I’ve always enjoyed singing the Christmas carol, “Angels We Have Heard on High”. My favorite key to sing this hymn is E flat Major. We have a small congregation and this key works out very well for them. Generally, we transpose all hymns at least one step lower; making it easier for the congregation to reach the melody with confidence. (All of our congregation sings melody).
I understand not all church pianists know how to transpose. Therefore, I’m sharing this transposed version of “Angels We Have Heard on High” in E flat Major; simple four-part style as it would appear in the hymnal.
I have compiled several of my free Christmas piano arrangements under the ” Free Hymns Pdf” page for easier access.
Most church pianists are gearing up for Christmas; searching out Christmas piano arrangements. Hope these free arrangements are a help to your music ministry.
With Thanksgiving just around the corner…”Come Ye Thankful People Come“ has been on my mind. Here’s a free piano arrangement of this old-time favorite.
It always excites me to have young people wanting to get involved in the music ministry. Our church family is so supportive of their young people’s endeavors to serve the Lord.
Hannah and her family have recently joined our church and they are a blessing. Hannah hasn’t had lessons in a little while and is a level one student. She is anxious to begin lessons this fall and is ready to serve in the area of music. Amen!
I recently gave her one of my beginner arrangements of “Nothing But the Blood“ along with an audio to help her out. To my surprise, she had it down in a short time. (It’s always encouraging to work with self-motivated young people) 🙂
As a church pianist, I try to encourage our youth to get involved in the music minstry. I’m thankful that our young people are interested in doing so. The younger they start, the easier it becomes as they gain experience and much practice. I usually schedule the younger ones for a Wednesday or Sunday evening until they feel more comfortable. (Sunday mornings require longer offertories due to a larger attendance.)
Here is a video of her playing the offertory at our church this past Sunday night. (Notice the encouraging responses at the end)
I’m also providing this arrangement free…with this article. I plan to offer more of the beginning student hymn arrangements as time allows…in the music store.
I just finished the free arrangement of “Wonderful Grace of Jesus”. It was a challenge having to write this piece at an early advanced level. I had to leave sooo much out but knew this level would benefit a larger group of church pianists.
Measures 17 & 18: Left hand begins with melody which is very busy; therefore…the RH remains simple.
Measure 19 & beyond: RH borrows the rhythm of the LH melody and becomes the leader for variety.
*Overall tip: This arrangement wasn’t written for too fast of a speed. I recorded it at the highest suggested tempo. If your church sings it faster than the recording…you’ll need to play less detail (fewer notes) to keep up.
Yes….it’s part one of a free piano arrangement entitled: “Wonderful Grace of Jesus”. This particular hymn can be challenging for a couple of reasons. The melody has such a wide range..making it a challenge to sing! (I transposed it to B flat Major). The chorus can also be tricky for the church pianist.
I’ve gleaned ideas from different piano arrangements for “Wonderful Grace of Jesus” and applied them during congregational singing. It’s a great time to try new ideas while you have the singers for coverup. (ha ha)
The chorus use to be the most awkward part of the song but now has become my favorite over the past few years…once I learned to play in a more user friendly style. Can’t wait to share the rest of “Wonderful Grace of Jesus” in the next article or two.
One of my favorite arrangements of“Wonderful Grace of Jesus” is arranged by Mary Lynn Van Gelderen. I also gleaned alot of ideas for congregational style from Marilynn Ham’s “Wonderful Grace of Jesus” arrangement. I could not locate a pdf sample of this particular arrangement but it’s found in her book entitled “Timeless Tribute”.
Busy times…but still here 🙂 I’d like to share a free patriotic piano arrangement with my church pianist readers. My Country Tis of Thee is a very old hymn. The author of the melody is unknown but the words were written by Samuel Francis Smith.
This free piano hymn arrangement of “I Feel Like Travelling On” is geared for the beginning church pianist at an early elementary level.
My piano student featured in this video, is a church pianist who plays by ear but is learning to read music. She’s doing quite well! I’m writing arrangements with her level in mind.
Maybe some of you church pianists can share this with your students or use this free piano hymn arrangement for yourself.
I thought I would share a free audio for my free piano hymn arrangement of “In the Garden”. It always helps me to hear the original audio of an arrangement so I can hear what the composer intended for interpretation.
