Psalms for the Common

Issue 60 Dec 2018 Psalms for the £2.50 In this issue Common Era f one of the four pillars of description of the ‘Ancient of Days’ in Psalms for the Common Era 1 Imodern liturgy is the principle of Daniel 7, reserving ‘God’ for Elohim, Music 2-4 participation, it is a sad fact that many and ‘Lord’ for Yahweh. Music News 5 Christian denominations have witnessed I chose usually only one tune for each Events 6 the demise of congregational psalm psalm or portion of psalm, based on Thank you, Peter 6 singing in recent years. This is partly the emotional flavour of the poem, but, Books 7 Report 8 due to the dominance of the parish because hymn tunes exist separately from Colin’s Column 8 communion movement, and partly the poem, it is quite possible to find due to musical settings of non-metrical other tunes to fit. I have even started experimenting with folk tunes like What is Praxis? psalms being inaccessible to all but the music specialist. Metrical psalmody is Scarborough Fair. See www.praxisworship.org.uk often seen as the poor relation of ‘proper’ Psalms and hymns are quite Praxis was formed in 1990, liturgical psalters, but I felt that another different. If hymnody reflects who sponsored by the Liturgical attempt at it was overdue. we are, psalmody reflects the content Commission, the Group for the Psalms for the Common Era of Scripture. In hymnody we are the Renewal of Worship (GROW) and is an the Alcuin Club to provide and unabridged metrical translation direct starting point; in psalmody the starting support liturgical education in the from Hebrew. Every verse is included point is Scripture. Unlike hymnody, Church of England. somewhere. Additionally, I have psalms are often quite long, especially translated the psalms into a wide variety the lament psalms, which comprise of metres and rhyming schemes, based at least two-fifths of the whole. This Praxis News of Worship is copyright on the style of the Hebrew poems in itself makes the psalms a hugely © Praxis 2018. Material for inclusion themselves, rather than any preconceived important resource for services which should be sent to the editor, [email protected] plan. While Hebrew and English poetry acknowledge sorrow, injustice, abuse and We reserve the right to edit material work in very different ways, I wanted the pain, something that is often lacking and make no guarantee to include reader or singer to experience not just in Sunday worship, where the bleeding material submitted. The views the meaning of the words in accessible heart is frequently pummelled into expressed are not necessarily those of English, but also the emotion and silence by praise. Praxis or the Praxis Council. texture of the psalm. For instance, some I have now embarked on a series of psalms are acrostic in Hebrew, and I workshops to showcase this translation. Contact praxis@praxisworship. org.uk have reproduced this in English so that These are a chance to come along and the singer can experience this rather spend a day singing psalms in the For general enquiries, affiliation and dispassionate form of poetry. context of fun and cake, seeing how it programme information, contact I have brought the fruits of modern is actually possible to hold a completely Praxis, 3 Ravenswood, 23 Wimborne Old Testament scholarship to this metrical Matins and Evensong without Road, Bournemouth BH2 6LZ, 01202 project. The last two centuries have seen compromising the content. More 296886, [email protected]. huge strides in our understanding of details in Events; check out the website uk comparative linguistics and mythology. I (www.psalmsforthecommonera.com). Affiliation have brought out some of these insights Psalms for the Common Era is available in my translation. El, usually translated in paperback, Kindle and large print The work that Praxis does is supported mainly by affiliation. If simply as ‘God’, but who appears as formats on Amazon. " you are not an affiliate, why not head of the Ugaritic pantheon and Adam Carlill is the Vicar of St George’s consider becoming one? father of all the other gods, is rendered and St Mary Magdalen’s, Tilehurst, and with the Ugaritic epithet, ‘Father of the teaches Bible, Old Testament and liturgy for Years’, an image that is very close to the the Common Awards Scheme. Page 1 MUSIC care. Our process of group critique create a complete experience. Music carries Resound Worship throughout the writing journey has us beyond the limitations of human words, esound Worship is a collective of been crucial, as together we’ve deepened offering space for respite and inspiration RBritish worship writers who, for the our own theological understanding of during busy modern lives. last decade, have been composing and these themes; and we’ve been greatly But if you were to ask the average publishing new, contemporary worship helped in this by our friends at A Rocha person in the street, they would not songs for the Church through their International. know that evensong exists. The supply of website. An offshoot of Jubilate – with the While we work towards a 2019 release, evensong is well established (in Britain heritage of Michael Baughen, Chris Idle we’ve seen an unexpected spin-off through and Ireland nearly 700 churches offer and many others – they have carried the our 12 Song Challenge initiative and it), but the demand is low, because it values of accessible style, lyrical substance, monthly podcast. Over 150 writers in local is not a known quantity. The supply is and excellence through peer-critique, into churches are producing a song per month expensive, but promotion is underfunded. this contemporary genre. on a theme we present, sharing them with The Choral Evensong website’s purpose When you form a new charity, as we each other for encouragement and critique. is to address this, each month featuring did when restructuring Resound Worship In October we invited them to join us a particular choir that offers webcasting and Jubilate into the Song & Hymn in writing ‘eco-songs’. Most said they’d or recordings that people can listen to Writers Foundation, you have to convince never considered writing this kind of song. online. Truro Cathedral, for example, have the Charity Commission that you will Some said they’d never really considered installed a permanent audio setup and the benefit humankind. It does rather focus the issue at all in connection with their choir webcast frequently. the mind. Who did we exist to serve? Were faith. But they took on the challenge and Setting up a streamable recording we trying to sell more music, or enrich we were fascinated to see their theological facility is not too expensive – £1,000 for the repertoire of the Church? They’re understanding develop through the process the equipment needed for a week-long not mutually exclusive, but we quickly of composition and the need to articulate audio-only broadcast. A broadcast by the saw that our goals could not simply be their thoughts. By the end of the month, choir of St John’s College, Cambridge that to sell more albums. Instead it must be not only was there an array of new eco- went out on social media recently had to understand and meet the real needs of songs that will be sung in churches across 88,000 views (33,000 live). real churches. We must write from the the land, but there was a community of Another simple but overlooked ground up, engaging churches as partners worship leaders inspired in a belief that initiative is to raise the visibility of in conversation and responding with our these themes should be addressed within Evensong in local media: tourist songs. our gathered worship. This, we hope, information websites, visitor information An early approach to this was surveying could truly benefit humankind. leaflets, events listings in local newspapers. church music groups. It was very revealing. " Joel Payne is the Coordinator of Resound Leaflets and listings that advertise historical Even amongst those many churches Worship. and architectural visits to churches might committed to our style of contemporary www.resoundworship.org also invite visitors to ‘attend the free music worship, only two-thirds used a guitar, service of Evensong’. but almost all included a piano. The third Evensong receptions gather locals to most common instrument was flute! Choral take part in Evensong, seeding awareness Quite a contrast to the instrumentation into a local community. A reception is of many popular worship recordings. Evensong.Org basically an Evensong with a drinks party Our challenge, then, was to write and vensong is arguably one of the glories afterwards, to which MPs and mayors, record a collection of songs designed for Eof Britain. It is free of charge and open local journalists, head teachers from the average church, not the mega-church. to all. local schools, hotels, B&Bs, residents’ Vocal ranges, rhythms, lyrical themes www.choralevensong.org is a website associations, universities, the local tourist and instrumentation were built around that promotes it. The Evensong project offices and doctors’ surgeries are invited this picture painted by our survey. Songs makes it easy to search for choral evensong to participate, many for the first time. for Sundays, the resulting collection, is services across Britain and Ireland. By The Evensong website offers a ‘How to’ unlikely to feature heavily on the radio typing in a postcode, an enquirer can template for this, as well as Evensong but it has proved uniquely useful in many find information about the type of choir, posters. churches. weekly service schedules and music lists of Jane Capon of the Choir Schools More recently, we identified a crucial evensongs in a local area.

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