This is another bilingual selection for Breaking Bread in 2027.
It was written by Al Valverde in Spanish and English. It is a simple sung prayer that inevitable sounds better in Spanish.
It does start out following “Shepherd Me O God” pretty closely.
The sheet music is at OCP, as is the text.
That last one has some added elements.
This is a new setting the Prayer of St Francis. It was written by the formidable team of Francesca LaRosa and Sarah Hart.
It has been selected for Breaking Bread for 2027.
It is certainly a lovely setting. The sheet music can be purchased at OCP, where the text is in their preview. If you don’t do an instrumental interlude the refrain only gets sung once, so maybe do the interlude. This has the flowing up and down melody gambit in spades but there are some surprises too with the triplets and the change in the coda to compensate.
My backing went a little overboard with flowery piano in BIAB.
This is another new setting of a James Quinn text this time by Nichlas Schaal and inspired by Psalm 141. Schaal provided the text for the refrain and used Quinn’s words for the verses.
It is a song of comfort in distress, which would also work in Lent. It is another quiet reverent hymn.
Edward Eicker has set this James Quinn Annunciation text, and the result has been added to Breaking Bread for 2027.
It is sedate and reverent.
The sheet music can be purchased at OCP where the text is in their preview.
This recent, gentle song for Eucharist and Gifts was written by Bob Hurd and has been selected for Breaking Bread by OCP in 2027.
He at least waits until the fifth bar of the verse before unleashing the usual downward string of notes motif that I am seeing almost everywhere in OCP selections. When he does something similar in the chorus there is compensating variation and modulation to calm me down.
The sheet music is at OCP as is the text.
This is a bilingual (Spanish/English) ballad for Advent. The music and Spanish lyrics are by Ivan Diaz, with an English text by Francesca La Rosa. It was chosen for Breaking Bread in 2027 by OCP, but with Advent nearly upon us, is worth consideration now.
OCP says the verses are more rhythmically energetic than the reflective refrain – not really – but it is a beautiful slow hymn nonetheless. More likely you could build the whole thing up to slow burn praise and worship noisiness in the refrain if you wish, then bring it back down for the verses. As usual, it sounds better in Spanish.
The sheet music can be purchased at OCP, who have provided the text in their preview.
I made a BIAB backing, which stays restrained and sedate:
This is a relatively new text by Janine Applegate set to OMNE DIE, a C17 German tune. It has been selected for Breaking Bread 2027 by OCP.
It is a song of comfort in despair as found in Christ. OMNE DIE shares an opening motif with BEACH SPRING, but predates that tune by a century or so.
The sheet music, including choral parts, is available at OCP. Her words are in their preview.
I used the free church organ sound from SINE music for this fake BIAB organ backing.
This is well done from OCP ie the choir sounds normal – why my tone of surprise?
This bilingual hymn (Spanish/English) with a text by Pedro Rubalcava to a traditional tune, has been added for Breaking Bread in 2027.
OCP note that it is a well known hymn for Adoration in the Spanish speaking community.
It sounds better in Spanish, so while it has an English text as well, it is likely best for the assemblies who need Spanish or Bilingual hymns – ie not usually Australia.
The sheet music can be purchased at OCP where the texts are in their preview.
My backing is at their stated speed but I prefer the slower pace that is used in the sample music at OCP.
This hymn is inspired by the Latin text attributed to Pope Innocent VI. It is to be added to Breaking Bread for 2027.
The music is by Ricky Manalo who also did the English text and Rudolfo Lopez did the Spanish words.
The refrain starts in Latin then splits off into either Spanish or English. There are eight verses in English and eight in Spanish. Verse five also has French, German, Filipino and Vietnamese versions. It is certainly a singable song for Eucharist especially if you need a multilingual hymn, but it may be that we need to decide between Mozart and Manalo for this text.
I noticed that like most of the upcoming hymns, this one has obvious smoothly ascending or descending note sequences, so that is clearly what OCP are looking for. It may be hymn writing 101 but if everything is using the same melodic idea it might get a bit samey.
The sheet music can be purchased at OCP, where the text is in their preview.
I will have another divergence from the New Living Parish Hymn Book, to look at the songs being added to Breaking Bread by OCP for 2027. You can see the list of what is added and what has been removed here. As I say every year, having your music specified by a particular company is really strange and would never be accepted here in Australia. Being an OCP parish or a GIA parish makes no sense from my perspective. Projection where feasible or if not a bespoke parish hymnal seems much more sensible.
OCP have provided a webinar about resources for next year:
I will have a look at what has been added, but the trend to less lively church music continues apace. Everything is very sedate and Dan Schutte is about as lively as it gets.
Of some interest is the return of two songs whose deceased authors were accused of sex crimes. I gather that the crimes were not proven and so they are back on the menu. Having already looked at these many years ago before the allegations were made, I won’t be looking at them again.
Let’s see what OCP has to offer.
