Monday 21 April 2014

The Easter Triduum + Easter Sunday 2014

Three days and a Sunday, one post - let's see how much I can remember!


Holy Thursday

What we sang 

  • Entrance:   I am the Bread of Life - Toolan
  • Psalm: - spoken
  • Gloria Peruvia
  • Foot washing - I Heard the Voice of Jesus Calling - John Bell - played on CD
  • Offertory:   Take our Bread
  • Communion: Ubi Caritas
  • Sending:  Silence

What I'd like to have sung:

I miss Gregory Norbet's "The  Lord Jesus", because the text is such a great fit.    It was used the first year I was here, but that was more the music co-ordinator and one very talented pianist who was able to play and sing it at sight even though she didn't know it.    Haven't met anyone else since who knows it.

That said, John Bell's "We Walk His Way" was an amazing find while I was travelling, and I knew that "I Heard ... " would work for Thursday as well as the rest of the year as soon as I heard it.   We had a young pianist tonight who's not yet a song-leader, so had to settle for the CD tonight.  It sounded fantastic - really proved just how much the church's sound system is designed for playing CD's and lot for live music.

And I miss a proper Gloria.   Not 'cos I'm a liturgist.   Just 'cos the Peruvian is a great son, but is missing to much of the theology from the full text.   


Good Friday

What we sang 

  • Entrance:   silence
  • Psalm: - spoken
  • Gospel acclamation:  Praise to You Lord Jesus Christ - unknown.
  • Response to the intercessions:   O Lord hear us we pray, O Lord give us your Love.
  • Veneration of the Cross:   Were you There - Afro-American spiritual
  • Communion: violin instrumental first, followed by The Old Rugged Cross
  • Sending:  Silence

What I'd like to have sung:

The Reproaches - ideally Frank Andersen's verison, accompanied by a guitar and violin.   But really, any version would do.


Easter Saturday

What we sang 

  • Exultet: - was read, not sung   
  • Psalm 1 - Send forth Your Spirit O Lord - well known locally, I haven't been able to track down who this arrangement is by
  • Psalm 2 - I Will Bless the Lord - Frank Hernandez
  • Psalm 3 - You will draw water in Joy - another locally known version
  • Gloria - Peruvian - complete with electronic bells (sounded lovely)
  • Gospel Acclamation:    Alleluia No 1 - Fishel
  • Offertory:   Come to the Water - Andersen
  • Communion:   A solo - I didn't catch the name of the song
  • Sending:     Sing a New Song

What I'd like to have sung:

Frank Andersen's Exultet.   Or any other Exultet with a refrain part.   (I found a simple one from the UK in 2011, but haven't yet had the right people to introduce it with).

Any or all of Christ be our Light,  Jesus Christ is Risen Today and even some Hallelujah Chorus would have been lovely.   But we did a simple, joyful service well, with plenty of Alleluia in there.


Easter Sunday

What we sang 

  • Entrance:   Seek Ye First
  • Gloria - The Latin Gloria, Missa de Angelis version
  • Psalm: - Alleluia No 1 - Fishel.    Aiming for three verses, but it got cut short.
  • Gospel Acclamation:  Pilgrim Alleluia - Lawton - made a welcome return, very well sung by the children present
  • Offertory:   instrumental
  • During Communion: instrumental "What Wonderous Love" - played 7 times due to the crowd
  • After Communion  "You Raise me Up" - Secret Garden
  • Sending:  Because he Lives - the Gaithers

What I'd like to have sung:

Jesus Christ is Risen Today, with full pomp and ceremony - this is the only day in the whole year when I like a thundering organ.

The Easter Song - unknown.   Folky but with long memories.

Lord of the Dance.    

Or The Lord is Alive by Jean-Paul Lécot.   This is a new old-favourite, I learned it here in a parish I visited with when still thought I was just her for six months.

The Gloria was an experiment.  Our lead-musician today is a lovely woman who doesn't cope well with minor keys.    She's tried bluffing her was through the Peruvian, but it really doesn't work.   We've tried an arrangement to Ode to Joy,  but doing it with the official text has too many words for comfort, and an unofficial version that we have is even further from the real text than the Peruvian.    But she remembers the old Latin version, and was confident that she pull it off.    The older people joined in - and so did the African community, so that counts as a win and has been added to the "hymns the parish knows" list.

Because He Lives was new to me.   I was sceptical at first - but the lead musician suggested it, and I figured that if she knows it, then lots of other people would too, and I was right.    Big hit among all ages and the Africans.    Probably I was the only one there who thinks it's just a bit too country-and-western.   But I'll get over it, again, it needs to go on the regular list. 

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