Before the 16th century congregations had very little to sing during a standard church service, and hymns as we know them today only really came into being during The Reformation. This course will trace the development of hymn writing through five centuries and will include excerpts from the BBC series ‘A History of Christianity’ to set the hymns in their historical context.

Who’s the course for? Anyone who wants to deepen their knowledge/appreciation of music. No technical knowledge required.

Commencing: 1 November 2017. (6 weeks: 1/11, 8/11, 22/11, 29/ 11, 6/12, 13/12)

Cost: £42

1. FILM: A History of Christianity (The Reformation).

Germany: Luther – chorales. Switzerland: Calvin – metrical psalms. England: early hymns and metrical psalms (Thomas Tallis)

 

2. Ravenscroft’s Psalter. Orlando Gibbons: tunes for George Wither’s Hymns and Songs

The hymns of Isaac Watts (1674-1748) and John Newton (1725-1807)

 

3. FILM: A History of Christianity (Moravians and Methodists)

Moravian hymns and trombone choirs. The hymns of Charles Wesley (1707-1788)

The first Anglican hymnbook. The hymns of James Montgomery (1771-1854)

 

4. FILM: A History of Christianity (The Great Awakening in America). The hymns of Ira D. Sankey. The Oxford Movement. Women hymn writers. The salvation Army

 

 

5. Ancient and Modern (1861): the tunes of J.B. Dykes, Monk, The English Hymnal (1906): Vaughan Williams tunes and harmonisations

 

6. FILM: A history of Christianity (contemporary trends)
Hymns or worship songs? Music for worship: difficult decisions