Rutter scored the piece for four vocal parts (SATB) and organ, or orchestra. Marked "Flowing and tranquil", the music is in E major and 3/4 time. The organ accompaniment rests on a pattern of chords held often for a full measure in the left hand, and broken chords in eighth-notes in the right hand. The choir voices enter together, with the lower voices also moving slowly like the left hand (a full measure for "Deep", another one for "peace"), while the soprano pronounces "peace" sooner and moves up in eighth-notes on "running wave". The pattern is kept for most of the piece. Dynamically, the music begins softly (p), growing slightly (to mp) for the "shining stars", and again later for "moon and stars". A climax is "Christ", marked crescendo to a strong (f) "light of the world" (with all voices holding the word "light" for more than a measure), but diminuendo to a very soft ending, with all voices and the accompaniment calming to slow movement.