Oxford Hymn Settings for Organists: Easter and Ascension

These are all well-structured compositions rather than 'hymn-fillers'. Keys are chosen to match those frequently found in hymn books, but it would be a pity just to use these pieces (and inevitably adapt their length) to extend a hymn and fill a gap. I particularly enjoyed the pieces that confound expectations such as David Blackwell's 'Pastorale on Gerontius' with a gentle 9/8 canon that at the end slips from Dykes into Elgar, and Michael Bedford's 'Meditation on Easter Hymn' that is quiet throughout. 'Easter Hymn' and 'Passion Chorale' are the only two of the 62 hymns that have two settings, the second Easter Hymn being a wildly rhythmic treatment by Philip Moore. 'A New Commandment', 'The Servant King', 'Alleluia no. 1, Jesus is Lord' and a 'Jubilant Dance on Our God Reigns' provide coverage of hymns and songs that have more recently become established, alongside the hymns traditionally associated with these seasons. * Duncan Watkins, Sunday by Sunday (RSCM), June 15 *