A flourish: a crowd assembles at the gate of Heaven, saints and sinners. As in a film (bars 15—16) the immensity of the crowd is illustrated, and the camera zooms (bars 17—18) to focus on particular groups and individuals.
Letter A: monks sing a ‘medieval’ hymn, interrupted by the fanfares of mischievous seraphim; gradually the whole crowd join in. At bar 72 the fanfares grow wilder. The camera zooms to letter C. ‘Excited, grubby, naughty children enter, singing mock fanfares (bar 94 etc.), making jazzy gestures and, at letter D, trying to sing the children’s hymn All things bright and beautiful which they cannot remember correctly. They dance (bar 11 2) and continue, accompanied by roughnecks (bar 11 7 etc.) who take up the fanfare idea. They all dance together, but suddenly the camera zooms again at the entrance of Jesus (bar 138). A commanding flourish causes consternation. Separate groups react, interrupted by mysterious percussion effects. Then, as the whole panorama explodes in sound, William Booth (founder of the Salvation Army) approaches (bar 154) awestruck. Letter I sets words from Vachel Lindsay’s poem William Booth enters into Heaven which is referred to in my piece The Bandsman’s Tale: ‘He saw King Jesus, they were face to face, and fell a-weeping in that holy place.’ A triple Alleluia follows, and then the third hymn — a version of the tune from my piece Ascendit in Coeli, first on a solo cornet and eventually tutti. The words are ‘Praise to the holiest in the height’ etc. A further triple Alleluia is heard.
At letter M a dance finale begins using material from the whole piece. At letter Q a tumultuous climax precedes sudden quiet Alleluias, and the crowd exits into Heaven to the music of the monks, reharmonised and transformed. At letter T the camera shots extend to the heavens and to the stars.
Hymns at Heaven’s Gate is dedicated to Harry Mortimer, the greatest band personality of modern times, the most famous cornet player and conductor. In my imagination I hear him playing the solo from Ascendit in Coeli. Elgar Howarth
