Archives for: February 2008

From Hawaii:
Thanks for providing your arrangements for free. I’m sending the link to my daughter who is ward choir director.

My daughter teaches at a private school and recently they were learning about George Washington. When she asked the children, “Who was the first president of the United States?” One boy shouted out, “Gordon B. Hinkley!”

From Washington:
I am a Ward Music Chairman and always looking for music with our choir director. Thanks. Nice Site.

Yesterday, our ward choir sang, “Come Ye Disconsolate.” I think the sopranos were a little timid to come in when the piano sounded their first note, so only one or two started singing and then the others joined in one by one. I actually like the effect. Maybe next time we’ll do that on purpose.

This is a busy time of year for our ward choir. In addition to singing at least once a month in Sacrament meeting, we are expected to sing for Ward Conference and several numbers for Easter. It’s nice to have a couple of simple hymn arrangements that can be learned quickly to perform with only a couple of practices. For instance, today our choir is singing “Come Ye Disconsolate.” Since it is fairly simple, we will be able to review it and then spend most of our time on our more challenging Easter program.

How many of you dedicated choir directors out there continue choir practices and performances during the summer? I’ve heard from two schools of thought on this. Those who like to take the summer off say that it rejuvenates the choir members. They also contend that it is hard to get the choir together do to summer vacations.

Those who disagree point out that a summer vacation for the choir means for an entire fourth of the year there will be no choir music in Sacrament meeting. They also point out that many people go on vacations during the Christmas holidays too, but nobody cancels choir practice because of it.

I have had to take a break from working on any new hymn arrangements while an electronics expert is looking at my ailing keyboard. He will tell me if the recording feature can be repaired. In the mean time, until I can get back to writing choir music, I will write a nice little piano piece for the little girl down the street to play in the school talent show.

From Australia:
Hi I have been implementing similar ideas to yours in my ward choir. I do like to stretch them now and again to put them a little outside their comfort zone and the results have been encouraging. Thanks for this music. A lot of bishops don’t understand the impact that music has on the spirit of a meeting, hence quite low budgets.

When I visit friends in the hospital I like to take my harmonica and play songs for them. The reason I do this is because my piano is too big to fit into my purse, and because they can’t get away even if I play badly which I usually do.

Since piano solos are quite popular downloads on www.freewardchoirmusic.com, we have two more solos to post. These are nice to use as special numbers for Sacrament Meeting. One is a nice arrangement of “Our Savior’s Love,” and the other is “I Need Thee Every Hour.”

In the hymn arrangement, O My Father, on the 4th page, in measure 61, the wording is “and I felt that I had wondered from a more exalted sphere.” Of course, the word should be wandered. Spell check didn’t catch that one before we posted it, so please correct it in your copies and we’ll correct it the next time we update.

I wondered how I missed that one!

As we listen to yet another talk about genealogy and family history we have the feeling that somehow we should be doing more, but we don’t really know what to do or how to begin. We aren’t computer experts. We aren’t even very organized. We don’t have the hours of time we think we need in order to do that kind of research. The truth is that most of us are convinced of the importance of searching for our ancestors; we just don’t know how to begin.

The good news is that today’s technology has made it possible to organize and do research in only minutes per day.

Computers are more user friendly today than ever before with all kinds of tutorials and helps available. Nearly every ward or stake in the church has family history specialists standing by to answer questions regarding the use of the latest technology.

Here are some suggestions in getting started: These take only a few minutes and do not require expert research skills to accomplish. If you get stuck on any one of these steps, contact your ward or stake family history specialist or call the Family History Library for help.

Day 1:
Go to familysearch.org and find the download link on the right side of the page about halfway down the page. Click on “Download PAF.” Follow the instructions. It is free, easy and takes just a few minutes.

Day 2:
Open the Personal Ancestral File and record information about yourself. Fill in all the information you know and write anything you need to find out in a notebook. You may not remember your baptism date, for example.

Day 3:
Open the PAF and record the sources of the information about yourself. Ask yourself, “How do I know this date or place?” The answer to that question is called a source. Useful sources include birth, marriage, and death certificates, family bibles, funeral programs, obituaries, and wedding announcements.

I like to record my sources in the notes section because it allows you to type certificate numbers, phone numbers of relatives, and other information such as physical appearance, etc. Click on the note pad to the middle right of the personal information screen and type in any sources you used to record your personal information.

Day 4:
File your certificates and letters in a manila folder with your name on it in a file drawer or box. The cost of a file box is quite reasonable, and instead of looking through stacks of papers again and again, you will be able to use that time to do more research.

Day 5:
Contact your ward or branch clerk and get a copy of your membership record. This will give you your baptism and conformation dates and other membership information.

Day 6:
Go to familysearch.org and click on “register” on the top right of the page. Fill out all the information. The membership number and confirmation dates will be found on your membership record. This is also free and takes just a few minutes.

Day 7:
Open PAF and record information on your spouse if married, or your parents. Write down anything you don’t know in your notebook.

Day 8:
Record your sources in the notes of your spouse or parents. Personal knowledge is also a source.

Day 9:
Call, write, or email your parents and ask them for their personal information. Be specific. “Do you know when Uncle Harold died?” is better than, “What do you know about the family?” It is also a good idea to only ask for one or two dates and places at first, or relatives may feel the project is too time consuming and put you off. Take notes during the conversation and ask if you may make a copy of any sources they have.

Day 10:
Carefully copy the sources your parents give you and return them.

Day 11:
Record the sources in your PAF for each individual listed on the source.

Day 12:
File the copies of the sources in manila folders with your parent’s names in your file box.

Day 13:
Contact extended family members and record the information they give you. Take notes in your notebook. Record the information and file any documents you find.

Day 14:
Choose a family or ancestor with missing or incomplete information.
Go to familysearch.org and sign on in the upper right hand corner. Fill in the information under “Search For Your Ancestors” with the name of the ancestor you have chosen. Ancestral File and Pedigree Resource File are databases of pedigrees submitted by other researchers. If your ancestor is listed there, that means someone else is also looking for that ancestor and you may be able to share information.

Day 15:
Write or email the person who listed your ancestor in the Ancestral or Pedigree Resource Files. Again, ask specific questions instead of asking them to “send me everything you have on the Cook family.” And remember to only ask for one or two dates or places.

Day 18:
Go to familysearch.org and click on Research Guidance on the top of the page under “Get started with family history.” Follow the suggestions of the research assistant on the left.

Day 19:
Print a copy of your pedigree and family group sheets and take them to the nearest family history library. Helpful librarians there will guide you to other sources where you can find more information on your family.

Day 20:
Look how far you’ve come! You have begun what has been called “the greatest individual responsibility that we have.” (Doctrines of Salvation [Bookcraft, 1955], vol. 2, p. 146.). Keep taking one step at a time.

President Boyd K. Packer said concerning his own research, “We gathered together everything we had, and in the course of a few weeks we were amazed at what we were able to accomplish. The thing that was most impressive, however, was the fact that we began to have experiences that told us somehow that we were being guided, that there were those beyond the veil who were interested in what we were doing. Things began to fall into place… It was as though the Lord was waiting for us to begin.”

You too will be amazed at what you can accomplish in just 10 minutes a day.

Some people are looking for a nice hymn arrangement for a funeral. I have always liked “God Be With You Till We Meet Again.” The one on www.freewardchoirmusic.com has a nice descant.

When I write a hymn arrangement I work with a keyboard that records so I can play the parts and the accompaniment at the same time and make sure it all fits together. When I add an obbligato, I need the recording feature even more.

Sadly, the record playback has stopped working, so getting out new arrangements is taking longer. I can’t decide if it would be better to try to get the keyboard fixed, or to invest in a new one.

From Arizona:
I just got called as ward Choir Director. I’m so excited to find your site! Thanks!

For our Easter program this year, the ward choir is singing “God so Loved the World” from the choir book, Larry Beebe’s arrangement of “There is a Green Hill Far Away,” and my arrangement of “How Great the Wisdom and the Love with the flute obbligato.”

In addition to those numbers we will have a wonderful quartet of men singing “Rock of Ages” from the hymnbook. The first verse will be sung with bass, tenor, and the melody an octave lower with a very talented tenor singing the alto as written. The second verse we’ll have the melody sing the words while the others ooh their parts. The last verse is very effective with the melody singing one line alone and adding the other parts one by one.

I am very pleased with the way it sounded yesterday at practice.

We will also have a nice tenor singing “His Hands,” as a solo. Of course, we will have some wonderful scriptures from Isaiah quoted between songs.

We can’t go wrong with such excellent material.

Since our Hispanic brothers and sisters seem to be having a hard time finding and using the free Spanish hymn arrangement web site, we have decided to combine it with the English site. It may take us a few weeks to put it together, but the goal is to make the ward choir arrangements easy to find and download for everyone.

The more well known a hymn is, the more difficult it is to write an arrangement that people will like. They are used to the hymn the way they have always heard it and tend to resist any changes in harmonies or rhythms. “We Thank Thee, Oh God, For a Prophet” is like that. It evokes tender emotions in nearly everyone who hears it and sings it. Nevertheless, it deserves a place among the music performed by our ward choirs, so it must be attempted.

Someone has asked for a hymn arrangement of “We Thank Thee, Oh God For a Prophet.” I will take a look at that one after we have reworked the Spanish website and finished the medley arrangement of “Press Forward Saints” and “I Believe in Christ.”

We are still trying to get some new piano solos posted as well.

From Arizona:

THANK YOU SOOOOOOOOOO much for sharing your beautiful music and talent!!!!!!!!!!

From Utah:

THANK YOU!! for using your talents and posting music that is available for free. Celestial rewards are better than monetary ones, eh?

I am grateful for your site. It will bless many people, they will appreciate and love music more. It will help them become more nearer to God.

From Idaho:
I found you on a google search and I truly truly appreciate your generosity with your gifts! THANK YOU!!!

From England:
Thanks for what you are doing. It is a great help to those of us who are less talented.

I’ve started on an arrangement medley of two hymns as suggested by a friend from Arizona. “Press Forward, Saints” and “I Believe in Christ.” These hymns are full of energy and faithful enthusiasm. They should work well together.

It is difficult to know how energetic a ward choir director should be in recruiting members for the choir. Too much enthusiasm and ward members begin to avoid you as they would an over zealous sales representative. Not enough and your choir has three members because nobody thinks about attending.

I am the music chairman for our ward, so I am in charge of special musical numbers for our Sacrament Meetings. Often when I ask someone to sing or perform, they will say, I’d like to sing “Faith” from the children’s songbook. Do you know of a nice arrangement? I usually do look for an arrangement at the local music store, but am so often disappointed at what I find. Too difficult. Too high. Too boring.

So I end up writing one. That is why our next postings will be two SA arrangements, one of the children’s song, “Faith” and one of “As Sister’s in Zion.” Also the new song, “My Mom is the Best.” Hopefully in time to learn for Mother’s Day. Plus two piano solos; “Our Savior’s Love” and “I Need Thee Every Hour.”

You can pretty much tell what our ward has been singing by the postings that appear on the site.

From Utah
Thanks for all of us on a very limited budget (actually no budget.)

From Colorado:
I was searching for a website that would give me great lds music for my ward choir and not be expensive as our choir is on a budget. Thankyou for your website!