Christ Be Our Light

Thoughts on Christ Be Our Light

One of my favorite contemporary composers is Bernadette Farrell, whom I had the pleasure of meeting and working with at a National Pastoral Musicians’ Workshop a few years ago.  She has composed so many wonderful hymns, like All That Is Hidden, but Christ Be Our Light is also one of my favorites.  In these musical variations, I dwell for quite some time on the beginning, concentrating on “Longing for light, we wait in darkness. Longing for truth, we turn to You,” and trying to express musically what those words mean to me. Then I introduce “Christ be our light” with a solo trumpet accompanied by piano, and then repeat the refrain immediately in a more transcendent setting. 

Richard Smith (Slamiszkis)