Music for April 16, 2023 + The Second Sunday of Easter

Vocal Music

• An Easter Greeting – Martin How (1931-2022)

Instrumental Music

• Variations on “O Filii et Filiae” – Pierre Dandrieu (1664-1733)
• That Easter Day with Joy was bright – Rudy Davenport
• Carillon ou Cloches– Pierre Dandrieu

Congregational Music (all hymns from The Hymnal 1982 with the exception of those marked “R” which are from Renew.)

• Hymn 193 That Easter day with joy was bright (PUER NATUS)
• Hymn 206 O sons and daughters, let us sing! (O FILII ET FILIAE)
• Hymn 207 Sing we to our God above (EASTER HYMN)
• Hymn R 271 Alleluia, alleluia! Give thanks (ALLELUIA NO.1)
• Hymn R 91 Open our eyes, Lord (OPEN OUR EYES)
• Hymn R 258 To God be the glory (TO GOD BE THE GLORY)
• Psalm 16 – simplified Anglican Chant by Jerome W. Meachen

Martin How

Martin How, who wrote our offertory anthem this morning, spent a lifetime working in music, much of it with the Royal School of Church Music. 

The son of an Anglican priest, he was trained at Clare College, Cambridge, where is was also in charge of the Chapel Choir of men and boys as well as the choral society. After two years in the armed forces, he worked in a church for about four years before joining the staff of the Royal School of Church Music where spent the remainder of his career. 

He was known principally as a choir trainer specializing in the training and motivation of young singers. In this capacity he initiated and developed the RSCM Chorister Training Scheme which has since been used in various forms in many parts of the world. Much of his music was written with the young or inexperienced singer in mind. Thus is certainly true of today's anthem, An Easter Greeting, which was written for just a two-part choir of children or adult voices.

He was awarded the MBE in 1993for 'Services to Church Music' in the 1993 New Years Honors List.

Pierre Dandrieu

Pierre Dandrieu (d'Andrieu) was a French priest , composer and organist. Little is known about his early years. After he studied with the famous French organist Nicolas Lebègue , he became the organist of Saint-Barthélemy church on the île de la Cité in Paris, for more than 40 years. Upon his death, his nephew Jean-François Dandrieu succeeded him.

Pierre Dandrieu published one book of carols and various pieces for the organ in 1714. It is in this volume that we find the organ voluntaries for this day. 

The opening voluntary is a set of variations on our middle hymn, O sons and daughters, let us sing. It tells the story of the apostle Thomas, who wanted to reach out and touch the wounded hands and feet of Jesus before he would believe that he was actually alive. I'm only play the first few variations; the whole work takes about 10 minutes!

The closing voluntary is Carillon ou Cloches. If you know French, you know that translates to Carillon or Bells. This short toccata-like piece is very imitative of a bell peal heard in the bell towers of French churches.