Love Divine – SATB

A tranquil setting of Wesley’s familiar and well-loved words
About Dr. Michael Cox, Composer of Love Divine—HMC636

Dr. Michael Cox is an award-winning American composer, conductor, pianist, and music educator whose career has been closely connected to sacred choral music and the musicians who bring it to life. His setting of Love Divine, HMC636, offers SATB church choirs a tranquil interpretation of Charles Wesley’s familiar hymn text, “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling.” Published by Hinshaw Music, the anthem combines mixed-voice choral writing with organ or keyboard accompaniment.

Written for Ed Ferlazzo and the music ministry of First Baptist Church in Enid, Oklahoma, Love Divine reflects an important characteristic of Michael Cox’s choral music: many of his compositions were created with a particular conductor, choir, church, or occasion in mind. Rather than writing only for an abstract ensemble, Dr. Cox has frequently responded to the needs and personalities of working musicians. That relationship between composer and performer has helped make his sacred choral works both expressive and practical.

Released by Hinshaw Music in 1983, Love Divine is an eight-page sacred octavo for SATB choir. The approximately three-minute anthem is classified at a medium adult difficulty level, making it suitable for established church choirs seeking music that is substantial without requiring an extended rehearsal commitment. The publisher describes the piece as a tranquil treatment of Wesley’s well-loved words.

Charles Wesley’s text gives the anthem a rich theological and poetic foundation. “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling” presents divine love not merely as an idea to be admired, but as a transforming presence invited into the human heart. The hymn moves from a prayer for Christ’s indwelling presence toward a vision of humanity renewed and ultimately “lost in wonder, love, and praise.” Dr. Cox’s restrained setting allows the familiar language to remain at the center of the musical experience.

That sensitivity to text is found throughout Michael Cox’s sacred choral catalog. His works include biblical settings, hymn arrangements, prayers, seasonal anthems, music for worship, and extended compositions for chorus and orchestra. He has written for SATB choirs, treble ensembles, men’s voices, children, congregations, soloists, and numerous instrumental combinations. His catalog includes titles based on psalms, historic hymns, sacred poetry, liturgical texts, and newly written words created for specific churches and performers.

Dr. Cox’s ability to write effectively for singers grew from extensive experience in the classroom and rehearsal hall. He earned a Bachelor of Music with honors in piano performance from Oklahoma Baptist University, followed by graduate degrees in orchestral conducting and composition from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and Florida State University. His training allowed him to approach a score from several complementary perspectives: as the composer creating it, the conductor interpreting it, and the performer realizing it in sound.

Oklahoma Baptist University became an important setting for Dr. Cox’s early professional life. After graduating from OBU in 1970, he returned to the university in 1972 as a member of the music faculty. During the next 18 years, he taught composition, conducting, music theory, and church music. These subjects placed him at the intersection of musical structure, creative imagination, ensemble leadership, and Christian worship—the same areas that would later shape compositions such as Love Divine.

For 13 years, Dr. Cox also directed Oklahoma Baptist University’s Bison Glee Club. Founded in 1938, the men’s ensemble became one of OBU’s most enduring musical traditions, combining performance, touring, fellowship, and Christian service. As the ensemble’s second conductor, Dr. Cox helped shape singers whose memories of the experience continued long after graduation.

Former Bison Glee Club members have spoken warmly about his influence. Recording artist and pastor Joel Engle described singing under Dr. Cox as a life-changing experience and recalled the unusual power and camaraderie of the large men’s choir. Church musician Reggie May likewise identified Dr. Cox as one of the musical models whose standard of excellence continued to guide his own work. These recollections reveal a teacher and conductor whose influence extended beyond notes, rhythms, and rehearsal technique.

Dr. Cox’s responsibilities at Oklahoma Baptist University also included conducting the annual Concerto-Aria Competition. The event allowed student soloists to prepare major repertoire and perform with members of the Oklahoma City Philharmonic Orchestra. Experiences such as these strengthened his understanding of the preparation required to move from private study into collaborative performance.

His connection to Oklahoma Baptist University continued through his work as a composer. In 2004, OBU presented Symphonic Psalms, an eight-movement composition for chorus and orchestra, as its annual Oratorio Project. The work draws upon Psalms 8, 23, 47, 90, 95, 103, 117, and 148 and ranges from stately, hymn-like writing to more rhythmically animated music. It was commissioned by Scott Oyer, a former student of Dr. Cox and a former member of the Bison Glee Club.

The story of Symphonic Psalms illustrates the enduring connection between Dr. Cox’s teaching and composing. A former student commissioned the work, and a new generation of OBU singers and instrumentalists later brought it to life. In much the same way, Love Divine began within the life of a particular church and music ministry before becoming available to SATB choirs far beyond its original congregation.

In 1990, Dr. Cox moved to Fort Worth, Texas, to become Professor of Music Theory and Composition at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He remained on the faculty until his retirement in 2009. His work at the seminary allowed him to help developing church musicians understand how melody, harmony, rhythm, form, and text combine to communicate meaning. He also contributed to the institution’s performing life as a choral conductor.

Throughout his academic career, Dr. Cox continued to compose music for churches, universities, community ensembles, and individual performers. His works range from accessible worship anthems to extended sacred compositions requiring divided choirs, vocal soloists, and orchestral forces. That breadth is important to understanding Love Divine. Its quiet character and modest duration do not represent a limitation of scale, but a deliberate response to Wesley’s words and the needs of the church choir for which it was written.

Dr. Cox has also maintained an extensive career as a choral and orchestral conductor. He has traveled throughout the country leading choral clinics and has appeared as a guest conductor with the Fort Worth Civic Orchestra and the New Philharmonic Orchestra of Irving. His experience working with university, church, community, and orchestral musicians has given him a practical understanding of the many decisions performers must make when preparing a score.

His accomplishments as a composer have received sustained professional recognition. Dr. Cox began receiving the ASCAP Standard Award in 1987 and was selected as the commissioned composer for the Texas Music Teachers Association in 1995. His work for TMTA brought together his background as a pianist and composer, while his broader catalog reflects his continuing interest in music for choirs, keyboards, orchestras, and chamber ensembles.

In addition to composing, conducting, performing, and teaching, Dr. Cox has worked as a professional music copyist and engraver. Music engraving requires close attention to spacing, notation, page turns, score organization, and the visual clarity needed by performers during rehearsal. This detailed craft complements his work as a composer and reflects his involvement in the complete life of a musical work—from its first idea to the printed page placed before the choir.

Dr. Cox currently serves as Composer-in-Residence at Broadway Baptist Church in Fort Worth. The appointment continues a professional life deeply rooted in sacred music, biblical and hymn texts, worshiping communities, and the practical needs of church musicians.

Love Divine, HMC636, is a fitting example of Michael Cox’s contribution to SATB sacred choral repertoire. Written for First Baptist Church in Enid, Oklahoma, the anthem brings Charles Wesley’s historic words into a tranquil setting for mixed choir and accompaniment. Its moderate difficulty, concise duration, and enduring message make it a thoughtful selection for general worship, services centered on Christian love or spiritual renewal, hymn festivals, and other sacred programs.

Through Love Divine and his many other compositions, Dr. Michael Cox demonstrates how carefully crafted church choir music can honor a historic text while giving singers a fresh opportunity to express it. His setting invites choir and congregation alike to encounter Wesley’s prayer for transforming grace with reverence, warmth, and musical clarity.