Blogs

Hymn in relation to the killing of George Floyd, USA – WITH A NEW TUNE – and AUDIO

The will for domination leaves carnage in its wake,
as neighbours are berated, while peace and justice quake.
A dream once spoke of freedom, embodied hope and grace,
now all of that is challenged, with hatred in its place.

Hostility is breeding as loving is outlawed.
Hypocrisy and violence once left a saviour floored.
So what is there to save us when leaders lose all sense?
When governments are faulted, we daren’t sit on the fence?

Our common human nature, the seed of human love,
must hold us at the centre beyond the push and shove,
must live beyond this moment, must meet each human need,
when other things divide us, while neighbours die or bleed.

God bind our lives together, fulfil our living dream,
that hearts might cleave together beyond each human scheme,
that love might reign triumphant in every human heart.
Now is the time for building, the time for us to start.

Andrew Pratt 2/6/2020
Words © 2020 Stainer & Bell Ltd, London, England, http://www.stainer.co.uk.
Please include any reproduction for local church use on your CCL Licence returns. All wider and any commercial use requires prior application to Stainer & Bell Ltd.
Metre: 7.6.7.6. D set as 13.13.13.13
Tune: AURELIA; CRUGER; PASSION CHORALE;

NEW TUNE SETTING BY JOHN KLEINHEKSEL

Click link for setting:  Pratt.v.Will.4.Domination.George.FloydPratt.v.Will.4.Domination.George

Click link to access audio:

Audio

 

Can You Hear Me? – composed by Thomas Hewitt Jones

Beautiful music for a time of lockdown – soothing – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSyzRn2Jmuo&mc_cid=4e79d8733c&mc_eid=74ccc3627b

Last week, to mark Mental Health Awareness Week, the Choir of Royal Holloway and soprano Laura Wright released a single by award-winning composer Thomas Hewitt Jones and lyricist Matt Harvey.

On Tuesday, Thomas asked if we (Stainer & Bell Ltd) could make a voice and piano arrangement available for sale in download and printed formats. We were delighted to help and in just a few hours managed to produce, publish and begin taking orders.

By the following day, the song had received over 150k views on Facebook and YouTube and it had gone straight in at number one in the iTunes Classical Singles chart.

The voice and piano arrangement is available here and full choral arrangements of the hit song will appear shortly.

The group are donating all proceeds from the track to Stay Strong, a campaign that aims to connect those suffering from various mental health issues during the coronavirus lockdown with relevant charities.