Michael Ostrzyga wrote this choral composition In the Highest on behalf of the S:t Jacobs Vokalensemble and its conductor Mikael Wedar. The composition is based on the famous text Glory to God in the Highest from Luke 2:14, namely in the same English translation that George Frideric Handel also used in his Messiah. The polarity between "In the highest" and "on earth" is captured musically by movements in the tonal space (the vertical dimension) and in time (the horizontal dimension), on a macro as well as micro level. The calmer middle part sinks slowly into the lowest register before the melodic development gradually directs upwards again. In the framing the harmonic progression suggests a continuous ascent - as in a spiral - through individual, mostly chormatically upward tonal steps that alternate in the voices. Virtuoso, fanfare-like music always strives for the highest registers. Michael Ostrzyga's In the Highest is a fascinating challenge for dedicated choirs!
