Music Mondays - Father of Everlasting Grace

Описание: Every week we'll be sharing one of the hymns our choir and instrumentalists have recorded during the pandemic for our online services. These are led musically by Brenda and Ben de Souza, and edited and compiled by Ben. We are grateful for the hard work and dedication put in by Brenda, Ben and all the musicians.
Read on to discover more about this week's hymn...

Father of Everlasting Grace (Hymns & Psalms 300)
🔠Words by Charles Wesley (1707-1788)
🎼 Tune - 'Stamford' - by Samuel Reay (1822-1905)

Charles Wesley is perhaps the greatest hymn writer of all time. Younger brother of John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church and after whom our church is named, Charles was educated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford. He had a short lived career as secretary and chaplain in America before spending time as a preacher in Bristol and London. Wesley had more than 6000 hymns published, many of which are among the most popular sung by Christians throughout the world.
Samuel Reay was an English organist and composer. His father, George Agnew Reay, was organist at Hexham Abbey in Northumberland. As a boy Samuel Reay was a chorister at Durham Cathedral, where he also studied organ with the cathedral organist, William Henshaw. Reay was later apprentice organist to James Stimpson at St Andrew's Church, Newcastle, before succeeding him as organist in 1941. Reay soon moved south and became organist at St Peter's, Tiverton, before holding a succession of organist posts throughout London. He later became precentor at Radley College before returning north for organist posts in Bury and Newark-upon-Trent, the latter in conjunction with his role as conductor of the Newark Philharmonic Society. Reay is famed for writing and performing the first solo organ arrangement of Mendelssohn's "Wedding March".