SATB Chorus a cappella (2023)

Music by Amy Messenger
Text from the Eastern Orthodox Festal Menaion

At the request of Hierodeacon David of St. Tikhons Monastery, I set out to reimagine the Kontakion for the Feast of the Cross (September 14), typically sung to a simple Tone 7 melody. This particular setting gives melodic attentiveness and rise to the overall lyrical meaning and climax of the piece: “the victory of hell has been vanquished.” —Amy Messenger

Amy Messenger grew up in Montana, where she was a folk singer/songwriter for well over a decade, releasing multiple albums and touring worldwide. Her love for the inherent beauty and transformational power of music, along with her conversion to Orthodox Christianity, led her to the Music Program at St. Tikhon’s Monastery in Pennsylvania, where she studied choral Composition with Benedict Sheehan. Her music conveys meaning and shares beauty in a direct, thoughtful, and timeless way.