Living in this Life with You

I’m going through a recent newsletter from Monica O’Brien at Willow Publishing highlighting up-tempo and contemporary songs.

“Living in this Life with You” is actually quite a gentle, sweet song on discipleship from Michael Harvey. I must have seen him as part of the Big Sing from Willow at the APMN conference last year. This song is from a collection called Grace, which can be purchased as a sheet music album from Willow. This song is also available individually. It the sort of song you would like to see in an As One Voice Vol 3 ebook.

BIAB is good at this sort of thing, but it may be approximate as I worked it out based on the preview and the You tube clip – obviously you buy the sheet music if you are going to play it at church.

Living in this life with you,

I call and you hear.

Sharing in this love with you my heart has no fear.

Feeling I can soar with eagles as long as I believe its true.

Facing up to all my weakness,

I’m strong when it’s you… me and you.

Living in this life with you,

Your word guides my day.

Sharing in the path I choose my soul finds it way.

Close at hand you guide me safely,

Giving me the strength to fight.

Guarding me from all temptation

The Way, and the Truth… and the Life.

Feeling I can soar with eagles as long as I believe its true.

Facing up to all my weakness,

I’m strong when it’s you… me and you.

I’m strong when it’s you… me and you.

© 2021 Michael Harvey published by Willow Publishing.
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The Feast of Love Divine

I’m not sure if Monica O’Brien is having a lend of us listing this song among her up-tempo, contemporary songs in her recent newsletter. This is by Chris Currie and it is certainly contemporary, being a very recent song, but I’m not sure up-tempo is accurate as it it meant to be played “andante with dignity”.

Apart the seven songs and the “Jesus Icon of Mercy Mass” available at Willow, I can find no information about the songwriter and I invite those with that knowledge to enlighten me. I know he has worked with Peter Grant, but that’s about it.

The text makes for an exemplary communion song. It also seems a fine hymn tune to me.

The sheet music can be purchased from Willow. I made a backing based on the preview with two verses – I have no idea if there is more to the song as there is no track to listen to there and I can find no trace of a version on the web.

I don’t know if my efforts on BIAB are ever dignified, but I wound up the fake organ for this one and it will give you an idea of the tune at least:

1 This is the feast of love divine,

Where all here gathered young and old may feed.

All are welcome to partake from Christ’s own hands,

Food for all who hunger and thirst for love.

2 This is the feast for every heart,

Where all the wounded, and the strong are one.

Bread and wine become the love of Christ for all;

So with faith we offer our lives with his.

© 2022 Chris Currie published by Willow Publishing

Maybe it was a challenge to play it differently – but this is much less dignified I’m afraid:

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Music for Palm Sunday Year B 24th March 2024

We are having a joint Palm Sunday mass for the parish so there will be no Vigil mass at which I usually play. I will therefore join in with the other music groups.

I have cribbed music selections from a past liturgy at St Peters, Rochedale, so many thanks to them.

Entrance: Blessings on the King AOV 1/104

Gifts: Glory in the Cross (Good Friday verses)

Communion: We Remember AOV 1/81

Recessional: Jesus Remember Me AOV 1/152

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Fully Alive

I don’t think I’ve done justice to the late James Maher msc on this blog. I did see him play at one of the AOV conferences and he was most impressive. This article has some of his background. I’ve done the couple of his songs that are in AOV NG, but without any collections available I have not looked at his other songs. Monica O’Brien’s recent newsletter of contemporary and uptempo songs included this great song of his.

This would be a fine replacement if all your “seed” songs are are bit tired. It’s a good chance to follow his lead and go a capella once the refrain is established.

The sheet music can be purchased at Willow, where there is a snippet to which to listen.

I couldn’t work this one out so I bought the sheet music to make a backing.

Chorus 1

It is your joy and your glory that we are fully alive.

And our joy to know you, to behold you, and in your love to thrive.

The seed of faith you’ve sown within our hearts

Can grow in to the strongest tree, to shelter us in any storm.

Can bring a harvest hundredfold and we thrive.

Fully alive. Fully alive.

Verse

You came that we’d have life to the full

That we’d welcome your Good News and let it grow in good soil.

You’ve spoken in our hearts a word of love,

That the cares of all the world, the false burdens that we bear,

Will not prevail and will not hide our light.

Chorus 2

It is your joy and your glory that we are fully alive.

And our joy to know you, to behold you, and in your love to thrive.

It is your joy and your glory that we are fully alive.

And our joy to know you, to behold you, and in your love to thrive.

The seed of faith you’ve sown within our hearts

Can grow in to the strongest tree, to shelter us in any storm.

Can bring a harvest hundredfold and we thrive.

Fully alive. Fully alive. Fully alive.

It is your joy and your glory that we are fully alive.

Love, joy, glory.

© 2012 James Maher msc administered by Willow Publishing
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Do To Others

This was another of the uptempo songs Monica O’Brien suggested in a recent newsletter. It is in As One Voice for Kids but can also be purchased separately as sheet music. It has words by Maria Millward and the music is by Damian Halloran.

It’s is an energetic song with a message for all, not just children.

My backing is approximate:

Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Say to others as you would have them say to you.

Think before you speak and act, we’re all God’s children that’s a fact,

So do to others as you would have them do to you.

Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Say to others as you would have them say to you.

Walk a while on others shoes, it’s easy then to always choose

To do to others as you would have them do to you.

Different eyes we have to see and different points of view.

With different hopes and different dreams for you and me for me and you.

Different gifts we have to share to help each other see,

That all of us must learn to care for each one in God’s family.

Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Say to others as you would have them say to you.

Think before you speak and act, we’re all God’s children that’s a fact,

So do to others as you would have them do to you.

Walk a while on others shoes, it’s easy then to always choose

To do to others as you would have them do to you.

© 2001 Damián Halloran and Maria Millwood
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Can I?

Monica O’Brien sent an e-mail around with her eWorship newsletter recently, highlighting contemporary and uptempo music. Most of them I have blogged here already, but a few are new, so I’m going to have a look.

“Can I?” is a song about homelessness from the marvellous Amanda McKenna that might suit a high school exploring social justice issues.

The sheet music can be purchased at Willow. There is no sample there, so listen to Amanda’s amazing voice on Soundcloud. My backing involves some guesswork. There is a hint of Split Enz’s “My Mistake” at times in the tune.

1 One day you’re just hanging on, the next in dire straits.

The things you least expect become the fears you have to face.

But there’s nowhere safe, a place to call home.

You’re so scared and ashamed, now you’re all alone’

And it could happen to anyone.

2 She’s been hurt so many times it doesn’t faze her anymore.

She fades into the background like a thousand times before.

Who knows what she’ll face when the sun goes down?

Got no private space where she can let her guard down.

She’s never been so lonely.

Chorus

Can I, hold out my hand?

Learn how to stand with my sister and walk with my brother.

Can I, open my heart?

Listen with love to my sister and talk with my brother.

Can I?

3 Dirty and depressed and hasn’t had enough to eat.

He’s sleeping rough and acting tough, surviving on the street,

And it’s cold outside but nobody cares if her lives or dies.

Might even be easier that way.

He’s never been so angry.

Chorus

© 2007 Amanda McKenna
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God’s Call

I was having a gripe about Fiona Dyball’s otherwise exemplary presentation on sung prayer in high schools, in that so little of the material she used was Australian.

Let’s redress that here with a song by Fiona Dyball herself. I struggle a bit with Marian songs, probably due to my protestant upbringing, but this is quite a nice piece of music and as good a Mary song as I’ve heard.

She notes about her song:

God’s Call is a response to the account of the Annunciation, as told in Luke 1: 26-38. Mary’s call to discipleship is the call for us all: how will each of us respond to God’s invitation of love to fullness of life? This is a unique discernment for each person. The fruit of this deep listening to the Spirit is the joy of God’s faithful accompaniment as we move forward in our lives. God is with us as we build and sustain communities that are a living sign of faith, hope and love.

The piece was commissioned for an international Catholic pilgrimage to Israel in 2019. It premiered at the Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth on New Year’s Day, 2019 on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. 

I purchased the sheet music for $A8.95 at Liturgical Song.

The download package contains MP3 and PDFs of the Full Score, Cello, C instrument, and Assembly A5.

You can also listen to the song there to get an idea of the lyrics. One of the sample sheets show the SATB for the alleluias at the end so you can get an idea where it’s all heading.

I made two backings, one somewhat following her arrangement ( the piano is BIAB not her piano part) and one with interludes, harmonies and alleluias cut back to fit what might work in a normal parish. The down side of that is having to remove the instrumental parts that presage the melody of the alleluias – can’t have everything. I couldn’t put all the alleluia lines into the backings so best to listen her version for that. The verse lines that lead in to the chorus seem a familiar trope to me, Rob Galea’s “Fill Us Up” is similar too, but I’m sure there’s a famous hymn that has a similar tune for that phrase and I just can’t place it.

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Music for Prayer and Devotion 7: More Chants

Fiona Dyball finished up her presentation on “road tested repetoire for prayer services at Catholic Secondary Schools” following Taizé with people imitating Taizé.

Incidentally, the link from her presentation to her article on school liturgy is now dead but it can still be accessed here.

A bit like her presentation at the APMN conference, I bet everyone’s heads were spinning after all that music in one sitting. There was actually even more but I was able to axe all the David Haas selections, which slimmed things down a bit.

I Will Walk in the Presence of God by Tony Alonso

This is new to me and a mantra that is a call to prayer. The sheet music is at GIA and the text is in their preview.

Jesus Christ: Yesterday, Today and Forever by Sr Suzanne Toolan

Toolan wrote this in the style of Taizé. The link Dyball provides goes to a collection at OCP, but it is available as a single sheet from GIA just not under it’s title – use this link. The text is in their preview.

Where Two or Three by Br Michael Herry

The sheet music is free at the Marist website. Caution is advised – you may get stuck there looking at all the music he has written and never emerge. He is the third Australian to get selected here after Fr Rob Galea and Gen Bryant – not counting Hillsong, of course.

So, Fiona Dyball’s presentation is a great resource for high schools, but also for sung prayer suggestions more generally and she deserves congratulations for her road testing.

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Music for Prayer and Devotion 6 TAIZE

Fiona Dyball devoted a section of her talk on “road tested repertoire for prayer services at Catholic Secondary Schools” in 2018 to Taizé. She notes you can purchase then for download at their website, but good luck sorting through that lot. I have the book “Songs and Prayers from Taizé”, which is likely all you will ever need and you can buy that from them or from all over the internet including sheetmusicplus. They are also in CWB II and many are in various Willow and GIA hymnals – AOV, Gather, Worship, Gather Australia, etc – ie you may already have these somewhere. Taizé provide the text for the refrains to which I will link.

Taizé provide all sorts of extra instrumentation, but my advice is keep it as quiet and simple as possible just discrete piano or guitar with voice.

My chant backings come with the usual warning that BIAB is lousy at chant – best to watch the videos then strip it back to the minimum. Replace excess music with darkness and candles.

Confitemini Domino text CWB II 475

Eat This Bread text CWB II 484

In the Lord I’ll Ever Be Thankful text CWB II 522

Jesus, Remember Me text CWB II 526

Laudate Dominum text CWB II 531

Stay With Me text CWB II 317

Ubi caritas et amor text CWB II 633-4

Veni Sancte Spiritus text CWB II 391

Wait for the Lord text CWB II 251

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Music for Prayer and Devotion 5

I’m expanding on Fiona Dybell’s presentation she gave in 2018 looking at “road tested repertoire for prayer services at Catholic Secondary Schools”.

Who Will Speak by Marty Haugen (there is a misprint on the handout – it’s not by Bernadette Farrell).

This is the ultimate social justice hymn/prayer but I find hard to play without getting “sing songy”. I sort of do it with a reggae stumble because gospel is beyond me. The sheet music is at GIA. The text is here.

Your Grace Is Enough by Matt Maher

This is a praise and worship song but is indeed a sung prayer on the subject of grace as well. The text is here but it is the Chris Tomlin version that replaces “God of Jacob” with “God” and ruins the wrestling reference, although I note Maher also drops it in his recorded version too. The sheet music is at OCP.

Quietly, Peacefully by Lori True (adapting Dvorak’s New World Symphony”)

This one is new to me but I have a copy in Gather 3 (this also alerted me to the fact that I never got to the third volume of Gather 3rd edition – oh dear). The text is here and you can purchase the sheet music at GIA. It is popular for funerals.

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