Jonathan Wey of Ohio Northern University has composed a piece titled "Unless the Lord Builds the House" for the formal dedication of the Ada First United Methodist Church on Sunday, April 12.
The 6-7 minute long piece will be sung by the church's Chancel Choir and ONU University Singers accompanied by piano and French horn. We caught up with Wey for a feature in our series "15 Minutes With."
How did you decide on the title for the piece?
Sometimes the title is the last thing ‘written’. With a piece like this—scored for accompanied choir, and written for a very special occasion—the first and most important priority is finding the right text. I wanted to find something in the scriptures that dealt specifically with the building of the temple, the building up of God’s house.
There is so much in the Bible (both Old and New Testaments) that deals with this theme, so it was rather difficult to select the most fitting words. In the end, it seemed right that the beginning of the music should come from a spirit of humility, of total reliance upon God.
This piece was about laboring to build God’s house again (as Ada First United has so tireless and faithfully done); yet it was also about not relying on man’s effort alone, but rather trusting in God’s design and purpose. When I read the first line of Psalm 127, “Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.”…I found my title.
What are some of the emotions you had when writing the music that you wanted to share with the audience?
This piece was more difficult for me than others I’ve written in the past. Again, it boiled down to finding the most appropriate text. Certainly one emotion was doubt. Is this the very best that I can do? Also, a feeling of unworthiness…I am not even a member of this church, and yet I have been asked to take on this very awesome work. How humbling. I took it very seriously; and it was daunting. It took much longer to complete because I wanted it to be right. And I hope that it will be.
Tell me about your background as a composer, such as education and other compositions you have written that have been publicly performed.
I studied composition privately in high school, and studied also at Indiana University. I did a Masters degree in Choral Conducting at Butler University. Along the way, I’ve been blessed to write for many different ensembles and choirs (both for churches as well as other organizations).
When I lived in Indianapolis, I composed a piece for the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir called “Resurrection Canticles.” It was scored for choir and organ, and the texts were taken from the Orthodox Christian hymns of Holy Week dealing with Christ’s burial and resurrection. It was premiered on the weekend of Palm Sunday. That was a most powerful and awesome experience that I will never forget.
Why do you like to write music?
Writing music has always been a joy for me from the earliest age. I’ve always been able to find meaning in life through the expression of making music. I studied piano since age 5; and when I didn’t feel like practicing scales (which was probably about every day) I would write pieces at the piano instead.
I was inspired by film scores and other pieces of classical music that I was hearing. This music painted the universe in such vastly beautiful and dramatic ways. I was always struck deeply by this power in music, the power to show us how incredible and mysterious the universe is that God made. I wanted to join in this tradition and try to contribute this wonderful art to the world.
How did you get interested in music composition.
I did indeed write a lot at the piano as a child. And my sophomore year of high school, we had an original opera production. It was really quite extraordinary. Everything was done by the students, with some guidance from the music and humanities faculty: the libretto, the acting and the music was all original work done by the students!
I was blessed to be able to write two numbers for this opera, and what a gratifying experience it was to see the music through from beginning to end, from the brain’s imagination to the stage. We had a college professor come in to guide the composers with their orchestrations and such…and later that year my parents and I decided we would study composition with this same professor. My brother and I both studied with him, and we haven’t looked back since!
Tell me about your interest in classical piano.
I studied it all my life until after college. I still try to remain active playing the piano, although it is much harder now with two jobs, and a wife and two kids. J I also value the piano not only as a wonderful solo instrument, but as an invaluable writing tool as well. I do most of my writing (especially for choir) at the piano.
What are your jobs at ONU, your age, and family?
Currently I am an adjunct professor of music at ONU, where I teach aural skills and composition. The students are incredibly bright and gifted, and it’s a real joy to work with them each day. I have also worked for The Inn at ONU since moving to the Ada area in 2010, and it has been a very rewarding experience for me.
My lovely wife Elesha graduated from Northern where she majored in piano performance. She currently teaches piano, and our two sons Gideon and Ephraim keep us happily busy. If and when there is some time to write music…I try to make this a priority as well, though it is not always at the top of my list.
(Monty Siekerman)
