Rolf Løvland

Norwegian composer Rolf Løvland (b. 1955) asked Irish novelist Brendan Graham (b.1945) to write lyrics to his instrumental piece entitled Silent Story, and the result is the inspirational You Raise Me Up. First recorded in 2001 by Secret Garden, Løvland’s Celtic band, it has since been recorded in over 125 languages.

In 2003, American composer and record producer David Foster selected an emerging talent, Josh Groban, to record the song for release in the United States, and their recording spent six weeks at the top of the Billboard charts and was nominated for a Grammy. In 2004, Groban sang it during Super Bowl XXXVIII to honor the loss of the Space Shuttle Columbia astronauts, and received still more exposure when he sang it at television icon Oprah Winfrey’s 50th birthday celebration.

--Intermezzo Sunday Concerts, October 21, 2007 (Cromley and Friends: Voices & Violin, Bach to Broadway)