chorus with assembly, and organ

text by Susan Palo Cherwien
tune (WILGERT) and setting by ZMH

Augsburg Choral Library
Augsburg Fortress, 9798889830542

listen

This melody and anthem were commissioned in 2021; the text, by Susan Palo Cherwien, was commissioned for the 25th anniversary of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians in 2011. The hymn describes God’s call as a song that sings creation into being, a song that is echoed in our grateful praise of God and loving relationships with one another. The music is largely 2-part mixed, with an expressive third stanza set for SATB voices a cappella.

Commissioned by University Lutheran Church, East Lansing, MI, in honor of Kristie W. Wiggert and her 50 years as organist, 1971—2021.

for SATB chorus, organ, and violin
(or other C/B-flat inst.)

text by David W. Romig

MorningStar Music, 50-3073

"The haunting melody by Highben and penetrating text by Romig combine to form a moving Lenten work.... The penitential text calls believers toward confession for the failure to join Christ on the road of suffering and self-denial. A pedal D in the organ registration anchors the majority of the piece in the minor mode. During the second stanza, the women sing a countermelody on the hymn Lord Jesus, Think on Me/SOUTHWELL, which combines with the final verse of each stanza to serve as a litany for mercy. The piece concludes with the prayer that the victory of Christ would provide strength for believers in times of doubt and confusion."
       ~ review in The Verse (Hymn Society, January 2013)