I teach music in church and school settings. In my work at school, I began to use the Orff Schulwerk (school work) process developed by composer Carl Orff, which incorporates speech, singing, movement and instruments. Orff process begins with short chants based on song lyrics and nursery rhymes. I soon saw a sacred connection and found inspiration for these chants in the Psalms. Setting verses of Psalms as rhythmic chants and adding instruments is a creative way to proclaim the word and foster group participation.
Here’s how the process works:
Say what you want to say. The message should drive your writing, not rhyme. Also, texts don’t have to rhyme.
Avoid cliché. Don’t settle for using overworked expressions and worn-out rhymes.
Be practical. Use the Scripture that has been planned for worship. Consider the instruments you already have, the number of people in your groups and your worship space.
Let the natural rhythm of the text be your guide. Distill the text to its core meaning so that it fits into the rhythm patterns that start to emerge.
Here is an example using Psalm 107:1-3:
O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
those he redeemed from trouble
and gathered in from the lands,
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.
Verse 1: The main idea is thankfulness to God.
Verses 2-3: The main idea is telling of God’s redemption and the gathering of the redeemed.
Verse 3: Re-state from whence the people are gathered.
Paraphrase these ideas to create two, 12-syllable lines with a slant rhyme.
We thank God. God is good. God loves us forever.
We will shout: God saves us, brings us all together!
From the east, from the west, from the north, from the south:
Brings us all together!
Here is an example using Isaiah 40:28-29:
Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable.
He gives power to the faint,
and strengthens the powerless.
The first line of verse 28 works well as a refrain: “Have you not known? Have you not heard?”
After that, there are six lines of text to be paraphrased. Divide those into “couplets” to be interspersed with the refrain.
The Lord is everlasting. God created the earth. (Refrain)
God does not grow faint. God is mystery. (Refrain)
God strengthens the powerless. (Refrain)
Once the text is written with those emergent rhythms as a guide, notate it and add various instruments. Experiment with performing forces and location setup. For Psalm 107, we divide into four groups and place them in the east, west, north and south corners of the sanctuary.
Experiment with text, singing, movement and instruments and see how the Spirit moves!
Nathan Crabtree serves as music director at Northminster Presbyterian Church in Hickory, North Carolina, as well as music teacher at Snow Creek Elementary School.
