Discover the soul-stirring arrangement of “Why I’m Here” from the acclaimed film Shirley, expertly crafted for unison choir and piano accompaniment by the talented composer Ben Clapton. Drawing inspiration from the heartfelt rendition by PJ Morton and Samara Joy, this arrangement captures the essence of the original piece with emotive depth and resonant beauty.
Bring the cinematic magic of Shirley to life in your choir’s repertoire with this meticulously arranged score, designed to evoke powerful emotions and create unforgettable performances. With its lush harmonies and poignant melodies, “Why I’m Here” offers a captivating musical experience that will leave a lasting impression on performers and audiences alike.
Purchase your copy of the sheet music today and unlock the transformative potential of this exquisite arrangement. Elevate your choir’s performance repertoire with a piece that is both artistically enriching and deeply moving. Experience the joy of making music with “Why I’m Here” and let its evocative melodies inspire your choir to new heights of musical expression.
Don’t miss out on this opportunity to add a touch of cinematic splendor to your choir’s repertoire. Order your copy of “Why I’m Here” now and embark on a musical journey filled with emotion, beauty, and unforgettable moments.
Discover the enchanting rendition of the Ukrainian folk song ‘Shchedryk’ by Ben Clapton, now available for SATB Choir and orchestra at Joyful Noise Music Studio. With a beautifully crafted orchestral introduction, this arrangement brings a fresh perspective to this beloved classic.
Originally performed by the Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, Perth, alongside the Echoes of Ukraine choir, this adaptation retains the authenticity of the original Cyrillic lyrics while offering a convenient transliteration for ease of singing. Dive into the heartfelt harmonies and cultural resonance of ‘Shchedryk,’ a timeless piece that beautifully merges tradition with innovation.
Ideal for choral groups seeking a unique addition to their repertoire or orchestras aiming to evoke emotions through music, this arrangement invites performers to explore the beauty and depth of Ukrainian folk melodies. Experience the charm of ‘Shchedryk’ through Ben Clapton’s skillful arrangement—a musical journey that honours tradition while embracing contemporary expression.”
Shchedryk will be performed on February 25, 2024 at the Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra’s 2024 Young Artists Gala at Government House Ballroom, Perth, with MetSO and the Echoes of Ukraine choir. For more information and tickets, visit the MetSO website.
Looking for a beautiful and soulful string quartet arrangement of the hymn “The Lord’s My Shepherd“? Look no further than Ben Clapton’s rendition of this timeless classic, set to the hymn tune Crimond.
At Joyful Noise Music Studio, we’re proud to offer this stunning arrangement, which features all instruments sharing the melody, as well as a modulation to the minor key and a key change for the final verse.
The hymn tune Crimond has a rich history dating back to the 19th century, when Scottish church musician Jessie Seymour Irvine composed the melody. Since then, it has become one of the most beloved and widely recognized hymn tunes in the world, with countless artists and ensembles performing their own interpretations over the years.
If you’re looking to add a touch of elegance and reverence to your next religious service or special event, Ben Clapton’s string quartet arrangement of “The Lord’s My Shepherd” is the perfect choice. So why wait? Order your copy today and experience the beauty and power of this timeless hymn like never before. And remember, with Joyful Noise Music Studio, you’re always in good hands.
There are some worship songs that I really get into. And there are some bands and writers that I especially get into. At the moment, one of the bands that I’m absolutely loving is Rend Collective. They have this funky, Irish-Bluegrass type feel to much of their recordings, and their songs are just great to sing along to.
I’ve used some of their Campfire Christmas versions of Christmas Carols at Christmas time, and their albums are on a high rotation in my iTunes playlists. And one of my favourite songs – and one that seems to be gaining more and more traction particularly within The Salvation Army here in Australia – is Build Your Kingdom Here.
I was putting together my lead for this Sunday’s meeting, and a thought came into my head that the song, “In Christ Alone” might be a song worth considering. If you don’t know it, here’s a version by Owl City (of Fireflies fame)
Now, this song has come under a bit of scrutiny in the past because of its lyrics. Last year, the Presbyterian Church of the USA wanted to include this song in their new hymnal, but decided not to because they were unable to change one of the lines of the song in verse 2. The original verse reads
’Til on that cross as Jesus died
the wrath of God was satisfied
Where as the altered version they wanted to use read
‘Til on that cross as Jesus died
the love of God was magnified
And to be honest – the change isn’t a bad one. I think it fits doctrinally, biblically and personally I’m more than happy to focus in on the Love of God (which is very evident in the New Testament) as opposed to the Wrath of  God (which is very evident in the Old Testament). However, the original lyrics also work, they are sound, and they also have powerful meaning. When the Getty’s decided not to allow the change, they were well within their right to do so, and for me this issue isn’t a deal breaker.
However, I’m uncertain as to whether to use this song or not. My doctrinal issue with the song comes in the last verse.
No pow’r of hell, no scheme of man
can ever pluck me from His hand
Now the issue here comes with the ninth Doctrine of The Salvation Army:
We believe that continuance in a state of salvation depends upon continued obedient faith in Christ.
Commonly known as the doctrine of backsliding, this means that as Salvationists, we believe that in order for you to remain in a state of salvation – that is saved by Jesus Christ – you need to continue to have obedient faith in Christ – that is, faith that follows the teachings of Jesus Christ. The flipside of this is that if you stop having obedient faith in Christ, then you lose your state of salvation. There’s no “once saved, always saved” here in the Army. Once saved, you need to keep being faithful to God.
And that’s where the issue lies. For Salvationists, if you stop having faith, then you are effectively plucked from his hand, to use the imagery from the song. Where the song states that there is nothing on the earth or below it that can remove our state of salvation, our Doctrines state that there is in fact a situation where we can lose our salvation.
That being said, there is a different way of reading those lyrics. You could argue that in fact, the line is stating that because my faith is so strong, because I have my continued obedient faith, that there is now nothing that can remove my state of salvation. But it’s a bit ambiguous.
And my problem is that I love the song – the melody is fantastic, the rest of the lyrics are so incredibly powerful, and such a grand statement. But can I, as an officer who is to proclaim The Salvation Army doctrines as the defining articles of our faith, use a song that has one single line that speaks against one of our doctrines?
This is the beauty of our Songbook. When we choose songs from there, we are guaranteed that the lyrics are doctrinally sound to The Salvation Army Doctrines. There have been people – far smarter than myself – who have gone through and analysed, and worked out whether the song can be used or not. I’m certainly looking forward to the release of the new songbook, hoping that it might have a few more recent worship songs which will make planning a meeting easier. When we move away from the songbook – as many corps are doing in order to stay relevant – we need to give at least a bit of a thought as to whether the songs we choose meet the standards set by our doctrines. If not, we have an obligation not to use them in our meetings, because as officers we are to proclaim the Gospel and uphold our doctrines.
So until I am suitably convinced otherwise, unfortunately, I cannot use this hymn, as much as I love singing it. Now I best get back to choosing that final song for Sunday’s service.
What do you think? Does one line mean that we shouldn’t sing this song? Is there a strong argument that means that it can be used in a Salvation Army context? or am I just overthinking things?
I’ve practically finished my first week of orientation at the Training College. We’ve had a lot of different orientations – to uniform, to education, to prayer and more. Yesterday, we had a session called “Coping with Change”. We have all had to go through a big change in order to come to the Training College. At a very basic level, the shift from Perth to Melbourne was a big change. We were discussing yesterday the differences in language that we share – from Milk Bars and Delis, to Stobie Poles and Power Poles and even the way we pronounce Lego.
One thing we did was to create a well-being plan that focussed on some goals in four areas – Physical, Mental, Emotional and Spiritual. By setting goals in these four areas, we can help take control of certain areas of our life so that we can deal with the change better, but also be in a better mental state. Part of the exercise was to write down some names that we would share the plan with so that we can be accountable with it. So I’m going to share my goals with you, and post regularly on how I’m going. Continue reading “Well, I better have a Well-Being Plan”→
At the moment, I’m getting my head around being music director for an upcoming Chrysalis retreat. I did this last year, so a lot of my song choices have been able to be transferred, but it does mean that I can spend more time looking for other songs that might fit even better.
At my church, we’ve also started having the youth band on twice a month now, which means that I’m now choosing twice as many songs, so I can be choosing more songs. So I’m constantly on the look out for more songs that can be used. Here’s a selection of worship songs that I’m loving right now.
First off, a couple of songs from Hillsong Chapel, Saviour King, and Hosanna
I love the space in this version of Saviour King, that the instruments just get out of the way and you can just focus on the words. The chorus for me is incredibly powerful, and I think I’ll be able to use this (in some form) at Chrysalis.
As for Hosanna, I’m considering an “acoustic” set for the next Youth Meeting, and love the arrangement of this version.
Now for something a bit more uptempo – and a bit older too.
This song has been in my head for a while now, and I’m not sure where I’m going to use it, but I think that there will be something coming up that it will be just perfect for. I think I especially love the brass lines here, really makes it pop!
This is a new song by Aaron Keyes (co written by others such as Ben Smith and Graham Kendrick). It’s wonderful lyrics are backed up by a great easy to sing Hymn-esque tune. This is a wonderful praise song, and I can’t wait to use it somewhere.
So that’s what I’m listening to at the moment and what’s going through my head. What songs are getting you passionate for Christ at the moment?
I went to Church yesterday, and halfway through, Liesl comes up to me and says “I think they’re doing your song for the songsters message.” Indeed they were, the Songsters message was my arrangement of “Let the weak say, I am strong” by Rueben Morgan. Thanks to not being able to sing (would be too tough for me to get up there with my knee) I instead headed up to the sound desk at the back to record it on my phone.
This wasn’t exactly a complete performance, as there is actually a violin part at the beginning. However, I did write it so that if a corps didn’t have a violin player (which, to be honest, there would be more corps without any musicians than corps who have a violin player), it could still be performed and have the same effect.
I’m really pleased with this arrangement. I think that within it all, every part has beautiful lines that are just a pleasure to sing. Of course, the sopranos have most of the melody. But the lines that I’ve written, particularly the Tenor and Basses are just beautiful. It’s a bit hard to hear in the recording, but the Basses have this great line in the chorus which provides a fantastic grounding to the chorus, while the Tenors get this lovely moving part. I’m also really impressed by the dynamic change in the final couple of lines, which I think provides a real lift to that final line, “Jesus died, and rose again.”
Hope you enjoyed it, and I’ll hope to get a few more out soon.
Ben Clapton 