Processional hymn
Christian hymn sung during a procession
A processional hymn, opening hymn, or gathering hymn is a chant, hymn or other music sung during the Procession, usually at the start of a Christian service, although occasionally during the service itself. The procession usually contains members of the clergy and the choir walking behind the processional cross. Occasionally, a service will also contain a recessional hymn recessional hymn (see below), although in the Baptist and Methodist traditions this is usually an organ voluntary.
The genre first appears in the early Middle Ages, and is a distinct genre from breviary hymns, often containing a refrain. With its longer cathedrals and churches, England was particularly rich in these and several are to be found in the Sarum Processional.
In The English Hymnal nos. 613 to 640 are described as "Processional" and nos. 641 to 646 are "Suitable for use in procession". The processional hymns include "Of the Father's Heart Begotten" (Corde natus ex parentis, by Prudentius), "Ride On, Ride On in Majesty!"(by H. H. Milman), "Hail thee, Festival Day!" (Salve, festa dies, by Venantius Fortunatus) and "Jerusalem, my happy home" (by F.B.P. c. 1580).
01Recessional hymn
A recessional hymn or closing hymn is a hymn placed at the end of a church service to close it. It is used commonly in the Catholic Church, the Evangelical-Lutheran Churches, Anglican Churches and Seventh-day Adventist Church, an equivalent to the concluding voluntary, which is called a Recessional Voluntary, for example a Wedding Recessional.
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Processional hymn”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
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- Mass at St Louis Cathedral NOLA for LA Purchase Centennial.jpeg by John N. Teunisson of New Orleans, Public domain
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