Wednesday, October 29, 2014

This Week at Old South Haven Prespresbyterian Church


Wednesday, Oct. 29 12noon Clergy Retreat, Sag Harbor

Thursday, Oct. 30 11:00am Planned Parenthood of Nassau
Annual meeting, Carlyle on the Green
Bethpage State Park
Pastor Tom a guest

Saturday, Nov. 1 2:00pm Memorial for Elizabeth Gardner

Sunday, Nov. 2 10:00am Morning Worship
Stewardship Sunday
Sermon: "Stewardship: A Tale of Two Tables"
Lessons: Psalm 92; Mark 14: 12-16; 22-25
(DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME ENDS)

Tuesday, Nov. 4 ELECTION DAY
1:00pm Lunch Bunch at Nest Best's

Saturday, Nov. 8 1:00pm South Country Peace Group

Sunday, Nov. 9 10:00am Morning Worship
Pledge Sunday

Sunday, Nov. 16 4:00pm Book Reflections
"Learning to Walk in the Dark"
by Barbara Brown Taylor
(let Jason Neal know if you want book ordered)
DATE SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Monday, Nov. 17 7:00pm Session Meeting

Sunday, Nov. 23 4:00pm Ecumenical Thanksgiving Service
Led by clergy of Brookhaven and Bellport
Mary Immaculate Church
Preacher: Very Reverend John E. Walker
Christ Episcopal Church

Sunday, Nov. 30 First Sunday of Advent


WINTER CLOTHING DRIVE Please bring new or gently used coats and warm clothing to Bellport United Methodist Church before October 26. Donation boxes will be on the porch at Wesley House. Clothing will be delivered to The Boys and Girls Club for distribution.

COLLECTING TOYS We are collecting toys to be distributed through Thursday's Child. Don't forget older children as well as youngsters.

Saturday, October 25, 2014

Music for Reformation Sunday, October 26, 2014

From: Richard Thomas [mailto:richardathomas@optonline.net]
Sent: Saturday, October 25, 2014 1:18 AM
Subject: Music for Reformation Sunday, October 26, 2014

 

We will be singing the same three hymns we sang for Reformation Sunday in 2012 (October 27, 2012):

 

The Martin Luther hymn, "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God," 

a hymn attributed to John Calvin, "I Greet Thee, Who My Sure Redeemer Art," (tune: TOULON)
and a Fred Green hymn, “The Church of Christ in Every Age,” sung to the tune WAREHAM.  

 


 

Introit: “Be Still and Know”

            (If at first, you don’t succeed, . . .)  This time the plan is to try it a cappella, I think.


 

The opening hymn is No. 260, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” by Martin Luther.  (Martin Luther both composed the music and authored the words of the hymn.)

 

"A Mighty Fortress is Our God" has been published in 565 English-language hymnals.

 

It appears in the hymnals of most denominations, including the 1964 hymnal of the Unitarian Universalist Association, Hymns for the Celebration of Life (Hymn No. 16).

 

The hymn appeared in every English-language hymnals published between 1987 and 1998.

 

(From: http://www.hymnary.org/text/a_mighty_fortress_is_our_god )

 

The hymn now even appears in Catholic hymnals!  (It's in the second edition of the Catholic Book of Worship of the Canadian Conf. of Catholic Bishops.)

 

The stanzas relate to Psalm 46, with the third stanza making reference to 1 Peter 5:8.

 

The time signature appears variously as 2/2, 2/4, and 4/4.

 

My favorite verse is the second, since it provides the rare opportunity of singing "Sabaoth."

 

Dost ask who that may be?
Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabaoth His Name,
From age to age the same,
And He must win the battle.

 

Sabaoth is the latinization of the Hebrew word tzevaot which means "hosts," as in an army. 

 

The Hebrew phrase YHWH Elohe Tzevaot can be translated "Yahweh, Lord of Hosts."   See 1 Samuel 17:45. 

 

Wikipedia says in 1 Samuel, the phrase means "the God of the armies of Israel," but in other verses "sabaoth" may mean "the heavenly hosts," or it may mean "armies of men."

 

See also Romans 9:29.

  

A recently published Lutheran Service Book (2006), uses a different translation:

 

A mighty fortress is our God,
A trusty shield and weapon;

 

You can see all the words of this alternative translation at: http://www.hymnary.org/hymn/LSB2006/656

 

A similar translation was made by Catherine Winkworth and appeared in 1861 in Lyra Germanica.  See: http://www.hymnary.org/hymn/LG/105 .

 

Although the Hedge translation of 1852 is the one most familiar, it was not the first English translation. 

 

"Our God is a Defense and Tower" by Myles Coverdale appeared in 1539 and J. C. Jacobi's "God is our Refuge in Distress" was published in 1722. 

 

"A Safe Stronghold Our God Is Still" by Thomas Carlyle, 1831, appears in 44 hymnals.

 

In the Carlyle version, the words seem almost to follow German syntax, which is awkward; verse 2 is translated:

 

With force of arms we nothing can,
full soon were we down-ridden;
but for us fights the proper Man
whom God himself hath bidden.
Ask ye who is this same?
Christ Jesus is his name,
the Lord Sabaoth's Son;
he, and no other one,
shall conquer in the battle.

 

(See all of Thomas Carlyle's translation at: http://www.hymnary.org/text/a_safe_stronghold_our_god_is_still .)

 

The Carlyle translation appeared in many British and Canadian hymnals, as well as in the Chautauqua Hymnal and Liturgy, in which it is the first hymn. 

 

Another translation, "A Mighty Stronghold is Our God" was done by Joel Swartz in 1879. http://www.hymnary.org/hymn/HSSS1914/page/165

 

Here is the hymn sung in German by a female soloist, with piano and strings:

    http://youtu.be/rOm1_ta4rGI Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott” sung by a female soloist

 

(I don't like her voice much, but it is easy to hear the German words clearly, which also appear on the video as she sings.)

 

Sung by a large choir with full orchestra, including, organ, horns, and timpani (one verse is sung a cappella):

 

    http://youtu.be/wiRpUtVByxU “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” good quality audio, with some interesting orchestration with organ.

 

The English translation that appears in most hymnals was done by Frederick Henry Hedge (1805-1890) of Massachusetts and first published in 1852 in Furnesse's Gems of German Verse.  

 

It then appeared in a hymnal, Hymns for the Church of Christ, in 1853 (edited by Hedge and Frederick Huntington).

 

Hedge, a transcendentalist, was educated at Harvard and became a Unitarian minister, serving congregations in Maine, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts.  (For more information, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederic_Henry_Hedge .)

Here is the choir of California Baptist University Choir and Orchestra doing an up tempo version of "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God":

 

    http://youtu.be/w-QSoI-UjRo Campus Hill Church 

 

                Very good quality video and audio, although many commenters hated the arrangement (too much show, too little dignity).

 

A folk version, with guitar, mostly male solo (Chris Rice), with some vocal and instrumental harmony:

 

    http://youtu.be/Sx_MCyxhTJs, Chris Rise on guitar, with lyrics on the video, high quality audio.  (I liked this one because of the clarity; but John hated it.)

 

You can hear a choral arrangement, with brass quartet, timpani, and organ, by Paul D. Weber:  This is my favorite, though the audio quality of the recording isn’t very good.

 

    http://www.jwpepper.com/10068463.item  “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God,” anthem (SATB), with orchestration, by Paul D. Weber, (includes an interesting treatment of "a little word")

 

And an arrangement by A. Lovelace for organ at:

 

    http://www.jwpepper.com/10094632.item “Toccata on A Mighty Fortress,” an organ piece by Austin C. Lovelace

 


 

The second hymn is “I Greet Thee, Who My Sure Redeemer Art  (Je Te salue, mon certain Rédempteur),” attributed to John Calvin (10 Jul 1509 – 27 May 1564). 

 

Most hymnologist don’t think the hymn was actually authored by John Calvin, but they also don’t know who the actual author was.  The hymn definitely was used by Calvin’s followers from a very early time.  In any case, the hymn is entirely consistent with something Calvin might have written.

Here is a good, simple performance with harmonies one can easily hear.

 

            http://youtu.be/-14q2ufiiHo  “I Greet Thee, Who My Sure Redeemer Art,”  (tune: TOULON), female and male soloists alternating with choir, with words on screen

 

The translation is by Mrs. Elizabeth Lee Smith, née Allen, daughter of Dr. William Allen, President of Dartmouth University

 

In 1843, Miss Allen married Dr. Henry Boynton Smith, who became a professor at Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York.  Elizabeth Lee (Allen) Smith is buried in the Bridge Street Cemetery in Northampton, Massachusetts.  You can see her grave stone here: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=pv&GRid=63690907&PIpi=53565939

 

The tune, TOULON, was originally used as a psalter melody for Psalm 124.

 


 

The closing hymn, No. 421, is a Fred Green hymn, sung to the tune WAREHAM (which is the tune to which the Philip Doddridge hymn "Great God, We Sing That Mighty Hand By Which Supported Still We Stand" is also sung):

 

            http://youtu.be/83O2YZvLoEg "The Church of Christ in Every Age" as It was sung at the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church of Worcester, Massachusetts

 

Here's the tune put they sing a different hymn, “O Wondrous Type and Vision Fair” and sung VERY   VERY    S L  O   W    L     Y

 

            http://youtu.be/8jb-wXxRiZo “O Wondrous Type and Vision Fair” performed by the London Philharmonic Choir and the London National Philharmonic Orchestra

 

Here it the tune sung at a much better tempo:

 

            http://youtu.be/_KKoGjV5bqg “Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts,” tune: WAREHAM,

 

Other hymns sung to the tune are "O Love of God, How Strong and True," "Jesu, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts," "O Wondrous Sight! O Vision Fair," "So Let our Lips and Lives Express, The Holy Gospel We Profess," "Oh, Thou Who Camest from Above," and "Thy Years, O God, Through Ages Last."

 

It must be a tune to which it is easy to set words.

 

"The Church of Christ in Every Age" is by Rev. Fred Pratt Green (2 September 1903 - 22 October 2000), a British Methodist minister.

The Reverend Fred Pratt Green (2 September 1903 – 22 October 2000) CBE was a British Methodist minister and hymnwriter. Born in Roby, Lancashire, England, he began his ministry in the Filey circuit. He was ordained as a Methodist minister in 1928 and served circuits in the north and south of England until 1969. During his career as a minister he wrote numerous plays and hymns. It was not until he retired, however, that he began writing prolifically. His hymns reflect his rejection of fundamentalism and show his concern with social issues. They include many that were written to supply obvious liturgical needs of the modern church, speaking to topics or appropriate for events for which there were few traditional hymns available.     

 

There are fifteen Fred Green hymns in the Presbyterian Hymnal.

 

Fred Green was born near Liverpool (at Roby) in 1903.  In 1995, he was honored by the Queen for his hymnwriting with the award of the MBE.  He died at Cromwell House on 22 Oct 2000.  (Cromwell House is a Methodist Home for the Aged in Norwich.)


Instrumental Music


Prelude:  “Jesus Christus, Unser Heiland (Jesus Christ, Our Savior)” by J. S. Bach

 

Bach composed several works with this title. 

 

Here is BWV 688,

 

            http://youtu.be/bUvUfkW-6wo “Jesus Christus unser Heiland, for two manuals and Pedal,” BWV 688, by J. S. Bach, Daniel Bruun, Copenhagen’s Garrison Church.

 

You can watch the animated score here:

 

            http://youtu.be/j9zz0iCDKb8  “Jesus Christus unser Heiland,” by J. S. Bach, animated score

 

Here is BWV 665:

 

            http://youtu.be/HFd8VBV5eCg “Jesus Christus unser Heiland,” BWV 665

 

Here is BWV 689, which doesn’t require any pedals.

 

            http://youtu.be/L25BMrLD7Vs “Fuga super: Jesus Christus unser Heiland,” BWV 689, by J. S. Bach, played by Daniel Bruun, Copenhagen’s Garrison Church.

 

There is also BWV 666:

 

            http://youtu.be/cQP-necHTK4 “Jesus Christus unser Heiland, (alio modo)” BWV 666


 

The Offertory is “Devotion” by Louis Alfred James Léfébure-Wély (13 Nov 1817 – 31 Dec 1869)

 

Léfébure-Wély was born in Paris and was the son of an organist.  He became the official organist of a fashionable church, Saint-Roch, at age 14 upon the death of his father.  He began attending the Paris Conservatory in 1832, and won first prize for organ in 1835.

 

Louis Alfred James Léfébure-Wély, 1840

 

I didn’t find “Devotion” but here is “Elevation on Communion.”

 

Léfébure-Wély was a composer of the Romantic age, but here is a baroque interpretation.

 

            http://youtu.be/wPa8iN7tvzQ “Elevation on Communion,” by Louis Alfred James Léfébure-Wély, played by Patryck Balukiewicz, using synthesized baroque organ pipe sounds by Hauptwork.

 

Here is another composition of Léfébure-Wély.  It takes three people to play this piece on an organ.  One to play the music and two to pull out and push in the stops, and turn the pages.

 

This one is fun to watch:

 

            http://youtu.be/4Px3_MOEySM “Sortie in E-flat major” by Louis Alfred James Léfébure-Wély,  played by Gert van Hoef in the Stephanuskerk, Hasselt, The Netherlands

 

You can learn more about the organ Gert van Hoef is playing here: http://www.pleasuresofthepipes.info/Hasselt-StStephanusKerk.html.  The organ has many little statues of angels sitting atop the woodwork that holds the pipes.  The angels are playing a flute, a horn, a lyre, etc.  See attached.


The postlude is an arrangement of “The Church’s One Foundation” by Lee Rogers.  It is based on the tune AURELIA by Samuel S. Wesley.

 

I didn’t find the Lee Rogers arrangement, but here is an improvisation on AURELIA by John Hong. (He somehow merges into playing “Pomp & Circumstance” and “The Church’s One Foundation” at the same time):

 

            http://youtu.be/fiLcLUkkbcM Improvisation on AURELIA (Samuel S. Wesley), with “Pomp and Circumstance” (Elgar) by John Hong.

 

(I’ve written about John Hong before.  He’s a graduate of Julliard.)

 

Richard

Thursday, October 23, 2014

This Week at Old South Haven Prespresbyterian Church


Thursday, Oct. 23 6:30pm Holmes Camp and
Conference Center
Annual benefit dinner
"The Park" Restaurant, NYC
Pastor Tom attending

Saturday, Oct. 25 9:00am Vendors and Food Sale

9:00am-1:00pm Presbytery Meeting
Pt. Jefferson

Sunday, Oct.26 10:00am Morning Worship
Church School
Reformation Sunday
Sermon: "The Church Must Be Willing to
Change"
Lessons: Habakkuk 2: 1-4 Matthew 9: 14-17

Wednesday, Oct. 29 12noon Clergy Retreat, Sag Harbor

Thursday, Oct. 30 11:00am Planned Parenthood of Nassau
Annual meeting, Carlyle on the Green
Bethpage State Park
Pastor Tom a guest

Saturday, Nov. 1 2:00pm Memorial for Elizabeth Gardner

Sunday, Nov. 2 10:00am Morning Worship
Stewardship Sunday
Sermon: "Stewardship: A Tale of Two Tables"
Lessons: Psalm 92; Mark 14: 12-16; 22-25
(DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME ENDS)
Looking Ahead

Sunday, Nov. 9 10:00am Morning Worship
Pledge Sunday

Sunday, Nov. 16 4:00pm Book Reflections
"Learning to Walk in the Dark"
by Barbara Brown Taylor
(let Jason Neal know if you want book ordered)

Sunday, Nov. 23 4:00pm Ecumenical Thanksgiving Service
Led by clergy of Brookhaven and Bellport
Mary Immaculate Church
Preacher: Very Reverend John E. Walker
Christ Episcopal Church

Sunday, Nov. 30 First Sunday of Advent


WINTER CLOTHING DRIVE Please bring new or gently used coats and warm clothing to Bellport United Methodist Church before October 26. Donation boxes will be on the porch at Wesley House. Clothing will be delivered to The Boys and Girls Club for distribution.

COLLECTING TOYS We are collecting toys to be distributed through Thursday's Child. Don't forget older children as well as youngsters.



Saturday, October 18, 2014

Music for the Service of Sunday, October 19, 2014

From: Richard Thomas [mailto:richardathomas@optonline.net]
Sent: Saturday, October 18, 2014 1:32 AM
Subject: Music for the Service of Sunday, October 19, 2014

The Introit is “Be Still and Know.” 

That’s “Be Still and Know,” the short introit by J. Jerome Williams, not “Be Still,” the long anthem by Mary McDonald. (Midi file attached.)



Jerome Williams

“Jim” Williams was born in Morganton, NC.  He attended Mars Hill College (AA), Mars Hill, NC, and Appalachian State University (BS, MA), Boone, NC.  He was a high school band and choral director.  He retired in 1994, then taught for a few years at Mars Hill College.  He was the choir director of the First United Methodist Church in Hickory for 31 years, retiring in 2007.  He is now Chancel Choir Director Emeritus.


The opening hymn is No. 464 “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee,” the tune for which is taken from the fourth movement of Ludwig Van’s Symphony No. 9.

The words are from Henry Van Dyke’s 1907 poem “Hymn to Joy” and are very different from the words of the “Ode to Joy” that is sung in the Ninth Symphony.
Henry van Dyke, poet, author, and Presbyterian minister
(b. 10 Nov 1852, Germantown, Pennsylvania, d. 10 Apr 1933)

Henry van Dyke was a graduate of Princeton (1873) and of Princeton Theological Seminary (1877).  From 1899 to 1923, he was a professor of English literature at Princeton.

He wrote the poem, “Hymn to Joy,” with the intention of its being sung to the “Ode to Joy” melody.  At the time, he was the guest preacher at Williams College, a liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts.

The “Ode to Joy” ("Freude, schöner Götterfunken"), on the other hand, was written by the German poet, playwright and historian Friedrich Schiller in 1785.  (Some changes were made by Beethoven when he set it to his music.)

Beethoven never knew how it sounded though (except in his imagination, of course), as he was almost totally deaf by the time he completed his Ninth Symphony in 1824.

Being deaf, however, didn’t stop Beethoven from directing his Symphony No. 9 at its premiere in Vienna. 

“Violinist Joseph Böhm recalled: ‘Beethoven directed the piece himself; that is, he stood before the lectern and gesticulated furiously.’ . . . When the audience applauded, Beethoven was several measures off and still conducting.”

Here’s an “Ode to Joy” flash mob that was sponsored by a bank:

                http://youtu.be/kbJcQYVtZMo  “Ode to Joy” flash mob, Symphony Orchestra of Valles, sponsored by Banc Sabadell

but the choir members have already seen that, so here’s 10,000 people --- yes, 10,000 --- singing “Ode to Joy.”


In Japan, it's an end-of-year tradition to sing "Ode to Joy," the final movement of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. The song is so well-known in Japan that it's known simply as daiku, literally "number nine." In Osaka, a 10,000-person-strong "Number Nine Chorus" of amateur singers performs daiku every December, to thundering effect. While there are some professionals involved (the soloists and orchestra), the Number Nine Chorus is largely a community effort. And the sound of 10,000 singers, trained or untrained, is unbelievable.

In 2011, in the wake of the devastating earthquakes and tsunami in Japan, the Number Nine Chorus gave this performance.

                http://youtu.be/xBlQZyTF_LY  10,000 singers sing “Ode to Joy,” directed by Yutaka Sado

A huge number of the singers were in the same large arena in Osaka, but the major singers were in Sendai, by simulcast.


The Old Testament reading is from Exodus, where Moses is having a discussion with God, and wanting to make sure God was going to go with him and the people, and that God wasn’t going to leave him in the lurch.

                “If your presence does not go with us, do not take us up from here."

God tells Moses, don’t worry, I know you, and I will be with you.  But Moses wants to know who it is who is making all these promises.  (You say you know me, but who are You?)

                And Moses said, “Show me your glory.”

In the Septuagint “glory” is translated “yourself” meaning, “Show me the real You.”

And the Lord said, “I will make all my goodness pass before your face, and I will proclaim the Lord by name before you;
I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy.”
But he added, “You cannot see my face, for no one can see me and live.”
The Lord said, “Here is a place by me; you will station yourself on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and will cover you with my hand while I pass by. Then I will take away my hand, and you will see my back, but my face must not be seen.”

B. Jacob says that God’s “glory” includes God as manifested in nature, that is, the laws of nature, the undergirding of all of creation.

So, knowing that Moses wasn’t yet ready for General Relativity theory and quantum mechanics, God tells Moses he will have to be content with knowing God’s moral nature, His goodness, and knowing that He is “present.”

The New Testament lesson is the first chapter of I Thessalonians.

The second hymn is “As Deer Long for the Streams,” hymn no. 189.

The words are by Christopher L. Webber and are based on Psalm 42:

As a deer longs for streams of water,
so I long for you, O God!
I thirst for God,
for the living God.
I say, “When will I be able to go and appear in God’s presence?”
I cannot eat, I weep day and night;
all day long they say to me, “Where is your God?”
I will remember and weep!
For I was once walking along with the great throng to the temple of God,
shouting and giving thanks along with the crowd as we celebrated the holy festival.
Why are you depressed, O my soul?
Why are you upset?
Wait for God!
For I will again give thanks
to my God for his saving intervention.
I am depressed,
so I will pray to you while I am trapped here in the region of the upper Jordan,
from Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
One deep stream calls out to another at the sound of your waterfalls;
all your billows and waves overwhelm me.

We sang another hymn by Christopher L. Webber last month, on 07 Sep 2014, and I included a photo of the author in that e-mail.  (He’s the guy who lives in Connecticut and makes maple syrup every year.  He, like the author of the first hymn, is also a graduate of Princeton University.)

The tune is ROCKINGHAM (Miller), an adaptation of the tune TUNEBRIDGE

Edward Miller (1735-1807) of Norwich and Yorkshire harmonized the tune in 1790.  He named the tune for his friend, Charles Watson-Wenworth, the 2nd Marquess of Rockingham.  It is the tune to which “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” is usually sung.

[In 1752 Rockingham was appointed Lord of the Bedchamber to George II.  Under George III, Lord Rockingham was appointed Prime Minister, but, due to dissent in the cabinet, served in that post only from 1765-1766.  He did succeed in repealing the Stamp Act, but also had a bill passed that affirmed the British Parliament had full authority to pass whatever legislation required to govern and provide funds for protecting the colonies.]
      Charles Watson-Wentworth
      2nd Marquess of Rockingham

I couldn’t find anyone singing “As Deer Long for the Streams.”  (I did find people singing “As the Deer Panteth for Water,” which is another song on the same psalm, but here is the choir of Kings College, Cambridge, singing “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” to the same tune at Eastertide.

                http://youtu.be/Z9eCUqz_x5A  “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross,” Kings College, Cambridge, sung to ROCKINGHAM --- with a descant


The closing hymn is no. 539, “Savior, Again, to They Dear Name, we raise with one accord our parting hymn of praise.” 

The words are by John Ellerton (b. 16 Dec 1826, London; d. 15 Jun 1893) who was also an author. 

He wrote The Holiest Manhood and its Lessons for Busy Lives  in 1882 (“thirteen ten minute sermons or sermonettes of excellent quality”) and Our Infirmities: Six Short Instructions in 1883.  (You can read the latter here: http://books.google.com/books?id=HhwFAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false )

Ellerton was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge.  In addition to the hymn we will be singing on Sunday, Ellerton wrote hymns for every season of the church calendar, including “King Messiah, Long Expected,” a hymn for The Circumcision of Christ (1 January).  He also wrote the more popular hymn is “Welcome, Happy Morning! age to age shall say.”

In 1860, John Ellerton became the chaplain for Lord Crewe and vicar of Crew Green. Here is where Lord Crewe lived, Crewe Hall:

                  Crewe Hall, Cheshire









And here is the church he had built in 1857-1858:

Hungerford Crewe, the 3rd Baron Crewe, was educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford.  He was elected a fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in 1840.  He never married.  He died of influenza at Crewe Hall in 1894, and the barony became extinct upon his death.

The tune, ELLERS, was composed by Edward John Hopkins (b. Westminster, 30 Jun 1818; d. London, 04 Feb 1901).  As a boy, he was a chorister at the Chapel Royal and sang at the coronation of King William IV in 1830.  He was a founder of the College of Organists.  The Archbishop of Canterbury presented him with an honorary Doctorate of Music in 1882.
He wrote thirty hymn tunes.  Here is ELLERS played by the Woodfalls Band as they warm up for the 2014 West of England Regional Championships.

                http://youtu.be/ZW2XlhQOqtw ELLERS played by the Woodfalls Band, a brass band


Instrumental Music


The prelude, offertory, and postlude were published in 1916 in Ecclesiae Organum : a Book of Organ Music for the Church Service.

“Adagio Vesperale” by Arthur Page is the prelude.  Arthur Page was born in 1846 and died in 1916.  (His name may actually have been James Arthur Page.)  He was the organist at Nottingham St. Mary’s from 1867-1904.

Here is a snippet of the piece, played by David K. Lamb:

                http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00I4D3L9C/ref=dm_ws_sp_tlw_trk1 Click the play icon.

You’ll have to wait until Sunday to hear the rest.


The offertory is “Meditation-Religieuse” by W. Schutze, which we heard on 27 July 2014.

In the e-mail on the music for that service, I noted that I couldn’t find this work, but I was able to find an opera by Jules Massenet called ""Thaïs” (1894) which has a part called: "Méditation religieuse"

                http://youtu.be/VxRF_tpQXAo "Méditation religieuse"/"Thaïs' Conversion"  which is very pretty, even if it isn’t the right piece

The opera had an Egyptian theme and was set during the Byzantine era. In the opera, a Christian monk attempts to convert a priestess of Venus (Thais).  Wikipedia says the opera had “a sort of religious eroticism,” whatever that is, and also said the opera had “many controversial productions.”

I’m sure that W. Schutze’s work of the same name will be free of any “religious eroticism,” though I’m not sure I’d recognize it if I heard it.

You can hear Itzhak Perlman perform "Méditation religieuse" (not the one by W. Schütze) here:

                http://youtu.be/6PfNnAs6C88 Itzhak Perlman, at Lincoln Center



Henry Thomas Smart (1813-1879) composed the postlude: “Andante Grazioso.”

Henry Smart composed the well-known tune REGENT SQUARE, which Is used with “Angels from the Realms of Glory” and with “Christ is Made the Sure Foundation.”
       Henry Thomas Smart

From Wikipedia:

Henry Thomas Smart (26 October 1813 – 6 July 1879) was an English organist and composer.

His many compositions for the organ were described as "effective and melodious, if not strikingly original" by the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica.

In the last fifteen years of his life Smart was practically blind. He composed by dictation, primarily to his daughter Ellen.

I did find “Andante Grazioso.”  You can hear it be played on an organ at St. Marien, Emsdetten, Germany, here:

                http://youtu.be/iQklILym4bc “Andante Grazioso” by Henry Smart, played by Julian Bewig

It gets very interesting about 30 seconds into the piece.
               
Richard

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

This Week at Old South Haven Prespresbyterian Church


We offer our condolences to Donald Gardner and the Gardner family upon the death of Elizabeth (Betty) on Friday, Oct. 10.
Betty was a beloved member of this Congregation and served it well in various leadership capacities. She served on the Session and served for a period of time as the Clerk of the Session. She also served for a period as the church organist and was a member of the committee for the renovation of the church organ. A memorial service will be held in our Church on Saturday, Nov. 1 at 2:00pm.

Saturday, Oct. 18 5:00pm "Divalicious"
featuring "The Three Sopranos"
Please invite your friends

Sunday, Oct. 19 10:00am Morning Worship
Sermon: "Holy Moses, Pray For Us!"
Lessons: Exodus 33:12-23
I Thessalonians 1:1-10

Monday, Oct. 20 7:00pm Session Meeting

Thursday, Oct. 23 6:30pm Holmes Camp and
Conference Center
Annual benefit dinner
"The Park" Restaurant, NYC
Pastor Tom attending

Saturday, Oct. 25 9:00am Vendors and Food Sale

9:00am Presbytery Meeting
Pt. Jefferson


DivaLicious Music Program Oct 18

Saturday, October 18 - Old South Haven Church presents "DivaLicious!" featuring "The Three Sopranos" in their premier concert of duets, solos and trios from Opera, Broadway and the American Songbook, singing works of Puccini, Soundheim, Lehar, Gershwin, Delibes, Berstein, Mozart, and Richard Rodgers. Old South Haven Church, South Country and Beaver Dam Roads, Brookhaven Hamlet. $20 at door. For details visit http://OldSouthHavenChurch.org, or call church office 286-0542.

 

Printable flyer attached or visit http://OldSouthHavenChurch.org/Events/Divalicious.pdf .

 

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Saturday, October 11, 2014

Music for the Service of Sunday, October 12, 2014


From: Richard Thomas
Sent: Friday, October 10, 2014 11:28 PM
Subject: Music for the Service of Sunday, October 12, 2014

Here is the music for this Sunday’s service:

The introit is “We Come Before Thee.” (MIDI attached.)  Our score says the piece is by “James Denton,” but that was just a pseudonym.  It is actually by Dr. Robert J. Hughes, whose gravestone in Greenville, South Carolina, says he was “promoted to glory” in 1999 (at age 83).  He wrote or arranged more than 4,000 pieces of music.  See my e-mail of 02 Jun 2014 for more about Dr. Hughes.

Although not sung, the call to worship is the text of “God of Our Life Through All the Circling Years” which was written by Hugh Thomson Kerr in 1916.

According the the CyberHymnal website, Hugh Thomson Kerr (b. 11 Feb 1872, Elora, Canada; d. 27 Jun 1950, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) was an ordained Presbyterian minister. 

He was elected Moderation of the General Assembly in 1930, and he championed the production of the green 1933 Presbyterian hymnal that many of us remember fondly.  (Old South Haven used the 1933 hymnal until at least 1985, then we went to the Rejoice in the Lord hymnal, edited by the hymnologist Erik Routley, which was also a very good hymnal.)

Rev. Kerr served as pastor of the Shadyside Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh for 33 years (1913-1946). He was also one of the founders of Worldwide Communion Sunday, which we celebrated last Sunday.

When sung, it is sung to the tune SANDON.

                http://www.hymnary.org/media/fetch/149211 tune SANDON (1860) by Charles H. Purday, who served as “conductor of psalmody” at Crown Court Scots Church, Covent Garden, London.  Purday also sang at the coronation of Queen Victoria.

The opening hymn is no. 130, “Come Thou Almighty King” which has no known author.  It appears in at least 1,531 hymnals.  It appears in Rev. George Whitefield’s Collection of Hymns for Social Worship, More particularly designed for the Use of the Tabernacle and Chapel Congregations

Rev. George Whitefield was a friend of the Wesley brothers, who founded the Methodist Episcopal Church.  However, he and the Wesleys later had a falling out over predestination and some of the other tenets of Calvinism.  Rev. Whitefield, although preaching the necessity of having a conversion experience, remained a strong Calvinist. 

First arriving in America at age 24, Whitefield would make six more trips to the colonies.

Whitefield often preached in the open air, sometimes drawing crowds as large as 30,000.

(He must have had a very powerful voice to be heard by a crowd of 30,000.)

Rev. George Whitefield was the cause of much turmoil in the established churches, including on Long Island, where he also travelled.

The Presbyterian minister of Southold, James Davenport, became so enthusiastic a follower of Rev. Whitefield that he led a crusade through Connecticut (and got arrested).  (Davenport was “young and fervent in spirit.”)  Jonathan Barber of Orient also fell under Whitefield’s spell, and Davenport and Barber became close companions.

      Davenport is said to have moved his audience through dramatic skill, “as though they heard the groans of Him who died on Calvary,” and in preaching, he exhausted himself with contortions of his face and body.  “His strange, singing tone in speaking was imitated and perpetuated for half a century among ‘the Strict Congregationalist’ at the East and the ‘Separate Baptists’ at the South.

Overcome with zeal in New London in 1743, Rev. Davenport had to be restrained from condemning and burning his own red plush breeches in a “sacrificial blaze of worldly goods.

[They made a pile of “petticoats, silk gowns, short cloaks, cambrick caps, red-heeled shoes, fans, necklaces, and Davenport’s breeches,” but a moderate friend persuaded them not to burn the pile.]

Rev. Davenport was the cause of  a rift in the Bridgehampton congregation which took 60 years to heal.  (The Bridgehampton minister at the time, the Rev. Ebenezer White, is an ancestor of Tom White, the organist at Bridgehampton who advised Old South Haven  a few years ago on the refurbishing of its Hinners organ.) 

Davenport and his companion, Jonathan Barber, also went to East Hampton, where

                “Many untoward and ever-to-be-lamented circumstances occurred.”

They caused so much discord in the East Hampton congregation that the elderly Rev. Huntting requested permission to retire.

The tune is ITALIAN HYMN (1769) by Felice de Giardini.  Giardini died in Moscow, Russia, in 1796, but was born in Turin, Italy, in 1716. 

Giardini composed this tune especially for the text of the hymn after being requested to do so by Selina Shirley Hastings, the Countess of Huntingdon. (“Shirley” was her maiden name.  Lady Selina Shirley was herself the daughter of an Earl, and she became a countess after marrying Theophilus Hastings, 9th Earl of Huntingdon.  The earldom had been created in 1529 for Baron George Hastings by King Henry VIII.)


            The Countess of Huntingdon  (for more about her, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selina_Hastings,_Countess_of_Huntingdon )

Here is an a cappella version by a women’s group:

                http://youtu.be/X-0xBU98r7o “Come Thou Almighty King” sung by women, a cappella

And here is Samuel Metzger’s arrangement for the procession of the choir of Coral Ridge Presbyterian in Fort Lauderdale, so of course, it has a descant.

                http://youtu.be/LYFic88QkYY “Come Thou Almighty King,” Coral Ridge Presbyterian, while the Rev. James Kirkpatrick was still living.

There will be special music sung by Matt Taylor.  The song that will be sung was written for John Denver.

John Denver had a conversation about the human spirit with the cowboy, poet, and author Joe Henry, who, after that conversation, wrote the words of the song. (Denver and Henry have also co-authored songs.)

The song is “The Wings that Fly Us Home.”

It was the last track on John Denver’s 11th album, Spirit, released in  August 1976.

You can read the lyrics here: http://youtu.be/j_zsKg8vzZE “The Wings that Fly Us Home” by Joe Henry (lyrics)

                                     Joe Henry
       John Denver & Joe Henry

The first scripture reading is about the futility of secular accomplishment, the futility of secular wisdom, the futility of self-indulgent pleasure, and the futility of materialism.
(The next verses are not about the futility of some other part of our lives, but are instead about wisdom being better than folly, but we won’t be hearing those.)
The second scripture reading is about God being a strong refuge, a helper who is on our side, who brings an end to wars, and who tells us to stop striving.

The second hymn is no. 282, “If Thou Trust In God to Guide Thee.”  It was authored by Georg Neumark, who was born at Lagensalza on 16 March 1621 and who died at Weimar on 18 Jul 1681.  He was educated at the Gymnasium at Schleueingen, and at the Gymnasium at Gotha.

He wrote this hymn, “Wer nur den lieben Gott läßt walten,” when he was 20.  He also wrote the tune (or, at least, he wrote the melody).

Here is the hymn, sung in German:

                http://youtu.be/DTpVFx2hsmo  “Wer nur den lieben Gott lässt walten,” text and melody by Georg Neumark, sung by the Vocal Concert Dresden

The hymn is the framework for an important scene in a comedy/road movie about three monks, Vaya Con Dios (2002). 

“Go with God” is an odd name for a comedy.  Here’s what I found out about the movie:

At first glance, this hardly seems to be a German film at all. First of all, it's funny! But with the title VAYA CON DIOS and a director named Spirandelli, one almost expects to see an impish Roberto Benigni pop up in yet another Italian comedy. But German-born Zoltan Spirandelli has turned his first full-length feature film into a delightful, above-average comedy about three German monks forced to abandon their timeless monastery and venture out into the modern world.

The performance of the hymn in this little-known movie is well-worth watching:

                http://youtu.be/AJsTkY_rMFk   “Wer nur den lieben Gott lässt walten,” is sung by main characters of the 2002 film Vaya con Dios.

As we know from the English translation of this hymn that it is a hymn of consolation, one would think that might help us in figuring out what this scene is about, but I’m not sure that it does.

The closing hymn, “Immortal Invisible,” was authored by Walter Chalmers Smith in 1867.  Rev. Smith was born in Aberdeen on 05 Dec 1824. After 1876 was the pastor of the Free High Church, Edinburgh.  He died in 1908. 

(The Free Church of Scotland resulted from the Disruption of 1843, when a group of ministers and congregations withdrew from the established Church of Scotland.  They got back together in 1929.  In 1934, the Free High Church of Edinburgh became the library of New College.)
   Rev. Walter C. Smith
            abt 1894                         Free High Church, Edinburgh

The tune, ST. DENIO, is based on a Welsh ballad, "Can mlynedd i nawr (A Hundred Years from Now).”  It first appeared as a hymn tune in 1839.

I was able to find a few references to the Welsh ballad, but I haven’t yet been able to find out what the ballad is about.

You can hear the hymn sung here as it was recorded by BBC One in Halifax in West Yorkshire at The Minister Church of St. John the Baptist:

                http://youtu.be/spE-BE23qxA “Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise” sung by a congregation in Halifax (England), on a Songs of Praise special (with a descant)

The church has a 900-year history which you can read about here: http://www.halifaxminster.org.uk/about-us/history/

Here is “Immortal, Invisible” sung a cappella by the Smucker family:

                http://youtu.be/NacT-XxQcp0 “Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise” sung a cappella (although I think the bass voice may be electronically enhanced)

Both of the above are with lyrics on the video, so you can sing along.

Instrumental Music

Prelude: “Der Tag, der ist so Freudenreich” by J. S. Bach.  We heard this piece on 30 Mar 2014, so I’ll just repeat what I said then:

http://youtu.be/T1ianrMfr6s  "Der Tag, Der ist so Freudenreich" Played on an organ that Bach himself very likely played , the 1741 Tobias-Heinrich-Gottfried-Trost Organ

The organ has a zimbelstern!  Unfortunately, you can barely hear it in this piece except at the beginning and end.

I like zimbelsterns, but you don’t see them very often.  The organ of the All Souls Unitarian Church at Lexington Ave. and 80th Street in NYC, a 1989 Holtkamp organ, has a Glockensonne, but I’ve never seen it played.  (All Souls was founded as a Congregational church in 1819.)

I guess a Glockensonne is like a Zimbelstern, but either with bigger bells, or maybe the set of bells that is tuned differently (a third instead of a quint).

You can also watch the piece played as an animated score:

                http://youtu.be/yi4--QAml-c  animated score (which is always fun)

Chorale Text, German:
Der Tag, der ist so freudenreich
aller Creature,
von eier Jungfrau ist gebor'n,
Maria du bist ausserkor'n,
dass du Mutter wärest.
Was geschah so wunderlich?
Gottes Sohn vom Himmelreich,
der ist Mensch geboren.

The music for the offertory didn’t appear in the bulletin, so it will be a surprise.

The postlude is the “Austrian Hymn” (1797) by Franz Joseph Haydn.  It is sometimes known as the” Emperor’s Hymn.”  It is used as the tune for the hymn “Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken.”

You can hear the original words, “Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser” here:

                http://youtu.be/Tw9zXepzEzA  Anthem of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, “Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser”

Here is a congregation singing the Kaiser Hymn at the funeral of Otto von Habsburg, the last Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary, who died July 4, 2011.  He became the Crown Prince of the Empire in 1916, but two years later, the empire was dissolved.

                http://youtu.be/pMMhfR5i9wA   Singing the “Kaiser Hymn” at the funeral of Otto von Habsburg, last Crown Prince of the Empire, son of Charles, last Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary, the last monarch of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine.  The funeral was held at St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Vienna, Austria, on July 16, 2011.

   Otto’s father, Charles, became emperor after Charles’s uncle, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the presumed heir to the crown, was assassinated in Sarajevo in 1914, which started World War I.

"Gott erhalte, Gott beschütze,
unsern Kaiser, unser Land,
mächtig durch des Glaubens Stütze,
führt er uns mit weiser Hand.
Lasst uns seiner Väter Krone,
schirmen wider jeden Feind,
Innig bleibt mit Habsburgs Throne,
Österreichs Geschick vereint,
innig bleibt mit Habsurgs Throne,
Österreichs Geschick vereint."

God save, God protect
Our Emperor, Our Country!
Powerful through the support of the Faith,
He leads us with a wise hand!

Let the Crown of his Fathers
shield against any foe!
Austria's Destiny remains
intimately united with the Habsburg throne!

When Otto von Habsburg became the Crown Prince, the empire consisted of modern day Austria, Hungary, Bosnia, and Herzegovina.  He was buried in the Imperial Crypt.

I think I like the words of “Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken” better:

http://www.jwpepper.com/Glorious-Things-of-Thee-Are-Spoken/3700486.item#.Uy34zPldV8E “Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken,” arr. J. Harold Moyer for men’s choir  (Click the “Play” icon.)

Another hymn often sung to this tune is “Praise the Lord! Ye Heavens, Adore Him.”

The tune is also used for the national anthem of Germany with words written in 1841 by Heinrich Hoffman, (“Das Lied der Deutschen”).

Deutschland, Deutschland über alles,
Über alles in der Welt,
Wenn es stets zu Schutz und Trutze
Brüderlich zusammenhält,
Von der Maas bis an die Memel,
Von der Etsch bis an den Belt -
Deutschland, Deutschland über alles,
   Über alles in der Welt. 
               
Germany, Germany above all *
Above everything in the world *
When, always, for protection and defense
Brothers stand together.
From the Maas to the Memel
From the Etsch to the Belt,
Germany, Germany above all
Above all in the world.

When the verse was written, it was in an effort to unite the people, of what had been many independent states, into the new unified Germany.  The song wasn’t adopted as a national anthem until 1922, and thereafter the first verse became associated with the Third Reich.  The tune is still the national anthem of Germany, but they’ve deleted the first two verses, do no more “Deutschland, Deutschland über alles, Über alles in der Welt.”

My favorite national anthem is the national anthem of Costa Rica, which is very much less militaristic.  It’s words are about how peace reigns under the clear blue skies of their homeland, and how simple farm hands, virile and valiant, labor in the fields until their faces are reddened (“enrojece del hombre la faz”) as they toil to make their land fruitful. 

It ends, “Hail, gentle country! Hail, loving mother! Hail, O Homeland! Your fertile soil gives us sweet sustenance and shelter.  Under the limpid blue of your sky, may peaceful labor ever continue.”

No bombs bursting in air there.  Costa Rica abolished its military in 1944.

Richard