Eastertide 2012

This past Sunday at St. Bartholomew’s, after 40 days of Lent, and then the contrast of joy and passion during Holy Week, we welcomed Resurrection Sunday (Easter) with joy and gladness, lift our voices in songs of “Alleluia!”

We began the services with  a new acclamation, based on the traditional Easter proclamation:

LEADER: Alleluia! Christ is risen!

PEOPLE: The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!

I wrote this setting  to be easy for both celebrant and congregation to sing, with a desire that in its simplicity it not be trite or quickly boring. For “learning-as-we-go,”  it seemed to go pretty well on Sunday. I’ll use it each week of Easter up until Pentecost. For a PDF of the score, which you are free to reproduce and use if you desire, click [HERE].

We began the Processional with a choral introit I had written last year for the choir, based on Antiphon 2 the Antiphons for Easter, segueing to “Jesus Christ Is Risen Today”

The Hymnal as a Choral Anthem Book

One of the most cost-effective, and also musically satisfying, means of music for a church choir can be found in the hymnal. I was reminded of this just this week when The Chamber Singers (a 16 voice auditioned mixed voice choir we started last fall) sang “God Be in My Head” (#635) in The Christian Life Hymnal during their Spring Concert Sunday evening at our church.

I first encountered this wonderful setting by Walford Davies (1910) of a prayer from The Book of Hours, 1514 in The Mennonite Hymnal (Herald Press, 1960) several years ago and was keen on including in The Christian Life Hymnal. I added the optional “Amen” because I thought it might be good to have when used as a benediction. Here’s an mp3 recording of “God Be In My Head”.

In the topical index we included a listing of “CHOIR SELECTIONS” (p. 663) that could be used as a choral anthems. Many of these would work well a cappella. A bit of “on the spot” arranging can easily turn a 4 part hymn into a choral arrangement. As an example, consider #50 “O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing” set to the tune LYNGHAM.

Vs. 1 is sung by the choir in 4 parts a capella

Vs. 2 a soloist sings the melody, while the choir sings parts on an “ooo” sound up until the pickups to the 4th measure on the second page, where the choir reverts to the 4 part lyrics with the men singing “the honor’s…

Vs. 3 can be sung “Faux Bourdon“- this is when the sopranos and tenors switch parts.

Vs 4 begins 1/2 steup up, (moving to the key of F#), all singing unison. (The move to unison can be a good way to incorporate a key change and not worry about every finding their new pitch – the unison will lock it in!)

Sing the first phrase unison (“Glory to God and praise and love”)

Split into the parts written for the next two phrases (“be now and ever given, be now and ever given.”)

Sing the next phrase in unsion (“by saints below and saints in heaven”)

Sing in parts as written until the end

For the Ending, repeat the last line (“the Church in earth and heaven” starting with the sopranos and altos, men joining 2 beats later, and have the first soprano’s sing the tenor part on the last 4 words (“in earth and heaven”)

You’ve just created a full arrangement.

And, if you do this 6 times, you’ve paid for your hymnals by saving $1.75 per octavo 6 times, and utilized the hymnal in a creative and fresh way.