It was new, unique, and affirming. With 30+ singers from Southern California and beyond, ages ranging over 7 decades, a week’s worth of work culminating in a serviced-based performance of 5 songs sung with spirit and purpose, it was truly wonderful! Our deepest thanks goes to Kirk Averitt and the Church of the Good Shepherd in Arcadia for hosting our program so generously and allowing us to ground our work on Sunday morning, singing for a purpose greater than ourselves.
Memories from St. Louis
The premiere of my O Magnum Mysterium for soprano and organ for the American Guild of Organists convention in St. Louis earlier this month was wonderful. My deepest appreciation goes to soprano Christine Brewer and organist Christopher Houlihan for bringing my piece to life. Here’s a video from AGO’s Facebook page:
| There have been several requests for the score from organists curious to try it out at their own churches. I’m grateful to the American Guild of Organists for commissioning me and making it possible for me to travel and be present for the premiere. |
| By the way, the famous St. Louis Arch is so much more inspirational in person than I ever imagined it would be. |
I also ate some of the best barbecue of my life at Sugarfire Smokehouse in downtown St. Louis.
Upcoming events
The Road to Carnegie Hall
Choirs can sign up now to join us in song at one of the greatest performance spaces in the world. Zanaida returns to Carnegie Hall in NYC to perform Shawn Kirchner’s Songs of Ascent and more, in March 2027. Individual singers can join the fun as part of the ZSR Singers, as we travel to New York and experience this journey together. Learn more and find application links on the website:
Composition
Lessons about time
With a commission due this fall, and two more in the works for next year, I’m at maximum capacity as a composer. Ongoing efforts include continuing to study orchestration, trying to use notation software more efficiently, self-promotion, and marketing — all things that are essential to building a composing life and a body of work as a creator.
But it’s an ongoing challenge, and taking much longer to reach my summer publishing goals than I hoped it would. I’m still trying to release four new titles on the MusicSpoke marketplace this summer. The editing process continues to vex me (not to mention ASCAP cataloguing and US copyright fees).
As long as I feel inspired to keep composing, I guess I have to accept that I still have a lot to learn. And patience is paramount, because it’s gonna take as long as it needs to take. Somehow, I suspect I’m not the only one grappling with some of this…
For Fun
| Hope your summer is inspiring, restful and not TOO hot! |
Originally published as the July 2026 e-newsletter from Stewart Robles Music. View the online version here
