Keep Watch, Dear Lord

When I wrote “Keep Watch, Dear Lord” for the Des Moines Vocal Arts Ensemble, the text had already been chosen from the Book of Common Prayer. I’m reluctant to set this kind of well known public domain text without giving it a new shape for the singers and the audience. So I took some liberties: reshaping the text into stanzas and adding the repetition of some lines, which ended up lending itself to a more traditional song form. I believe this allows the music to give new context to the words, providing those who know the prayer with a new way to hear and absorb it.

The repetition of this text makes it feel almost like a mantra – a calming refrain that serves as a reminder. We’ve all been at the side of someone who is sick, or weary, or troubled, or dying, and as compassionate people we want to do whatever we can to help ease the suffering. But at a certain point we realize that nothing we can do will help. We have to give that responsibility over to a higher power. In this text we are asking God to take over and keep watch.

Much of this writing is quiet, but when the dynamics do rise, let yourselves make this a more fervent, direct prayer, full of passion and hope.

– Timothy C. Takach, 2018