The video below is of a song that I wrote for a man named Lynn "Doc" Cleland. He is pulling a handcart in honor of his Great Grandmother who was one of the first pioneers who entered the Salt Lake Valley. We met him here in Omaha while he was on the trail. I saw him on the news and then saw him our ward that Sunday. He asked me to write a piece of music to go with a Documentary he will be making after he completes his trek.
He asked me to compose something that was low in the beginning and had the melody of "Come, Come Ye Saints" The melody is definitely inspired by this hymn and also has a variation of that hymn through out the piece. One melody came to me when we were driving one evening to find Doc to walk with him. There is a part of the song where it changes keys.. it goes into a lower almost sad melody. While I was sitting at the piano I tried to imagine what it might have been like to be Sarah Goode Marshall. I tried to imagine the hardship she must have had being a widowed woman with 5 children. I am sure there were very dark moments during the trek, but her faith always sustained her through those moments. The melody then goes back to the original theme of "Come, Come ye Saints." I thought it should end as if she were entering the valley and the conclusion of the song should end with the "All is Well" part of the Hymn.
I know this is a very choppy explanation of the song, but it gives Doc an idea of what I have been working on. It still needs a lot of work and needs to be obviously notated and fine tuned.
It has been a neat opportunity to do this and work on this piece. I don't think I am a composer by any means, but it has been thrilling to hear my thoughts come out into music onto the piano. His website is www.faithgreaterthanpain.com You can read about his journey there!