Psalm 150
  • Sam99
    Posts: 21
    Does anyone know where I could find the George S Talbot Anglican chant setting for Psalm 150? I've searched all over and can't find it. This is the one I'm looking for:

    https://youtu.be/PnMZ0oijMD0
  • chonakchonak
    Posts: 9,157
    I have only found an arranged version on the CPDL site:
    http://www0.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Psalm_150_(Adrian_Wall)
    If all else fails, you might contact the editor of that arrangement, who probably has the original.
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,365
    This chant (a single chant) is found, among other English books, on page 305 of The Anglican Psalter, edited by John Scott, choirmaster and organist of St Thomas', Fifth Avenue, and formerly of St Paul's, London; pub., The Canterbury Press. This entire psalter is a marvel and is one that you should have in your library. It is chock full of chants that are centuries old as well as new chants by Howells, Willcocks, and others. It may be had from Lois Fyfe in Nashville (1-800-851-9023; e-mail - sales@loisfyfemusic.com). You may also be interested in the glorious chant for psalm CL by Stanford, which is also in this book.

    Many thanks for posting this chant. You made my day!
    Surely the two official choirs in heaven will be a choir of the choicest French monks singing Gregorian chant, and an English choir of men and boys singing Anglican chant.
    ______________________________________

    P.S. - A recording of this same Talbot chant with Psalm CL sung by St Thomas', Fifth Avenue, can also be heard on YouTube
    Thanked by 4chonak CHGiffen Ken of Sarum BruceL
  • Sam99
    Posts: 21
    Much thanks to you both!

    Yes, I agree, those would be some fantastic choirs!
  • ScottKChicago
    Posts: 349
    The sound on the video linked above is marvelous. I found the pointing surprising, but I'm sure there's a reason for it. John Scott's psalter has it pointed quite differently (in a way that I'm sure matches the St Thomas NYC choir's rendition).
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,365
    ...a reason for it.
    There are, indeed, multiple pointing 'methods', especially from recent years (or decades). That of John Scott is amongst the most daring and artful of any. At least, by pushing the cadences further back in the verse we have eliminated that old 'Anglican thump' whereby we rush up to the last one or two accents and then pound the dickens out of them.* What we have achieved with our various 'modern' pointings is a far more musical result than what is found in, say, the 1940. One thing that is better about the 1982 is the modern pointing of the chants.

    *There is also 'Catholic thump', in which the same treatment is imposed upon the Gregorian tones. I have heard this numerous times and even have a CD of a Dutch choir doing this - it is quite comical.
  • Ken of Sarum
    Posts: 406
    MJO - Speaking of Anglican Chants, do you know of any publication of all the Anglican chants ever composed (not the psalm text)? I am especially looking for such a volume(s) so that one can, for example, look up all the musical compositions by a composer in some form of alphabetical order.
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,365
    Ken -
    I don't know of such a book. If it existed it would, I think, be a multi-volume encyclopaeadic undertaking. There are literally hundreds and thousands of Anglican chants of varying degrees of worth. The Scott book is, to my knowledge, the most exhaustive compendium. I know of no other book which has quite so many chants both ancient and modern. There are multiple books with such titles as The New Cathedral Psalm Chants and The Anglican Chant Book, both by Novello. These are not psalters but books with only chants. There is, also, The Revised Parish Psalter With Chants, from Faith Press. There are dozens of books such as these that have several hundreds of chants in them, but no book that attempts to present them all. I have written two or three dozen myself. Most of them are good; several are really good!
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • Ken of Sarum
    Posts: 406
    MJO - I have the all the books you suggested, especial John Scott's book. Additionally, I have dozens of psalters and chant only books, many quite old, from 1732 to the present day and hundreds of hymnals too starting at 1642; a huge library. At one time I had thought about creating an encyclopedic compendium of musical Anglican chant settings and soliciting composers to add to it. It would indeed be a huge undertaking! However, I am afraid that in light of current declines worldwide, it would not be wanted or appreciated.
    Thanked by 2M. Jackson Osborn CHGiffen
  • GerardH
    Posts: 410
    @Ken, such a collection does exist, in a way, at anglicanchant.nl. The catalogue's system is not the most intuitive, and the chants are stored only as midi files, which have very limited use. I tend to import the midi into my preferred music transcription software. Understandably it is also limited to the public domain, but it does have a large number of chants available.

    Perhaps the site's creators would be interested in items in your collection...
    Thanked by 2M. Jackson Osborn CHGiffen
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,365
    Ken -
    Out of curiosity what is your 1642 hymnal? I would love to spend a day in your library of psalters and hymnals. My oldest psalter-hymnal (1849) is a mere 170 years old. It is Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs, by the Rev. Isaac Watts, D.D. and others. It is words only, with the intended tune named for each hymn. One tune is said to be a 'popish ditty'. It is leather bound, only about 4x6 1/2 inches, and the print is very small (as in 'tiny'). I have many hymnals and psalters which post date this book, but none earlier than it.
  • Ken of Sarum
    Posts: 406
    GerardH - I am familiar with that site but rarely can I find on it actual compositions in regular normal musical notation. There are a few I found on it but that seems to be the exception rather than the rule.
  • Ken of Sarum
    Posts: 406
    CORRECTION - This hymnal says 1640 and I think it was from the Massachusetts area. It is extremely fragile and kind of looks printed or in very good hand. It's a little hard to read, the pages are very very brown and the book is small and thin. Other than my several illuminated vellum pages of plainsong chant from the 11th to 15th century, this hymnal is the oldest one I have and written in 4 staves.
    Thanked by 1M. Jackson Osborn
  • GerardH
    Posts: 410
    Ken -
    Hence my suggestion of importing the midi file into a music notation software. It gives you the correct notes and note values, although formatting you have to do yourself (clefs also seem to come out strangely).

    Also, it's *Gerard ;)
  • Ken of Sarum
    Posts: 406
    Thanks, I corrected it Gerard. I took a closer look at my 1640 hymnal, (I haven't looked at it in years), I think its a Bay Psalm Book from Cambridge, Mass. I inherited it when I was a young student long ago and never really paid much attention to it. It seems to be psalms in metrical prose with the accompanying music.
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