Two years ago I wrote “Supporting Friends Friday: The Cinematic Compositions of Mason Sandifer” about the composing work of one of my student, Robert Mason Sandifer.  Mason (as I call him) started distributing his music to all the major platforms (Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube, etc.) earlier this month, and he is directly responsible for inspiring me to put my old instrumental music on the same platforms.

Mason is currently undertaking an ambitious project to compose instrumental music that tells the story of the Bible, from Genesis through Revelations (or, as my friend Steve O would say, “from Genesis through Maps”).  It’s an amazing concept, and he has executed it beautifully so far.

Mason started with “Eden,” an angelic work that captures the heavenly quality of that unspoiled Garden.

He followed that up with a three-track single, Promise, telling the story of Noah’s Ark.

Promise opens with “Two by Two,” a whimsical piece that captures the fun and humor of bringing two of every animal to the Ark.  It reminds me of Camille Saint-Saëns’s The Carnival of the Animals, a programmatic work that depicts a menagerie of animals.  A slide trombone depicts elephants, with a slide whistle making what I can only imagine is some kind of bird.  It’s fun, descriptive music at its best.

The next track is Flood, and here things take a darker turn.  Mason haunting captures the danger and foreboding of the rapidly falling rains, washing away all life save that which is on the Ark.  Loud anvil clangs create the sense of dread, while also drawing to mind Noah’s steadfast hammering away at the Ark, constructing a massive ship at a time when no rain had ever fallen.

The final, title track, “Promise,” ends the work on a note of hopefulness.  God’s Promise is fulfilled!  A languid flute fills in the part of the dove returning with the olive branch.

Mason’s composing is truly remarkable—evocative, clear, powerful, triumphant, melancholy, heavenly.  He captures the spirit of the Scriptures vividly.  Try listening to Promise and not getting goosebumps.

For those lacking a Spotify or Apple Music subscription, no worries; you can listen to all of Promise on YouTube!

Happy Listening!

—TPP