HYMN FESTIVALS - AND HYMN PRACTICES - No. 5 - Price Two Pence

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Oliver

Church Music Society publications outlining practical guidance for organizing hymn festivals and hymn practices in country districts with limited local talent. The text explains the purpose of encouraging congregational singing and promoting well-known hymns and tunes, then provides step-by-step suggestions for hymn selection, rehearsal structure, and managing variety through four-part harmony and suitable lectures or organ interludes. It also recommends timing choices and concludes with a curated list of hymn tunes and notes on performance and transposition.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLiterature

FormatPDF

Pages8

Reading Time12 min

AccessFree to download

HYMN FESTIVALS

Hymn Festivals

HYMN PRACTICES

Hymn Practices

Selected Tune List

Cburch 91usic与ocietp书了 32 # HYMN FESTIVALS C人 AND # HYMN PRACTICES pm No.5 5 Price Tzwopence PUBLISHED FOR THE CHURCH MUSIC SOCIETY HUMPHREY MILFORDAMEN CORNER,LONDON,E.C. Cburch 91usic ocietp H Y M N FEST IVA L SANDHYM N PRACTICES THE recent hymn festivals and lecture-practices arranged bythe Church Music Society have attracted much attention;and questions have been received from various parts of Englandasking how they can be organized in distant country districtswhere only local talent is available.A few practical suggestionswith regard to their preparation and performance may therefore behelpful. Hymn Festivals.—During the summer of I9I7 several parishesin the neighbourhood of Cirencester practised some 2o hymnschosen for the purpose by Sir Henry Hadow,and on a Sundayevening in August 900 people,members of choirs and congre-gations,assembled to sing them under his direction.Since then,similar festivals have been held at Gloucester and elsewhere;andthe Committee of the Church Music Society think that the planmight be adopted in many country districts,and that the help oforganizers of the music competitions which were held in mostparts of England before the war could be enlisted for the purpose.The objects are to encourage congregational singing,and tomake known the best hymns and tunes in our hymn-books,as,in many cases,these are seldom or never sung.The first thingis to choose from I2 to 2o good hymns from whichever collectionis the most widely used in the neighbourhood,or to buy someof the leaflet hymns or small collections now available.Thehymns should all be practised in unison,and some verses should 2 be marked to be sung by women's and boys'voices,some by menonly.To secure further variety,a picked choir might be askedto prepare one verse of each hymn in 4-part harmony.If thehymns are sung naturally and simply,almost as they would besaid,there will be no difficulty about the pace,and a combinedrehearsal an hour before the service should be enough to secureunanimity;but of course it is better if the organists and choir-masters from the various churches can meet after the selection hasbeen made,play the tunes over,and discuss any difficult points;and it is better still if the conductor or his deputy can atenda rehearsal in each place a week or two before the festival.It isdifficult to sing a large number of hymns straight through withouta break,so it will be advisable to arrange a simple lecture on thehistory or characteristics of some of the hymns during an interval;or to have an organ interlude with some such pieces as Sir HubertParry's arrangements of well-known hymn tunes or Mr.HarveyGrace's‘Martyrs'.In country districts a time must be chosenwhen country people can come;therefore seed-time,or the hayharvest and the corn harvest,and in some places the fruit-pickingseasons,must be avoided.One district will find a Sunday afternoonthe most convenient,if the distances are not too far to enable con-gregations to return to their own parishes in time for Evensong.In another place a week-day afternoon or evening will be better;but it can best be settled by a conference of representatives fromthe various churches that are to take part. Hymn Practices.—These are usually held to familiarize congre-gations with less-known tunes,and not to perform what has beenalready learnt.It is well to have,if possible,a short preliminarylecture on some such subject as(a)our national or traditionaltunes;(b)the different characteristics of English,Scotch,Irish,orWelsh melodies;(c)the 16th,r7th,or I8th century hymn-writers;(d)what constitutes a good tune,&c.;and the subject can beillustrated by the hymns to be sung afterwards.The ChurchMusic Society's hymn festival book has been sold out,and cannotbe republished;so it may be useful to conclude with a list ofsuitable music. From Hymns Ancient and Modern ## NAME OF TUNE.. Commandments *8.Forth in Thy Name...Angels*53.Hark the glad sound.Bristol*149.Thou ar

FAQs

What is the main purpose of the hymn festival plan described in the text?

To encourage congregational singing and to make known the best hymns and tunes found in hymn-books, especially those that are seldom or never sung.

How should hymn selection and preparation be handled for a hymn festival?

Choose about 12 to 20 good hymns from the most widely used local collection, rehearse them in unison, and assign some verses for women and boys' voices and others for men only.

What kinds of arrangements or variations are suggested to keep the festival manageable?

Include a lecture during an interval on hymn history or characteristics, and use organ interludes; for variety, consider a picked choir preparing one verse of each hymn in four-part harmony. In addition, transposition may be needed for unison singing and some hymns may require varied accompaniments.

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Oliver