Liturgical music
Passio is composed as liturgical organ music to be performed on Good Friday. The music portrays the Passion in all its often dramatic elements, following the gospel of Luke at close hold by taking certain keywords as a starting point for the composition. The composition must be performed on Good Friday in combination with reading of the passion-texts from Luke, in a liturgical setting. The music does not make sense if played separately. I used both traditional as more modern composition techniques, included clusters, because of the dark and dramatic character of the texts.

Published
Published by Lyche Musikkforlag AS (58 pages, No. 1086) The composer has produced the music notation and overall layout.

Structure
There are twelve sections including a prelude. Between the sections, the complete bible texts are printed in both the Norwegian language varieties Bokmål and Nynorsk.The publication contains the organ music (32 pages) with the keywords printed between the notes. Some keywords (for example "innocent") come back in various sections and have their own theme.
In addition, there are some guidelines on performance and a necrology on Jesus by Irmelin Grimstad Bonden, which can be read after the last section of Passio. This can be done if you consider Good Friday as the funeral day of Jesus. It is a Norwegian funeral tradition to read a necrology.

Some press information on Passio:
Announcement of first performance in "Vårt Land" (21st mars 1997):
"On Good Friday night there will be the first performance of the newly composed passion composition "Passio" in Sør-Vågsøy kyrkje in Måløy. Organist Wim Kamp of Vågsøy, who has written the piece, will perform it himself. The music portrays the whole Passion story as told by the evangelist Luke. Ole Kristian Bonden and Irmelin Grimstad Bonden will read the gospel.

- There are long traditions in the church to read the passion story as a whole on Good Friday. This time it will be a fine opportunity in Sør-Vågsøy church to get inside of what Jesus had to go through from Getsemane to Golgotha. There will be strong, dramatic and surprising effects, but also meditative music, says Irmelin Grimstad Bonden. (…) Organist Wim Kamp has fully exploited the possibilities of the organ in this composition. "The dramatic aspects of the gospel inspired me to use the organ both in a traditional and more unusual way. I cut the story into eleven parts, after that I selected keywords and used them as an inspiration in the composing process", says Wim Kamp.

-"Passio" breaks quite strongly with traditional music for Good Friday. "Luke tells about pain, swords and staves, about darkness, contempt, shrieks, scorn and mockery, but also about triumph, forgiveness, innocence and Paradise. The organ is particularly suitable to express and comment such a wide spectre of emotions, says Wim Kamp.

Fjordenes Tidende writes about the first performance:
"Strong, gloomy and agonising".

Ole Kristian Bonden (one of the readers) in Fjordenes Tidende: "If people are open for it, the story will go deeper if it's read together with such strong music as Wim has made. I cannot think of a better way to preach than this one. Both the experience and the contents become more intense."

Review
Gjermund Bjørklund in "Norsk Kirkemusikk", january 2000:
, .....Wim Kamp has created a rather exciting work! .......The idiom is new and exciting without being avant-garde. Some of the parts remind me of written down improvisations, without being  uninteresting from a compositional viewpoint. It sounds really nice when the composer weaves in well known hymn melodies. The effects are partly dramatic, clusters and percussion effects underline the most dramatic parts of the story and alternate with enthralling sections. A highly interesting work!"

Sound examples
There are eleven RealAudio files of Passio you can listen to, recorded during the premiere in Måløy; you hear me playing the Marcussen organ. One (the Prelude) is recorded later for Dutch radio, on the Steendam organ in Valle.
In order to show the close relation between music and text I have made the list below. The underlined words are the keywords I used for inspiration when composing.

Help with playing the sound clips and using the PDF-files         can be found in the Technical info section

 

• The Prelude of  "Passio"
  Clip 1    More Info / download clip
• [Luke 22:47] And while he yet spake, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him. Luke 22:52 Then Jesus said unto the chief priests, and captains of the temple, and the elders, which were come to him, Be ye come out, as against a thief, with swords and staves?
  Clip 2    More Info / download clip
• [Luke 22:53] When I was daily with you in the temple, ye stretched forth no hands against me: but this is your hour, and the power of darkness.
  Clip 3    More Info / download clip
• [Luke 22:61] And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt den y me thrice.
  Clip 4    More Info / download clip
• [Luke 22:63] And the men that held Jesus mocked him, and smote him.
  Clip 5    More Info / download clip
• [Luke 23:13] And Pilate, when he had called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, [23:14] Said unto them, Ye have brought this man unto me, as one that perverteth the people: and, behold, I, having examined him before you, have found no fault in this man touching those things whereof ye accuse him.
  Clip 6    More Info / download clip
• [Luke 23:22] And he said unto them the third time, Why, what evil hath he done? I have found no cause of death in him: I will therefore chastise him, and let him go . [23] And they were instant with loud voices, requiring that he might be crucified.
  Clip 7    More Info / download clip
• [Luke 23:21-23] But they cried, saying, Crucify him, crucify him.
  Clip 8    More Info / download clip           
• [Luke 23:33-34] And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left. [34] Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.
  Clip 9    More Info / download clip
• [Luke 23:43] And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
  Clip 10    More Info / download clip
• [Matthew 27:51] (here I used some of Matthew's words) And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent.
  Clip 11    More Info / download clip   

Clipnumber Filename	Kb	Ta	Musical contents of  the clip	Other info
Clip 1 39Passio_prelude.ra	276	44	Prelude of Passio, based on the Norwegian psalm: "Se, vi går opp til Jerusalem" You hear: Swell: Gamba 8' and Great: Holpijp 8' Steendam organ, Valle Setesdal, Norway	Recording: Evangelische Omroep '96 (Gert Altena, Erik Zwiep)
Clip 2 17Passio_Sverd.ra	415	64	Luk 22:47: a multitude with swords and staves	excerpts from premiere, Sør-Vågsøy church, Måløy, Norway, 28th mars 1997. Own recording
Clip 3 18Passio_morket.ra	378	44	Luk 22:53: the power of darkness
Clip 4 19Passio_Hanengol.ra	296	64	Luk 22:61:  ..cock crow, ..deny me thrice.
Clip 5 20Passio_Spot.ra	256	44	Passio Luk 22:63: mocked him, and smote him.
Clip 6 21Passio_Uskyldig.ra	205	44	Luk 23:13: have found no fault in this man
Clip 7 23Passio_Ropte.ra	489	64	Luk 23:21-23: loud voices, requiring..
Clip 8 22Passio_Korsfest.ra	223	64	Luk 23:21-23 Crucify him, crucify him
Clip 9 24Passio_Tilgji.ra	623	44	Luk 23:33-34: Father, forgive them
Clip 10 25Passio_Paradis.ra	430	44	Luk 23:43: in paradise
Clip 11 26Passio_Jorden.ra	267	64	Passio Matt 27:57: earth..quake, rocks rent

 

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