Echoes of Grace: Choral Music of Patti Drennan Sterling Ensemble Los Angeles & Michelle Jensen

• Patti Drennan (b. 1952): Fanfare and March on "Gloria!":
• 1 Drennan: Fanfare and March on "Gloria!" 02:35
• Grace Before Sleep:
• 2 Drennan: Grace Before Sleep 04:05
• Lux Aeterna Domine:
• 3 Drennan: Lux Aeterna Domine 04:01
• Wild Mountain Thyme:
• 4 Drennan: Wild Mountain Thyme 02:43
• The Water is Wide:
• 5 Drennan: The Water is Wide 03:40
• Life and Love:
• 6 Drennan: Life and Love: 3 Settings of Emily Dickinson - I. Hope is the Thing With Feathers 01:24
• 7 Drennan: Life and Love: 3 Settings of Emily Dickinson - II. Heart, We Will Forget Him! 02:33
• 8 Drennan: Life and Love: 3 Settings of Emily Dickinson - III. If I Can Stop One Heart From Breaking 02:25
• Ave Maria:
• 9 Drennan: Ave Maria 04:40
• Awake, My Soul and Sing:
• 10 Drennan: Awake, My Soul and Sing 03:39
• Fanfare and March:
• 11 Drennan: "Fanfare and March" 02:27
• Total Runtime 34:12

Info for Echoes of Grace: Choral Music of Patti Drennan

"Echoes of Grace" is a breathtaking new choral album featuring the works of Choral Director and Composer, Patti Drennan, as performed by the Sterling Ensemble Los Angeles under the direction of Conductor, Michelle Jensen.

Patti Drennan and Emily Drennan, who serves as Co-Producer and Chorus Master for the project, envisioned an album that encapsulated both sacred and secular works as that is most indicative of Patti’s compositional style as well as indicative of the choral music genre.

There is often an intertwining of text, themes and harmonies in choral music which are conducive to both realms.

The title, “Echoes of Grace” is exactly that.

It suggests an exploration of an overarching theme of grace – both sacred and secular. It harkens back to grace given to us in songs like Lux Aeterna and Ave Maria, reminds us of grace we can give each other in Grace Before Sleep, The Water is Wide and If I Can Stop One Heart from Breaking and ultimately, shows us the grace we can extend to ourselves in Awake, My Soul.

There is an echo of that grace not only in the text, but in the polyphony of voices, in the moving lines of the orchestra and in the musical motifs that are echoed from one song to the next.

In her choral and orchestral compositions, Patti strives to “create music that is not predictable to the ear, but instead incorporates unexpected meters, harmonies and melodies”.

Whether it be a playful string accompaniment to a 6-part male ensemble piece or a powerful choral anthem with a regal flourish of brass and timpani, the variety of instrumentation and yet continuity in theme will hopefully be a feast for the listener.

Mixed and Co-Produced by Christina Giacona, this album spearheaded by these four extraordinary women and is a testament to the power and grace within choral and classical music.

Sterling Ensemble Los Angeles
Michelle Jensen, condcutor

Sterling Ensemble Los Angeles
is a semi-professional choir, founded in 2018 by Artistic Director Michelle Jensen. This diverse community of singers performs historic and modern choral works in the Los Angeles area and abroad. Collaborations include GRAMMY® Award-winning artists: Hila Plitmann, Sangeeta Kaur, Danaë Vlasse and Ben Bram.

The members of Sterling Ensemble cross generational, socio-economic, racial, cultural, and religious boundaries. While most members studied music in some form during college, many are now employed outside of the field. Teachers, military members, business leaders, and entrepreneurs join with professional musicians two hours a week to make excellent choral music. Sterling Ensemble opens up one position in each section for an undergraduate student to participate with the ensemble for a one-year term as an educational outreach. In addition to performing historical/classic literature, Sterling Ensemble actively collaborates with composers and other performers to explore new and varied repertoire.

Our first performance tour abroad was to Sardinia, Italy in January 2020, where we were invited to headline the historic “Sos Tres Re” festival and perform in concerts around the island. We performed with GRAMMY® Award—winner Sangeeta Kaur at the World Peace Song Awards in 2019 after collaborating on her album, Compassion. In 2021, we collaborated with composer Richard Burchard to produce Into the Light, an album of the composer’s choral works. The album is available now on all platforms. Most recently, Sterling Ensemble presented a concert set at the 2023 American Choral Directors Association Nation Conference in Cincinnati.

Sterling Ensemble is currently in residence at St. Andrew Catholic Church in Pasadena.

Michelle Jensen
is a choral conductor, clinician, and teacher. In addition to directing Sterling Ensemble, she serves as the Conductor of the Chamber Singers and the Director of Graduate Choral Studies at Azusa Pacific University. She has also served as an adjunct instructor at the University of Southern California, where she earned both her BM and MME and is currently pursuing a DMA in Choral Music. While at USC, her studies in harp and voice led to participation in both the Thornton Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Singers under the direction of William Dehning, Paul Salamunovich, and Jo-Michael Scheibe. Michelle has also studied conducting with Charlene Archibeque and Lucinda Carver, and composition/choral arranging with Morten Lauridsen.

Jensen has led performances on four continents. In her long-standing collaboration with Eric Whitacre, she has served as choir master for several presentations of Paradise Lost, conducted the Eric Whitacre honor choir on an Italy performance tour (2007), prepared presentations for Steven Schwartz’s ASCAP musical theater workshop at Disney Studios (2004), and commissioned This Marriage, whose international premiere was performed by the Azusa Pacific University Chamber Singers in the Sydney Opera House (2005). In 2019, she was selected to conduct the Connecticut All-State Honor Choir.

Michelle continues to serve as a clinician, adjudicator, choreographer, and guest artist throughout the United States and abroad.

Patti Drennan
is a #1 Billboard charting distinguished songwriter who has an innate ability to create both reflective and powerful music in all genres that is challenging yet accessible.

An active composer and arranger with sales of almost 3 million copies, Patti has over 850 choral octavos published with 10 major publishers. She has served as a regular clinician for choral and composer workshops domestically and internationally and has been a featured speaker at the Texas Music Educators Convention on multiple occasions. She has been an adjudicator for choral contests in Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kansas. Her music has been performed numerous times at regional and national American Choral Director’s Association Conventions. Her work has also been regularly performed at Carnegie Hall.

Her first album, Shelter in the Time of Storm, is a compilation of favorite hymns and original compositions. It has edgy arrangements, funky gospel tunes, and inspiring pieces as well as fresh harmonies and exciting vocals. Her second album, A Mother Daughter Christmas, was recorded and released with her daughter, Emily Drennan. It won the IMEA Holiday Album of the Year and featured brass and string arrangements, Hammond B3 organ, a gospel choir and more.

Patti’s 3rd album, Echoes of Grace, recently charted at #1 on Billboard Traditional Classical charts and is now available on this website and available for streaming on all sites. The album focuses on her classical roots and it features her choral works as performed by the Sterling Ensemble Los Angeles, under the direction of Michelle Jensen. She and her daughter, Emily, who served as Chorus Master for the project, envisioned an album that encapsulated both sacred and secular works, as that is most indicative of her compositional style as well as indicative of the choral music genre. There is often an intertwining of text, themes and harmonies in choral music which are conducive to both the sacred and secular realm. The title, Echoes of Grace, is exactly that. It suggests an exploration of an overarching theme of grace – both sacred and secular- grace given to us, grace we can give each other and grace we can extend to ourselves. It also recently was awarded GOLD at the Global Music Awards and most recently was awarded the World Entertainment Award for Best Choral Album.

In addition to her recorded work, Patti has 20+ published piano books which include: The Angels Sing for 4-hand piano; The Cross of Jesus: Reflections for Holy Week and Easter; Sacrifice and Victory; Proclaim Messiah’s Birth; The Prince of Glory – Piano hymns for Holy Week; The Church Pianist’s Library; Faith, Hope and Love; Sacred Treasures for Piano; Celebrate the Newborn King; High King of Heaven; and Shelter in the Time of Storm among others. Her new choral resource book Rebuild and Renew is now available nationwide.

She earned a Bachelor of Music Education degree at Oklahoma State University and a Masters of Music Education degree at the University of Oklahoma. She taught Choral Music for 28 years in the Norman Public School system. The first 20 years were at West Mid-High School where she was voted Teacher of the Year and the latter 8 years were at Norman High School. There, she directed four choirs consistently receiving Superior (1st place) ratings in District and All-State competitions. She was awarded the coveted Director of Distinction Award given by the Oklahoma Choral Directors Association and also returned to her alma mater as a featured conductor at the new McKnight Center for the Performing Arts. In 2022, she was awarded the Oklahoma State University College of Arts and Sciences Distinguished Alumna Award for the Greenwood School of Music.

A co-director and singer with the Oklahoma Ambassadors Concert Choir, she has been awarded the Maestro Award and most recently the William S. Roche Award for commitment, dedication and excellence.

After teaching for 28 years, Patti “retired” and served as Music and Worship Arts Director at First Baptist Church, Norman for almost 10 years. She “retired” again to focus on live symphony performances with her daughter and to focus on writing, yet found herself again serving for 3 and a half years as a Worship and Arts Director, North Haven Church, Norman. For her service thus far in Music and Worship Arts, she was the recipient of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Oklahoma Award for Excellence.

Patti is also a Voting Member of the Recording Academy (GRAMMY’S ®) and a board member with the Oklahoma Ambassadors Concert Choir.

Patti was married to her high school sweetheart of 54 years, Jim Drennan, until a tragic accident in 2022. With grace and poise, she has continued to make powerful and poignant music amidst unimaginably difficult circumstances. She has two grown children: Emily, a soloist with symphonies across the country, recording artist and Broadway/Off-Broadway actress in New York City, and Adam, a Senior Software Engineer for Hulu. She also has a son-in-law and two adorable grandsons.

This album contains no booklet.