Als ik U aanreo - beurtzang naar psalm 4 = When I Invoke You - Antiphonal Song from Psalm 4, 1979 - 1981

Oosterhuis selected his text from Psalm 4, which is a lamentation in three stages of despair/anger, oracular consultation, and ensuing elation. The psalmist has been acquitted of some form of wrongdoing, yet is still being hounded by his persecutors. If God has eyes to see this, then surely help must be forthcoming! The verses chosen for this piece form a song of trust and confidence in an ever-forgiving God, who never forgets. The words of consolation uttered by Temple oracular priest, which are not recorded in the psalm, offered words of consolation which freed the psalmist from despondEncy and despair.

The refrain begins, Als ik U aanroep - As (if, since, when) I call out to you; the verb aanroep requires only two syllables, hence my choice of invoke. Geef mij toch antwoord - however, give me an answer. Disentangling Oosterhuis' poetic syntax, Huijbers agreed that however might easily be interpreted as quickly. In verse 4, the Dutch word for eyes - ogen has two syllables, which is used twice. In the first instance, I chose a melisma, but in the second I added the word then to complete the sentence, which also corresponds to the sound of the second Dutch syllable, -gen.

Huijbers based his melos on Toni communes or common tones, in Gregorian mode III. These generic settings are found throughout the chants of the Liturgy. These, he explained, would often linger in the memory because of their modal shapes and frequency of use. Within their lingering cadences, they provided a sense of space, shapes in which perhaps the silence of God's echo may be heard, to counter the bustle and restlessness of everyday life. Because of their ubiquitous nature, Huijbers chose it as complementing Oosterhuis's text of a constant, patient longing shared by all. - Tony Barr