The hunt is up!


January 17, 2023


January 17, 2023







1995

 At Bryn Mawr College: the hunt is up!

 As an undergraduate at  Bryn Mawr College, I practically lived in the Music Library.  Since I found  little music by women in the hymnal1982, I went to the library to hunt.   With characteristic generosity, Bryn Mawr, along with Haverford College, offered extensive library support.  So, back in my familiar haunt, I found  songs of  Hildegard of Bingen, 12th century Abbess and Saint. 

The Reverend Paulette Schiff sang Hildegard's Kyrie as a solo  during worship.  Soon a group of volunteers gathered to sing. We loved her antiphon, Laus Trinitati or "praise to You Holy Trinity." Hildegard's feminine song of the Trinity soared in this chant  affirming our quest for the feminine Divine.  We were all excited to bring this ancient voice to life in the Lady Chapel. Then, bursting out of the convent, our  Hildegard chants were presented to the whole church.  Now all of Christendom can  hear the ancient voices of women!

Church Publishing, Inc. published both pieces with my transcriptions,  translations,  and arrangements.  Kyrie is #841 and 842 in Wonder, Love, and Praise (1997) and Laus Trinitati is #105 in Voices Found (2003).  More information about both of these pieces is in The Leader's Guide to Wonder, Love, and Praise(2003) by John Hooker, and the Leaders's Guide to Voices Found (2004)by Lisa Neufeld Thomas 

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