The Church Pianist » hymn

Scales in Hymns (Part Three)… Upcoming Article

Jenifer Cook — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 01:45:04 +0000

I plan to post part three of scales in hymns by the end of this week.

Some church pianists may not understand where to insert a scale in a hymn.

Scales can be placed in several different places in a hymn. The upcoming article will show the church pianist how to add a scale to the very first measure of a hymn!

Looking forward to sharing the examples with you!

The Church Pianist: Jesus Loves Me

Jenifer Cook — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 02:27:39 +0000

A hymn which has truly stood the test of time…Jesus Loves Me.

This hymn was born from a story read by the co-author…William Bradbury.

The story goes…

A young boy was dying and a dear friend read the boy this beautiful poem for comfort…

“Jesus loves me! this I know, for the Bible tells me so. Little ones to him belong, they are weak but He is strong.

Jesus loves me! He who died Heaven’s gate to open wide; He will wash away my sin, let His little child come in.

Jesus loves me! He will stay close beside me all the way.; He’s prepared a home for me, and some day His face I’ll see.”

What comforting words!

William saw this poem as an excellent song for children. He wrote a melody for the poem and added the chorus as we all know…

“Yes, Jesus loves me! Yes Jesus loves me! Yes Jesus loves me! The Bible tells me so.”

This hymn has reached the hearts of young and old alike.

The next article will provide a free piano arrangement of this well-loved hymn.

The Church Pianist: The Lily of the Valley (free piano sample)

Jenifer Cook — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 19:03:56 +0000

“The Lily of the Valley” is a nice, uplifting hymn. Several factors make this hymn a challenge for most church pianists.

The hymn is loaded with repeated notes and a very busy rhythm…(what I call….the “wordy” hymns).

You don’t want it to sound like you’re trying to chop down a tree

The church pianist needs to basically outline or (play) the main beats of the hymn. This particular hymn is in 4/4 time. So…the pianist should at least play on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th beats…creating a steady, rhythmic tempo for the congregation.

It’s not necessary for the pianist to play “every word” of the song when accompanying. Playing every word would limit the pianist’s ability to improvise.

The more familiar the congregation is with a hymn…the less dependent they are on hearing the melody. This allows the pianist more freedom to stray from the melody…making it much easier to maneuver through the accompaniment.

Editor notes for today’s free piano sample of “The Lily of the Valley”

Notice the left hand plays the main beats (1,2,3,4) and the right hand skip words here and there for ease of movement.

Measure #3 (beats 3 through 4) the right hand plays notes within the chord frame being used… “sweeping upward”…for a livelier sound.

Measure #4 (beats 1 through 4) the left hand begins with a dotted rhythm for a peppy tone and drives through with octaves to maintain tempo while the congregation holds the word “soul”.