Church Music - Progressive
Church Music - Progressive
I think this is better here than in Tol Erresea, but I don't mind if you want to move it.
I recently returned to the Church Folk Group after a long absence (about 15 years) and we have a good group of people interested. The music choice is crucial to keeping them, though.
When the folk group here first started it was considered very avant-garde cause we had guitars and tambourines instead of a "choir". Of course, nowadays it has basically become just another choir, just with guitars. I'd like to bring it forward a bit more, but gradually.
Currently we do stuff like:
Seek ye First
Yahweh I know you are here
Be not Afraid
Walk in the Light
Peace I leave with you my friends
Some of the Israeli Folk Mass
Wherever you go
Basically folk group standards. Now, like I said we're looking to branch out a bit. We're looking at All Good Gifts, Prepare Ye and Day by Day from Godspell. Any other recommendations?
I recently returned to the Church Folk Group after a long absence (about 15 years) and we have a good group of people interested. The music choice is crucial to keeping them, though.
When the folk group here first started it was considered very avant-garde cause we had guitars and tambourines instead of a "choir". Of course, nowadays it has basically become just another choir, just with guitars. I'd like to bring it forward a bit more, but gradually.
Currently we do stuff like:
Seek ye First
Yahweh I know you are here
Be not Afraid
Walk in the Light
Peace I leave with you my friends
Some of the Israeli Folk Mass
Wherever you go
Basically folk group standards. Now, like I said we're looking to branch out a bit. We're looking at All Good Gifts, Prepare Ye and Day by Day from Godspell. Any other recommendations?
The Vinyamars on Stage! This time at Bag End
- Voronwë the Faithful
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I agree it is better here (although it probably could have gone either way). I think it is great that you have returned to the Church Folk Group. I don't really have any suggestions, but I'm sure it will be fun.
"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."
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There is a lot of fine "new" church music coming out of southern Africa. I don't have the relevant hymnal here at home, but a big favorite at our church is "Siyahamba" ("We Are Marching in the Light of God").
Link to children's choir recording (scroll down to track 20)
Link to children's choir recording (scroll down to track 20)
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
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- Deluded Simpleton
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I've always liked the New England (which is to say, American) folk hyms of the mid to late 1800's, especially performed in the way you are describing, Alatar, in vocal ensemble. The sentiments are Puritan, but the melodies have a dotted line to Stephen Foster.
Maybe my favorite is "Go Worship at Emmanuel's Feet". No gloomy Calvinism here. The melody is bouncy and chord-based, and the harmonic opportunities are abundant. It has a complex lyric that repeatedly asks for the proper metaphor to express the wonder of God.
Go worship at Emmanuel's feet,
See, in his Name what wonders meet;
Earth is too narrow to express
His worth, his glory, or his grace.
So, how do we speak of Him? Not directly, but in images.
Is he a Fountain? There I'll bathe,
And heal the plague of sin and death,
These waters all my soul renew,
And cleanse my spotted garments too.
Is he a Sun? His beams are grace,
His course is joy and righteousness.
Is he a tree? The world receives
Salvation from his healing leaves.
You can pass the lead at least once to all in the ensemble and can end every phrase with full participation. It has great texture.
There is also the chestnut know as "Shall We Gather By the River?", a moving view of Paradise even for a heathen like myself. You'll know the melody. Again, a chance for crescendos of participation by the group, and some real expressions of joy and optimism.
Shall we gather at the river
Where bright angel feel have trod,
With its crystal tide forever
Flowing by the throne of God?
All now sing,
Yes, we'll gather at the river,
The beautiful, the beautiful river,
Gather with the saints at the river
That flows by the throne of God.
Charles Ives used it in a sonata. The director John Ford couldn't resist it either, and he used it in "My Darling Clementine" and in "The Searchers."
If y'all are prone to shape-note readings, you might try "Windham" which gives the Warning.
Broad is the road that leads to death,
And thousands walk together there,
But wisdom shows a narrow path,
With here and there a traveler.
A bit grim, true. There's another called "Greenwich", and both are by Daniel Read. Why they are called by these English names, I do not know.
Maybe my favorite is "Go Worship at Emmanuel's Feet". No gloomy Calvinism here. The melody is bouncy and chord-based, and the harmonic opportunities are abundant. It has a complex lyric that repeatedly asks for the proper metaphor to express the wonder of God.
Go worship at Emmanuel's feet,
See, in his Name what wonders meet;
Earth is too narrow to express
His worth, his glory, or his grace.
So, how do we speak of Him? Not directly, but in images.
Is he a Fountain? There I'll bathe,
And heal the plague of sin and death,
These waters all my soul renew,
And cleanse my spotted garments too.
Is he a Sun? His beams are grace,
His course is joy and righteousness.
Is he a tree? The world receives
Salvation from his healing leaves.
You can pass the lead at least once to all in the ensemble and can end every phrase with full participation. It has great texture.
There is also the chestnut know as "Shall We Gather By the River?", a moving view of Paradise even for a heathen like myself. You'll know the melody. Again, a chance for crescendos of participation by the group, and some real expressions of joy and optimism.
Shall we gather at the river
Where bright angel feel have trod,
With its crystal tide forever
Flowing by the throne of God?
All now sing,
Yes, we'll gather at the river,
The beautiful, the beautiful river,
Gather with the saints at the river
That flows by the throne of God.
Charles Ives used it in a sonata. The director John Ford couldn't resist it either, and he used it in "My Darling Clementine" and in "The Searchers."
If y'all are prone to shape-note readings, you might try "Windham" which gives the Warning.
Broad is the road that leads to death,
And thousands walk together there,
But wisdom shows a narrow path,
With here and there a traveler.
A bit grim, true. There's another called "Greenwich", and both are by Daniel Read. Why they are called by these English names, I do not know.
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That's odd, Al, because the link works for me, and it DOES have audio samples. Maybe it was down for some reason when you tried it?
Or maybe you need to use IE.
Or maybe you need to use IE.
"Spirits in the shape of hawks and eagles flew ever to and from his halls; and their eyes could see to the depths of the seas, and pierce the hidden caverns beneath the world."
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- Deluded Simpleton
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I'm not able to do the linky thingy, but you can hear most of them done by The Boston Camerata on an album called The American Vocalist, a collection of songs found in a popular songbook of the same name from the mid 1800's.
There's also this one, specially for Holby. It's called "Happy Land":
There is a happy land,
Far, far away,
Where saints in glory stand,
Bright, bright as day.
The Camerata might even have its own cite where you can pluck sampling or two. The album is on Erato Disques.
There's also this one, specially for Holby. It's called "Happy Land":
There is a happy land,
Far, far away,
Where saints in glory stand,
Bright, bright as day.
The Camerata might even have its own cite where you can pluck sampling or two. The album is on Erato Disques.
Last edited by baby tuckoo on Wed Jan 17, 2007 2:04 am, edited 1 time in total.
- Primula Baggins
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Would you be blocked from U.S. Amazon, Alatar?
I'm pretty sure that a search on "Siyahamba" on Amazon UK would bring up some links. It's widely recorded. It isn't just a hymn; it was an anthem of anti-apartheid.
I'm on the worship and music committee at my church, and our monthly picking-out-the-hymns fest is Saturday morning. We look through five or six hymnals. I'll note down anything interesting I come across (including more African hymns, and also the older American hymns bt mentioned—some of those are great fun to sing).
At the service I go to we always have a couple of guitars, often a flute, and some percussion, supplemented with brass for feast days. It's all acoustic—we are not a theater-seats-and-PowerPoint-sermon type of church—and it adds a lot.
I'm pretty sure that a search on "Siyahamba" on Amazon UK would bring up some links. It's widely recorded. It isn't just a hymn; it was an anthem of anti-apartheid.
I'm on the worship and music committee at my church, and our monthly picking-out-the-hymns fest is Saturday morning. We look through five or six hymnals. I'll note down anything interesting I come across (including more African hymns, and also the older American hymns bt mentioned—some of those are great fun to sing).
At the service I go to we always have a couple of guitars, often a flute, and some percussion, supplemented with brass for feast days. It's all acoustic—we are not a theater-seats-and-PowerPoint-sermon type of church—and it adds a lot.
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
- Primula Baggins
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We sing it in English, Alatar. It's pretty simple:
We are marching in the light of God,
We are marching in the light of God.
We are marching in the light of God,
We are marching in the light of God.
We are marching, marching, we are marching (ooh ooh),
We are marching in the light of God.
We are marching, marching, we are marching (ooh ooh),
We are marching in the light of God.
Then next verse "We are dancing in the light of God," then. . . . The recording I linked to (album title: Joy: Hits From World Famous Children's Choir) switches to English halfway through.
We are marching in the light of God,
We are marching in the light of God.
We are marching in the light of God,
We are marching in the light of God.
We are marching, marching, we are marching (ooh ooh),
We are marching in the light of God.
We are marching, marching, we are marching (ooh ooh),
We are marching in the light of God.
Then next verse "We are dancing in the light of God," then. . . . The recording I linked to (album title: Joy: Hits From World Famous Children's Choir) switches to English halfway through.
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
I like 'Siyahamba' too. Especially when you get the harmonies going.
I like a mixture of traditional hymns and contemporary worship. A lot of Christian worship bands these days sound like U2, which is no bad thing in my opinion. Although I would also add that music in church must be participatory, ‘cause worship is so much more than a performance, so those current songwriters who write songs that are ballads, with simple melodies that are easy to pick up, are on the right track.
I also love the chants of Taizé.
Ain't nothing wrong with folk either.
I like a mixture of traditional hymns and contemporary worship. A lot of Christian worship bands these days sound like U2, which is no bad thing in my opinion. Although I would also add that music in church must be participatory, ‘cause worship is so much more than a performance, so those current songwriters who write songs that are ballads, with simple melodies that are easy to pick up, are on the right track.
I also love the chants of Taizé.
Ain't nothing wrong with folk either.
"Frodo undertook his quest out of love - to save the world he knew from disaster at his own expense, if he could ... "
Letter no. 246, The Collected Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien
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Letter no. 246, The Collected Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien
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- Primula Baggins
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That's why I love the African hymns. They are meant for part singing, in wonderful close harmony. Our congregation doesn't do too badly.
“There, peeping among the cloud-wrack above a dark tor high up in the mountains, Sam saw a white star twinkle for a while. The beauty of it smote his heart, as he looked up out of the forsaken land, and hope returned to him. For like a shaft, clear and cold, the thought pierced him that in the end the Shadow was only a small and passing thing: there was light and high beauty for ever beyond its reach.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King
- WampusCat
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Taizé chants are my absolute favorite.
I'm also fond of the old American shape note hymns from the Sacred Harp collection. I don't have links but am sure they are available. They are traditionally done a capella, in four part harmony with the melody in the tenor. Anonymous 4 did some of the hymns on their recording "American Angels." (Come to think of it, there are samples at their web site, www.anonymous4.com)
I highly recommend the recordings of Fran McKendree (www.franmckendree.com). I first heard the "marching in the light of God" song from him, and he performs and writes many other great songs.
I'm also fond of the old American shape note hymns from the Sacred Harp collection. I don't have links but am sure they are available. They are traditionally done a capella, in four part harmony with the melody in the tenor. Anonymous 4 did some of the hymns on their recording "American Angels." (Come to think of it, there are samples at their web site, www.anonymous4.com)
I highly recommend the recordings of Fran McKendree (www.franmckendree.com). I first heard the "marching in the light of God" song from him, and he performs and writes many other great songs.
Irish (and related environs) composers are pretty big over here, Alatar. Robin Mark, Matt Redmon, Keith Getty, Stuart Townend, Graham Kendrick, etc. I'm not sure it qualifies as folk music, but much of their music has a very definite Celtic feel to it, particularly Mark's, Getty's, and Townend's stuff.
In Christ Alone
Days of Elijah
You're the Lion of Judah
Garments of Praise
Shout to the North
See, What a Morning
Join All the Glorious Names
Come Let Us Sing
The Power of the Cross
Lali
In Christ Alone
Days of Elijah
You're the Lion of Judah
Garments of Praise
Shout to the North
See, What a Morning
Join All the Glorious Names
Come Let Us Sing
The Power of the Cross
Lali
I arranged that for my school choir. It's great. Mostly though, I can't stand the 'Happy Clappy' stuff. I'm more into the 'Kyrie sounds more like Fire and Brimstone' stuff. How shall I sing that majesty is great. I'll post it later when I have time. The words are amazing!There is a lot of fine "new" church music coming out of southern Africa. I don't have the relevant hymnal here at home, but a big favorite at our church is "Siyahamba" ("We Are Marching in the Light of God").
Why is the duck billed platypus?
Siyahamba has been one of my favorites since college (especially the "ooh-OOH" part!), and I've been a fan of Sacred Harp music just as long. Once I wandered into a shape note convention and spent a whole day singing!! That was great.
The Taizé chants are close to my heart as well. We take them backpacking every year and sing them to the stars above treeline.
The Taizé chants are close to my heart as well. We take them backpacking every year and sing them to the stars above treeline.
- WampusCat
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I first sang Taize chants at a conference led by the late Henri Nouwen. Every time I sing certain ones of them that he taught us ("The Lord is my Light" "Bless the Lord" "O Lord Hear My Prayer"), I feel as though he's singing them with me.
Take my hand, my friend. We are here to walk one another home.
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