Praise and Worship Music to Bless God. . .
|
Amazing GraceHow Great Thou ArtHoly Holy Holy
CLICK
HERE or call Author House @ 888.280.7715 for our new
comprehensive book on PRAISE AND WORSHIP . . .a new and exciting "must have" for every Christian who is seeking to worship God in the midst of the tempest of our modern world.
|
Check
out this powerful Southern Cross song! 
Music to touch your
spirit. . .
"I might
not be a religious man myself but I know good music when I hear it, and this is very
good! . . . I don’t think that I have ever given such high
ratings to so many songs before. But
the fact is that they are well deserved because the
music is amazing. Simply wonderful religious ballads and they
really get to your heart. . .everytime."
Fredrik Cole: Trax In Space
Amazing Grace
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound
that saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found,
was blind but now I see.
‘Twas grace that taught my heart
to fear, and grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
the hour I first believed!
Through many dangers, toils, and
snares, I have already come;
‘Tis grace hath brought me safe
thus far, and grace will lead me home.
When we’ve been there ten
thousand years, bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing
God’s praise than when we first begun.
Vanessa’s inspiring voice savors this classic as only she
can! Her heart-felt rendition over Don’s
bluesy piano and B3 is emotionally-charged and deep.
It is an absolute must!
Song Story
"So the Wigtune Company did it
again! Another wonderful song with beautiful harmonies and not to mention the vocals which
adds something truly amazing to this piece. Download it if you haven’t done so
earlier." Fredrik Cole: Trax In Space
Nobody despised the gospel more than
the slave trader John Newton. However, God
touched Him with His grace and Newton not
only turned his life from sin to God, but became a powerful preacher in early America. It is no wonder, therefore, that he penned one of
the favorite praise songs of all time. Newton’s
tombstone (penned by himself) tells it all: “John Newton, clerk, once and infidel and
Libertine, a servant of slavers in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had so
long labored to destroy.”
Even though his health failed and his
memory deteriorated at the age of 82, Newton declared, “My memory is nearly gone, but
I remember two great things: that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great
Savior!”
This version of Amazing Grace features
an incredible vocal solo by Vanessa. It is a
must!
Amazing Grace has always been my favorite hymn. During my college years the mens chorus
that I was in performed a version of that song that tore me apart. I was not walking with
God at that time, but the words and vocal arrangement ripped right into my soul. That
experience had a lot to do with my turnabout towards God.
Since that time I have been wanting to create an arrangement to the hymn. However, the
opportunity just never came up. Therefore, when we began collecting song ideas for
Vanessas first solo album, Amazing Grace immediately came up. As you may be aware, this
hymn has been put in every context imaginable. . . from pipe organ to country to bagpipe.
When I asked Vanessa how she would like to perform it she asked for a laid-back blusey
feel.
After recording the instrumental tracs I played them for her and she went bananas! It was
just what she wanted. So we immediately took it to the studio to lay her vocal. The song
was so perfect for her that she laid it in one cut. There are a lot of good versions of
Amazing Grace out there. After hearing her sing it, I have become convinced that hers is
right up there with the best.
How
Great Thou Art
Arrangement Copyright © 2000 Don Wigton
Selah sings this hymn filled with
power. Starting with two quite verses, the
song builds to ecstatic exaltation The Bible declares that “The heavens declare the
glory of God.” (Ps 19:1) When the
believer looks at everything that God has made, how can he/she help but worship Him. What a day that will be, though, when Christ
returns to take His people home as the proclaim “How Great Thou Art!”
Song Story
The favorite song "How
Great Thou Art" was written by the Swedish pastor, editor, and member of the Swedish
parliament, Carl Gustaf Boberg (1859-1940). After
a walk through the lovely summer evening near Kronabäck, Sweden, probably in 1885 a
thunderstorm came up suddenly and the wind blew fiercely over the meadows. After the storm
was over he looked out over the Mönsterås Bay which was suddenly as clear as glass. It was then that he heard the call of the thrush,
and then the evening church bell in the still evening which inspired this hymn.
Though the words were
published first in the Mönsterås Times March
13, 1888, Boberg forgot about the text until
some years later when he heard it being sung to its current melody, a Swedish folk melody.
Twenty-two years after its original
creation, in 1907, the German version "Wie gross bist Du" was created. In 1927 it was published in Moscow in a Russian version of the
German text. Stuart K. Hine, an English missionary to Ukraine, found some version of this
Russian text and sang it at an evangelistic meeting with his wife. He then translated the
first three stanzas into English, which was sung at a evangelistic meeting in England
during the First World War. These three verses he published, in both English and Russian,
in 1949 in Grace and Peace, a Russian
evangelistic paper which Hine edited and it went to Russian emigrants in North and South
American. He added the fourth stanza in 1948.
Hine actually
wrote the second and fourth verses of the song as we know it today.
Dr. J. Edwin Orr
of Fuller Theological Seminary first brought the song to America. After hearing heard it sung in Deolati, India, by
a choir of Naga tribesmen from Assam he introduced it to various Christian groups in
America. During a revival in New York it was
sung more than 100 times by George Beverly Shea at a Billy Graham Crusade which increased
its popularity. Sweeden, where the song was
originally written, began to publish it in mass.
When I was ministering at First Baptist Church of Bakersfield as
the leader of the Sunday morning praise team I had the great pleasure of working with the
evangelist/pastor Dr. John Lavendar. After a
time had passed I discovered that this hymn was his favorite of all. Therefore, I was determined to make an arrangement
of the piece that would rise up to its great distinction among that body of believers. It was not long before we were singing the hymn
regularly. One day when the praise team was
leading the congregation in “How Great Thou Art” Dr. John proclaimed the piece
“The National Anthem of the church.”
It was years later
with Selah that I made the full arrangement of the piece as it stands now. This was accomplished in order to provide a
dramatic conclusion to the musical we performed (“The Last judgment”) that
depicted the Book of Revelation. The hymn
certainly rose to the occasion through the years in our many church performances of the
musical. Every time we sang it the audience
was consistently lifted up into ecstatic praise to their wonderful God.
We eventually recorded it.
Yet I remember that I did not like the final mix.
However, the original song files had been deleted from my computer and lost
forever. There was no way to re-mix the
piece and I had no intention of releasing it.
Sometimes it is good to get away from things for a while. Many times that which you think was so good turns
out to sound awful while that which you hated you suddenly love. As things turned out the latter example was my
experience. One day I happened upon the
master tape and was moved to tears. The mix
suddenly sounded perfect and, quite frankly, without flaw.
So I released it on MP3.com. It has since turned out to be one of
Wigtune’s most successful pieces.
If you are a pastor I don’t know if you will declare it as
your church’s national anthem. But I am
certain that it will encourage you in your praise of the Lord!
Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord
God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee:
Holy, Holy, Holy! Merciful
and Mighty!
God in Three Persons, blessed Trinity!
Holy, Holy, Holy! All
the saints adore Thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;
Cherubim and seraphim falling down before Thee;
Who wert, and art, and evermore shalt be.
Evermore shalt be.
Holy, Holy, Holy! Tho’
the darkness hide Thee,
Tho’ the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see,
Only Thou art holy; there is none beside Thee,
Perfect in Pow’r , in love, and purity.
Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord
God Almighty!
All Thy works shall praise Thy name in earth and sky and sea.
Holy, Holy, Holy! merciful
and Mighty!
God in three Persons, blessed Trinity!
Blessed Trinity!
Arrangement Copyright © 1999 Don
Wigton
Dave and Laurie join Vanessa to sing this contemporary
arrangement of Reginalds Heber’s great hymn. This
favorite of many congregations depicts the marvelous scene before the Throne of God in the
book of Revelation. (Rev 4) Kicking off with
tight harmonies this arrangement builds and builds until you can’t help but exalt the
Lord.
Song
Story
Reginald Heber, the author of this
hymn, was always trying to improve the music and the Anglican that he served at in Hodnet,
England. His superiors frowned on the use of
anything but metrical psalms, but Hebner introduced hymns by Newton and Cowper nonetheless
and even wrote hymns of his own. His
greatest, “Holy Holy Holy” would eventually impress Alfred Lord Tennyson as
being the world’s greatest hymn.
It was after leaving England to become
bishop of Calcutta, India, that Herber was surrounded by the worship of false Gods. Nonetheless he was always impressed by the
holiness of God. The tune to this song is
called “Niacea,” named after the church council that met in 325 AD and affirmed
the doctrine of the Trinity.
This is the first hymn that I ever arranged. At the time I was in charge of the praise team of
a traditional church that was attempting to incorporate modern praise choruses in the
service. The pastors had determined that it
would help the older people in the congregation to adapt if I would include hymns in my
repertoire. At the time I was a bit
independent and bull-headed. In addition, I
had been away from hymns for so long that I had come to the conclusion that they were
irrelevant to my life.
However, the leaders of the church gave me a hymn book to study. As a result, I put together an arrangement of this
piece.
It soon became the congregational favorite song that our team
played. Slowly I had to admit that I like the
hymn a whole lot as well. I had begun to
learn that I when I adapted traditional hymns to contemporary media they worked for
everyone. . .including myself!
When Selah formed, “Holy Holy Holy” soon became a
permanent part of our repertoire. I found
that it became a favorite everywhere we ministered. Eventually,
because of its illusions to the throne room of God as described in Revelation 4,
“Holy, Holy, Holy” was included in the Wigtune musical “Before His Royal
Throne” which is based on John’s vision of the Latter Days. This longer version of the piece contains a long
introduction over which a description of the work of Jesus in heaven is described. Reading Revelation 5:1-8, as depicted below, will
increase your enjoyment of the musical work which intendeds to instill a wonder and awe of
Jesus who died for your sins.
Then I saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a
scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud
voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” But no one in heaven or on earth or under the
earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. I
wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not
weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah,
the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able
to open the scroll and its seven seals.
Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in
the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He has seven horns and seven eyes, which are the
seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. He
came and took the scroll from the right hand of Him who sat on the throne. And when He had taken it, the four living
creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb.
This arrangement is sung by Vanessa, Dave and Laurie. It starts off with strong acapella harmonies in
the first verse. As the second verse begins,
the piano enters quietly. From that point the
arrangement continues to build with additional instruments until the last verse sounds
with authority. This excitement in the piece
of music is sure to lift you up in praise and adoration of your Lord who is worthy to take
the seals and open them.
The book that was sealed is the deed to the earth, and had no
one been found worthy to take it, the world would have remained in Satan’s hand
forever. That is why John wept when no one
was found worthy to take the book and break its seals.
Yet Jesus, who proved His worthy by dying on the
cross, took the book from His Father’s hand. Indeed,
we have much to be thankful for. In
particular, we can praise Jesus who died so that we might live in His glory forever!
is a subsidiary of Wigtune Company, formed as a
service to the body of Christ. Our vision is to encourage scriptural worship in the
Church by offering free praise music and hymns performed in a contemporary manner along
with a free on-line worship study book for personal devotions, Bible study groups, Sunday
schools, pastors, music ministers and ministry training. The worship study
book lends theological and historical support to the use of traditional Christian
hymn-singing in conjunction with praise chorus singing. Click on one of the links below to
enter into the Wigtune resource that interests you !
Vision Statement
Wigtune Story
Free On-Line Worship Studybook
Radio: Listen to Wigtune music on live Internet
radio
Testimonials: What they are saying
about Wigtune Music
Bible Study
Helps, a Multitude of Christian Links and Other Goodies
Where's
Wiggy? - List and Links to Christian Organizations
Copyright © 1999 Don Wigton. All rights reserved.
Patriotic Hymns 1
| Patriotic Hymns 2
Christmas Hymns
1 | Christmas Hymns 2 | Christmas
Hymns 3 | Christmas Hymns 4
Hymns 1 | Hymns 2 | Hymns 3 | Hymns
4 | Hymns 5 | Hymns 6 | Hymns 7 | Hymns 8 | Hymns
9
