Catchword Music Press

04/08/2026

We are honored and delighted to welcome composer Jaebon Hwang to the Catchword Music Press roster!

Dr. Hwang is a Portland-based composer and organist whose work spans sacred choral and organ music as well as concert and film composition. Her compositions have been performed across the United States and internationally. She studied composition at Korea National University of Arts and with Morten Lauridsen at USC, where she earned her Doctor of Musical Arts in organ performance. She is on the faculty at Lewis & Clark College and holds the Fellow of the American Guild of Organists (FAGO). She has collaborated with prestigious organizations including the Los Angeles Master Chorale and the San Diego Symphony.

Our first release is Dr. Hwang's Lenten Meditations, a virtuosic triptych for Holy Week setting three Latin texts: Tristis est anima mea, Timor et tremor, and Tenebrae factae sunt. Haunting and deeply expressive, the writing evokes the anguish and mystery of Christ's Passion with striking beauty and dramatic power. The three movements may be performed separately or together as a complete set.

Available now at https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/hwang-lenten-meditations

03/27/2026

Rediscovering Thomas Attwood

We're thrilled to introduce the first major release in Catchword's Thomas Attwood series: the Magnificat and Nunc dimittis in F major, canticle settings of exceptional quality and charm that have been unavailable since their original publication in 1853.

Thomas Attwood (1765–1838) occupies a curious position in English music history. His name is well known in Anglican circles—through his superb chant tunes, a handful of anthems (most famously "Come, Holy Ghost"), and through his godson and namesake Thomas Attwood Walmisley (1814–1856). But the bulk of Attwood's sacred music has remained locked away in cathedral libraries for nearly two centuries, known only to those with access to the rare 1853 volume Attwood's Cathedral Music, compiled by Walmisley as a tribute to his mentor after Attwood's death.

Attwood was no minor figure: he studied composition with Mozart in Vienna, served as organist of St. Paul's Cathedral for over forty years, composed for the coronations of three monarchs, and wrote prolifically for the London stage. His music combines Georgian elegance with dramatic flair—soaring treble melodies with arresting leaps, Mozartean harmonic warmth, moments of Sturm und Drang alongside palpable humor and joy.

The Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in F major, written in 1796 for the Chapel Royal and sung at the state funeral of Admiral Lord Nelson, exemplify everything that makes Attwood's music special. Graceful, melodically inventive, and eminently singable, they bring the sparkle of the classical era into the ancient dignity of the English cathedral tradition.

Over the coming months, we'll be releasing more of Attwood's neglected cathedral music, bringing these lost treasures back into the repertoire where they belong.

Available now at https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/attwood-magnificat-and-nunc-dimittis-in-f-major

03/19/2026

Coming soon!

03/19/2026

We're thrilled to announce the publication of the second of Amy Beach's Op. 78 canticles, "Deus misereatur" ("God be merciful to us"), a complete setting of Psalm 67 in English for SATB and organ. By turns brooding and exuberant, this is American Romantic church music at its best: extroverted, dramatic, chromatic, tuneful, exciting.

"Deus misereatur" joins "Benedic, anima mea," a favorite of our catalogue, in coming into print for the first time since the original 1916 Schirmer Octavo Church Music edition.

As these pieces have been so little performed, we'd particularly like to recommend the superb recording by the Charles Wood Singers under David Hill on their album "The Canticle of the Sun: Sacred Choral Works by Beach, Stanford, Wood," available on Spotify and Apple Music.

We look forward to adding the remaining two Op. 78 settings ("Bonum est confiteri" and "Cantate domino") to our catalogue later this year.

Available now at https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/beach-deus-misereatur

03/09/2026

We're pleased to announce a new Catchword edition of William Mundy's "O Lord, the maker of all thing," another classic of the Tudor repertoire.

This richly flowing anthem has all the character and quirks of Tudor cathedral music while remaining within the grasp of most skilled choirs, making it ideal for evensong, compline, or any service calling for reflective polyphony—and just wait for the glorious concluding Amen.

The text is drawn from the King's Primer of 1545, an authorized English prayer book that provided verse translations of traditional Latin hymns for devotional use, including this translation of Rerum creator omnium.

Available now at https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/mundy-o-lord-the-maker-of-all-thing

02/16/2026

On this Feast of the Transfiguration, we're pleased to release our new edition of Thomas Tallis's "O nata lux."

https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/tallis-o-nata-lux-sattb-sheet-music

Our edition aims to make this gem of the Tudor repertoire more accessible to today's choirs, with:

-Fully realized musica ficta
-A new word-by-word translation
-Syllabic slurring of syncopated text underlay
-Editorial keyboard reduction

Transpositions available on request: [email protected]

01/05/2026

We're pleased to announce the authorized reissue of Bruce Neswick's "Jesus came from Nazareth," a favorite anthem for the First Sunday after the Epiphany since its original publication in 1995.

The text draws from Mark's account of Jesus' baptism in the Jordan and pairs it with an office hymn for matins of the Baptism of Our Lord, making it especially suited for this Sunday, January 11, or for baptismal celebrations throughout the year.

Written for two voice parts with organ, this lively setting is ideal for smaller choirs or even soloists, with a tuneful, modally-inflected character that's both accessible and musically rewarding.

Available now at https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/neswick-jesus-came-from-nazareth

12/11/2025

David Hurd's "Beneath a dark, familiar sky" was commissioned for the 113th Annual Christmas Carol Service at Harvard Memorial Church, and we're thrilled to bring this work into wider circulation.

Michael Hudson's text reimagines the annunciation to the shepherds, tracing their journey as they are "swept up in an epiphany they longed to understand." Dr. Hurd's music matches the poetry's drama and mystery, moving from the vast darkness of the opening through the angelic announcement to the gathering wonder of the shepherds' journey to Bethlehem.

Here's the superb premiere performance, featuring the Harvard University Choir conducted by Edward Elwyn Jones, with David von Behren on the organ: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io7q2lbyeYU

This stunning new work is available now as a digital download, with print octavos available for preorder: https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/hurd-beneath-a-dark-familiar-sky

Commissioned for the 113th Annual Christmas Carol Service, December, 2022Harvard University Choir; Edward Elwyn Jones, conductor; David von Behren, organThe ...

12/09/2025

Fresh from its premiere this past Sunday: Bruce Neswick's "A Song of Joy," a vibrant setting of Zephaniah 3:14–18.

Commissioned by Sacred Music at The Cathedral of St. John, Albuquerque, NM and premiered at their Advent Lessons and Carols service, this new work showcases Mr. Neswick's characteristically bright and engaging style. Marked "with a swing," the piece brings joyful energy to the prophet's call to rejoice, drawing on chant and lively harmonic writing that will appeal to both choirs and congregations.

While perfectly suited to Advent, the text's exuberant character makes A Song of Joy equally appropriate for festive occasions throughout the year.

Available now as a digital download, with print octavos available for preorder: https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/neswick-a-song-of-joy

12/05/2025

We are honored to announce that Catchword Music Press is publishing the work of David Hurd.

Dr. Hurd is among the most influential figures in American church music. Currently Organist and Music Director at the Church of St. Mary the Virgin in New York, Dr. Hurd served for nearly four decades as Professor of Church Music and Organist at General Theological Seminary, where he shaped generations of clergy and church musicians. His compositions—including anthems, service music, organ works, and hymn settings—have become cornerstones of the Episcopal and broader Anglican repertoire.

We are launching two choral works by Dr. Hurd, both commissioned by leading collegiate chapels and both featuring his distinctive voice: harmonically rich, deeply textured, and meticulously crafted.

"Beneath a dark, familiar sky" (SATB + organ) was commissioned for the 113th Annual Christmas Carol Service at the Memorial Church at Harvard University. Michael Hudson's evocative text traces the shepherds' journey from the night fields to Bethlehem, and Dr. Hurd's setting is both dramatic and contemplative—capturing the vast nocturnal sky, the sudden rush of angel wings, and the gathering mystery of the Incarnation through sophisticated text painting and carefully wrought musical architecture. This is a work that rewards preparation and invites contemplation. https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/hurd-beneath-a-dark-familiar-sky

"Sing to the Lord a new song" (SATB + organ), commissioned for the 64th Annual Christmas Festival of Lessons and Carols at Trinity College, Hartford, sets portions of Psalm 96 in a brilliant, celebratory idiom. The work's golden energy and festive character make it equally suited to general use throughout the year. https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/hurd-sing-to-the-lord-a-new-song

Both works are available now as digital downloads, with print octavos available for preorder.

12/03/2025

BIG announcement coming in the next day or two. Stay tuned!

12/02/2025

A taste of Holy Week to kick off your Advent: check out this video of Katie Webb's striking Ecce Lignum Crucis with the composer at the podium, featuring the choir of Trinity Cathedral Portland and the inimitable Glenn Miller on the low Ds!

Buy digital scores and preorder print octavos here: https://shop.catchwordmusic.com/products/webb-ecce-lignum-crucis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UMDab1gjpU

Katherine Webb’s “Ecce lignum crucis," conducted by the composer and sung by the Cathedral Chamber Singers.Translation:Ecce lignum crucis, in quo salus mundi...