Composer Matthew Emery’s piece Lead Us Home, which has only been published for a few months, has already had a significant number of performances and toured Europe and Canada. This is thanks to the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, who, at the end of each of their concerts while on tour, stand and perform the choral work. To date, the piece has had 18 performances in four countries—quite an accomplishment! Emery was kind enough to give us a glimpse at the compositional process for his piece, read on for his take.
Lead Us Home was commissioned by the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, with generosity from the Patrick Hodgson Family Foundation. I received a phone call from Mitchell Pady (chorus director at the orchestra) in the Spring of 2018 asking if I would write a work that was short, accessible, could be sung in any formation, utilized limited or no divisi, and that could be learned in few rehearsals by non-singers.
The National Youth Orchestra of Canada (NYOC) has a history of performing an English and French madrigal at the end of every concert. Last season they decided to commission new choral compositions for the end of each concert. I was commissioned to write the choral piece in English. I chose a poem by Canadian poet Marjorie Pickthall, altering the text slightly, and replacing the word “star” with “music.” The piece almost wrote itself overnight. I had a working draft quite quickly, Pickthall’s text is very evocative and musical. The words almost set themselves. Lead Us Home follows the form of the poem, with three verses. Each verse is similar in style and mood, with subtle changes of variation and colour. Lead Us Home speaks to the power music holds; its ability to comfort, to transport and heal. In moments of conflict, strife and grief, we turn to music to lead us home and make us whole. —Matthew Emery
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