Hymn Setting
tagStarted 1535Peak 1600–1900Last big hit still active
Located in 1 route
Hymn setting arranges, harmonizes, or elaborates congregational hymn melodies for choir, organ, congregation, or concert performance. The sound is usually direct and singable, but classical treatments add counterpoint, descants, harmonic depth, organ interludes, and ceremonial breadth.
History
As vernacular worship expanded after the Reformation, hymnody became one of church music’s most durable repertories across Protestant and Anglican traditions; composers, organists, and arrangers continually reworked hymn tunes for liturgical use, school choirs, great festival services, and recital settings, making the hymn setting both a functional and artful branch of sacred music.
Defining artists
Essential listening
- Old Hundredth — Choir of King's College CambridgeSpotifyYouTube
- Love Divine, All Loves Excelling — Choir of St John's College CambridgeSpotifyYouTube
- Jerusalem — Westminster Abbey ChoirSpotifyYouTube
- Abide with Me — TenebraeSpotifyYouTube
- Praise to the Lord, the Almighty — The Tabernacle Choir at Temple SquareSpotifyYouTube
- Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer — The SixteenSpotifyYouTube
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica
- Oxford Music Online
- Grove Music Online
- church music and hymn recording notes from Hyperion and cathedral sources