I wrote this piece back when I was in college. It
is the result of an assignment I had been given in my composition class. I was asked to choose a hymn from the
hymnbook and jazz it up. I’m sure
my professor was attempting to steer me in the direction of writing with more
of a structured form in mind. He told me I could do anything I wanted with it —to
make it my own, but I had to stay within the bounds of the chosen hymn
text.
I’m thinking I must have been in a Billy Joel kind
of mood when I wrote it because it really gets to rocking. I actually performed the arrangement in
class with a friend who sang my new melody of the hymn, but for this version I
went ahead and left off the lyrics opting for a piano solo instead. It doesn’t especially lend itself to
Sunday worship, but it’s really fun to play.
Click HERE to
download free sheet music
