The psalms have always been at the ceter of Christian worship: they are prayers known and used by Jesus Christ himself. This book draws widely on the psalms, and explores aspects of this great collection of Jewish poetic prayers that expresses the whole range of the human condition and of our relationship with God.

There are two parts to the book: a service of celebration on the theme of psalms, which includes the psalm settings, hymns, refrains and songs; and a collection of choral resources for use in the service and at other times. Some of the pieces have smaller choirs in mind; others are more demanding. The anthology offers a treasure store for use on many occasions.

This is very much a North American book, and the richness and diversity of North American culture are reflected in music from different Christian denominations and cultural roots. Though English is the dominant language, there are items in French, German, Hebrew and Spanish.

Much of the musical content is new or published here for the first time. It has been identified by Benjamin Hutto, with assistance from members of the board of RSCM America, and the service has been devised by John Harper, Director General of the Royal School of Church Music.

This rich and diverse anthology of music includes:

• A service of celebration on the theme of the psalms
• A widely varied collection of choral resources including: spiritual, jazz and Hispanic. African, Western and indigenous music reflecting the diverse roots of North American culture
• Music for smaller choirs with limited resources as well as more demanding repertoire.

The heart of the worship takes three central themes from the psalms:

TRUST IN GOD   +    LAMENT    +   PRAISE

The book includes a wide range of new or unpublished music including:

• Two settings of the RSCM Choristers’ Prayer (Gerre Hancock and John Harper
• The Apple Tree (David Ashley White)
• Trisagion (Dent Davidson)
• Two settings of Magnificat and Nunc dimittis(one based on African and African-American Melodies, and one by Dorothy Papadakos)
• Benedicite (Thaddeus P. Cavuoti);Anglican Psalm chant (Benjamin Hutto)
• Responsorial Psalm setting (Denis Bédard)
• New arrangements of ‘There is a balm in Gilead’ (John Barnard)

The service ends with a stunning new arrangement of Sydney Nicholson’s ‘Crucifer’ with optional brass and percussion by Sir David Willcocks.