The Revival Festival Of Music: Legacy Five and many more at Scottish festival
Lins Honeyman writes: It has often been said that there is a surprising number of Southern gospel fans in Scotland given the genre’s obvious American roots and this was certainly something that was borne out as folks turned up at the start of May to Perth’s Revival Festival Of Music – a three day event [...]
Sing Psalms tutor CD now available
The Free Church of Scotland’s Psalmody Committee has released a CD collection to help precentors and congregations become more familiar with the tunes in Sing Psalms. The set contains CDs featuring most of the tunes used in Sing Psalms. Each Psalm is first of all sung by an individual voice, then accompanied on the keyboard [...]
Official Top 10 biggest selling Christian and gospel albums of 2012 revealed
To celebrate the launch of the UK’s first official Christian and gospel albums chart, the Official Charts Company is revealing the official top 10 biggest selling Christian and gospel albums of 2012. The biggest seller of the year, Friar Alessandro, was the first ever friar to sign a major label record deal and chart in [...]
Official Christian and gospel albums chart to launch next week
In recognition of growing interest in Christian and Gospel music, the Official Charts Company will be unveiling the UK’s first Official Christian And Gospel Albums Chart next Monday (March 11). The new weekly sales-based Top 20, launched in partnership with Christian charity Compassion, will officially rank the success of Christian and Gospel recording artists for [...]
Glasgow Cathedral chiefs sack new choirmaster over school ban
A church choir chief drafted in after the former boss was axed in a sex scandal has been given the boot. Richard Pratt (pictured) replaced Iain Simcock, 47, as choirmaster at Glasgow Cathedral after he was sacked over an alleged romp in the graveyard. But when Church of Scotland bosses took him on last month, [...]
Lewis pastor quits Free Church over new music policy
One of the Free Church of Scotland’s longest-serving ministers has left the denomination. The Reverend Donald MacDonald, who had been preaching for 47 years, has resigned as a result of the change in the organisation’s worship policy. In November 2010, a special General Assembly voted to allow musical instruments and hymns in public praise. Until [...]
Church hopes to revive renowned choir that was killed off in 1560
Their voices last rang out when Leith was besieged by the French and Mary, Queen of Scots ruled the nation. Now a school of song, or sang schule in old Scots, will return to the city district for the first time in more than 450 years. The congregation of Pilrig St Paul’s Church hope to [...]
James MacMillan: Singing the Reformation
I was invited to open a new exhibition at Edinburgh University this month: Singing the Reformation – an exploration of the music in use in Scotland during the troubled time immediately after 1560, writes James MacMillan. It runs through the Festival until the end of October. These are my thoughts on the subject: A range [...]
New book and CD celebrate music of 16th century Dunfermline Abbey monk
An early-modern monk will sing again after four centuries. The music of Dunfermline composer-monk Jhone Angus has been recognised and recorded in a new book. The publication traces the growth of the Reformation and includes reproductions from contemporary music manuscripts and also a 15-track CD of his music. Jhone Angus was born about 1515 and [...]
Anti-singing campaigners 'declare war' on Free Kirk
A campaign against the introduction of hymn singing in the Free Church of Scotland is a "declaration of war" against the church, a leading theologian claims. Prof Donald Macleod, former principal of the Free Church College, has attacked those behind a recent newspaper advert opposing a General Assembly decision to overturn a century-long ban on [...]
