Angels Hovering Round

Angels Hovering Round is a setting of a rarely heard American folk spiritual, adapted and re-imagined for eight-part a cappella choir. The original tune can be found in The Revivalist, a collection of songs and hymns compiled by Joseph Hillman in 1868. Two small ensembles of soprano soloists introduce the first verse over a simple, undulating choral texture. The full choir then assumes the second and third verses in a more robust and homophonic style, culminating in a buoyant section in which gentle, enveloping sonorities bring the mesmerizing repetition of the text to the fore. The piece closes with an echo of the opening choral texture. For soprano soli section, two ensembles of 3 to 4 soprano soloists are recommended for performance by large choirs; chamber choirs may find single soloists effective.

There are angels hovering ‘round,
There are angels hovering ‘round,
There are angels hovering ‘round.

I am on my journey home,
I am on my journey home,
I am on my journey home.

To the New Jerusalem,
To the New Jerusalem,
To the New Jerusalem.