Choral Music

Contrary to the title, Choral Music has nothing in common with a traditional chorale arrangement. Ample contrast keeps this composition exciting from beginning to end. It starts with a fast and flashy opening. Only after several thematic allusions does Jacob de Haan let us hear the chorale in its complete form. Next, the chorale’s theme appears in the form of a toccata that ends in a tumultuous bang.

Jacob de Haan was commissioned to write Choral Music a concert band from Dinxperlo (Netherlands). This band gave the work its premiere in 1997 during the World Music Contest in Kerkrade. Choral Music is based on the chorale “Sollt ich meinem Gott nicht singen” by the seventeenth century German composer Johann Schop.