4 Ways to Improve Your Hymn Playing on the Organ

Hymn playing is the foundation of any church organist activities. In order to play the hymns correctly, you have to follow some basic techniques. In this article, I will share with you 4 simple ways which will help to improve your hymn playing on the organ.

Use good articulation. Playing with clear articulation is important because it helps people to appreciate the melody and the harmony of the hymn better. Look at the date of the hymn. If it was created before the 19th century, use articulate legato, or the ordinary touch. Make small rests between each note and feel the strong and weak beats of the measure. Articulate more before the strong beats. Do not make the notes too detached but with a cantabile or singing manner. On the other hand, if the hymn was created in the 1800s or 1900s, the normal articulation is legato. Shorten the notes by a half only when you see repeated notes and at the end of the lines. However, whether you play legato or with articulation, always try to coordinate the releases - depress and release the chords exactly together.
The beginning and the end of the stanzas is important. The end of the stanza should propel people to sing the next one. There should be no confusion about when does the new stanza starts. Make it constant with every stanza. It often sounds best, if you add two extra beats at the end in the 4/4 meter or one full measure in ¾ meter. Note that the last beat should be a rest for taking a breath before singing.
Do not double the bass with your left hand, if you use pedals. This suggestion is very important if you want to develop hand and feet independence. For those of us who start playing the organ after some time of piano playing, the left hand naturally tends to play the bass. But if you play hymns in four parts and use pedals for the bass line, play soprano and alto in the right hand and tenor in the left hand. There are other possible dispositions for playing hymns as well but this is most common one.
Think about registration. It is wise to change the registration according to the meaning of text of the specific stanza. For certain texts Organo Pleno registration with principal chorus and mixtures works well, for others experiment with reeds or flutes. Gentle, joyful, sad, or energetic texts require adequate registration as well.

If you follow these suggestions, you will be able to play any hymn you want with confidence. Congregation will be much more eager to sing together when you will play the hymns in time, with good articulation, registration etc. People will know when to start new stanzas, if you finish correctly the previous ones. In turn, they will appreciate your organ and hymn playing on a much higher degree.

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