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This piece contains numerous challenges to the singer to find the right note and beat: tritones, tone clusters, polyrhythms, chromaticism, large leaps, unusually spelled intervals, glissandi, cross voicing, divisi, etc. I was inspired by the Psalms of Charles Ives, especially Psalms 14, 24, and 54. Psalm 1 contrasts the man of God, who is blessed by Him for being His follower, over against the ungodly man who is of no account and will perish in the end. Using a repeated theme and some extreme harmony and rhythm I attempt to paint the meaning of the words in musical emotion and metaphor. The climax on a sharp 11 flat 9 Dominant 7 ends the piece with the extreme angst and despair of the ungodly man who will end up in Hell. This Psalm is well worth your time to study and memorize.
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