Favourite Housey hymns

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Vièr Bliu
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by Vièr Bliu »

To raise the tone again slightly, and since it appears that we're agreed we can have Leaving and Foundation hymns as freebies, I'll add "The Royal Banners Forward Go" which is always tinged with incense and visions of vestments for me. Looking back on it, those full-blown liturgical CH experiences were my first introduction to the power of liturgy as theatre. Of course, whether this ultimately has had any influence on me in later life, such as my agreeing to dress up as a monk in a few week's time to retell the life and martyrdom of Saint Helier, is a question I leave to others.

And I think I'd throw in "Dear Lord and Father of Mankind". That's one which has stayed with me.
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by chaosriddenyears »

Kim2s70-77 wrote:http://www.davidpbrown.co.uk/poetry/wil ... avies.html

I think this was the one we learned, in addition to the Wordsworth and "Hark you Bear, you are a coward and no brave as you pretended...." from Hiawatha. We also read "Bran, the Bronzesmith". ( In fact, I think I can remember just about every English class we ever had! )
As far as hymns, though - to get back on topic - I always loved the rousing stirring ones, most of which have been mentioned already. There were some simple dirges from Evensong that I liked too, but their names escape me. ?Nunc dimmittus??
Also "He was a tightfisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge......"
"Dear Lord and Father of Mankind" is also one of my favourites.
At evensong we sang "The day thou gavest, Lord, has ended" among other things.

I loved the window over the altar at Hertford with the 4 archangels.
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by Fjgrogan »

I think I would like to know what those ducks are up to behind the parapet! Are they refugees from the floating duck house?

Seriously though, I too love Gregorian chant, and Taize music, which acts rather like the rosary in that while your mouth is singing the words your mind can be meditating (or just wandering) on a totally different subject. And I have to thank Housey for the fact that I ever went to Taize. I think it was the first time that a school trip there had been planned and there were no female staff available to go, so Maria 'volunteered' me. We travelled across France in a school minibus - the type with bare wooden benches - seven boys, my daughter, Tom Jeffers, Gary Dobbie and me. It was a great experience. The great thing about the Taize experience in general is that the central part of the service (three a day) revolves around music and silence, both of which are internationally understood. If we could have bottled the feelings of all those young people and hung on to them the world would be a better place. Later we also went to one of the International Meetings between Christmas and New Year in Paris - imagine travelling on the Metro late at night and hearing hundreds of young people of all nationalities singing Taize chants all along the train. I think that Taize is something which you can never fully explain to anyone who has not actually been there - and I have tried many times. Sorry, slightly off topic, but I think relevant nevertheless?
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by englishangel »

I have not come across Taize (except when Josh mentioned it) but I imagine it is something like the Free Church Spring Harvest, though that is families too.

I always avoid cars with an "I have been to Spring Harvest" sticker in the window as they seem to be driven as though the occupants are in a state of Grace and are divinely protected.
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by Fjgrogan »

No, no, no - Taize is nothing like Spring Harvest - which is all happy-clappy families flinging their arms in the air! Taize music is mainly short chants in assorted languages repeated over and over again, so that the mind can wander off meditating on 'whatever' - very relaxing, very contemplative, very like Gregorian chant in its effect. Also very uplifting, and appealing particularly to young people. Difficult to describe unless you have actually experienced it - Maria might do a better job of it than I can?
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by Euterpe13 »

Taize is part of the Charismatic Movement - a colleague when I worked in France used to go there regularly with her family, and always came back "glowing" - albeit a trifle too ecstatically for my taste.
Although invited, I never got round to going with them - not quite earthy enough for me, I'm afraid.
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by kerrensimmonds »

You don't have to go to Taize to sing its music.....
http://www.taize.fr/en
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by mvgrogan »

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaggggggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

i just spent hours writing a long post all about the Taize experience and it's disappeared!!

- no fair!

:? :shock: :( :cry:
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by englishangel »

Euterpe13 wrote:Taize is part of the Charismatic Movement - a colleague when I worked in France used to go there regularly with her family, and always came back "glowing" - albeit a trifle too ecstatically for my taste.
Although invited, I never got round to going with them - not quite earthy enough for me, I'm afraid.
So is Spring Harvest but I must admit neither ring my bells. I once lay terrified in bed when my Ma started 'speaking in tongues'.
"If a man speaks, and there isn't a woman to hear him, is he still wrong?"
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by kerrensimmonds »

I believe that Taize and Spring Harvest are totally different.... the first being more spiritual, for a start. I think that Taize is more about the self and spirituality, and Spring Harvest is more about firing young people into enthusiastic proseletysation (spelling probably wrong, sorry!).
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by mvgrogan »

TAKE TWO :roll:
Fjgrogan wrote:Difficult to describe unless you have actually experienced it - Maria might do a better job of it than I can?
ok - challenge accepted!.. I can't imagine saying that Taize isn't earthy - but that's more to do with the camping that accompanied the music & silence! :lol: Having never been to Spring Harvest, I can't compare, but Kirri could - I think she's done both! :roll:

My love of Taize stems not just from the music but the whole experience. I was 16 when I first went and I went again a year later - that probably also coloured my enjoyment. The whole experience was of sharing faith rather than being preached to/at. As well as the services of music & silence, you felt the celebration of faith continued during shared duties - like washing up for thousands - as well as the multi-lingual discussion groups. My favourite memories of Taize are based around sharing your own culture with others... learning how to flamenco, for example...and singing beatles songs (because everyone knew all the words) at the cafe in the late evening. Strangers smiled & said "Ola" (universal greeting) as they passed on the path.

The music itself is repetitive - only one or two lines sung to a simple tune, often with harmonies. During the services at Taize, the congregation sings this refrain while the monks sing prayers in a number of languages over the top. The refrain can be sung for many minutes and often after the evening service, people would stay in the chapel and continue singing, sometimes for hours - not in the joyous celebratory manner of the cafe across the way - but a shared meditative practice...chilling out in the chapel!

For those who aren't aware of the silence it is worth noting that at the start of a week at Taize you wonder how you can stay silent for any length of time without being bored... by the end of the week, the silence does not seem long enough. I never times it but I suppose it was 15 minutes.

There's loads on youtube - i just found this one... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkSFyWtO ... re=related

:backtotopic:
Hearing or singing Taize music now invokes that whole feeling of the uninhbited sharing of faith - safe and happy. We had it at our wedding and I often sing it to Xander to calm him.
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by NEILL THE NOTORIOUS »

I don't remember the "Leaver's Hymn" ---- perhaps it wa only at Hertford, or since my time ?
My favorite is "The Day Thou Gavest Lord is Ended" -- sung as a little Cub, in Stockwell pre-war. I love the words
I have made it known, that if anyone sings the 23rd Psalm to "Crimond" at my Funeral -------- I'll 'aunt 'em !! :twisted:

I have just seen the Post about Spring Harvest ------- When you have heard "To God be the GLory" sung at the top of the voice by some 3000 people, in a big Marquee, ---- you will never forget it !
Last edited by NEILL THE NOTORIOUS on Fri Jun 19, 2009 5:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by Fjgrogan »

Neill, should you not by now be halfway to Lake Garda?
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by NEILL THE NOTORIOUS »

Only in SPIRIT ! --- we actually leave from Bournemouth atabout 8 am --- early call ! on Wednesday -- I will announce our return, on the Forum !
Spirit ? back to Single Malt -- but I always buy a bottle in the "Duty Free" which may be --- but the price is about the same ! :(
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Re: Favourite Housey hymns

Post by NEILL THE NOTORIOUS »

An Afterthought ---- Recently we sang, in Church "Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord" The Battle hymn of the republic -- cleaned up from "John' Brown's Body"

It is also the Anthem of the Paras --- and in Church that morning there were 3 of us, who all agreed, that, during the hymn --- the "Alternative" version was running through our minds-----
They scraped him off the tarmac like lump of Strawberry Jam
They took him to the Mortuary, on a piece of 4 by 2
And he 'aint gonna jump no more !!

Sorry to (As usual) lower to tone ! :oops:
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