Last Sunday after Epiphany - 10 February 2013

• Organ: Air – Herbert Howells
• Entrance Hymn 330 “O Praise ye the Lord”
• Service Music: New Plainsong – David Hurd
• Psalm 99

1. The LORD is King / let the peo-ple trem-ble; *
   he is enthroned upon the cher-u-bim let the earth shake. 
2. The LORD is great in Zi-on; *
   he is high a-bove all peo-ples. 
3. Let them confess his Name, which is great and awe-some; *
   he is the Ho-ly One.
4. “O mighty King lover of justice / you have e-sta-blish’d e-qui-ty; *
   you have executed justice and right-eous-ness in Ja-cob.”
5. Proclaim the greatness of the LORD our God and fall down be-fore his foot-stool; *
   he is the Ho-ly One.
6. Moses and Aaron among his priests and Samuel among those who call up-on his Name, *
   they called upon the LORD and he an-swer’d them.
7. He spoke to them out of the pil-lar of cloud; *
   they kept his testimonies and the de-cree that he gave them. 
8. “O LORD our God, you answered them in-deed; *
   you were a God who forgave them yet punished them for their e-vil deeds.” 
9. Proclaim the greatness of the LORD our God and worship him upon his ho-ly hill; *
   for the LORD our God is the Ho-ly One. 

Glory be to the Father and to the Son: and to the Ho-ly Spi-rit.
As it was in the beginning is now and e-ver shall be: world with-out end A-men.

• Gospel Alleluia
  

  Choir: Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.
  All: Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.
  Cantor: Proclaim the greatness of the LORD our God and worship him upon his holy hill; * for the LORD our God is the Holy One.
  All: Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.

• Anthem – Alleluia – Dietrich Buxtehude
• Offertory Hymn 374 “Alleluia! Sing to Jesus”
• Communion Hymn 64 “Author of life divine”
• Concluding Hymn “Sing alleluia forth in duteous praise”
  

  Choir alone verses 1 and 2
  Sing alleluia forth in duteous praise,
  ye citizens of heaven, O sweetly raise an endless alleluia.
  
  Ye powers who stand before the eternal Light,
  in hymning choirs re-echo to the height an endless alleluia.
  
  Everyone join in verse 3
  The holy city shall take up your strain,
  and with glad songs resounding wake again an endless alleluia.
  
  In blissful antiphons ye thus rejoice
  to render to the Lord with thankful voice an endless alleluia.
  
  There, in one grand acclaim, for ever ring,
  the strains which tell the honor of your King, an endless alleluia.
  
  While thee, by whom were all things made,
  we praise for ever, and tell out in sweetest lays an endless alleluia.
  
  Almighty Christ, to thee our voices sing
  glory for evermore; to thee we bring an endless alleluia.

• Organ: Epilogue – Healey Willan

Music Notes

“And lo, the angel of the Lord appeared unto Beatrice the organist and delivered unto her a new hymn from the Lord God and bade her play it on Sunday. But Beatrice sighed and explained that the congregation would rise up as one and smite her with pew cushions if she were to assault their ears with an unfamiliar sound. And the angel went sorrowing away.”

Well, there’s a new hymn this week at St. Barnabas’ and Beatrice is prepared for the onslaught!  The text is anonymous, 5th Century (Alleluia piis edite laudibus in the original), translated from Latin to English by John Ellerton in The Churchman’s Family Magazine, 1865; but it is a fitting conclusion to the last Sunday of the Epiphany season and the last before the beginning of Lent (remembered by many of us as Quinquagesima), a final opportunity to utter the word ‘alleluia’ word before Easter (and there are many opportunities this morning!). The simple music, recently written, is dedicated to all of the terrific people of St. Barnabas’ (Chester).  To give you a chance to assimilate the tune, we’ve asked the choir to sing the first 2 verses of the hymn and for the congregation to join in verse 3.
    Danish born and German raised, Dietrich Buxtehude (c1637-1709) wrote more than 125 works for choir, although these have long been overshadowed by those of his younger contemporary, J.S. Bach.  But Buxtehude was a major influence on Bach, both as performer and composer.  This morning’s anthem “Alleluia” is from one of his cantatas, and is a delightfully quirky and exuberant piece of music. 
    Herbert Howells wrote two “airs” for clarinet and piano, probably for a music festival competition, both of which have been transcribed for organ.  Healey Willan composed ‘Epilogue’ prior to his emigration to Canada in 1913, apparently for an event at St Alban’s Cathedral.  It is not one of his most performed pieces, but deserves to be heard more often than it is.