Dedicated to those striving for Peace and Freedom

Facing The Rising Sun

An Arrangement of the African-American Spiritual Let Us Break Bread Together.

Instrumentation

Piccolo
Flute 1, 2
Oboe 1, 2
Bassoon 1, 2
Bb Clarinet 1, 2, 3
Bb Bass Clarinet
Eb Contra Alto Clarinet
Alto Saxophone 1, 2
Tenor Saxophone
Baritone Saxophone
Trumpet 1, 2, 3
F Horn 1, 2, 3, 4
Trombone 1, 2
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
Tuba
Percussion – Conventional Western and Traditional West African
Celeste (or piano) + Dodompo or other small African Handbell
Timpani + Dodompo or other small African Handbell
Percussion 1 – Vibes, 3 African Dun Duns (or Tom Toms)
Percussion 2 – Crotales (or bells), Bells, Dodompo
Percussion 3 – Xylophone, Gankoqui
Percussion 4 – Marimba, Gembeé
Percussion 5 – Triangle, Suspended Cymbal, Gembeé
Percussion 6 – Bass Drum (+ optional large Dun Dun)

The names of the African percussion instruments change from region to region and it is OK to substitute similar instruments such as ashiko for gembeé (even low conga drums will work) and tokei bells for dodompo.

Facing The Rising Sun is an arrangement of the lovely and important African American Spirituals, Let Us Break Bread Together.

Let us break bread together on our knees,
let us break bread together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.

Let us drink wine together on our knees,
let us drink wine together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.

Let us praise God together on our knees,
let us praise God together on our knees.
When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun,
O Lord, have mercy on me.

This song was one of the many spirituals used as a signal by slaves that an opportunity to join the Underground Railroad was approaching. “When I fall on my knees with my face to the rising sun” would be, for example, a signal that an opportunity for freedom from the shackles of slavery would occur at dawn or, for those living in certain parts of Missouri, that freedom lay to the east, in the direction of the rising sun, in Illinois. During the Civil Rights era, this song was one of the core Spirituals that symbolized the continuing struggle for freedom. Today, it is often used in Christian Communion worship and in gatherings, often of more than one denomination or of multiple religions, of those looking for a world united in togetherness. In this light, this arrangement is offered in hopes of all people and all religions finding a common bond in harmony and peace.

Notes to the Conductor

m. 1 – 16 – mysterious, magical. Bring out the fragments of the melody (such as trombone in m. 10).
22 – 42 – low winds have a variation of the melody. This should be rather subdued yet prominent, floating out of the ensemble, like the voices of ancestors singing through time.
43 – 46 – eighth notes in trumpets, flutes, saxes – allow these to flow out of the horn like water (avoid letting them become staccato).
Pickup to 50 – the melody, in chorale form, appears for the first time.
69 – 82 is a collage of sound (like a musical version of painting a watercolor wash). It should blend into one texture that allows the listener’s ear to move around from part to part as something draws their attention.
75 – 82 –low winds begin to give definition to the collage. This definition becomes more pronounced and leads into the jazz section at 83.
83 – the winds are jazzy, syncopated. The percussion plays in a traditional West African style. The feeling here should have a natural flow, like a gospel choir swaying back and forth. Much of the tempo should be determined by the ability of the percussion section and it is important to let them find their “groove” and fit the winds into this feeling.
106 – Jazz feeling ends. Percussion goes into a “highlife” rhythm (used for parties and celebrations) that should be very happy, crisp and snappy.
110 –111 - highlife feeling changes abruptly back to the jazz rhythms. The bells, however, are either absent or are very different, giving this section a grounded, earthy feeling. The winds have a rising pattern here, ascending from the earthy to the angelic, leading to the highlife feeling again in measure 113.
115 – 116 – the work relaxes in the trumpet and sax solos. A final choir of angels sings in measure 120, leading to the concluding chords and fading to silence in the clarinets.

All African percussion parts are standard and basic West African techniques. If the techniques are unfamiliar, a lesson or two with a traditional West African teacher is all your section should need. Many traditional players learn by rote, however, so there will need to be a “meeting of the minds” as the director or the percussionists sing or speak the lines to the teacher, who then demonstrates the technique used to play it. The names of the instruments change from region to region and it is OK to substitute similar instruments such as ashiko for gembeé and tokei bells for dodompo.