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And…the winner of Soundforth’s free book giveaway is…Kimberly Handley! Congratulations!
Kimberly won the book entitled “This Little Light of Mine” containing sacred piano solos arranged by Susan Greene.
One of my readers recently asked if I would share some improvising ideas for Victory in Jesus. Since this hymn is copyrighted, I’m limited to how much of the song I can share due to the “fair use” law for copyrighted music. (Another interesting topic for a future article) 🙂
Editor’s Notes for the free handout of Victory in Jesus (improvising ideas): Click here for free handout.
For time’s sake, I only entered the melody on the vocal score but the piano score utulizes the basic chord structure of the four voice parts from the hymnal.
Left hand accompaniment description for line one: I used an alternate bass note (D) on the third beat for variety. The note (D) fits in a “G” chord…therefore making it a good choice for an alternate bass note.
LH accompaniment description for line two: I used the same alternate bass idea. The final measure contains a busy octave stepping pattern to fill-in three counts on the word “me”. The dotted rhythm on the first two octaves adds an extra spice to the sound; making it more lively.
I know more visual examples of this hymn would be helpful but I’ve reached my limit of “fair use”. Although, I can tell you in words… that I use the alternate bass idea on the chorus too. Just look in a hymnal at the chorus. See the words “Saviour” and “blood” ? I play stepping octaves for these words with my left hand.
Just a peek at what can be done with this hymn but may provide a springboard to your own creativity!
I’m sure any church pianist would be happy to have the following sacred piano book in their collection. This Little Light of Mine contains early intermediate piano arrangements arranged by Susan Greene. (Soundforth is the publisher.) Although written with the student in mind…these arrangements apply to all ages.
The following excerpt from the arranger can be found in the book:
“In This Little Light of Mine, you will find familiar gospel songs that students can use to minister in church, recital, or informal settings. These arrangements were written for my students over the years in coordination with the concepts taught in their third and fourth level method books. Arranged in order from simplest to most difficult (followed by two duets), these pieces “grow” with the late-elementary to early-intermediate student…” ~~~~Susan Greene
Now I’ll share my personal description of This Little Light of Mine”. Two words come to mind…animated and well-structured. Seven of the nine arrangements are very lively! Most of the lively pieces do have a a slow verse, for a varied layout. Susan even included helpful fingering and pedal notations throughout the book. Another neat feature… a list of the concepts covered in each piece can be found in the back of the book.
My favorite pieces are “Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus” and “Countdown”. Hmmm…. I also like the two piano duets at the end of the book. “This Little Light of Mine” was really neat with all the scale activity. Ok, I like all of them!
Here’s a list of each song. Just click on each title to hear an audio sample.
‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus
Tell Me the Story of Jesus (duet)
Soundforth has agreed to give away one free book of “This Little Light of Mine”. Here’s how to enter for a chance to win this exciting sacred piano book:
Simply leave a comment on this article to enter your name once. To enter your name a second time: post a link to this specific article on your facebook,blog or twitter. Please leave a second comment on this article..showing you did so.
Good practicing habits are necesscary for all pianists…if they want to progress and sound prepared.
I stumbled across an excellent article on the best and worst ways to practice located on the website entitled Piano Perspectives.
Click here to read Best and Worst Ways of Practicing. Decide which list you belong to. 🙂
I do not hear this song much anymore but it’s in most of our church hymnals and carries a comforting message of God’s protection over his children.
A friend of ours emailed the following video of “God Will Take Care of You” that’s absolutely a blessing! Just thought I’d share it with those of you who may not have seen it yet.
How long should a piano introduction be? What part of the song do I play for the introduction?
I hope the following video and free pdf sheet of piano introduction examples will benefit church pianists needing guidance in this area.
Free PDF Sheet: Piano-Introductions-Part-One
Piano introductions play a vital role in the music of the church service. Listen to the following audios and decide for yourself which one better prepares the congregation to enter with confidence.
Jesus is Coming Again (introduction #1)
Jesus is Coming Again (introduction #2)
Why are piano introductions so important? I plan on answering this question and sharing several introduction examples from commonly used hymns in the next article on piano introductions for congregational singing.
His Eye is on the Sparrow has always been a favorite of mine. On a recent visit to my parent’s house…I accompanied my dad to sing this old but comforting hymn.
Dad has always taught me to “feel” the words when I play or sing. He seems to make the words come to life as he sings from his heart to the Lord. Thanks Dad for being such a wonderful teacher! Thanks to a patient Mom who made me practice piano which prepared me for years of service to the Lord in the music ministry.
Please allow the message of this song to soothe your soul 🙂
The chorus of Sunlight contains several twists and turns in the melody line making it tricky for the church pianist to manuveur through this peppy hymn.
Simply play more blocked chords on the main beats (one.two, three, four). I had to add an occasional sprinkle of triplets in the right hand for a lively sound. The triplets also allude to rays of sunshine as the congregation happily sings….”…sunlight, sunlight, in my soul today!”
Complete audio for Sunlight Part Two (congregational accompaniment)
Just use your imagination to make the music come to life…causing the congregation to sing with more enthusiasm.
I hope the accompaniment ideas I’ve shared over the past few years have helped to stimulate the creative thinking of other church pianists…encouraging them to be even more effective for the Lord as they serve Him through the ministry of music.
Part One of Sunlight