Musical letters from Abroad

urn:iso:std:iso:639:ed-3:eng

166-7

text excerpt

On Sabbath last we attended Rev. Mr. Binney’s church, Fish Street Hill, Weigh House Chapel. Mr. Binney was in America a few years since, and is well known to many persons there. He is not only an excellent preacher; but, although not a musician, he is a lover of music, and has done much to promote psalmody among his own people. The order of the service in his church is most beautiful; I hardly know that it could be improved; it is as follows:

I. Invocation. The Lord’s Prayer alone was used the Sabbath we were there.

II. Hymn.

III. Reading first lesson from Scriptures.

IV. Prayer — half as long as the long prayer in American churches.

V. Psalm, chanted.

VI. Reading second lesson from Scriptures — New Testament.

VII. Prayer, about the length of former.

VIII. Hymn.

IX. Sermon.

Anthem, a hymn.

XI. Very short prayer, and benediction.

There is no choir; the singing is congregational, and led by a precentor. It was quite good; one does not often hear a better performance of this part of the public worship, but yet it would be much improved if simple tunes, appropriate to Congregational singing, were substituted for the too difficult ones attempted on the Sabbath we were present. A peculiarity of the singing here, is, that the whole congregation engage in chanting. The 24th Psalm was chanted to one of the plain old English chants, with an effect far, very far better than one hears when he listens to the trained Cathedral choirs. [...] Mr. Binney’s sermon, on Christian growth and development, was most able and satisfactory. The standing posture was observed in singing, and the sitting posture in prayer and the other exercises.

excerpt from 'Musical letters from abroad' pp. 166-7 (291 words)

1448396441082:

1448396441082