Category: Live

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Arrangement Church Congregational Songs Live

God Is So Good

Update 10/2/20: Sheet music for this song can be downloaded here.

Here’s a little something I arranged for the October 7 BES Combo service at COS.

Everyone knows “God Is So Good” and everyone hears it in a Black Gospel style (don’t they?), but hymnals only have a boring four-part version. I took it upon myself to right this wrong. Opinions varied on the worship team whether this was just right or so wrong (it’s a fine line). I’ll probably do another draft in the near future, so contact me if you’re thinking of using it; I’ll get you the latest version.

God Is So Good: MP3, (see link above for PDF)

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Choir Church Congregational Songs Live Psalms

Bless the Lord: Live at COS

“So how did it sound?” You ask.

I posted a rehearsal MP3 for my choir last week, and now you’re probably dying to know how it went on Sunday. Well, maybe not dying, but at least a tad curious. Die no more, my friends. Here’s how it sounded: Bless the Lord, O My Soul! (Psalm 103)

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Choir Church Congregational Songs Live Psalms

Road-testing two songs

I usually reserve this blog for premieres, but as you know, a composition’s success is measured by repeat performances. In the case of a congregational song, there’s a big difference between what’s on the page, how it sounds when a congregation sings it, and how well it settles in after repeated singing.

So here are two songs that Church of the Servant has sung a few times each. Deeper than the Sea is published as a choral anthem, but that doesn’t mean that it sings well when given to a congregation. In this recording, it’s led by the Guitarchestra. From the Dust was rejected by the same publisher, but once again, that doesn’t mean much in terms of its worth as a congregational song. In this particular case, the COS choir sings the choral anthem version of the song, but the congregation is invited to join in on the refrains.

What do you think? Do these two have that undefinable it that makes a great congregational song? If there were a musical cage fight between the two songs, which one would win?

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Arrangement Church Congregational Songs Live

WALY WALY: O Blessed Spring

I’ve loved the folk tune WALY WALY for years. I used to sing “The Water Is Wide” with guitar and violin back in my coffeehouse days. I’ve annoyed congregation members by using the tune with the text “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross.” (It’s a better pairing, but people don’t seem to care about the facts when it comes to church music.) More recently I arranged the tune for piano and used it with the text “As Moses Raised the Serpent Up.”

But my favorite so far is Susa Palo Cherwein’s text “O Blessed Spring.” The wistfulness of WALY WALY brings out the seasons-of-life theme of Cherwein’s text beautifully. The added strings and Erin De Young’s solo are icing on the cake. If you can listen to it without crying, you need a heart transplant.

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Arrangement Choir Church Congregational Songs Live

Alas, and Did My Savior Bleed

This Lent, Church of the Servant is using a different version of Isaac Watts’ text “Alas, and Did My Savior Bleed” each Sunday. Kauflin, Benedict, Governor–we’re doing them all. My own humble contribution to the collection is an arrangement of the traditional tune MARTYRDOM. Check it out.

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Church Congregational Songs Live Retuned hymn

Jesus, Lord of Life and Glory – two recordings

Update 2/15/22: Sheet music for this song is now available at gregscheer.com.

A few weeks ago, I told you the exciting story of writing this song. (It was exciting, wasn’t it? I mean, when I got to the part about the 4/4 measure, I bet you were on the edge of your seat.) Now I’ve had a chance to test drive it twice.

The first time was at the Ash Wednesday service. There we used the piano accompaniment I wrote for the occasion, and added a few recorders for good measure (MP3, Ash Wed). The next time was during a Sunday morning service in which the Guitarchestra led the singing (MP3, Guitarchestra). It’s interesting to hear how the music takes on a different feel with the different accompaniment. The Ash Wednesday version brings out the plaintive, lamenting character of the melody, while the guitars make it sound more like an urgent prayer.

Which do you like better?

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Arrangement Church Congregational Songs Live Retuned hymn

Praise to the Lord, the Almighty/Praise the Lord, O My Soul

I found an MP3 on my computer the other day, and to tell you the truth I don’t know what it’s from. It’s my arrangement of “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty” that includes the added refrain “Praise the Lord, O My Soul.” I’m pretty sure it’s played by Church of the Servant’s Guitarchestra, because it features the soulful accordion stylings of Kurt Schaefer. But is it a service recording? Something I recorded during rehearsal? I really don’t know.

But I liked its relaxed vibe, so I thought I’d share it: MP3

You can find a list of my hymn arrangements here. I’m in the process of uploading the whole lot to hymnary.org, but I will accept email requests in the meantime.

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Arrangement Choir Church Live

Peace in the Valley, the understudy

Chris Smit was such a hit singing “Peace in the Valley” at Church of the Servant’s Lessons & Carols service a few weeks ago, that a repeat performance was demanded for the Christmas Eve Service. Sadly, he lost his voice a few days before the service, so his understudy–me–filled in. I felt ill-equipped to follow the footsteps of those who have sung the song in my churches in the past–Chris and Charlotte Kerce–but I stepped in and did what I could. Here’s the recording.

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Arrangement Church Congregational Songs Live Psalms

Benedict: Up from My Youth

By now y’all are probably sick of hearing about the Psalms of Ascent series at Church of the Servant. Sorry…

A few weeks ago Psalm 129 came up. Now, if you search hymnary.org for, say, Psalm 8 or 40, you’ll get around 60 hits. And most of them will be viable options. But if you search for Psalm 129, you’ll get two hits. And one of them is “Those hating Zion have afflicted me.” That makes for some tough going if you’re a worship planner trying to plan a service around Psalm 129.

I looked in my bag of tricks (the “bag” in this case is my file folders and google doc of the 150 Psalms) and found a song Bruce Benedict had written using the words of Isaac Watts. The song really grew on me. Psalm 129 is not an easy sell, but this musical setting of it made it feel somehow like the timeless struggle of good versus evil. The Psalm is essentially saying “The MAN (and you know who you are) has pushed me down since the day I was born, but he’s gonna get his in the end, because God’s on my side.” That’s the kind of sentiment that we cheer in a film about a triumphant underdog, but it makes us uncomfortable when we read it in the Bible.

Bruce’s original version has an ethereal, lament vibe, whereas mine is more angry, fight the man take on the music. I don’t know if this is a reflection of the difference between Bruce’s and my character, but it just kind of came out that way. It also came out as a full-blown arrangement with string quartet, piano and guitar. Pretty epic stuff. I described it to my pastor like this: “Imagine a film directed by Clint Eastwood in which a man exacts vengeance on the murderers of his family. This is the music that plays as he walks slowly out of town, with his gun still smoking in its holster.”

Take a listen to the MP3 of COS singing it a few Sundays ago, or geek out with the PDF full score.

Categories
Arrangement Church Congregational Songs Live

How Can I Keep from Singing?

“How Can I Keep from Singing?” is an odd hymn. The title phrase gives the impression of a wide-eyed universalist anthem of feel-good hope. This is probably the reason it didn’t make it past the eagle eyes of the Psalter Hymnal’s editors and that it has been sung by New Age artists like Enya.

But a deeper look shows a hymn that recognizes both the struggles of life and the hope of faith in Christ. It’s really a lovely text.

The music is a different story. It’s awfully sprightly, which is probably why my wife hates it. I don’t mind the tune’s happy energy, as long as it’s sung with some muscle and not too fast. But I’ve also been playing with a new arrangement of the song that brings out the lament of the verses with a minor harmonization, switching to a major key when the refrain proclaims confidently, “No storm can shake my inmost calm.”

I wouldn’t propose my version as definitive, but a fresh new reading of a classic is never a bad thing, right? PDF, MP3.