The University of North Texas, Denton, Texas
Sacred Music Seminars
Instructor: Mark Scott
muspms@ststephen-pcusa.com
(817)924-2687, home (817)927-8411, work (817)343-2929, cell

General Information about the Church Music Curriculum at UNT

These six seminars are planned to be ongoing with a variety of topics studied each term. The structure is for a 4-seminar course of study for choral directors and a six-seminar course of study for choirmaster/organists. 4 seminars are structured for choral/only, with 2 additional seminars intended for organists. All six seminars are recommended for anyone planning on a combination, choirmaster/organist, position.

The intent is that by the end of the final semester each participant will have been presented a practical and systematic approach to administering and directing a comprehensive church music program. However, each semester's study is complete in itself for those unable to participate in the entire Church Music Seminar. Each seminar will include study of some of the administrative aspects and specific applied musical skills involved in directing such a program. Part of the curriculum will be tailored to fit the specific configuration of each class. The 3-hour class will meet once per week, on Fridays, 1:00-4:00 p.m. Auditors enrolled through the university are welcome to participate in any of these seminars.


Undergraduate: MUAG 4740 Graduate: MUSM 5285

The University of North Texas, Denton, Texas
I. Sacred Music Seminar
Mark Scott, Instructor

Music in the Church:
Gregorian Chant, the Protestant Reformation and John Keble
(choral, non-keyboard and organists/pianists)

1. Historical
Hebrew Testament to the twentieth-century church music including the development of the Lutheran chorale; Oxford Movement and19th century British hymnody.

2. Applied Skills
Survey of practical choral music for the volunteer choir from the pen of composers falling within the specific periods of this course's study including polychoral music; practical renaissance choral music; practical choruses from oratorios; practical Bach and Purcell for volunteer choirs; metrical psalms; development of the chorale; 18th and 19th century British hymnody; creative ways to utilize a denominational hymnal

(This seminar will meet once each week, on Fridays, 1:00-4:00 p.m.)

Primary text:
"The Story of Christian Music" - Andrew Wilson-Dickson (A Lion Book, 1992)
Secondary text:
"Te Deum, The Church and Music" - Paul Westermeyer (Fortress Press, 1998)
Tertiary text:
"The Presbyterian Hymnal" (Westminster/John Knox Press, 1990)

A chronological survey of church music: music in the Hebrew Testament and its influence on music of the early Christian Church; Renaissance and Reformation; development of the Oratorio; influence of Heinrich Schütz and J. S. Bach; the English Restoration; music in the English Chapel Royal; development of the English hymn; music in the courts of Europe; Romantic music; Oxford Movement's influence on church music; 19th century revival of excellence in church music.

This seminar is designed for anyone who will be working in church music as (1) choral director or minister of music, (2) choirmaster/organist or (3) organist/accompanist. It includes recorded and printed musical examples, choral reading sessions, repertoire lists aimed at identifying quality choral music from many musical periods, easy to moderate difficulty, and of practical use with volunteer church choirs.

  1. Birth of Christian Music: Music in the Hebrew Testament; Early Church; Western Middle Ages; Monastic Tradition; Later Medieval Developments; Gregorian Chant to Polyphony;
  2. Renaissance and Reformation: Luther; Calvinist Tradition; Reformation
    in England; Catholic Reformation
  3. The Flowering of Christian Music: Development of the Oratorio; Music of the Lutheran Church; Heinrich Schütz; J. S. Bach; Restoration Music in England; Music of the Chapel Royal; English Congregational Music: the birth of the English Hymn;
  4. The Path Divides: Music in the Courts of Europe; Romantic Movement; Decline of the Lutheran Hymn; Church of England and the Tractarians; 19th Century Revival


Undergraduate: MUAG 4740 Graduate: MUSM 5286

The University of North Texas, Denton, Texas
II. Sacred Music Seminar
Mark Scott, Instructor

Music in the Church:
Study of Hymnody, 16th - 21st Centuries; The larger volunteer Choir
(choral, non-keyboard and organists/pianists)

1. Historical
Eastern Traditions; African Influence; Music in North America; Development of the Gospel song; 19th, 20th, and 21st century hymnody; Music in 20th and 21st century Europe.

2. Applied Skills
Music for the larger volunteer choir, SATB anthems of moderate difficulty including divisi; understanding the Liturgical Year; using a lectionary; efficient rehearsals for different ages; realistic expectations and responsibilities of the organist/accompanist; resources for music and equipment; assessing the learning curve of different groups; introduction to handbells

(This seminar will meet once each week, on Fridays, 1:00-4:00 p.m.)

Primary text:
"Te Deum" - Paul Westermeyer (2nd half of book)
Secondary text:
"The New Oxford Book of Carols" - Hugy Keyte, Andrew Parrott & Clifford Bartlett
Tertiary resource:
"The Presbyterian Hymnal" - pbsh. 1990 by Westminster/John Knox Press

A survey of church music, chronologically exploring the influence of Eastern Music, African music, North American church music on music in 19th, 20th and 21st century America, including recorded and printed examples with repertoire lists. This seminar will examine hymnody from the 16th century to the present.

Creative use of the denominational hymnal in the choral program; advanced choral repertoire, specifically for larger volunteer adult SATB choirs capable of singing anthems with 5-8 part divisi, including repertoire lists, recorded examples, and reading sessions aimed at finding quality music of moderate difficulty; how to assess the appropriateness of music for each choir; learn to convey concise, easy to understand instructions to volunteer/amateur singers; how to program appropriate music: liturgically, musically and denominationally; mechanics of an efficient choral rehearsal with various configuration of voices/bells; understanding the liturgical year; planning using the liturgical year; understanding a lectionary; planning using a lectionary; preparing a budget; survey of resources for music and equipment; realistic expectations of the organist/pianist accompanist; an introduction to music writing software. The course will have site-based opportunities to visit various model programs which exist in small to large churches; guest lecturers as funds are available.

  1. Eastern Traditions: Orthodox Churches; Greek Orthodox Church; Russian Orthodox Church; Coptic and Ethiopian Churches; Divided Christianity-East and West
  2. African Traditions: Africa and the influence of Western music; The Independent Churches
  3. Music in North America: Christianity comes to the new World; Africans
    in America; North and South; Gospel Music: White and Black; USA and the European Classical Tradition; The Charismatic Movement
  4. Music in Twentieth-Century Europe: Roman Catholic music; Bible and the Concert Hall; Vatican II and the Liturgy; Lutheran Musical Revival; Music in Britain; The Popular Stream


Undergraduate: MUAG 4740 Spring, 2008 Graduate: MUSM 5287

The University of North Texas, Denton, Texas
III. Sacred Music Seminar

Music in the Church - Practicum
(choral, non-keyboard and organists/pianists)

Applied Skills:
Gregorian Chant; Singing the Psalms; 19th, 20th and 21st century British Cathedral choral repertoire; choral music for specific liturgical occasions: Eucharist; Matins, Evensong, Compline; Contrasting Liturgical and Free Church traditions and appropriate music for each.

(This seminar will meet once each week, on Fridays, 1:00-4:00 p.m.)

This seminar will study psalm singing from plainsong settings to contemporary methods of singing the psalms. Included will be Gregorian Psalms and learning to read neumismatic psalm notation; the psalm-tone modes; Anglican Chant; metrical psalmody; paraphrased psalmody; responsorial psalmody; antiphonal psalmody; Gelineau Psalmody; and various other ways to sing psalms. We will explore how Gregorian psalmody can be utilized to train any volunteer choir: children, youth and adult, to more carefully listen to each other and sing together more accurately.

The class will study, in-depth, late 19th, 20th and 21st century English Cathedral choral repertoire: how the choir and the organ work together to create this unique genre. We will examine anthems and service settings by Wesley, Stainer, Wood, Ireland, Elgar, Stanford, Parry, Bairstow, Bullock, Vaughan Williams, Darke, Harris, Britten, Howells, Leighton,, Mathias, Joubert, Rutter, Tippett, Willcocks, Weir, and others.

Specific study of Choral Eucharist; Matins and Evensong services and how these liturgies influenced the composition of music from this period, specifically, the prolific number of settings of the morning (Te Deum and Jubilate) and evening (Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis) canticles. In addition to these services, we will study the office of Compline and how to incorporate it into your church music program. There will be recorded examples of music as well as reading sessions with expanded repertoire lists. Emphasis will be given to understanding the appropriate musical stylistic nuances required of this specific repertoire.


Undergraduate: MUAG 4740 Graduate: MUSM 5288

The University of North Texas, Denton, Texas
IV. Sacred Music Seminar

Music in the Church - Practicum
(choral, non-keyboard and organists/pianists)

Applied Skills:
Denominational variants in polity and musical tradition; practical repertoire for Unison, SA, SAB, SATB, 2-part mixed, etc; recruitment and methodology in working with volunteers; working with the pastor(s); working with church committees; working with the organist/accompanist; preparing an annual budget; utilizing the denominational hymnal; introduction to handbells

(This seminar will meet once each week, on Fridays, 1:00-4:00 p.m.)

Primary text:
 "A Musicians Guide to Church Music"- Joy E. Lawrence and John A. Ferguson
Secondary text:
"The Presbyterian Hymnal" - pbsh. 1990 by Westminster/John Knox Press
Tertiary resource:
Music planning aids: Thorson & Company, Bemidji, Minnesota

This course will study various model programs including site-based study and guest lecturers as resources permit; denominational variants in history, style, expectation and the function music serves in each. The class will examine high quality, practical choral repertoire, both with recorded examples and choral reading sessions including repertoire lists for different choral configurations: SATB, SAB, SA, Unison, 2-part mixed, etc. Emphasis will be on choosing music with integrity to both text and score and within the realistic ability of a volunteer choir.

This Seminar will examine the mechanics of presenting concerts as well as developing a concert series through the church; the uniqueness of a church music program as opposed to an academic music program; working with volunteers; recruitment and training of volunteer singers and music assistants; planning rehearsals for different ages; assessing the learning curve of various groups; preparing an annual budget; resources for music and equipment; sample contracts; copyright laws; networking through professional memberships; writing a curriculum vitae for a church position; the interview; the pastor(s); diplomacy in dealing with church committees; understanding denominational polity; harmony with the accompanist; working with children and youth choirs; introduction to handbells; using the denominational hymnal as a resource.
Sacred Music

For information on organ studies contact:
Dr. Jesse Eschbach, Chair, Keyboard Division
Phone: 940-565-4094
jeschbac@music.unt.edu