The Importance of Arrangement :
The Importance of Arrangement The perfect recipe for musical boredom…
Shabby performance of a hymn “as written”
Straight, monotonous repetition of verses
Instead, the musical treatment of a hymn must
Keep the congregation’s attention
Reflect the structure of the text
…which, recall, culminates in its last stanza!
For many years there has been a standard set of tools for hymn arrangement, and even one standard form.
But today, this knowledge has largely been lost
So let’s learn about the state of the art!
Understand the rationale and apply it thoughtfully
Our “Textbook” Arrangement :
Our “Textbook” Arrangement Sir David Willcocks (1919 – )
“O Come, All Ye Faithful”
here sung by the Stanford Chamber Chorale
Standard Hymn Arrangement :
Standard Hymn Arrangement ff UNISON reharmonization orchestration / antiphony modulation descant / fauxbourdon REHARMONIZED