|
The Tuesday
|
West Gallery
Music When music returned to the parish churches of England, after the restoration of the monarchy in 1661, there were no hymns as we would recognize them today. A number of writers embarked on turning the Psalms of David into verse form for congregational singing; notable among these early hymn writers were poets such as Tate and Brady and Isaac Watts whose words are in use to this day. However, there were no widely accepted tunes to go with these words and so local musicians and choir masters up and down the country, many with no formal musical training, composed their own tunes. Thus grew a rich and varied tradition of church music, often with harmonies and rhythms which often now seem unorthodox. The music would usually be performed in an uninhibited fashion by a band of local musicians. The erection of special galleries to house these musicians at the west ends of many churches has given rise to the name "West Gallery Music". Sadly, the often undisciplined results fell from favour by the Victorian era. The bands were replaced with organs and, in 1861, Hymns Ancient and Modern was published to impose standard and, some would say, sanitised tunes to the words of Watts, Wesley and others. By the end of the 19th century, the old tunes had virtually died out, although they survived in the carol-singing traditions of the West Country, South Yorkshire and Derbyshire. It is only in the past 25 years that enthusiasts have revived interest in this music to perform pieces re-discovered in old and dusty church manuscripts. Play a sample West Gallery Tune :
Birmingham (England) Links to West Gallery Music Sites: English West Gallery Music Resources |