Sonata No 7 for Solo Violin, “The Relics of Nicholas Postgate” by Stephen Gamble

In the summer of 2011 I visited St Hedda’s Church at Egton Bridge and was very moved by the relics and story of Nicholas Postgate. He was a Roman Catholic Priest executed in 1679 for practising his calling at a time when Roman Catholic forms of worship were illegal. The fragile nature of the relics, a small cross, a lock of his hair and a worn wooden rosary, seemed to speak of the fragility of human life and endeavour. It brought to mind our Lord’s promise to St Paul’s in 2 Corinthians 12: 9, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” In the weeks that followed I wrote a piece of music for solo violin that reflected my thoughts and feelings of that experience. It is surely only a poor shadow of what I thought and felt in those moments, and only a very distant echo through time of the man himself, but it is sincerely meant. The movements are, Andante doloroso - Allegretto con ansia - Andante moderato (A Voice Crying in the Wilderness) - Finale: Allegro The tonality is folkish. The score may be found 'Music for Solo Violin Volume II: North Yorkshire, and a Scottish Excursion,' and a newly edited version can be found at ArrangeMe.com