American Choral Music since 1985

The history of music has traditionally been told through a study of its most important works. Aside from the literature of the early anthem in this country, this is true also of the history of American choral music. We trace the development of a mature, sophisticated choral tradition in the nineteenth century by noting its milestone works: Paine’s Mass in D, Horatio Parker’s Hora novissima, Amy Beach’s Grand Mass in E-flat, and other such works. Thurston Dox has provided an admirable guide to this monumental body of literature in his catalogue, American Oratorios and Cantatas, ¹ which lists hundreds of works in these forms through 1985. The purpose of this essay is to survey the choral works in larger genres that have appeared since Dox’s book was completed.