Hail and Hosanna

Performance Notes:

• For performance notes on this song, see page 1088 of Psalms for All Seasons: A Complete Psalter for Worship.
• For more information about this song, refer to the Leader’s Edition of Sing! A New Creation.
• The following article is by Emily Brink, from Reformed Worship.

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Psalm 118 has long been associated with both Palm Sunday (“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. . . . With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession,” vv. 26-27) and Easter (especially a verse like “The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone,” v. 22). Here is a refrain by James L. H. Brumm and Alfred V. Fedak that can be sung along with the reading of portions of that psalm. Brumm is a pastor in the Reformed Church in America, and Fedak is a widely published composer of hymns and anthems. Both have written for Reformed Worship, and both are members of the committee that prepared Sing! A New Creation. This refrain is extracted from an anthem published by the Choristers Guild for a three-part treble canon for Palm Sunday; they composed it for the twentieth annual festival of the Central Jersey Chapter of Choristers Guild.

Here is one suggestion for singing this refrain with the reading of portions of Psalm 118 on Palm Sunday or Easter Sunday, either as a call to worship or as part of the Scripture reading before the sermon. (If you choose to do the reading responsively, the boldface type indicates verses that are to be spoken by everyone.)

Introduction (repeat the accompaniment to the first measure two times on organ, piano, bells, or a combination)

Refrain (sung first by all the children)

Psalm 118:1-2a, 2b, 41, 4b

Refrain (sung by all)

Psalm 118:14, 15-16, 17-18, 19, 20

Refrain

Psalm 118:21-22, 23, 24,25, 26, 27a, 27b, 28, 29

Refrain (sung as a round)

On the last statement of the refrain, enjoy the delight of singing as a round, with the children singing the three parts. The accompaniment for singing in canon adds a measure to take care of the extra music needed. You might want to end by singing the song one more time with the entire congregation in canon.

Other Resources:

• Purchase a 3-part treble choral score of this Psalm that is published by Choristers’ Guild.
• Visit hymnary.org for more information on this song and additional resources.