Hymn to a Blue Hour

The blue hour is an oft-poeticized moment of the day—a lingering twilight that halos the sky after sundown but before complete darkness sets in. It is a time of day known for its romantic, spiritual, and ethereal connotations. This is the same essence that inhabits the sonic world of John Mackey’s Hymn to a Blue Hour. The title itself contains two strongly suggestive implications—first, the notion of hymnody, which implies a transcendent and perhaps even sacred tone; and second, the color blue, which has an inexorable tie [blues] to American music. Hymn to a Blue Hour is not directly influenced by the blues, but there is throughout the piece a sense of nostalgic remorse and longing. (Source: Jake Wallace)