Frank Bridge’s famous Adagio in E Major is a favorite for many organists. Perhaps you know of some other poignant Adagio’s, like Samuel Barber’s Adagio for Strings, or the lamenting Adagio in G Minor, attributed to Albinoni. These kinds of pieces are elegiac, meaning that they mimic the aesthetics of an elegy, a poem of serious reflection, usually a lament for the dead.

Frank Bridge, an English composer, teacher, and performer, wrote a number of these kinds of pastoral, elegiac works, which seem to long for spiritual comfort. Many believed that he was a pacifist and was deeply disturbed by horrors of the First World War. His most famous student, Benjamin Britten, remembers him as someone who focused on aesthetics, rather than technicalities. Whatever the case may be, we somehow can hear in the music that Frank Bridge was a deep thinker.

The lyricism, the lull of the slowly rising melody, might distract you from the harder-to-perceive dynamic changes. If you pay close attention, it’s as if the organ “sneaks” into its fullest dynamic, then retreats back again, just as stealthily, to its softest sound. To make that happen on the Fisk is a challenge unto itself, but to create music that gently draws the listener into a poignant reflection of spiritual awareness is a miracle. The ebb and flow of volume is imperceptible, but sometimes too is our own, spiritual awakening. The Holy Spirit doesn’t always bop you over the head, it speaks in hues of subtlety, and often “suggests” that we draw our attention away from the ways of the world, and the mental ramblings of worry.

But the spirit sometimes uses sudden contrast too, just like composers do. In the offertory anthem, when the choir gets to the text, “Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation,” you’ll notice the more overt dynamic contrast. From soft and somber, to suddenly vibrant and free, so too does the spirit speak to us. Sometimes the spirit works abruptly, like when Saul was on his way to Damascus, and his eyes were opened. In the twist of a moment, his awakening changed the trajectory of his life.  

The dynamics of your own spiritual journey will happen in many, different ways. You’ll evolve slowly, subtly, and with great mystery. And at times, you’ll awaken to discover the inner wisdom of the spirit’s call to you. Whatever the case may be, notice how it works in your own life. Notice the dynamics of the music this morning, how they change either subtly or with great surprise and contrast. But above all, notice how the dynamics of The Holy Spirit move through your own life, every single day. Soli deo Gloria!