Something that has really been on my mind lately is the mind set of the church pianist regarding the role of a church pianist.
As a church pianist, do you ever give yourself a periodic mind check…to make sure you’re being effective?
I get so busy maintaining the special music schedule and practicing before and after services that it’s SO easy to forget other aspects in the church pianist’s role that you may not have considered.
I’m making a little list and will share it soon. Once you see my list….maybe you’ll have some other ideas to share as well that would help us all as we strive to honor the Lord in our role as church pianist.
Great is Thy Faithfulness is one of my favorite hymns to this day! I was SO excited when I found out it would be in the public domain as of January 2019!
Yes, it took awhile for me to create this sacred piano solo but finally settled on the arrangement.
Warning: This is a VERY advanced piano solo of Great is Thy Faithfulness. I actually enjoy writing this level the most because I can pull out all the stops and not feel as restricted.
One challenge for me is recording myself at the piano. I get nervous! So..I tried to play by the music 🙂 I hope this arrangement is a blessing to the advanced church pianist looking for an offertory. (Hint: would make a nice selection for Thanksgiving Sunday)
Advanced sacred piano solo arranged by Jenifer Cook 6 pgs.
Contains two verses and choruses.
A beautiful setting of this well-loved hymn. Your listeners will be tempted to sing along with this heart-felt arrangement of Great is Thy Faithfulness.
I enjoy creating pieces with a certain student in mind. This particular piece goes to one of my older female students who enjoys playing songs in a minor key.
The idea for the introduction hit me as I laid down to sleep this past Wednesday. I had to get up and write it down or the idea would have been history!
Even though I’m an advanced level pianist, I still enjoy playing this early intermediate arrangement of “O Come O Come Emmanuel”.
Meryt Wilson and I REALLY enjoyed getting together a couple weeks ago to discuss Accompanying Vocal Specials. We came up with a series of short videos talking about various ideas on accompanying the vocalist.
Here are several practice tips for the church pianist who plays for vocal specials.
In our next video…we’ll share a couple thoughts when creating an intro for a vocal solo. Meryt sings while I try to create intros!
Finding time to practice vocal specials is a challenge for most church pianists! Listen to Meryt Wilson and Jenifer Cook as they discuss this challenging topic.
The following article discusses the limitations that come with the intermediate level church pianist. A reminder, they are doing the best they can do for the moment. But with a little extra practice…they can blossom into a fuller sound of playing by expanding their right hand horizon; opening up space for more left hand creativity! The following article is meant to encourage the intermediate level church pianist.
Most intermediate level church pianists play basically in the middle area of the keyboard when accompanying congregational singing or other vocal specials.
(See the picture of their range below)
The bass part in the hymnal doesn’t normally go below the second G under Middle C and the right hand probably doesn’t go as high as the second F above Middle C unless the intermediate pianist takes quick ventures into the upper register 😉
When the right hand stays within this boundary…the left hand playing space is limited. Taking the right hand an octave higher for an occasional spin…opens up more room for the left hand. This does not mean the pianist must stay an octave higher throughout the entire hymn. It’s actually better to use a combination of both the middle or upper register for variety in sound.
When to change registers for the right hand? In my early days of training, I was taught to change right hand registers at the end of a line which equates to at least two sentences. It’s nice to gradually work your way up or down by playing extra chords or notes leading into whatever register you’re heading for.
See example below in the hymn excerpt “Like a River Glorious” (click on image to enlarge)
