Perhaps the most often-sung processional hymn on Palm Sunday, “Ride On, Ride On in Majesty� was written in 1820 by Anglican cleric, poet, and scholar Henry Hart Milman (1791-1868) and first  published in Reginald Heber’s Hymns Written and Adapted to the Weekly Church Service of the Year (1827). The hymn references Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem prior to his Passion, as recorded in Matthew 21:1-11.

Writing for the Hymnology Archive of The Hymn Society in the US and Canada, editor Chris Fenner notes in his analysis of the text that:

“This hymn ... is much less a narrative or paraphrase of the triumphal entry (Matt. 21, Mk. 11, Lk. 19, Jn. 12) than it is a forward-looking hymn pointing from the palms to the cross to [Jesus’] ascended position on the throne. The triumphal entry itself is a fulfillment of Zechariah 9:9 (‘Behold, your king is coming to you . . . humble and mounted on a donkey’). The recurring opening line is possibly an allusion to Psalm 45:4 (‘in thy majesty ride prosperously’). 

“Some hymnological commentators connect this hymn with the idea of the great reversal in Philippians 2:5-12, where we find the Christ who humbled himself in a crucified death, later to be exalted, name above all names, to which every knee will bow. As Canadian hymn scholar Stanley Osborne observed, this hymn’s poetic strength is in its exploration of that duality:

'Objective, robust, confident, and stirring, it possesses that peculiar combination of tragedy and victory which draws the singer into the very centre of the drama. It is this which gives the hymn its power and its challenge.'

In this arrangement for SATB voices and organ, Milman’s text is set to the 15th-century English ballad, “Deo Gratias� (aka The Agincourt Carol), with the refrain Ride on in majesty!� following each verse.

©Copyright 2024 Todd Marchand / Con Spirito Music (ASCAP). All rights reserved. For more sacred, patriotic, folk, and holiday music for instruments and voices, visit www.conspiritomusic.com

“God is Love: Let Heav’n Adore Him� pairs a text by the Welsh Anglican bishop Timothy Rees (1874-1939) with the 19th-century American hymn tune BEACH SPRING, attributed to Benjamin Franklin White (1800-1979), compiler and editor of the influential Sacred Harp hymnal.

Quick to rehearse, yet satisfying to perform and moving in its effect on listeners, this lovely anthem expresses assurance in God’s boundless love, from His creation of the world (v. 1) to His love for “ev’ry child of ev’ry race� (v. 2) to His ultimate triumph over sin and death. Verses 1 and 2 are assigned to unison women’s and unison men’s voices, respectively. Then, following a modulation upward, the concluding verse 3 is sung by all voices in unison, with 4-part harmony at the peak of the verse before drawing to a peaceful, unison close. 

©Copyright 2023 Todd Marchand / Con Spirito Music (ASCAP). All rights reserved. For more sacred, patriotic, folk, and holiday music for instruments and voices, visit www.conspiritomusic.com

Charles Wesley’s (1707-1788) Advent hymn, “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus,� from Hymns for the Nativity of our Lord (1744), reflects the dual nature of Advent for Christians, in that it recalls the first coming and incarnation of the Messiah while also anticipating His return.

Each stanza presents a different idea: Stanza 1, the longing for freedom from sin and fear; Stanza 2, attributes of or names for Christ; Stanza 3, the Messiah's birth, kingdom, and purpose; and Stanza 4, a prayer for Christ's rule in believers' hearts. Among the Scriptures referenced in the hymn are 2 Corinthians 4:14, Revelation 3:21, Isaiah 61:1-2, Luke 4:18-19, and Romans 6:22.
 
In this setting of Wesley’s text to an original tune, a short introduction is followed by verse 1, presented by women’s voices (soprano, alto) and verse 2, presented by men’s voices (tenor, bass). Verse 3 is presented by SATB voices, unaccompanied; and following a short organ interlude and modulation from D minor to E minor, the concluding verse 4 is introduced by all voices in unison with organ, then expands both dynamically and in texture to SATB and ends on a glorious E major chord.

©Copyright 2023 Todd Marchand / Con Spirito Music (ASCAP). All rights reserved. For more sacred, patriotic, folk, and holiday music for instruments and voices, visit www.conspiritomusic.com

Three Evening Canticles were written as part of a setting of choral evensong for Church of the Holy Apostles - Anglican, Fort Worth, Texas. Metrical, mostly homophonic, and conservative in technical challenges and ranges, these canticles are accessible for small choirs and those of moderate ability, yet musically satisfying for large and accomplished groups.
 
Phos Hilaron (“O Gladsome Light�) is one of the earliest known Christian hymns (ca. 3rd-4th century) recorded outside of the Bible. Intended to be sung at the kindling of lights in the evening, it is sometimes known as the “lamp-lighting hymn� and has been adopted by some Anglican bodies as an optional invitatory canticle immediately preceding the psalm(s) appointed for the day.

Magnificat (The Song of Mary) is a scriptural canticle based on an account in the Gospel of Luke (1:46-55). Mary, the expectant mother of Jesus, visits her cousin  Elizabeth, the expectant mother of John the Baptist, who will prophetically proclaim the coming of the Messiah. Elizabeth praises Mary for her faith and subjection to God’s will, and Mary responds, “My soul doth magnify the Lord ... for he that is mighty hath magnified me ... and his mercy is on them that fear him throughout all generations.� The Magnificat is said or sung immediately after the first lesson (scripture reading) in the service of evening prayer.
 
Nunc Dimittis (The Song of Simeon) is also a scriptural canticle taken from Luke (2:29-32).  Simeon, a devout Jew, had been promised by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah. When Mary and Joseph bring the infant Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem for the ceremony of redemption of the firstborn son, Simeon takes the child into his arms and says “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace ... for mine eyes have seen thy salvation.� The Nunc Dimittis is said or sung after the second lesson in evening prayer.

Texts for these settings are from The Book of Common Prayer (2019), Traditional Language Edition, according to the use of the Anglican Church in North America, and they are largely the texts of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer of the Church of England.

©Copyright 2023 Todd Marchand / Con Spirito Music (ASCAP). All rights reserved. For more sacred, patriotic, folk, and holiday music for instruments and voices, visit www.conspiritomusic.com

Scottish-born James Montgomery (1771-1854) was a poet, writer, and editor, raised and theologically trained in the Moravian Church. As a writer of hymns, his work has been compared favorably to that of Samuel Wesley, Isaac Watts, Philip Doddridge, John Newton, and William Cowper (Cooper). Among his most well-known lyrics are Angels From the Realms of Glory, Go to Dark Gethsemane, and Hail to the Lord's Anointed.

In the Hour of Trial consists of four stanzas of eight lines in 6.5.6.5 meter, written in the first-person voice. Stanzas 1 and 2, presented by unison women's voices, then men's, are pleas for Jesus' presence in times of temptation; stanza 3, in full harmony and unaccompanied, expresses the author's reliance on Christ in times of affliction; stanza 4, with full choir and organ accompaniment, expresses the author's reliance, at time of death, on Jesus' truth and promise of eternal life. This anthem is especially appropriate in Lent and for memorial services, and is fitting for general worship as well.

©Copyright 2024 Todd Marchand / Con Spirito Music. All rights reserved. For more sacred, patriotic, folk, and holiday music for instruments and voices, visit www.conspiritomusic.com

“The Christ Child's Lullaby” is an English translation of the Scots Gaelic “Tàladh Chrìosda,” a Christmas carol adapted and popularized in the 20th century from a longer work written in 1855 by Catholic priest Ranald Rankin for his parishioners at Fort William in the Scottish Highlands.

Rankin’s hymn, representing a lullaby for the Christ Child by the Virgin mother Mary, was intended for performance at Midnight Mass (the first mass of Christmas) and is still sung then at churches in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland today. Titled “Tàladh ar Slànaigheir” (“The Lullaby of our Savior”) and containing 29 verses, it is altogether a lullaby, a retelling of elements of the Nativity story, and an explication of the nature and work of Christ. 

The English text of “The Christ Child’s Lullaby” (containing three verses and alleluias) is one of many translations, adaptations, and variants of the original Scots Gaelic text. The tune, too, is one of many variants of a traditional Hebridean folk melody. It has been further adapted and newly harmonized in this medium-easy arrangement for SATB choir and organ, featuring solo soprano on verse 1, sopranos-altos in open harmonies on verse 2, and full SATB in rich harmonies on verse 3 and the concluding “Alleluias.”

Voices realized by Cantamus (https://cantamus.app/); organ realized by NotePerformer (https://www.noteperformer.com)

©Copyright 2024 Todd Marchand / Con Spirito Music (ASCAP). All rights reserved. For more sacred, folk, patriotic, and popular music for instruments and voices, visit www.conspiritomusic.com