Hymns

We're featuring evening hymns this week, there's a setting of Psalm 23 (probably the most frequently set of all the psalm), and a hymn that nearly ended up in little pieces in the rubbish bin. Audio

Marking the Feast of All Saints today with William Walsham How's great hymn For All the Saints. Audio

Hymns by Charles Wesley feature in this week's programme. Nicknamed 'the Bard of Methodism', he wrote thousands of hymns throughout his life. Audio

Marking World Mission Sunday this week with hymns including We have a gospel to proclaim, and Who’ll be a witness for my Lord. Audio

An atmospheric recording of Psalm 23 this week, along with some hymns given 'the Vaughan Williams touch'. The English composer (born on 12 October 1872 in the village of Down Ampney) was music editor… Audio

“Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee”, writes Reginald Heber in his well-loved hymn, Holy, holy, holy. Sing along in this week’s programme. Audio

New Zealand hymn writer Shirley Erena Murray’s life and work is celebrated in a new biography by Anne Manchester: Peace is Her Song. You can hear hymns by Shirley Murray in this week’s programme. Audio

Celebrate Te Wiki o te Reo Māori this week with a selection of hymns from Hīmene Māori - a project to document, record, and publish Māori hymns and waiata. Audio

It’s hymns ancient and modern this week. We’ve a setting of Hail, gladdening light (a hymn from the 3rd or 4th century), and In You we live – a 21^st century hymn written by Sue Mepham from Flagstaff… Audio

Celebrating the beginning of the Season of Creation today with hymns including How great thou art, For the beauty of the earth, and Shirley Murray’s Touch the earth lightly. Audio

Hymns from across the centuries this week, from Bernard of Clairvaux's 12th century poetry to NZ hymn writer Jocelyn Marshall's God of Ages written for a Millennium hymn competition. Audio

Church musician William Shrubsole is best known for the hymn tune ‘Miles Lane’. He was a “one tune man”, wrote composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, but what a “superb” tune it was. You can hear it set to… Audio

It's a 21^st century classic to begin this week’s programme: In Christ Alone, written by Stuart Townend and Keith Getty in 2001. Audio

It's straight in with the big tunes today - Arthur Grimshaw's hymn Sing to the Lord a joyful song, to the tune 'Jerusalem' by Hubert Parry. Audio

You can hear hymns based on the psalms in this week’s programme, including All people that on earth do dwell (Psalm 100), O God, our help in ages past (Psalm 90), and I to the hills will lift mine… Audio

19th-century lawyer and politician Robert Grant only wrote a few hymns, but there's one you'll still find in many hymnbooks today: O worship the king. Sing along in this week's programme. Audio

It's Sea Sunday today, remembering and celebrating those whose workplace is the sea with hymns including Eternal Father (the 'Navy Hymn') and Will your anchor hold. Audio

You might think the life of a 19^th century hymn translator was pretty uneventful. Not so for John Mason Neale, who translated our first hymn in this week’s programme, Christ is made the sure… Audio

Celebrating the season of Matariki this week, with hymns in te reo Māori and hymns of remembrance. And we mark the Feast of St Paul. Audio

Two hymns inspired by Psalm 23 ‘The Lord’s My Shepherd’ in this week’s programme. Both from the 1800s, one is by a British professor of music, John Goss, the other is by Joseph Gilmore, an American… Audio