Work
Abide with Me
electroacoustic music with moving images
About
In memory of a loved one tragically taken from us before her time.
Abide with Me
Text: Henry F. Lyte, 1793–1847
Music: W.H. Monk, 1823–1889
Abide with me; fast falls the eventide;
the darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide.
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me.Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day;
earth's joys grow dim; its glories pass away;
change and decay in all around I see;
O thou who changest not, abide with me.I need thy presence every passing hour.
What but thy grace can foil the tempter's power?
Who, like thyself, my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me.I fear no foe, with thee at hand to bless;
ills have no weight, and tears not bitterness.
Where is death's sting? Where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if thou abide with me.Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes;
shine through the gloom and point me to the skies.
Heaven's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee;
in life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.
Performance history
03 Sep 2009: Realised at Seeing With Ears: Video Works by John Coulter at the New Zealand Electroacoustic Music Symposium (NZEMS), School of Music University of Auckland, in Auckland.
20 May 2010: Realised at The Beijing Modern Music Festival, in Beijing.
22 May 2010: Realised at the Nanjing Arts Institute, in Nanjing.