I recently attended a couple piano workshops by Shelly Hamilton.

“Accompanying Made Simple” was a very practical workshop providing the church pianists with simple yet practical ideas for accompanying special music.

Shelly brought her accompaniment suggestions to life by offering a free arrangement of Day by Day which includes three different accompaniment styles.  Thanks Shelly!

I attended Shelly’s workshops so that I could share accompaniment ideas with my church pianist readers.  Click on the following links to download the handouts for this workshop.

Accompanying Made Simple (outline)

Day by Day page one

Day by Day page two

Here are some great ideas for easy choir arrangements! Please keep in mind…these are my personal notes taken from a recent workshop entitled, “On the Spot Arranging” by Mac & Beth Lynch.

Mac and Beth are working with a small church choir of their own and shared a lot of excellent; practical ideas for using the hymnal to sing like a choir and not like the congregation 🙂

I know of more than one church pianist who fills the role of pianist and choir leader….or assists the choir leader with choosing choir specials.  I hope these few arranging ideas will get your own creative juices going.

Refer to a hymnal for the following arranging suggestions:

“When I See the Blood” 

Have men sing the echos in unison (melody only) during the chorus for a change! Why? Gives less of a “chuncky”  or “monotone” sound.  Singing the melody for the echos gives a more shapely tone.  (singing the echos in parts as written is fine…but the unison just provides a nice; refreshing change for an easy-to-sing arrangement).

 

“Nearer Still Nearer”   (A lot of hymns can be utilized as SAB by deleting the bass)

Use as SAB (men on tenor)

 

“I Surrender All” 

Verses: SAB

Chorus: Men on melody; Ladies on alto (1st line of chorus)
SATB on 4th line (final line of song)

 

“Burdens Are Lifted”

Nice SAB! As written (men sing tenor line throughout)

*Extra information:

Close harmony on: line one and last phrase of line two thru four)
Open harmony on first half of lines 2 through 4
Close harmony means less than an octave between soprano and tenor
Open harmony is more than an octave between soprano and tenor

 

“When I See the Blood Medley”

Verses: Men on melody; Ladies on alto
Chorus: Men on melody; Ladies on alto (no echos)
*At end of chorus…go into “The Cleansing Wave”
SAB throughout (men on tenor) Could go to 4 parts on chorus.

 

“I Know Whom I Have Believed” Nice  SB Arrangement!

1st half of line one: men on tenor, ladies on soprano (parallel 6ths)
2nd half of line one: men on alto, ladies on soprano (parallel 3rds)
1st half of line two: men on tenor, ladies on soprano (parallel 6ths)
2nd half of line two: unison (written harmony not as feasible for two-parts)

Chorus:

Men on melody, Ladies on alto throughout or go to unison on last phrase of
chorus on word “Unto” then split into 4 parts on “…Him against that day.”

My thoughts:  Input these simple hymn arrangements in finale (vocal score only) to have for quickie choir arrangements…instead of having choir members mark up their hymnals and to save on choir practice time since we only practice for half an hour.

Which reminds me….I need to make copies for our choir of “Jesus Loves Me” quickie arrangement which I shared in a recent post.  We’re never too old to sing this hymn.

Being transparent here…. Ever have those days as a church pianist where you wondered, “What was I thinking?!” Got back late Friday from a conference and was just extra tired on Sunday and boy did it show!

Got to choir practice 15 minutes early to copy a two sided arrangement for a ladies’ ensemble rehearsal… and wound up copying the same page on both sides…ever done that? Don’t ask me WHY I didn’t notice BEFORE singing it in practice….(laughs for everyone) Just one of the many crazy things I did that day 🙂

After ensemble practice, one of the ladies approached me and I just KNEW she was going to give me a lashing (lol…just kidding) She handed me a homemade loaf of pound cake and said she just wanted to express her gratitude for my time spent working in the music ministry.

That act of encouragement could not have come at a better time. Isn’t God good how he works through people?!

Are you a church pianist that doesn’t know how to transpose?  Do you choose hymns for prelude that are in the same key for this very reason?  I have good news for you!

It is not always necessary to transpose from one song to the next if you go up a perfect fourth between each hymn.  I’m providing a free prelude below but read the important info below before you hurry to print the free prelude.

~   ~   ~   ~   ~   ~   ~   ~   ~

Going Up a Perfect 4th Interval From One Hymn to the Next Hymn:

What You Need to Know:

1. An interval is the distance between two notes

Example:

C to D is a 2nd interval because you count from 1 t0 2 to go from    C to D.

C to E would be a 3rd interval and C to F a fourth.

2. Within every key/scale… the fourth interval is called a perfect fourth which consists of five half steps.  So… from C to F is a perfect fourth.  Why is it called a perfect fourth?  Just accept it and go on or if you’re curious…check out the following links 🙂

Music Practice & Theory

Music Reading Savant

Quick quiz in Creating Perfect Fourths:

What is 5 half steps (a perfect 4th) above F? Answer is:  B flat (see picture below)

(Are you noticing that we’re going in order of the flat keys as we go up a 4th?)

The key of F Major has one flat, the key of B Flat Major has two flats.  Cool!

Ok….so what is 5 half steps (a perfect fourth)… above B flat?  You got it!  E flat and the key of E flat has three flats.

Now…let’s apply this “no transposing” concept using the following  hymns which are a perfect fourth apart for a nice topical prelude!

Click on each song title to download for FREE!

Free Prelude for Church Pianists:

At Calvary –  C Major

Since I Have Been Redeemed – F Major

Power in the Blood – B Flat Major

Saved by the Blood – E Flat Major

*All of these arrangements are from our free arrangement page(s)

Another nice sacred piano book from Lorenz for the church pianist!  This book is listed as an intermediate level but some of the pieces may lean more towards early advanced.  A total of fourteen arrangements makes this a nice investment!

My ultimate favorites in this book?

God of the Ages (God of Our Fathers) nice patriotic one!

I Hear Thy Welcome Voice

He Never Said a Mumbalin’ Word

I’ve shared audio samples below of my preferred ten out of the fourteen.

Ah Holy Jesus  Ah Holy Jesus

God of the Ages  God of the Ages

He Leadeth Me   He Leadeth Me

He Never Said a Mumbalin’ Word  He Never Said a Mumbalin Word

I Hear Thy Welcome Voice   I Hear Thy Welcome Voice

In the Cross of Christ    In the Cross of Christ

More Love to Thee    More Love to Thee

O the Deep Deep Love of Jesus   O the Deep Deep Love of Jesus

Rejoice the Lord is King   Rejoice the Lord is King

Trusting Jesus   Trusting Jesus

As a church pianist, I always get excited when discovering a book that can be well utilized for offertories.  He Leadeth Me is one such book!

*For  more information or to purchase… click Lorenz Publishing Corporation

 

 

I had a nice visit with my parents this past weekend.  I wrote A LOT of music before and after the trip….so much….I forgot that I had already entered the entire  arrangement of “Holy, Holy, Holy” advanced piano solo. I’m allowing some settling time before publishing this one…..which usually means I have several of my piano friends “test drive” it before publishing…especially the real advanced ones like this one.

I also just finished my dad’s patriotic song, “In God We Trust”. I’m awaiting his approval after he proofreads it tonight 🙂 Hope to publish it tomorrow.

Now my attention will focus more on the second congregational notebook.  John W. Peterson Company has given me permission to include “Heaven Came Down” in the next congregational collection. I will have to pay royalties for using this particular hymn since it’s still under copyright… a topic which ALL church pianists need to be briefed on! ( in a later post….I’ve said that at least once before)   😉

 

Wanted to share a list of patriotic music resources with my church pianist readers before visiting with my parents starting tomorrow through Sunday. I consider this list of songs a treasure find!

1. I Love America by Frank & Flora Jean Garlock

*Taken from Sing Praises Two (still in print) If you want multiple copies…Majesty Music ask that you own at least four copies of the book Sing Praises Two, then pay $1.00 per copy made of the song. There is a limit of making multiple copies for up to 3 songs per book.

 

2. We Pledge Allegiance by Shelly Hamilton

*Same copying instructions from above apply to this song.

 

3. If My People by Frank & Flora Jean Garlock

*Majesty Music provides a way to obtain this song through their office. Call customer service department at (1-800-334-1071) to order copies of this song for $.50 per copy (This song is from the book “Choral Arrangements Everybody Can Sing-Volume 1)  *I love the words to this song…very well-written!

 

4. It’s Time to Pray by John W. Peterson

I will be providing the cost details on this asap since I have updated this song to a different arrangement.

*Special note: The words to this song call Christians to the important matter of prayer for our country.

 

5.  We Stand by Niki Lott  *GREAT! for Men’s group or SATB choir

I just purchased a downloadable SATB arrangement of this song  off Niki’s website called Christian Compositions  This is a very moving piece!

You can view a page of the music HERE

Niki also sells a choral arrangement with piano accopmaniment version HERE

You can also view a youtube video of Niki’s husband and friends singing it for special in church HERE

 

6.  We Pledge Allegiance by Derric Johnson

Just got off the phone with Derric Johnson. How exciting to have talked with the composer of this well-known tune!  He was very helpful. He said this choral arrangement was available by “print on demand” which means it’s also out of print but you can order a copy of this 14 page arrangement for $5 per copy. I think this arrangement would make a nice mini-patriotic cantata! Here’s my best description of this arrangement:

Chorus (sung twice)

Narration section explains meaning of the flag colors with piano background

Verse of “We Pledge Allegiance” sung slow & reverently by choir

Transitions back into chorus of “We Pledge Allegiance”

Short narration section about heroes/patriots, another song beginning with lyrics “The lawyer came from Georgetown to visit Baltimore….”

Short narration section with choir Ooo’s to transition to next song

Choir begins slow and soft version of The Star-Spangled Banner verse and soars triumphantly into the chorus followed by a majestic ending!

 

7. In God We Trust by Reece Yandle (my Dad)

*In the works. I will do my best to publish this vocal solo arrangement  by the end of next week.

 

 

Lorenz contacted me recently and asked if I would do several sacred piano book reviews for them.  What perfect timing!  I had already spent several hours on their site in the past month…researching their intermediate and advanced sacred piano arrangements. As a church pianist, I’m always looking for fresh arrangements for me or my piano students.

Here’s the first book review of one of my favorite finds!

Get ready to experience a nice variety of arrangements from the following book.  This is a must have for the church pianist!

 “I Know Whom I Have Believed”

Compiled by David Sarandon

Published by Lorenz Publishing Company

  I absolutely LOVE this collection of arrangements by various authors, providing a nice array of styles!  Special note: The arrangements seem more at an early advanced level rather than intermediate. (my opinion)

If you’re like me, you want to utilize the majority of a piano book before investing in it.  I would actually use most of these arrangements!  To me that’s exciting because I don’t come across many books like this.

So, I’m providing audio samples of the arrangements I would use.  “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” is one of my favorite ones…simple… yet elegant! (would make an excellent guitar arrangement!)

Contents:

I Know Whom I Have Believed (arr. Lloyd Larson)

*Like this author just not this particular arrangement…it uses a little more syncopation than I’m comfortable with.

I Need Thee Every Hour (arr. Mary McDonald)  INeed

Grace Greater Than Our Sin (arr. Larry Shackley)  Grace Greater

Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus (arr. Hugh Livingston, Jr.)  Stand Up

I Surrender All (arr. Lenny Seidel)  I Surrender

To God be the Glory (arr. Martha Kelsey)  To God

Open My Eyes, That I May See (arr. Michael Wilson) Open My Eyes

Sweet Hour of Prayer with Just As I Am (arr. Janet Vogt)    Just As I Am

What a Friend We Have in Jesus (arr. Martha Kelsey)  What a Friend

His Eye is on the Sparrow (arr. Edward Broughton)  His Eye

  (view sample pages here)

 

 

Working on several music projects right now:

1. “Holy Holy Holy” very advanced piano solo * Almost finished with handwritten version.

2.  Beginning to compile songs for Piano Hymns Congregational Booklet Two

3. Preparing several book reviews for Lorenz Publishing Corporation.

VERY excited about the arrangements I found in these books!  Most of them are advanced.

Just letting my readers know I’m in the process of posting the individual hymns from the Congregational Booklet One for sale on the Congregational Piano Hymn page of our online music store. (navigation buttons at top of this page)  So far I’ve posted: All Hail the Power, Are You Washed and Blessed Assurance.

Several have requested the Blessed Assurance congregational arrangement after seeing the first sample page of it in an older article.  It’s now sold separately or in the Congregational Booklet One.

Special note: Multiple uses for the church pianist!  The piano accompaniment arrangements from the Congregational Booklet One can also be used to accompany the following:  vocal soloist, flute or violin.