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This blog post is third in a series focusing on music for school & community. In 2015 I was honored to be the first Composer-in-Residence for the historic Washington Elementary School in Raleigh, North Carolina. Washington was founded in 1923 as the first public African American Graded and High School in Raleigh. The school is now a diverse "gifted and talented" elementary magnet school in the Wake County Public School System. In 2023 and 2025, Washington was named top magnet elementary school in the country by the Magnet Schools of America. My friend, Bo Reece, was the school's long-time and beloved music teacher.  I was commissioned to compose a flexibly-voiced school song with piano accompaniment and accessible parts for student orchestra and band. I began by getting to know the school through conversation with the students and faculty, asking them what makes their school special. I received hundreds of index cards on which they provided their responses. After reading them all, three things were clear: Washington Elementary, (and "school" in general) could be thought of as a place to be honored, a people who make a difference, and a time that's meaningful. These ideas gave form to the lyrics and inspired the music for the resulting piece: Sing of Our School.  The premiere of Sing of Our School was performed by student and faculty choir with piano, student band and orchestra. Providing a performance opportunity for the entire school community, the piece works well for school commencements, graduations, anniversaries, or any time school is celebrated. 2016 Premiere Performance Bo Reece, Conductor (video with lyrics below)  95th Anniversary T-Shirt with lyrics from Sing of Our School Because the song offers alternative lyrics and a creative opportunity to include any school's name in the piece, it may be effectively expressed by any school. 100th Anniversary performance
by a select school choir (includes lyrics in video) This is the second blog post that highlights music for school & community, though it also includes pieces for the church.  If you knew J. Paul Williams you are already smiling upon reading his name! You are remembering his unrelenting teasing and his signature Hawaiian shirts made by his wife, Donna. A constant jokester, I once saw Paul ride in a friend's car to a restaurant, then, giving silent commentary to her driving skills, quickly exited the car, got down on the ground and kissed the pavement! I have an array of envelopes from him addressed to me in various disparaging ways ("Horse Lips" was one of his favorites). The problem was that when most of these letters and packages were delivered, I lived in the small town of Walterboro, South Carolina. Paul's "creative" labels attached to my name were embarrassingly well-known among the staff in the town's only post office! His letters also always concluded with: "Hello to Cindy, who I like." I'm sure I am not the only "Horse Lips" out there, and I'm sure many other spouses were greeted in the same way at the end of letters. Paul brought much laughter into many lives! In the 1970's I was introduced to the composing duo of "Paul and Donna Williams." I sang their choral pieces in my church's youth choir and was enthused by their music. During my freshman year at Oklahoma Baptist University I was excited to unexpectedly meet them in person during the university's 1982 homecoming. I quickly discovered that Paul and I shared much in common. Along with his being an OBU alumni and composer, we were both members of the university's Bison Glee Club, and were similarly influenced by Warren M. Angell, the club's founder and dean emeritus of the fine arts college. (Warren Angell is the subject of another blog post: In Gratitude for Warren M. Angell.) After our first meeting, Paul and I kept in touch. In the early 1990's we both attended the Composer's Symposium at the Baptist Sunday School Board in Nashville, Tennessee. By this time, he had begun to focus more on lyric writing than composing. On the final day of that week-long event, Paul and I were asked by one of the editors from the Baptist publishing house to collaborate on a children's Christmas musical. Paul and I enjoyed creating Immanuel Will Come, for the Sunday School Board's "Children's Choir" curriculum (Van Ness Press, Inc., 1994). The musical includes seven pieces for unison/opt. two-part voices, accompanied by piano, Orff instruments, misc. percussion, and recorder. Because he was also a composer, Paul wrote lyrics with solid structure that would easily assist the compositional process. This made my creative work enjoyable, and I remember the publisher's editor commenting that she "did not have to change one note" (a rare comment for composers to hear). Paul's humorous personality came through in the words to one of the Christmas musical's pieces: Busy Bethlehem. Paul ingeniously penned lyrics that imagined a hectic Bethlehem, full of hurried people who had come for the census. The resulting chaotic music of the piece mirrored Paul's ideas and included "chant" (rap) parts for soloists and choir.  Following our first publication, Paul sent me other texts to set musically. One day I received a call from him asking me to write music for a piece to be included in the Houston Children's Choir Series published by Fred Bock Music. Paul was writing all of the texts for this series, asking a variety of composers to collaborate. I was thrilled to be a part, and I understood completely why Paul thought of me when he sent his text: Santa Claus Is Busy! With the success of "Busy Bethlehem," Paul decided to replicate the experience with his new lyrics about Santa Claus. We decided the new piece could also contain a choral chant/rap in the middle of the vocal sections. I included various percussion instruments to mimic the sounds of Santa's workshop as the children simultaneously chant two ostinato lines: "Busy, busy, Santa Claus is busy, busy, Santa Claus..." "Santa Claus is busy! Tell me, just how busy is he?" Above the ostinati, soloists exclaim: "He's got to feed the reindeer and hitch them to his sleigh. He's got to get the map out so he will know the way. He's got to file a flight plan with the F.A.A.! Santa Claus is busy! Busy night and day!" -Words by J. Paul Williams © 1997 Fred Bock Music Company Inspired by Paul's humor, my comical contribution to the piece was the suggestion that an audience member interrupts the seemingly endless cacophony by standing, raising their hand, clearing their throat, and asking: "Excuse me, just how busy is he?" -- to which the entire puzzled choir shouts back loudly: "He's BUSY!" Paul's fun lyrics and my music for two-part (or unison) voices with sleigh bells, misc. percussion, choral chant/rap, and audience member part, is published by Fred Bock Music. Santa Claus Is Busy! was recorded by the Houston Children's Chorus on it's live album: Christmas Is Here. I treasure a letter from Fred Bock himself who wrote: "I really like the piece!"
School or community children's choirs who wish to sing Santa Claus is Busy! this Christmas may find it through the Fred Bock Music Company or other music distributor. Though Paul passed in 2010, his inspirational and joyful life continues through school, community, and church choirs that sing his words. A choral piece for churches by J. Paul Williams & Larry E. Schultz: The Sea of Galilee (available on this site)  This church choir anthem for SATB voices and piano is a choral narrative of Mark 4:35-41. The introductory “soundscape” heard in the piano and voices aurally sets the scene for the dramatic story of Jesus and his disciples on the sea.
While the majority of my choral compositions have been created for church, I have also enjoyed opportunities to compose music for school and community choirs, striving to offer educators useful materials that provide enjoyable and effective teaching opportunities. This is the first blog post among several that will highlight some of these creations.  One of my most widely-preformed pieces was conceived for elementary and middle school choirs. "Little Firefly" is a setting of an imaginative poem by Grace Lee Frank. It offers a number of choral technique opportunities (two-part harmony and vocal independence, staccato and legato singing, expressive diction). Because Ms. Frank's poem sings of a firefly that "carries a star," the piece also incorporates the familiar words and tune to "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," (but instead of "like a star up in the sky," the children sing: "like a firefly in the sky!"). A performance suggestion invites the singers to use penlights during the performance to simulate fireflies that dance among the choir. The piece is dedicated to my daughter, Kelly, and we've been grateful to hear many expressive performances of this piece in concerts and festivals. It has even been creatively performed as a piece for two woodwinds and piano by music education majors in recital at Shenandoah University. Beyond the USA and Canada, it has also been presented by children's choirs in Europe, Asia, and Africa. It gives me joy to think a child on a playground in a far-away land may be humming a tune I composed. There's something deeply fulfilling about such a thought, reminding how the publication, distribution, and teaching of music can provide meaningful global connections. performance of "Little Firefly" with penlights by Cantabile, Young Voices Toronto  Speaking of playgrounds, the "sequel" to "Little Firefly" was largely created while playing on a playground with my two children years ago. This was appropriate because, "Have You Ever Seen a House Fly?" is a playful piece for elementary and middle-schoolers. At the playground we brainstormed some of the play-on-words lyrics that ended up in the composition. Dedicated in "smiling memory" of my maternal grandfather who enjoyed joke telling, "Have You Ever Seen a House Fly?" is also dedicated to the Wake County Elementary Honors Chorus that premiered it the year I was its guest conductor. The piece sings of "horseflies" and "horses that fly," "houseflies" and "houses that fly," and so on. In trying to imagine "fruits that fly," my son, Ryan, came up with the idea of a "banana half-moon" and instantly became co-lyricist. Even the names printed on the publication are "play-on-words." My composer name listed is "Larry E. Schultz," but I used my full name as lyricist: "Lawrence E. Schultz." I did that because my son's middle name is also "Lawrence," so his lyricist credit underneath mine is: "Ryan Lawrence Schultz." To top it off, the dedication line identifies my grandfather: "Lawrence M. Yarbrough!" I imagine all of the various "Lawrences" give those who see the printed page cause to scratch their heads in wonder! I decided to replicate ideas from the creation of "Little Firefly" in this piece by combining a familiar folk song, "Shoo Fly! Don't Bother Me!" with the song's tune and by providing a performance idea. This idea involves placards on poles designed to picture the various "flies" in the song. At the appropriate time, the placards are lifted high to fly over the choir, allowing the audience to visualize the fun text. Along with the placards, a literal shoe attached to a tall pole is also suggested to represent the "shoe fly." One of the best laughs I've received from a song I've composed is seeing a community children's choir sing this piece in a magnificent cathedral where a young boy was waving a shoe on a tall stick in front of the ornate high altar! I doubt anything of the sort had ever been experienced in that space! Perhaps music-making like this reminds us to put life in perspective and remember to laugh. performance of "Have You Ever Seen a House Fly?" with placards (and shoe) by West Choir, South Hadley, MA, Children's Chorus Both "Little Firefly" and "Have You Ever Seen a House Fly?" are published by Alliance Music Publications. I hope both pieces offer educational opportunities along with some fun with flies!
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AuthorLarry E. Schultz is a Minister of Music, Composer, Hymn Writer, and Music Teacher. Archives
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