teach yourself to play hymns 2nd ed

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Teach yourself to play hymns

Rebekah Lewis 2008

www.christadelphiancds.co.uk

http://www.christadelphiancds.co.uk/





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Teach yourself to play hymns 2nd edition

© Rebekah Lewis 2008

All rights reserved

Rebekah Lewis 2008







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Contents

Introduction 4

Lesson 1: Letter names of notes 5

Lesson 2: Fingering 8

Lesson 3: Playing using both hands 12

Lesson 4: Reading music – letter names 14

Lesson 5: Reading music – rhythms 18

Lesson 6: Reading music – playing with both hands 21

Lesson 7: Playing two notes with each hand 23

Lesson 8: Sharps and flats 26

Lesson 9: Different approaches for piano and organ/keyboard 29

Lesson 10: Playing for your ecclesia 31

Appendix: Rhythm reference sheet 33Musical terms and signs 34

Rebekah Lewis 2008







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Introduction

By the end of this series of lessons you should know all you need to know to be ableto accompany hymn singing. The lessons are based around the 2002Christadelphian Hymn Book, but should be helpful to anyone using other hymn

books as well.

PracticeIn each lesson there are exercises you should practise for a week or two beforemoving on to the next lesson. How quickly you progress through these lessonsdepends on how often you are able to practise. You will learn faster if you practiselittle and often (e.g., 15 minutes every other day), rather than a two-hour sessionevery fortnight.

Playing an organSometimes organs have two or even three manuals (rows of keyboards). Don’t beput off by this. You can play everything on one manual – the lower manual willprobably be the easiest to use.

Usually you will not get a sound out of an organ until you have selected a stop or pressed a button. Various sizes will be written on the organ stops. Thesecorrespond to the lengths of pipes of traditional pipe organs. A 16’ stop will have alow sound; a 4’ stop a high sound. You need to have an 8’ stop selected to ensurethat the notes sound at normal pitch. If the stops are the old-fashioned kind they

need to be pulled out to be selected. Make sure that the stops you select apply tothe manual you are going to be using.

Buying an instrumentIf you haven’t got an instrument at home, and it's not possible to practise regularly onyour ecclesia’s instrument, then your cheapest option is to buy an electronickeyboard. These cost about £70 new, and are readily available second-hand. Makesure that the keyboard you choose has full-sized keys.

PostureThe best playing position is where you can have your elbows level with your wrists.So if you can, ensure that the height of your seat makes this possible.

Rebekah Lewis 2008







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Lesson 1: Letter names of notes

By the end of this lesson you will be able to:

• Find notes on the keyboard, including Middle C

• Play the melodies of some hymns

Musical notes are named after the letters of the alphabet, from A-G. On a keyboardthe different notes can be found by looking at their relationship with the black notes,which are grouped in twos and threes.

E.g., All the C’s are found just below each pair of black notes:

All the F’s are found just below each set of three black notes:

This diagram shows the position of all of the notes:

Rebekah Lewis 2008


C

F

C D E F G A B C D E F G A B

Task 1Play all the C’s on your instrument.Play all the E’s.Play all the A’s.






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Finding Middle CTo be able to accompany singers, you need to make sure that you are playing at theright pitch (not too high or too low). The traditional way to do this is to find Middle C,which is in the upper range of a man's voice and the lower range of a woman's voice.

Piano:On a piano, this will be the C near the middle of the keyboard, usually next to thelock if it is a ‘real’ piano.

Keyboard:

Usually Middle C is the third C up from the bottom of the keyboard.

Organ:If the lowest note on the manual is C, Middle C will be the third C up from the bottom.If the lowest note on the manual is F, Middle C will be the second C up from thebottom.

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 3Play through these hymn melodies, using your right hand (any fingers you wish).

Use the tips of your fingers, and keep your fingers curved as if you are typingsee below .

Task 2 See if you can fill in the letters of the keys below without looking at the keyboarddiagram on page 4.






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NB: If a note has a 1 after it, this means that it is in the higher range of notes:

Praise, O praise our God and King (Green Hymn Book, 117)

The first note is Middle C.

C E G E F G A B C1 E1 E1 D1 C1 B A G

D1 D1 C1 B G C1 E1 D1 E1 D1 C1 B C1 C1 B C1

Lord of all being, throned afar (Green Hymn Book, 151)

The first note is the E just above Middle C.

E D C F F F F E E F G A A D1 C1 B

G A B C1 D1 E1 D1 C1 A G E D C F E D C

Hallelujah! Yahweh’s name (Green Hymn Book, 72)

The first note is the C above Middle C.

C1 G G C1 A A A B C1 D1 B C1 E1 C1


B C1 D1 D1 E1 C1 D1 B C1 D1 D1 E1 C1 D1

C1 B A F1 D1 C1 B C1 C1 B A F1 D1 C1 B C1

Before starting next lesson, you should be able to:

• Quickly locate notes on the keyboard, without needing the help of a diagram

• Play at least two of these hymn tunes fluently

• Play with curved fingers, using the tips of your fingers to strike the notes

Rebekah Lewis 2008


C D F G A B C1 D1 E1 F1 G1 A1 B1

Middle C

E






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Lesson 2: Fingering


• Play smoothly

• Play exercises which will strengthen and train your fingers

• Play sections of music without looking down at your fingers

FingeringYou will find playing hymns easier if you are able to plan your fingering effectively.This means using your fingers in the most efficient way, requiring the least effort onyour part and enabling you to play more smoothly. This is especially important if youare playing an organ.

Generally, if it is possible, you should try not to let go of a note until you havepressed the next one down, as if your fingers are walking up or down stairs. The

exceptions to this are discussed in a later lesson.

If you get used to the best way your fingers work, you should find that it becomeseasier to play without looking down at your fingers – ‘touch-typing' – enabling you tokeep your eyes on the music and not lose your place.

Your fingers and thumbs are numbered from 1-5 in each hand:1 = thumb2 = index finger 3 = middle finger 4 = ring finger

5 = little finger You may find it helpful to write these numbers on your fingers at first!

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 1Play these warm-up exercises at the start of each practice session. They willhelp build up strength and flexibility in your fingers. Focus on making your fingers'walk' from note to note. Remember to use the tips of curved fingers.

Once you have got used to playing these exercises see if you can:

• Play them without looking down at your fingers• Gradually increase the speed

• Play them with different rhythms to focus effort on different fingers, e.g.,long-short-long-short; then short-long-short-long...

• Play them hands together, e.g., right hand (a) with left hand (a)






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Frequently the notes you need to play will not fall easily under the five fingers. Oneoption is to stretch from note to note.

Right hand, starting with thumb on C

1 2 3 4 5 4 3 2 1C E F G A F E D C

1 2 3 5 3 2 1C E G C1 G E C

Left hand, starting with little finger on C

5 4 3 2 1 2 3 4 5C E F G A F E D C

5 3 2 1 2 3 5C E G C1 G E C

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 2 Play through these exercises to practise this technique.

Right hand, with thumb on Middle C

a) 1 2 3 4 5 4 3 2 1C D E F G F E D C

b) 1 2 3 2 3 4 3 4 5 4 3 2 1 5 1C D E D E F E F G F E D C G C

c) 1 3 2 4 3 5 4 2 1 3 4 2 1 5 1C E D F E G F D C E F D C G C

Left hand, with little finger on Middle C

a) 5 4 3 2 1 2 3 4 5C D E F G F E D C

b) 5 4 3 4 3 2 3 2 1 2 3 4 5 1 5C D E D E F E F G F E D C G C

c) 5 3 4 2 3 1 2 4 5 3 2 4 5 1 5C E D F E G F D C E F D C G C






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When there is a large range of notes to cover you can use the technique shownbelow:

• Moving up the keyboard – pass the thumb underneath either finger 2, 3 or 4

• Moving down the keyboard – pass finger 2, 3 or 4 over the top of your thumb

Right hand going up: Right hand going down

1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5 5 4 3 2 1 3 2 1C D E F G A B C1 C1 B A G F E D C

Left hand going up: Left hand going down

5 4 3 2 1 3 2 1 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5C D E F G A B C1 C1 B A G F E D C

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 4Practise these hymn tunes using your right hand with the recommendedfingering. Play through each hymn several times until you are able to play itsmoothly throughout. This is to give you an understanding of the best ways toorganise your fingers when playing.

Then see if you can play the hymn tunes without looking down at your fingers.

Task 3Play the C major scale below to practise this technique.

Tuck thumb under 3rd finger Pass 3rd finger over thumb

Tuck thumb under 3rd finger Pass 3rd finger over thumb






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The first note is the C above Middle C.

3 1 1 3 1 1

1 2 3

4 2 3 5 3


3 1 1 3 1 1 1 2 3 4 2 3 5 3C1 G G C1 A A A B C1 D1 B C1 E1 C1

2 3 4 4 5 3 4 2 3 4 4 5 3 4B C1 D1 D1 E1 C1 D1 B C1 D1 D1 E1 C1 D1

3 2 1 5 4 3 2 3 3 2 1 5 4 3 2 3C1 B A F1 D1 C1 B C1 C1 B A F1 D1 C1 B C1


The first note is the E just above Middle C.

3 2 1 4 4 4 4 3 3 4 1 2 2 5 4 3E D C F F F F E E F G A A D1 C1 B

1 2 1 2 3 4 3 2 1 4 3 2 1 4 3 2 1G A B C1 D1 E1 D1 C1 A G E D C F E D C

In working through this lesson you will have developed your fingering technique, andstarted to play hands together.


• Play the Task 1 fingering exercises fluently

•Play the two hymn tunes fluently, using good fingering

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Tuck thumb under 4th finger

Tuck thumb under 2nd finger Pass 4th finger over thumb






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Lesson 3: Playing using both hands


• Play simplified versions of 2 hymns using both hands


The first right-hand note is the C above Middle C. The first left-hand note is the C below Middle C.The fingering should help you work out the direction the notes are going in (i.e., whether to go up or down for the next note).

Right 3 1 1 3 1 1 1 2 3 4 2 3 5 3Hand C G G C A A A B C D B C E C

Left C C C E F F F G G G G C C CHand 5 5 5 3 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 5 5 5

Right 3 1 1 3 1 1 1 2 3 4 2 3 5 3Hand C G G C A A A B C D B C E C

Left C C C E F F F G G G G C C CHand 5 5 5 3 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 5 5 5

Right 2 3 4 4 5 3 4 2 3 4 4 5 3 4

Hand B C D D E C D B C D D E C D

Left 1 1 1 1 5 3 1 1 1 1 1 5 3 1 now move LH up

Hand G G G G C E G G G G G C E G one key

Right 3 2 1 5 4 3 2 3 3 2 1 5 4 3 2 3Hand C B A F D C B C C B A F D C B C

Left 4 4 3 3 2 2 1 move LH back down 3 3 2 2 1 1 5Hand E E F F G G A one key E E F F G G C

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 1We are now going to add a left-hand part to the two hymn tunes from the previouslesson. Play through the left-hand part on its own a few times to get used to thenotes and fingering. Then work on putting both hands together. You may find itdifficult to get your hands coordinating together at first, so just keep trying.Practise in small chunks – don’t move on to the next section until you are fairly

secure with the current one. You will learn the hymns faster this way.

Remember to keep practising the Task 1 fingering exercises from the previous lesson.






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The first right-hand note is the E just above Middle C. The first left-hand note is the C below Middle C.

Right 3 2 1 4 4 4 4 3 3 4 1 2 2 5 4 3Hand E D C F F F F E E F G A A D C B

Left C C C C C B A G C C A C F F D F GHand 2 2 2 2 2 3 4 5 2 2 4 2 1 1 4 2 1

Right 1 2 1 2 3 4 3 2 1 cross 4 over thumb 4 3 2 1 4 3 2 1Hand G A B C D E D C A G E D C F E D C

Left C F E A G C D E F E G G A F G G CHand

5 2 3 1 2 5 4 3 2tuck thumb under

1 5 4 3 5 4 4 1

You may wish to play the simplified versions of the two hymns to accompany hymnsinging already. If so, make sure that you are able to play them fluently – get usedto carrying on if you make a mistake, rather than going back to correct it. If possible,practise with a friend singing along to your playing first, before you play for your ecclesia.

Before starting next lesson, you should be able to:• Play at least one of the two hymns fluently hands together, using good

fingering

Rebekah Lewis 2008







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Lesson 4: Reading music – letter names


• Work out letter names of notes from music notation

Treble and bass clef When playing a keyboard instrument you read two staves (or rows) of music at thesame time – playing the top stave with the right hand and the bottom stave with theleft hand.

The right-hand stave has a treble clef at the start to show higher pitches:

The left-hand stave has a bass clef at the start to show lower pitches:

Each stave has five lines, with spaces in between. Each note on the keyboard hasits own particular line or space. When going out of the range of those main fivelines, little extra lines (ledger lines) are added in. As the notes get higher on thepage – going up by line, space, line, space… – the sound gets higher, and you movefurther up to the right on the keyboard, going through the alphabet:

• Middle C is in the middle of these 2 clefs (hence its name)

• Some of the notes can be played with either the right hand or the left hand,which is why they appear in both clefs.

Eventually you will know what letter a note is as soon as you see it. Meanwhile,there is a quick way to work them out...

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Middle C

Middle C






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Treble clef The 4 spaces, from bottom to top, spell the word FACE:

You can use this mnemonic for the 5 lines (from bottom to top):Every Good Boy Deserves Football:

Bass clef Spaces (bottom to top) – All Cows Eat Grass:

Lines (bottom to top) – Great Big Dogs From Africa:

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 1Write the letter names under each of these notes. The answers are given at theend of this lesson.

EC

AF

FDBGE

GEC

A

AFDBG






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How choral music notation worksIn choral music, there are usually four different vocal parts:

• Soprano (high female)

• Alto (low female)

• Tenor (high male)

• Bass (low male)

In the hymn book these 4 parts are squeezed onto the 2 staves. The female voicesare written in the treble clef, and the male voices are written in the bass clef:

Soprano

Alto

Tenor Bass

There are a few exceptions to this in the hymn book, where everyone sings the samepart, and the accompaniment is specially written for the piano or organ, e.g., Hymn3: Lead me Lord ; Hymn 99: Lift up to God the voice of praise. In these hymns youread your part from the 2 lower lines of music – still playing the treble clef notes withyour right hand and the bass clef notes with your left.

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 2 Here is the first line of Lord, Thy judgements now are waking (Hymn 402) as it

appears in the hymn book.● Look at the melody (which is in the soprano part). Hum the tune and trace

how its ascending and descending patterns are reflected in the score.● Work out the notes that the soprano sings and write the letter names

above the notes.● Play the soprano part through a few times. Gradually improve your

fingering until you are able to play the melody smoothly and fluently,looking down as little as possible.

● Now do the same for the bass part.






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Task 1 answers


• Work out letter names of notes in treble and bass clef

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Lesson 5: Reading music – rhythms


• Play hymns with the correct rhythms

When looking at the music in the hymn book you will see that some notes are‘coloured in’ and some aren’t; some have ‘sticks’ and some don’t. This is to showhow long each note is meant to last for. It does not affect the pitch (letter) of thenote. Reading rhythms is not something you need to worry about too much, as youwill probably be playing hymns that you have heard many times before, and so youalready know how long each note lasts for. However, just in case, this section willexplain how to read rhythms.

In music there is a steady underlying pulse, or beat, that you need to keep in your head while playing. The speed of that steady beat will vary depending on the piece.For example, in Hymn 360 the underlying beat is very fast; whereas in Hymn 387 it is

quite slow. The crucial point is that there should be an equal length of time betweeneach beat.

Lengths of notes are worked out in relation to this underlying beat as follows:

Semibreve – hold for 4 beats

Dotted minim – hold for 3 beats(the direction of the stick does not affect the rhythm or pitch)

Minim – hold for 2 beats

Crotchet – hold for 1 beat

Quaver – worth ½ beat each (they can appear separately

with a tail, or together with a beam joining them up)

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 1Hum a tune that you know well. See if you can find an underlying pulse and tapthis while you hum. You will have found the beat if all your taps are the samelength of time apart.






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There is a quick reference sheet for rhythms in the appendix, which includes somemore complex rhythms.

1)

2)

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 2

Below are the soprano parts of two hymn tunes. You are going to work out whathymns they are by playing them with correct rhythms. The underlying beat isshown by the black circles.

a) Add letter names above the notes.

b) Play through the melodies. The music will show you which direction to go in,from note to note. E.g., at the second note of the first hymn you will need to goup to a G, rather than down to a G, because the G is written higher on the stavethan the D.

c) Play the melodies in time with a slow, steady beat (tap your foot, or if you find

this difficult while playing ask a friend to tap a beat for you, or use a metronome).

Have you worked out what hymns they are? Check the answers at the end of thelesson.






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Other aspects of music notation

Rests Any symbols that are there in the place of notes will probably be rests – silence inthat part for a particular number of beats. The lengths of all the rests are given in the

appendix, as they don't appear very often.

Tied notesIf two versions of the same note are joined together by a tie, this means that you playone long note, rather than two separate ones. E.g.,

Here you play one note which will last for 4 beats + 2 beats = 6 beats altogether.

Any other symbols that you see in the music should be explained in the appendix.

Task 2 answers

As pants the hart for cooling streams (Green Hymn Book, 23)

A rose shall bloom in the lonely place (Green Hymn Book, 289)


• Give the values of the most common note-lengths discussed in this lesson

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Lesson 6: Reading music – playing with both hands


• Play from music notation, hands together

Joy cometh! (Green Hymn Book, 395)

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 1Below is the music for the soprano and bass parts of a hymn.a) Add letter names under the notes (answers are provided at the end of thelesson).

b) Play through both parts separately until you can play them fairly fluently. Youdon’t need to worry about playing the rhythms correctly at this stage, but aim touse good fingering. Remember to look at the music to see which direction to goin from note to note.






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Task 1 answers


• Play the two parts of Joy cometh hands together, fluently

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 2 a) For all notes that are not crotchets (1-beat notes), write in how many beats youneed to count.

b) Play through both parts separately, in time with a slow, steady beat.

c) Play the soprano and bass parts hands together.

d) Once you have done this a few times, check that you are playing the rhythmscorrectly. If you have a long note in one hand with crotchets in the other, try tohold the long note down while you are playing the crotchets.






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Lesson 7: Playing two notes with each hand


• Play a four-part hymn hands together

If you are able to coordinate playing hands together, then you will be able tocoordinate playing four notes at once, but it may take a bit of getting used to.

Right hand

Father! We Thy children bless Thee / In the bud of early Spring time (Hymn 140/377)

2 2 3 3 2 5 5 5 4

1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1

My God, how wonderful Thou art (Hymn 102)

3 5 5 1 5 5 5 5 2 5 4 5 5 3

1 3 2 1 1 1 2 3 1 1 2 1 1 2 1 1

Left hand

Behold, how good a thing it is (Hymn 65)

3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

5 5 5 5 5 5 3

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 1Play through these exercises until you are able to do them with both notessounding as together as possible.






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Inspirer of the ancient seers (Hymn 183)

3 1 1 1 1 3 2 1 2 1

5 5 5 5 5 5 4 3 4 3

N.B. This hymn looks slightly more complicated in the hymn book. This is because eachverse contains some different rhythms to reflect the words. However, if you play the versionon page 24 for each verse, it will fit with whatever the singers are doing.

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 2 Learn to play A rose shall bloom (Hymn 289) hands together. Use the techniquesfrom earlier lessons:

● Write in the notes of each part● Practise each hand separately, using good fingering (fingering is written in

as a guide, you don't have to follow it exactly)● Start to play hands together, working on a section at a time● Check that you are playing the rhythms correctly.

Pass 2nd finger over thumb






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• Play A rose shall bloom hands together, fluently

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Lesson 8: Sharps and flats


• Play hymns containing sharps and flats

Many of the hymns in the hymn book contain sharps and flats. Usually this meansthat you need to play one of the black notes on the keyboard.

# SharpWhen this is in front of a note, play the nearest note to the right

b FlatWhen this is in front of a note, play the nearest note to the left

Remember – sharpen up, flatten down

E.g.,

NaturalWhen this is in front of a note it cancels out any sharps or flats thathave gone before for that note.

The effect of these signs lasts for a whole bar (i.e., until the next vertical line in themusic). So any other notes within that bar which are the same note and come after this sign will also need to be sharpened/flattened/made natural. Sometimes signsare inserted in brackets as reminders, even if they are not strictly necessary becausethey are in a new bar.

E.g.,

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 1Find these notes on the keyboard:

• F#

• Bb

• C#• Eb

D E E# A Cb

D# Ab

C






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Key signaturesOften, the same note will be sharpened or flattened throughout a hymn, so rather than writing the sharp or flat sign in front of every note, the sign is written at the startof each line, e.g.,

This is called a key signature. This key signature has a sharp sign on the lines

where you find the note F. It means that every F appearing in this piece should beplayed as an F#. It applies to any F anywhere on the keyboard.

Here are the other most common key signatures you will find in the hymn book:

2 sharps: 3 sharps: 1 flat: 2 flats: 3 flats:F#, C# F#, C#, G# Bb Bb, Eb Bb, Eb, Ab

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 2 Learn to play Most glorious things are spoken (Hymn 379) using your own hymnbook. This hymn contains some G sharps.

NB – there will be some parts in this hymn where you will need to play the tenor with the righthand, as well as the soprano and alto, as you won't be able to reach it with the left hand.For the first chord of the last line of the hymn you may find it easier to play the D with your righthand and the B with your left hand.






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• Locate sharp and flat notes on the keyboard fairly quickly

• Play at least one of the hymns from this lesson hands together, fluently

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 3Learn to play Teach my Thy way (Hymn 165) using your own hymn book.

There will also be times in this hymn where you will need to play the tenor with the right hand.In some hymns there will be occasions where you will have to leave the tenor part out altogether,as this is the best part to leave out if you can't reach all of the notes (sorry tenors!).






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Lesson 9: Different approaches for piano and organ/keyboard


• Understand some of the important differences between pianos, organs andkeyboards

Pianos and organs are quite different instruments to play. Not only that, but pianostend to be different from each other, and organs even more so! It is a good idea topractise on your ecclesia’s instrument before you play for a meeting, to familiariseyourself with its particular features.

Playing a piano (including digital pianos)Pianos have a great advantage for beginners – the sustain pedal (the right-handpedal). Used well this can help smooth over any problems with fingering, as the

pedal will hold the notes for you while you position your hands for the next chord.However, you have to be careful not to hold the pedal down for too long beforechanging it or the sounds of several chords will be mixed together and it will soundmuddy. Generally speaking, harmonies in hymns change very often – usually withevery chord – so you should change the pedal as often as you can. Do this byquickly letting the pedal up and pushing it down again straight away.

Changing volume on a piano is straight-forward. Play notes with more weight if youwant to play more loudly, and play them gently for softer playing. How responsivethe piano is depends on the instrument. If you are hammering on the keys and stillnot being heard over the singers don’t forget you can open the lid of a ‘real’ piano for more volume.

Playing an organ or keyboardIf you are fortunate the lower manual on your organ will go down to a bottom C (thisis usually the lowest note on electronic keyboards). However, most organs only godown to F. This is because the low bass notes are meant to be played on the footpedals, but you don’t need to do this. There will be the occasional hymn where youwill run out of notes, but this is easy to solve if you’re prepared – play the note anoctave (8 notes) higher instead.

You need to plan your fingering more carefully when playing an organ or keyboard,as the sound dies away as soon as you let go of a note. (An exception to this islarge pipe organs, which usually sustain notes for a little longer.) A good techniqueto use here is ‘finger-substitution’, where you change the finger you are using whilstholding down a note. This gives you the opportunity to change hand position, andstill move smoothly from note to note. E.g., Hymn 147:

2 4 5 3-2 3

1 2 1 1 1

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Play the A with your 3rd

finger, then switch to2nd finger while still

holding the note down.






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Usually you can change the volume with a swell pedal – the further you push it awayfrom you, the louder the sound. You can also change the number of stops you areusing – the more stops selected, the louder the sound (hence the phrase ‘pull out allthe stops’).

When you feel more confident you may want to try playing on two manuals. Thisusually sounds best playing the upper manual with your right hand and the lower with your left.

Before starting next lesson, you should be:

• Familiar with the particular features of your ecclesia's instrument

Rebekah Lewis 2008







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Lesson 10: Playing for your ecclesia


• Prepare to play for your ecclesia

• Understand how to reflect the words of a hymn, once you are able to play it

comfortably

Preparation and coping with nervesYou may or may not get nervous playing in front of others, but it always helps to beas prepared as possible.

• Give a list of the hymns you have learned to play to the presidents of your ecclesia. Or ask presidents to choose the hymns in advance so you haveplenty of time to practise them.

• When practising the hymns practise your introductions as well.

•

If you can, record yourself playing at home. The pressure of getting it right onthe recording is surprisingly similar to playing in front of people. Also, it islikely that you will sound different to how you expected. If you try singing alongto a recording of your own playing you may spot things you need to change,e.g., you may need to leave longer pauses between verses.

• If possible, ask someone to sing along while you practise. This will help youget used to carrying on if you make a mistake, instead of going back to correctit.

• Remember that people will appreciate the effort you have put in, and will notmind if you make mistakes.

Playing during the meeting

• Before getting up to play a hymn, read the first line of the last verse so that youwill know when to stop playing. This is a good safety-net in case you losecount of the verses you have played.

• Listen to the singers – they will often sing the speed they are used to singing,whatever speed you may set at the start! Let them take the lead once youhave started them off.

Reflecting the wordsThis is of course something you can only focus on when you are more confident inyour playing. However, it is an important element to accompanying hymn singing.

VolumeThis is the easiest ‘extra’ to add to your playing, and the most obvious to the singers.For more sombre or reflective words, drop the volume.

Rebekah Lewis 2008







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Phrasing Sometimes it is effective to put a break between notes, rather than playing smoothlyfrom one note to the next:

• When there is punctuation in the words – you can reflect this in your playing byputting a break in the music. This also gives you an opportunity to move your

hand to a new position if necessary.• When it would suit the words to be ‘punchier’. For example, Soldiers of Christ

arise sounds better with a slight gap between each chord.

Now you have learned everything you need to know to be able to play hymns for your ecclesia. You have a bank of hymns that you can play already, and you canstart learning new ones.

Here are some hymns that you could try next:

• Hymn 12: The Lord's my Shepherd

• Hymn 23: As pants the hart

•Hymn 46: O God, our help in ages past

• Hymn 61: Pray for the peace of Jerusalem

• Hymn 65: Behold, how good a thing it is

• Hymn 94: Immortal, invisible, God only wise

• Hymn 113/1: O worship the King, all glorious above

• Hymn 137: Father, I ask that all my life

• Hymn 195: O come, all ye faithful

• Hymn 222/1: When my love to God grows weak

• Hymn 239: O God, unseen yet ever near

• Hymn 298: His kingdom comes! Ye saints rejoice

•

Hymn 410: Lord, keep us safe this night

Rebekah Lewis 2008


Task 1Look at the words of The Lord's my Shepherd (Hymn 12). Think about where youwould break up the phrases in each verse.






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Appendix: Rhythms

Note: Value: Rest: Groups

4 beats

3 beats

2 beats

1½ beats

1 beat

¾ beat

½ beat

¼ beat

Triplets

3 equal crotchets played in the space of 2

3 equal quavers played in the space of 2

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Musical terms and signs

Time signature. The top number tells you how many beats there are in eachbar. A bar is what falls between two vertical bar lines, e.g., this is one bar containing four beats:

You should usually put slightly more emphasis on the first beat of every bar.

ppp Very, very soft

pp Very soft

p Soft

mp Medium soft

mf Medium loud

f Loud

ff Very loud

fff Very, very loud

cresc. Get gradually louder

dim.Get gradually softer

rit./rall. Gradually slow down

Shows where the end of a line of words occurs in the music

Repeat from the beginning, or repeat section in betweenthe dots:

Play this section the first 2 times through, then the 3rd time miss this section

out and jump to

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D.C. al fine Go back to the beginning, then stop at fine.

Pause. Hold the note or rest for a bit longer than normal.

Accent – add extra weight to the note.

Staccatissimo – play in a short, sharp way.

Slur – in other music this means play smoothly, but in vocal music it simplymeans sing one syllable for all the notes slurred together.Sometimes these slurs are dotted, which means they only apply to some of the verses (e.g., Hymn 289).

Hymn 11:Greathed 12 syllables per line12.12.12.12

Hymn 12:Crimond 8.6.8.6 syllablesC.M.

100 beats a minute

52 beats a minute,which is 104 beats a minute

O sing a new song I Sing all of the words up to the line on the first note of the phrase,

e.g., Hymn 49, 1st verse:

could be sung:

This means that tunes in thehymn book are interchangeable.E.g., the words of Hymn 17 canbe sun to the tune of H mn 12.

These are indications of speed.The higher the number, thefaster the hymn should go.

teach yourself to play hymns 2nd ed

Documents

notes sound

different notes

hymnsmusical notes

pair of black notes

hymnsrebekah lewis

hymns2nd edition rebekah

music letter names

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