Most popular Sacred & religious music books

The exquisite sound of a lone chorister singing Once in Royal David's City amid the candlelit chapel of King's College, Cambridge, marks the start of the Christmas festivities for millions of people round the globe.

Andrew Gant's compelling account traces English church music from Anglo-Saxon origins to the present. It is a history of the music and of the people who made, sang and listened to it. It shows the role church music has played in ordinary lives and how it reflects those lives back to us., The author considers why church music remains so popular and frequently tops the classical charts and why the BBC's Choral Evensong remains the longest-running radio series ever. He shows how England's church music follows the contours of its history and is the soundtrack of its changing politics and culture, from the mysteries of the Mass to the elegant decorum of the Restoration anthem, from stern Puritanism to Victorian bombast, and thence to the fractured worlds of the twentieth century as heard in the music of Vaughan Williams and Britten. This is a book for everyone interested in the history of English music, culture and society.

Johann Sebastian Bach is one of the most unfathomable composers in the history of music. How can such sublime work have been produced by a man who seems so ordinary, so opaque - and occasionally so intemperate? This book distills the fruits of a lifetime's immersion as one of Bach's greatest living interpreters.

Contains a collection of 29 authentic spiritual arrangements for SATB choirs. This work spans the period from 1914 to 2001 and includes many of the best-known songs from the genre's most important composers and arrangers. It surveys the spiritual's range of themes and forms. It includes Piano reductions suitable for unaccompanied songs.

To celebrate its 30th anniversary of publication, a brand new edition of the ultimate combination of traditional hymns and modern worship songs.

Lewis Ayres offers a new account of the most important century in the development of Christian belief after Christ. He shows how the doctrine of the Trinity was developed, and in particular argues that a conception of God's mysteriousness and spiritual progress towards understanding is central to that doctrine.

Experiencing Jewish Music in America offers an accessible exploration of the remarkably diverse landscape that comprises Jewish music in the U.S. This survey on the art of listening to this dynamic and diverse musical culture invites listeners from all walks of life to enjoy the many types of Jewish music available in their communities.

for SA and piano or orchestraWith a simple, appealing melody and a flowing accompaniment, The Colours of Christmas evokes a touching sense of longing for the joys of the festive season.

for SATB, accompanied and unaccompaniedCarols for Choirs 5 continues the tradition of its predecessors by providing a complete resource for choirs from Advent through to Epiphany. Featuring brand new carols and arrangements of classic tunes, the collection showcases the very best established and new names in choral composition today.

This volume collects one hundred of the most important and beloved Late Antique and Medieval Latin hymns from Western Europe. Ranging from Ambrose in the late fourth century to Bonaventure in the thirteenth, the authors meditate on the ineffable, from Passion to Paradise, and cover a broad gamut of poetic forms and meters.

Rod Ismay has a passion for the Tour de France. If you think you know someone who is obsessed, think again, but fortunately Rod's issues found their natural home when his native Yorkshire became the host for the 2014 Grand Depart. Rod also has another passion - as well as cycling he is quite keen on bell-ringing, so why not combine the two?

English Church Music assembles in two volumes around 100 of the finest examples of English sacred choral music of the past five centuries. The first volume, dedicated to anthems and motets, presents both favourite and lesser-known works, from Renaissance polyphony to the works of the great 19th- and 20th-century composers.

This collection caters for church choirs of all types and sizes and presents flexibility of scoring in a constructive and realistic way, with particular provision for unison or two-part singing and a focus on ease of learning and performance. With complete coverage of the Church's year, this is a vital resource for all church choirs.

This second edition of Historical Dictionary of Sacred Music contains a chronology, an introduction, appendixes, and a bibliography. The dictionary section has over 800 cross-referenced entries on major types of music, composers, key religious figures, and specialized positions, genres of composition, technical terms, and instruments.

Mirrors of Heaven or Worldly Theaters? Venetian Nunneries and Their Music is the first in-depth study of the dynamic role of musical rituals at Venetian convents in the Early Modern era, examining the nuns as patrons and performers, of both simple plainchant and complex sacred polyphony. The book also considers organs, bells, and musical and theatrical entertainment by and for the nuns.

Explores different aspects of ritual chanting, the indigenous music of Zen Buddhism, and the tensions that have arisen from its migration to and continuing development in North America.

'How to make Gospel Music work for you' is an informative and authoritative guide to gospel music in Britain today. In this engaging and readable book, Roy shows how the music, which began in the West Indian Churches started by the Windrush Generation in the 1950s and 60s, rose to become the gospel music we know and love in Britain today.

The definitive collection of 100 anthems, mostly for SATB voices, from Tudor times to the present day, including favourites from each period, and lesser-known pieces. Keyboard reductions are included for unaccompanied music, and organ accompaniments are always practical.

Describes the evolutionary processes of Gregorian chant's history as well as its definition and terminology, the structure of the liturgy, the texts, the notation, the rhythm, the tonality, and the methods and forms of psalmody.

Seven years in development, Singing the Faith is authorised by the Methodist Conference and replaces Hymns and Psalms, published almost 30 years ago. Containing the classic, best loved hymns of the Christian tradition it also incorporates many bold and exciting elements including hymns, songs and liturgical chants from the world church.

Offers an exploration of a best-selling gospel album. Through interviews, musical and theological analyses as well as archival discoveries, this book sets the scene, traces the recording's traditional origins and pop infusions and describes the album's enduring impact.

wonderful collection includes 70 of the nation's most popular hymns, providing essential words and lyrics for any celebration. Includes favourites Jerusalem, Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, All Things Bright and Beautiful, The Holly and the Ivy and Abide with Me.

This collection caters for church choirs of all types and sizes and presents flexibility of scoring in a constructive and realistic way, with particular provision for unison or two-part singing, while not forgetting SATB choirs, and a focus on ease of learning and performance. With complete coverage of the Church's year, this is a vital resource for all church choirs.

A diverse collection of seasonal organ music for manuals only, covering the Church's year from Lent to Pentecost. The pieces include a mixture of established repertoire, attractive new arrangements, and two newly commissioned pieces. The collection is technically accessible and provides approachable repertoire for all church musicians.

The book represents an exploration of three Irish-language mass settings for the Roman Rite, two by Sean and one by Peadar O Riada, written from within the cultural context of the Gaeltacht of Cuil Aodha. In it the author highlights the significance of the achievements of both composers.

With new information on four generations of women musicians, this book expands and alters the narratives that scholars and musicians have told about music in sixteenth-century Ferrara. A radical perspective on a familiar repertoire, it proposes a new way of thinking with consequences for music history and performance practice.

Examines songwriters Bill and Gloria Gaither's Homecoming video and concert series - a gospel music franchise that, since its beginning in 1991, has outperformed all Christian and much secular popular music on the American music market.

for SSA, piano, & opt. guitar, bass, & drum kit Samba Mass is a joyous setting of the Missa brevis. The stylistic piano part can be played as written or serve as a guide, and an optional band part is available separately. Performers will enjoy exploring the interplay between voices and the rich colours of the samba and bossa nova styles.

for SATB and soloists (M-S, T, & B), with organ and flute or small ensembleWith this majestic work Chilcott takes on a landmark of the choral repertory, the Christmas Oratorio. Words from St Luke and St Matthew are intertwined with 16th-19th-century poetry to create a compelling retelling of the Christmas story.

A collection of 34 anthems covering all seasons of the church's year.

The traditional edition of the English Hymnal, this volume includes the very best hymnody from medieval plain chant to the early twentieth-century classics. The hymns are grouped according to theme and contain material suitable for any festival or occasion in the life of a church.