Ornamentation in hymn accompaniments (was: How common is it...)
  • SalieriSalieri
    Posts: 3,177
    ...for organists to embellish the tune of a hymn, while it's being sung? I know that this was common practice in the days of gallery bands, but I've never heard this discussed in workshops or classes on hymn accompaniment, so I'm just wondering if anyone else does this. (Image attached of the kind of thing I mean.)
    trurotune.jpg
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  • MBWMBW
    Posts: 175
    Really good question! I do it a bit - on very well known tunes in later verses.
  • BenBen
    Posts: 3,114
    I've seen more advanced organists do things like this occasionally, especially in the case of final verses.
    Thanked by 1francis
  • kenstb
    Posts: 369
    I do it too, but only when I'm bored or feeling particularly mischievous.
    Thanked by 1fp
  • Caleferink
    Posts: 435
    Sometimes I'll pull the trumpet en chamade out and solo out the melody for a stanza, especially if it is a lesser-known tune or one with which people seem to be struggling. On the really solid ones (e.g., "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee" this week for my recessional), I'll sometimes use or create an alternate harmonization for the last stanza (as long as I remind the choir to sing that stanza in unison).
  • CCoozeCCooze
    Posts: 1,259
    We used to have an organist (may his soul rest in peace) who would not only embellish his part during the singing (at that time it was just a men's melody-only chorus, so not messing with other voice-parts), but quite often modulate between verses - especially leading up to the last verse.
    It was always interesting to hear, as well as to guess when the next verse was going to begin...
  • CharlesW
    Posts: 11,986
    As a rule, I don't do much of it. I was even told at one time to cut back on descants, since they obscure the melody line for the congregation. Oh, well...
  • SalieriSalieri
    Posts: 3,177
    I find that this type or ornamentation works especially well for 18th century tunes where lush harmonies a la David Willcocks seem out of place. (Alternately it doesn't work very well with THAXTED or DOWN AMPNEY, go figure.)
  • francis
    Posts: 10,848
    I use this technique very judiciously. Bach would go nuts on this one and lose the entire congregation.
    Thanked by 1kenstb
  • Liam
    Posts: 5,116
    Answer: Not common in Kathlick klimes in the USA.

    Reserved for Warhorse Tunes that congregations will sing no matter what happens with the organ and choir.
  • FidemInFidebusFidemInFidebus
    Posts: 611
    I'd say common, I do it sometimes but like others usually save the frills for the last verse, and nothing so heavy that people can't follow along. It's fun to carry over my ornamentation knowledge to the keyboard, something I never imagined I'd do until I became a church accompanist...
  • ClergetKubiszClergetKubisz
    Posts: 1,912
    Yes, I've done that sort of thing before, but you've given me the brilliant idea of writing out my embellishments. I've just been kind of memorizing them, which of course limits me to what I can remember, which isn't so much, really.
    Thanked by 1canadash
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,424
    I do it all the time. I'll play one or two stanzas straight on different sounds, one with full swell, one with solo reed, one with only an 8' principal, another with nothing more than one or two flutes, and so on, perhaps harmonising each stanza differently - what I do specifically depends entirely on the text and the tune. If the people are singing well, I find that they sing even better when the organ is doing something interesting - for reason, it is intellectually stimulating and they respond to this, they can sense that they are part of something of substance and 'get with it'. As for people who don't like or forbid descants, they are grinches. Descants only make the hymn more beautiful and participating in it more rewarding. The alpha and the omega, though, is sensitivity to text. It's all about involving people with the text and aiding textual comprehension. As for interludes between stanzas, these should be used only if the hymn needs stretching out time-wise. As for modulating to different keys, this is bad taste.
    Thanked by 3canadash CHGiffen CCooze
  • MichaelDickson
    Posts: 419
    Our organist sometimes does it, I think when she judges it unlikely to confuse the congregation. I like it, when done well, as a complement to congregational singing. In that case, it can have the effect of drawing attention to the congregation. (When done badly, it draws attention to itself.)
  • CHGiffenCHGiffen
    Posts: 5,199
    Here's an exreme ... and extremely amazing ... example of such improvisation:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83i-_Sn26CI

    Thanked by 3Salieri eft94530 kenstb
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