One more from Hungary

Here is yet another rendition of Zoltán Kodály's spirited arrangement of Psalm 114 performed by a choir in Hungary. May the Genevan Psalms continue to be sung in that central European country. And may God grant that we North Americans learn to sing them too.

Genevan Psalter blog

I have blogged on the Psalms often enough in the past, but I have now set up this blog as an integral part of my Genevan Psalter website, with links from there to here. I have also republished here some of my posts about the Psalms that were originally published on Notes from a Byzantine-Rite Calvinist. Watch this space for more.

Genevan Psalms on the web

The Genevan Psalms are gradually increasing their presence on the internet. To reflect this, I have recently updated my own Psalter pages by improving and adding to the section I've titled The Psalms on Youtube, differentiating in particular between those performances of Dutch and Hungarian origins. (As indicated before in this space, I far prefer what the latter have done with the Psalms to the former's treatments.) Below is Zoltán Kodály's haunting arrangement of Psalm 121, performed by the 270-year-old Debrecen College Cantus:



And while we're on the subject of the Debreceni Református Kollégiumi Kántus (as it is known in Hungarian), their website boasts a number of excellent music files available for download. My own recommendations? Psalms 19, 46, 50, 65, and 114. The group definitely deserves more recognition on this side of the pond.

And one more: I have just received an email from Hungary informing me of yet another website in that country devoted to the Genevan Psalms: Psalms sung by József Dinnyés, as set to verse by Albert Szenci Molnár (1574-1634). After listening to some of these pieces, I would judge that the effect is remarkably similar to the late Burl Ives singing his well-known folk ballads. It's worth a listen for its unique treatment of these ancient songs.