Scottish Psalter 1650

Performed in Heaven is a compact disc of metrical psalms recorded at the Psalmody Recitals, held each winter since 1971 (except 1977) at St Vincent Street Free Church in Glasgow, where sizeable congregations gathered from a variety of churches and denominations. The psalms on the compact disc are all sung by the entire congregation and, as such, reflect the unaffectedness of congregational praise. The recordings are an authentic reflection of the type of singing that has been heard in the Reformed churches of Scotland since the Reformation. In order to produce this unique compilation of congregational psalm-singing, it was necessary to re-master recordings made with the technology of an earlier era. Thus, the recordings themselves span a period of twenty-five years, with the majority being from the seventies or eighties.

Performed in Heaven: Congregational Psalm Singing from Scotland

Psalm 107:1-9 Huddersfield

Psalm 45 v 13-17 - Gairloch

From the Scottish Psalter of 1650

 1  Upon the hills of holiness
         he his foundation sets.
   2  God, more than Jacob's dwellings all,
         delights in Zion's gates.

   3  Things glorious are said of thee,
         thou city of the Lord.
   4  Rahab and Babel I, to those
         that know me, will record:

      Behold ev'n Tyrus, and with it
         the land of Palestine,
      And likewise Ethiopia;
         this man was born therein.

   5  And it of Zion shall be said,
         This man and that man there
      Was born; and he that is most High
         himself shall stablish her.

   6  When God the people writes, he'll count
         that this man born was there.
   7  There be that sing and play; and all
         my well-springs in thee are.

Psalm 87 (Tune: Naomi)

Psalm 37 v 3-7 - Dunedin

from the Scottish Metrical Psalter of 1650

14  But I with expectation
         will hope continually;
      And yet with praises more and more
         I will thee magnify.

  15  Thy justice and salvation
         my mouth abroad shall show,
      Ev'n all the day; for I thereof
         the numbers do not know.

  16  And I will constantly go on
         in strength of God the Lord;
      And thine own righteousness, ev'n thine
         alone, I will record.

  17  For even from my youth, O God,
         by thee I have been taught;
      And hitherto I have declared
         the wonders thou hast wrought.

Psalm 71 v14-17 (Tune: St Leonard)

Movement II_ Light (c. 1200-1400)

Text: Scottish Psalter (1650) Recorded at Dowanvale Free Church of Scotland (Meter: CM)

  3  His work most honourable is,
       most glorious and pure,
    And his untainted righteousness
       for ever doth endure.

 4  His works most wonderful he hath
       made to be thought upon:
    The Lord is gracious, and he is
       full of compassion.

Psalm 111 (Tune: St Stephen aka Abridge)

Sung by Greenville Presbyterian Church (Free Church Continuing)

 2  Because of all his mighty acts,
         with praise him magnify:
      O praise him, as he doth excel
         in glorious majesty.

   3  Praise him with trumpet's sound; his praise
         with psaltery advance:
   4  With timbrel, harp, stringed instruments,
         and organs, in the dance.

   5  Praise him on cymbals loud; him praise
         on cymbals sounding high.
   6  Let each thing breathing praise the Lord.
         Praise to the Lord give ye.

Psalm 150 (Tune: St Botolph)

Psalm 51 - St Kilda

Ps 74 v 12-17 Argyle*

Fraught with error, but a worthwhile endeavour.


Ps 117 New Lydia (R)

Text from the Scottish Metrical Psalter of 1650. 
Sung by Free Church of Scotland Choir in Glasgow 1996 (recording reproduced with permission)

1  O sing a new song to the Lord,
         for wonders he hath done:
      His right hand and his holy arm
         him victory hath won.

   2  The Lord God his salvation
          hath caused to be known;
      His justice in the heathen's sight
          he openly hath shown.

   3  He mindful of his grace and truth
         to Isr'el's house hath been;
      And the salvation of our God
         all ends of th' earth have seen.

   4  Let all the earth unto the Lord
         send forth a joyful noise;
      Lift up your voice aloud to him,
         sing praises, and rejoice.

ThePsalmsSung.org

Psalm 98 (Tune: Westminster)

Text from the Scottish Metrical Psalter of 1650. 
Sung by Free Church of Scotland Choir  (recording reproduced with permission)

 23  Nevertheless continually,
         O Lord, I am with thee:
      Thou dost me hold by my right hand,
         and still upholdest me.

  24  Thou, with thy counsel, while I live,
         wilt me conduct and guide;
      And to thy glory afterward
         receive me to abide.

  25  Whom have I in the heavens high
         but thee, O Lord, alone?
      And in the earth whom I desire
         besides thee there is none.

  26  My flesh and heart doth faint and fail,
         but God doth fail me never:
      For of my heart God is the strength
         and portion for ever.

  27  For, lo, they that are far from thee
         for ever perish shall;
      Them that a whoring from thee go
         thou hast destroyed all.

  28  But surely it is good for me
         that I draw near to God:
      In God I trust, that all thy works
         I may declare abroad.

Psalm 73 v23-28 (Tune: Wiltshire)

Psalm 41 From the Scottish Psalter of 1650. Recorded in Greenville Presbyterian Church (Free Church Continuing), USA.

   3  God will give strength when he on bed
         of languishing doth mourn;
      And in his sickness sore, O Lord,
         thou all his bed wilt turn.

   4  I said, O Lord, do thou extend
         thy mercy unto me;
      O do thou heal my soul; for why?
         I have offended thee.

   5  Those that to me are enemies,
         of me do evil say,
      When shall he die, that so his name
         may perish quite away?

   6  To see me if he comes, he speaks
         vain words: but then his heart
      Heaps mischief to it, which he tells,
         when forth he doth depart.

Psalm 41 v3-6 (Tune: Pembroke)

Support the psalms: www.patreon.com/psalms
Sung from: Sing Psalms 2003 (Produced by the Free Church of Scotland). Recorded at Glasgow Reformed Presbyterian Church of Scotland (Meter: CM)

	4	One thing I’ll plead before the LORD,
			and this I’ll seek always:
		That I may come within God’s house
			and dwell there all my days—

		That on the beauty of the LORD
			I constantly may gaze,
		And in his house may seek to know
			direction in his ways.

	5	For in his dwelling he will keep
			me safe in troubled days;
		Within his tent he’ll shelter me,
			and on a rock me raise.

	6	My head will then be lifted high
			above my enemies;
		And in his tent I’ll sacrifice
			with shouts of joy and praise.

Psalm 27 v4-6 (Tune: Argyle)

700 Free Recordings of Congregational & Choral Psalm Singing.
Different Versions, Different Tunes, Different Styles. All the recordings are free!!

I LOVE doing it and I love hearing how others appreciate it, but it does cost money. So if you can help me cover the overheads (https://www.patreon.com/psalms), I will keep uploading the beautiful recordings! 

Buy Scottish Psalter (1650) with sheet music: https://amzn.to/4cJHFPY

Psalm 98 (Tune: Westminster)

ThePsalmsSung.org

Related tracks