After 43 Years, New Voices

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After 43 Years, New Voices

It’s been two generations since The Hymnal 1982 was finalized. While our hymnal remains an excellent source of hymnody, we’ve missed decades of remarkable hymns that speak to contemporary concerns and work well in our liturgical worship.

What we've been missing

• Hymns on environmental stewardship & creation care
• Texts addressing social concerns
• Responses to modern challenges and tragedies
• New expressions of important theological truths
• Diverse voices and experiences
• Contemporary poets and composers 

The Answer    

"Take Up the Song" addresses this need for a new resource for your parish with 331 carefully curated hymns from over 100 of the finest contemporary writers and composers.

Pew edition has elegant typesetting

Worship Planning Made Easier

Find the perfect hymn for any Sunday in minutes, not hours. The comprehensive three-year lectionary index eliminates the guesswork from worship planning. If you include hymns in your service leaflet, you’ll want the digital Leader’s Edition that includes graphics of the hymns in melody and/or four-part versions in PDF, JPG, TIFF, and PNG formats.

Scriptural Index

700+ Scriptural references

Lectionary Index

1,200+ Three-year lectionary references.

Topical Index

1,200+ topical references

Authors and Composers

Over 100 contemporary authors and composers.

Metrical and tune indexes

When looking for something more specific.

First Line Index

When you need to find that certain hymn.

Quality you can trust

• Theologically sound texts and beautiful poetry
• Singable, accessible, and memorable melodies
• Expert curation from 35+ years of publishing hymnody
• Beautiful, elegant typesetting

Take Up the Song front cover

OneLicense Integration

Every hymn can be reprinted and/or streamed with your existing Reprint or Podcast/Streaming OneLicense agreements—no additional permissions needed. OneLicense has set up "Take Up the Song" as a hymnal in their database to allow easy reporting.

Sample page from Leader]s edition, with notes and other information, including the topics, scriptural references, and lectionary usage.

Why We Need a New Supplement

Introduction to "Take Up the Song"

David Schaap outlines the need for this new collection.

Sampler for 2025 summer lectionary Creation & Providence hymn sampler
Hymns with new texts and tunes
Hymns from around the world
African-American spirituals
Hymns from the "Dallas Hymnary"
Taizé and Wild Good Group chants and songs
Numerous early-American hymn tunes and familiar tunes with new texts

It's at the printer and shipping soon!

Available Editions

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Pew edition for congregational or choir use
Pew Edition

Perfect for congregational use, 6" x 9", 440 pages, full accompaniment for all hymns, soft-cover.

Pew edition-Spiral-bound
Perfect for musician use, 6" x 9", soft-cover, spiral-bound to stay open on music desks.

Pew edition-Digital download 
Pew edition for iPads or ebook readers

Accompaniment Edition has four full-size hymn pages per spread
Accompaniment Edition

9" x 12", oblong/landscape, spiral bound, 294 pages, with four full-size hymn pages per spread on heavier paper. Includes descants, alternative harmonizations, introductions, and interludes where available, and complete indices. 

Leader's edition has high-quality images of all hymns
Leader's Edition

8.5" x 11", soft-cover, spiral bound, 460 pages.
Includes notes and other information on the hymns, topics, scripture references, lectionary references,
and complete indices. 

Leader's Edition
Digital download
Digital version of Leader’s Edition, but also includes downloadable ZIP file containing high-quality images of all 331 hymns in PDF, JPG, TIFF, and PNG formats: melody only for unison hymns, and both four-part and melody only for most of the others. 

Outstanding contributors
Over 100 contemporary authors and composers, and nearly half are women, bringing diverse perspectives to congregational song. Includes a dozen African-American spirituals, a number of Taizé chants, and hymns from different parts of the world. Writer’s and composer’s work comes from Selah, Oxford University Press, Augsburg Fortress, Hope Publishing, GIA Publications, Inc, and more. It is the best of what is being published today and since 1982.
Composers include

Alfred V. Fedak
David Ashley White
Joy Patterson
Jacques Berthier (Taizé)
Patrick Michaels
Thomas Pavlechko
Richard Wayne Dirksen
William Bradley Roberts
Janet Yieh
Sally Ann Morris
Carson Cooman
David Hurd
John Bell
Jane Marshall
Sarah MacDonald

Text writers include

Carl P. Daw, Jr.
Richard Leach
Brian Wren
Rae Whitney
Mary Louise Bringle
Shirley Erena Murray
Susan Palo Cherwien
Edith Sinclair Downing
Herbert O’Driscoll
Thomas Troeger
Sylvia Dunstan
Jaroslav Vajda
Ruth Duck
Delores Dufner, O.S.B.

Mobirise

David Schaap, editor, is president of Selah Publishing Co., Inc., founded in 1987. He has edited hymnal supplements, hymn collections and publications, and oversees all editorial content at Selah.

Schaap also serves as Canon for Music at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Pittsburgh, Pennsylviania, and has served Episcopal parishes as an organist/choirmaster since 1990.

David Schaap, editor

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