A Music Standard You Can Aspire To - Video Playlist

Have you discovered the special handle A.C.E. Student Conventions have on what constitutes sacred music? In our liberal Christian pop era, do you get to hear this kind of music on a regular basis? Have you wondered, "How can I get familiar with it if I don't attend a church that features such music?"

My brother tells me the key to progress is not finding the answers, but rather, asking the right questions. My question became, "Who is producing online videos that demonstrate this style and give us a standard to aspire to?"

It surely is the way of the Lord that in the course of navigating a paddock of rabbit trails, I came upon a nest of such videos. Dozens and dozens of them. On YouTube. In Russian.

Their channel, broadcast from Germany, is RadioBM - The Bible Lighthouse. Nyet, I don't understand Russkii, but I don't need interpretation of tongues to know sweet sacred music when I hear it.

I'm blown away by the production quality achieved by this church-based television channel. I'm excited by the standard of performance in the singers and their accompanists. There are some great instrumental items too. And wow [hushed tone of awe], the performers meet the A.C.E. dress code.

Below is my playlist of music videos from RadioBM. Notice their poise, their facial expressions, their body language, their diction. This is music ministry. Student Conventions are about training yourself for such ministry. May you be blessed and inspired by these videos to go and make music likewise.

Share the playlist: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLD59218EEB7FED250

PS If you're from The Bible Lighthouse or know someone who is, I'd love to hear from you! Если вы из Библии маяк или знаете кого-то, кто есть, я хотел бы услышать от вас!

PPS If you know of other videos that meet A.C.E. music standards, please share with us!

Sheet Music

Struggling to find good music to play or sing?

If you're looking for lush orchestral, keyboard, or choral arrangements of sacred hymns, you'll find a terrific range at www.MajestyMusic.com, including recordings of how they should sound. Extra-mile service.

www.SheetMusicPlus.com provides a large selection of sacred music, guaranteed low prices, and great customer service.

Digital sheet music has revolutionized my life. You can pay by credit card then download and print immediately. No freight and no wait!

www.MusicNotes.com (US$).
www.SheetMusicDirect.com (UK).

Finding Choral Sheet Music, Cheap

Links are provided in the Sheet Music post detailing the simplicity and ease of accessing brand new sacred sheet music through the internet. Sometimes it's cheaper to get secondhand music, so here's a TradeMe tip for folks in New Zealand and Australia. If you live outside this region, try the same trick on your local auction website such as eBay.com or Amazon.com.

Go to www.TradeMe.co.nz and in the search bar type “choral”. Musicians and retired music teachers frequently list choral sheet music arranged for soprano, alto, tenor, and bass voices (written as SATB). Examples of listings I’ve seen this week are “The Lord Bless You and Keep You”, “The Lord is My Light”, “Prayer” (Brahms), “O Jesu So Sweet” (J.S. Bach), “Written in Red”, “Christmas Gloria”, “Standing in the Presence of the King”, “Lord God Omnipotent”, and “You Alone Will Be Exalted”. Save the search and you can receive daily or weekly updates on music as it’s listed.

Note: It can take 1-2 weeks to process TradeMe membership, so if you plan to bid immediately, you need to already have membership, or ask someone you know who is a member to bid for you.

LYRIC CHECK

If the trader isn’t willing to go to the effort of listing the lyrics for you, it is often possible to find the lyrics on the internet. Do a Google search or use one of the many free lyric-finder websites. I generally use www.LyricsOnDemand.com and www.CyberHymnal.org.

I wanted to check that “He Is the Same” by Carol Cymbala was actually a sacred song, so I Googled for “Carol Cymbala” and found that she is the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir’s director and that she’s written and arranged a lot of sacred music. I didn’t find the exact lyrics I was looking for, but with the above history, it’s safe to assume “He is the Same” is about the one true God.

Google searches may also locate recordings you can listen to online, or playable sheet music, such as offered by www.MusicNotes.com.

Recommendations for MUSIC in drama

The addition of a soundtrack to your drama will greatly increase its impact, but there are some things you must consider when choosing what music to use. Most music recordings are copyright and the artist's rights must be respected. Apply to your national or regional recording industry regulators (such as the Australasian Performing Rights Association, www.apra.com.au) for special clearance of publishing and recording rights.

Topical Music Index

Compiled by Narelle Worboys

non-copyrighted

Movie soundtracks are very thematic, so it's easy to find a mood piece to enhance your drama without the forte and pianissimo interruptions that classical music tends to include. Classical music is a fantastic support to dramatic interpretation, however, but it is a vast genre and if you don't have your own music library, it can be difficult to know where to start looking. I have created this index as a means to simplify this process for you. I am continually adding to the list as I find time to catalogue what I hear. Where possible, I have suggested a specific album.

"Perfume" is produced by ABC Classics: Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
"Ladies in Lavendar" is produced by Sony Classical: Sony BMG Music Entertainment.
"Brassed Off" is produced by BMG Classics, a unit of BMG Entertainment.
ICM = In Classical Mood series, produced by International Masters Publishers Pty Ltd. The 1st digit is the album number, the 2nd digit is the track number.


SUBDUED or MELANCHOLIC

Ludvig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 14 in C sharp minor: Moonlight Sonata
Peter Tchaikovsky: Chanson Triste


SAUCY or CHEERFUL

Perfume by Stephanie McCallum, intro to track 16: Camille Saint-Saëns: Six études, Opus 11, Toccata


JAUNTY or COOL

Ladies in Lavender soundtrack: Track 10: Zabawa Weselna (Polish Dance)
Perfume by Stephanie McCallum, Track 12: Joseph Guy Ropartz: Jeunes filles: L’Insouciante
ICM 24.1 Jean Sibelius: Karelia Suite, Opus 11, ‘Alla marcia’
ICM 24.4 Bernhard Henrik Crusell: Clarinet Concerto No. 2 in F minor, Third Movement


DOOM or DESOLATION

ICM 6.13 Sergei Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 2, Second Movement
ICM 22.9 Richard Wagner: Tristan and Isolde, ‘Liebestod’
ICM 6.11 Johannes Brahms: Symphony no. 3 in F major, Opus 90, Third Movement
ICM 9.8 Maurice Ravel: Pavane pour une Infante Défunte
Ladies in Lavender soundtrack: Track 9: The Letter
Perfume by Stephanie McCallum, Track 15: Francis Poulenc: Novelette sur un thème de Manuel de Falla

Richard Wagner: The Flying Dutchman, Overture
Frank Bridge: the opening of “The Sea (First Movement) Seascape”
Ludwig van Beethoven: Pastoral Symphony, No. 6 in F major, Storm (Fourth Movement)


WILD or DISCORDANT or CRUEL

ICM 16.9 Igor Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring, Dance of the Adolescents


LOVE or TENDERNESS or COMFORT

ICM 6.1 Franz Liszt: Liebestraum No. 3 in A flat


PIZZAZZ
ICM 24.5 Johan Helmich Roman: Sinfonia in G minor
ICM 24.11 Dag Wirén: Serenade for Strings, Opus 11, ‘Marcia’


QUIET or MELANCHOLIC or SAD or SUPPRESSED
ICM 22.6 Peter Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Opus 74, ‘Pathetique’, Fourth Movement
Ladies in Lavender soundtrack: Track 2: Olga
Ladies in Lavender soundtrack: Track 3: Teaching Andrea
Ladies in Lavender soundtrack: Track 5: Thaïs
Ladies in Lavender soundtrack Track 7: On the Beach


SAD or HAUNTING or TRAGIC

Brassed Off soundtrack: Track 13: We’ll Find a Way
Brassed Off soundtrack: Track 18: Honest Decent Human Beings


ALARM or WARNING or PREMONITION OF DANGER

Brassed Off soundtrack: Track 13 finale: We’ll Find a Way


IN A RUSH or MOMENT OF DECISION or TRAGEDY
ICM 6.3 Gustav Holst: The Planets: the introduction to ‘Venus’


EXCITEMENT or HURRY or ANTICIPATION
Brassed Off soundtrack: Track 14: Clog Dance
William Tell Overture


EXCITEMENT

ICM 22.2 Frédéric Chopin: Étude in C minor, Opus 10 No. 12, ‘Revolutionary’


SATISFACTORY CONCLUSION

ICM 22.11 Ludvig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 5, Opus 67, Fourth Movement
ICM 22.7 Max Bruch: Violin Concerto in G minor, Opus 26, Third Movement