O, Phokolang

Although ‘O, Phokolang’ is hymnal in style it may be more suitable as a choir anthem than as a congregational hymn. Unusually for Mohapeloa, it is in ternary form with outer sections in C major and a contrasting middle section in G major. The third section is a varied repeat of the first, but leads to a different ending. As he showed in the counterpoint in another song from the collection Hosanna – ‘Balisa’ (No. 2 in Hosanna) – Mohapeloa’s musical structure in ‘O, Phokolang’ clearly demonstrates his understanding and grasp of Western choral idioms.