I’m hosting a giveaway of my Christmas CD entitled: Simply Christmas

Everybody enjoys listening to instrumental music at Christmas…especially if the music is familiar. I published this CD several years ago and have a limited amount remaining in stock.

The traditional sounds of Christmas ring out in this creative CD featuring well-known Christmas carols.  You’ll hear bells or  harp in several of the carols.   Several of the two piano numbers on this CD are available as printable sheet music in  the music store. The main instrument on this CD is piano.

* This CD was created with  a Kawai digital piano.

Rules for Giveaway of Simply Christmas CD

1. Leave a comment at bottom of this article to enter your name one time.

2. Share the link to this  giveaway on your personal blog, facebook or twitter and leave a second comment saying you did so. This allows you to enter your name a second time in same drawing.

3. Drawing will be held on December 5th by 8pm EST

4. The winner will be notified by email the day of the drawing.

Important Information:

US Residents:  The Church Pianist will pay all shipping (media rate)

Residents outside the US:  The Church Pianist will cover up to $5 in shipping (media rate). Any shipping above $5 must be paid by winner.

Click here to hear samples from Simply Christmas CD

 Just sharing a video of my dad’s recent solo during my visit this past weekend. I feel most free at the piano when accompanying my dad.

*I believe this particular arrangement is out of print but I found it at rejoicemusic.net As of right now…they only have 13 copies left at $1 each.  Click here to see if any copies are still available.

My dad just told me about a reputable website that sells used church choir music.  I was SO excited to find out about The MusicLibrary.com!

This site sells used music for churches that are trying to get rid of music they no longer use.

For the last several weeks I have been brainstorming…trying to figure out what to do this year for our church Christmas program.   I checked out TheMusicLibrary.com and found enough books for the “Christmas at Home” cantata by Ron Hamilton…reasonably priced!

Our books should arrive next Friday just in time to start learning the songs on Sunday, September 18th.  The music in Christmas at Home are SATB arrangements.  Our choir is mainly a two part choir but getting use to three parts now… due to new choir members 🙂  (Praise the Lord)

We are going to simplify the songs by singing unison on some and two parts on other songs.”Christmas at Home” is one of my favorite cantatas because of the strong emphasis on salvation.  This is an excellent cantata to bring unsaved family and friends to.

So…if you’re looking for Christmas program material or music in general…check out TheMusicLibrary.com

Click here: God of Our Fathers  (print music and view  while reading the information below)

As promised, here is part two of “God of Our Fathers”.  I used dotted rhythm in measures # 9, 12 and 14 to liven up the accompaniment.

The busy left hand octave movement was also added to give this hymn some driving motion as in measures #11, 12, 15 and 17.  (Also in the  right hand on measure #14)

This free arrangement of God of Our Fathers can also be used as a short patriotic offertory or for congregational piano accompaniment.

God of Our Fathers part one

Complete audio of “God of Our Fathers”  (computer-generated)

Click here to download and print part one of “God of Our Fathers”

“God of Our Fathers” is a wonderful hymn to sing anytime of year, but especially around July 4th. This stately hymn reminds Christians of God as their leader. 

In part one of today’s free arrangement of “God of Our Fathers” I tried to portray the majestic mood of the text by solid octave movement in the left hand and full chords in the right hand. 

The introduction (trumpet fanfare) was doubled (both hands) for a fuller sound.  The octave higher treatment gave it a brighter tone.

In measure five, I added a light touch of syncopation to the left hand  for text enrichment.  The words for this measure speak of God’s  “…almighty hand”.

Congregational singing plays such an important role in the worship service.   As a church pianist, I try to play with enthusiasm, since I represent the Lord in all I do.  I want others to know that I truly believe the words of the great hymns of faith as I play them for God’s glory.

To be honest, I don’t always feel energetic on a Sunday morning when I’ve had maybe a couple hours of sleep… but God is good. He gives me just enough energy to make it through. I’ve found I do better during those times.  I think it’s because I’m relying more on His help…as I should ALWAYS do 🙂

Part two of “God of Our Father’s” will take us up an octave as we prepare for the climax of this great hymn.  Looking forward to sharing the rest!

Click here to read the story behind “God of Our Fathers”

The “Battle Hymn of the Republic” is a hymn the church pianist must “dress-up” to enrich the congregational singing. It’s not always easy to grab every note “word” of a hymn when it contains a busy rhythm such as the frequent dotted rhythm in the “Battle Hymn”. Moving from word to word can be quite awkward for the church pianist.

Remember…the hymnal is written for voice parts not the instrument. The church pianist must learn to adapt…creating a simple but full-sounding accompaniment that will support the singers…making them sing out with even more energy and confidence.

Editor notes for Part Two of “Battle Hymn of the Republic”

*Please click here to print part two so you can view the music while you read the following notes:

1. I only added a few of the sixteenth notes from the vocal score into the piano accompaniment…creating a more user friendly hand movement, which in turn helps the pianist maintain a steady beat for the congregation.

2. When I play the chorus…I deviate so much more from the melody–using sprinkles of 3-note triplet chords in the right hand during half notes. But…I kept enough melody in the chorus of this free arrangement for church pianists that may not be use to deviating alot from the melody.

Click here for Part One of Battle Hymn of the Republic

It’s hard to believe that July 4th is so close!  Since I’ve been so busy…it takes less time for me to write an arrangement as opposed to a strict “teaching” article.  Today’s free piano arrangement of “Battle Hymn of the Republic” is arranged for congregational singing.

The hymnal version (voice parts) contain a lot of repeated notes making it necessary for the church pianist to create a more interesting sound to bring it to life!

In part one of this free arrangement…I added the vocal score above the piano score… so you could see what I’m playing as opposed to the written voice parts from the hymnal. I’ll provide an audio after I share the entire arrangement with you.

Click here for free congregational piano arrangement of: Battle Hymn of the Republic (Part One)

 Everyone wants a smooth wedding rehearsal and wedding ceremony. Many times church pianists find themselves in the role of wedding coordinator, wedding consultant, pianist or all of the above.

There are many good books on the market dealing with wedding planning and such but I wanted to share important practical tips I observed in my son’s wedding rehearsal.

The wedding coordinator was wonderful!  She was so personable and patient.  Her main objective was to honor the bride’s wishes on how to conduct the wedding rehearsal/ceremony. If  someone asked her a question she was unsure how to answer… she directed it right back to my son’s bride-to-be in a very polite manner.

The pastor was a natural leader and very hospitable. Of course it helps to have a cooperative wedding party 😉

Rehearsal Observations:

(Parents and grandparents  were seated in the auditorium) *Seats were marked with our names 🙂

• Pastor opened in prayer and briefed wedding party on order of ceremony and how rehearsal would be conducted as follows:

First run-through: Bridesmaids, Groomsmen, bride & groom exit from stage (recessional)

Second time: Entire ceremony with all music

Third time: Entire ceremony with short excerpts from music

• Pastor introduced wedding coordinator
• Wedding coordinator positioned bridemaids, groomsmen, bride and groom onstage for exit (recessional) *everyone’s place was already marked with piece of tape.  *Excellent time-saver and anti-confuser  (I like to make up words)
• Now…everyone is in the back of the auditorium ready to march in  (Hearing entire music selections allows those involved to know how much time they will have to perform their actions such as:  candle-lighters or…parents lighting the unity candle) 
• Final run-through gave everyone a chance to nail down their moves (especially helped pianist know how much filler music was needed)  🙂

I must give the ultimate credit to the Lord.  Many thanks to all of my friends and relatives who prayed for our safety and for a beautiful wedding to God’s glory.

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.

Angels We Have Heard on High (four-part hymnal version)

Improving Ideas for Thou Didst Leave Thy Throne (part two)

The improvising ideas in this hymn are simplistic but are meant to add warmth to enhance the beautiful words of this old melody.

Improvising ideas for Thou Didst Leave Thy Throne: part one

*Keep in mind…the chords in the piano score will not match the four parts from the hymnal version.