A practical guide for teaching and inspiration regarding hymn preludes for liturgical use in the Danish Church

The overall goal of the project is to sum up the experience gained during the last 25 years of teaching in the subject Lithurgical organ playing at RDAM, and more specifically regarding the art of creating hymn preludes for practical use in the Danish Church, which is the main employer for the organists educated from RDAM and the other music academies in Denmark.

In this present time there is no actual teaching material providing direct and simple instructions in the various styles of creating hymn preludes for the many different musical styles of hymns in The Danish Chorale Book (2004). The here mentioned project seeks to gather many years of teaching experience in the academy subject to create a systematic handbook for inspiration and teaching purposes at many levels. Clear musical guidelines will be given for the new beginner, and detailed ideas will be provided for those organists seeking further inspiration for their studies and ongoing work in their respective church positions - both regarding composition of preludes and actual improvisation.

The project wishes to comprehend the musical material of the entire Danish Chorale Book (2004) which is the harmonised companion of The Danish Hymn Book (2003). We wish for the content of the project that it may be used by both teachers and students as well as all organists in general. In the process of creating this material our discoveries may be tested on our own students in the classes during the academic year.

Later on, the project in its final shape is expected to be published as a book, and it should easily be brought to the attention of the danish organists via social media, the communication channels of the organists’ societies in Denmark and the overall very strong musical network that exists among the church musicians.

The project is expected to be finalised and handed over within the academic year 2022/2023.