Music for August 21, 2016 + The Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Instrumental Music

• Trumpet Voluntary – Gordon Young (1919-1998)
• Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us – William Bradbury (1816-1868)
• The Wayfaring Stranger – Old Southern Melody
• Balm in Gilead – Negro Spiritual
• Praise Him! Praise Him! – Chester G. Allen (1838-1878)

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

• Hymn 8 - Morning has broken (Bunnessan)
• Hymn R250 - O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder (O Stor Gud)
• Hymn 368 - Holy Father, great Creator (Regent Square)
• Hymn 325 - Let us break bread together on our knees (Let Us Break Bread)
• Hymn 493 - O for a thousand tongues to sing (Azmon)
• Hymn 411-  Psalm 103, O bless the Lord, my soul (St. Thomas (Williams))       

This Sunday, being the last real Sunday of Summer (School starts back in Kingwood on the 22nd), I am taking the Sunday off to go on holiday. No AGO convention, no choir camp, no music conference, just four days with friends in Mexico. In my absence we are fortunate to have Jill Kirkonis to play the organ for us. I made it easy on her and told her I would not be having a soloist on this last Summer Sunday without the choir, just her, playing an organ offertory. She has chosen to play an arrangement of the hymn-tune BRADBURY, the melody which 80% of hymnals use for the words Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us. (Not us Episcopalians, however. We've used the tune SICILIAN MARINERS for the tune since 1916.)

BRADBURY was written by William Batchelder Bradbury, a Baptist organist and choir director who was well know throughout the Protestant churches in the first part of the 20th century. In the 1914 book Biographies of Gospel Song and Hymn Writers, J. H. Hall wrote

The churchgoing people of today are generally familiar with the name Wm. B. Bradbury. Many have cherished that name from childhood. Most of us began our musical experiences by singing his songs, and as early experiences are the most lasting, we will carry these melodies, with their happy associations, through life.
William Batchelder Bradbury was born at York, York County, Maine, October 6, 1816. He came of a good family. He spent the first few years of his life on his father's farm, and rainy days would be spent in the shoe-shop, as was the general custom in those days. He loved music, and would spend his spare hours in studying and practicing such music as he could find. In 1830 his parents removed to Boston, where he saw and heard for the first time a piano and organ, as well as various other instruments. The effect was to lead him to devote his life to the service of music. Accordingly he took lessons upon the organ, and as early as 1831: had achieved some reputation as an organist.
After some months he was asked to preside at the organ of a certain church at a salary of twenty-five dollars per annum. On trying the organ he found it to be one of those ancient affairs which required the keys to be pulled up as well as pressed down, and he suggested that his pay should be at least fifty dollars, since the playing required this double duty. It was not long till a better paying situation was offered him — that of one hundred dollars a year.

Later there came a call to take charge of the music of the First Baptist Church of Brooklyn, New York. There was some opposition to the organ among the members, but

he took pains to play it so well, and in such good taste, that he speedily won all to favor its use. After a year's work here the important era in his career began. He took charge of the choir and organ of the Baptist Tabernacle, New York City, and in addition started a singing class for the young.

William Bradbury

William B. Bradbury, along with Drs. Lowell Mason and George F. Root, was responsible for the popularity of the singing schools that sprang up in American churches and Sunday Schools in the 19th century. He was unceasingly active, having edited fifty-nine books of sacred and secular music, a large part of which were his own work.

Despite his immense popularity in his lifetime, and the number of hymns and Sunday School songs he wrote (close to 200) only one of his hymn-tunes is included in our hymnal, but it is universally well known. It is WOODBURY, known to all of us as Just as I am. He also wrote the music for Jesus Loves Me.

Chester G. Allen, who wrote the stirring Gospel tune that is used for today's closing voluntary,  was also known as a teacher, composer and musical writer., though at a much lesser degree than Bradbury. He taught music in Cleveland, Ohio public schools. He also edited and compiled collections of music for schools and churches, containing many of his own compositions.