Anthem for SSATB

Music by Phil Orrin
Words by Smyttan and Pott

About the work

A reflective Lenten anthem exploring temptation, endurance and the example of Christ in the wilderness, written for the expressive possibilities of the unaccompanied choir.

Forty Days and Forty Nights is an unaccompanied SATB setting of the traditional Lenten text describing Christ’s forty days in the wilderness. The text reflects upon Christ’s fasting, his physical hardship and his resistance to temptation, before turning towards a prayer that those who follow him might likewise find strength and perseverance. The opening words describe Christ fasting in the wilderness, “tempted and yet undefiled”, establishing the central theme of the anthem.

The imagery of the text is stark: the heat of the sun, the cold night, prowling beasts, stones for a pillow and the earth itself as a bed. The second verse moves from Christ’s physical suffering to the spiritual trial of temptation, asking that, like Christ, we may not “faint nor fall”.

The music

The anthem opens Moderato, with the full choir entering mezzo-forte. The musical language immediately gives the words considerable weight, with sustained melodic lines and rich harmonic writing reflecting the seriousness of Christ’s time in the wilderness.

A recurring musical feature is the phrase “Tempted and yet undefiled”, which is treated almost as a refrain. It repeatedly returns at quieter dynamic levels, often preceded by a ritardando plumbing vocal depths in the unson phrase, creating a striking contrast with the more expansive statements of the verses.

The second verse intensifies the narrative, beginning with “And if Satan vexing sore”, before returning to the central refrain. The final statement is marked molto ritardando and piano, bringing the anthem to a restrained, dark and contemplative conclusion rather than a triumphant one.

Performance

St Peter’s church choir 2025

Score