As a retired disabled Anglo-Catholic Cathedral style Choirmaster and Organist living in California USA, your videos every Sunday bring me to tears! O how I miss exactly what you are doing; playing in an empty church to myself and GOD! Yes, I miss the men and boys, girls and all the other choirs I once trained! But, what I miss most of all is making music for my loving Lord and God. Ben, relish these moments for they will be with you, long after you have left this realm. Your videos bring to me and many others, the sweetest of gifts, the loveliest of memories and the visions of a heaven yet to be for eternity! - Kenneth Leon Knott
SarumChoirmaster Kenneth Leon Knott. FEEL your heartfelt love of Ben's videos. I appreciate how you miss serving God in the church. A Lifelong Anglo Catholic, I am member of StFrancis Anglican in Dallas Tx., an ACNA parish. I also miss my works for God at His church since a disability. It will be nice to share Ben's gifts !❤
I don't play but I was brought up in a CoI tradition & my father was organist & choirmaster. Ben's videos take me back to my childhood....those happy, innocent days!
From another introvert church musician... Actually I savour both playing in solitude and for the congregation - in very different ways. In solitude, it's like I'm praying with my hands. With the congregation, it's an amaziingly and uniquely unified and unifying experience. Congregational hymn singing is probably most unified experience most of us will ever have! Have to admit though, the public playing is exhausting and then i savour these moments, later on Sunday afternoon when I can relax and enjoy your gift. You are a blessing!
Yes, yes listeners, you are not mistaken. Londonderry Air is the melody of Danny Boy. The melody is an old Irish folk song of unknown origin, fitting well with Ben's theme of music of unknown origins that have survived the test of time. Londonderry Air was given to Frederic Weatherly, the publisher of Danny Boy, by his Irish born sister-in-law (Frederic himself was an Englishman). He had written the lyrics of Danny Boy earlier to another tune but realized that Londonderry Air was more suitable to the wistful longing of the lyrics of Danny Boy and had it published in 1913 to the change. Whether you mourn the loss of a son gone to war or lost through illness, or through the loss of boyhood innocence through the ravages of time, you cannot forget Londonderry Air for whatever current version fills the needs of your heart. Thank you Ben.
Laying bed with pneumonia this has has been very refreshing I thank the Lord that I found your videos, today program have been very uplifting not just the music but also the photos and your talk by the I’m on the mend only the weeks to go to be back to old self my the The Lord send you many supporters
I hope that Ray can see these videos. 😊 When he gave you the harmonium I bet he had no idea that you would use it to grace these “introvert churches” w/ heavenly music once again!!!
That little instrument with its articulation is almost human! I'll make a gentleman's bet there are times when you prefer it over a big pipe organ due to its sweetness -Ron (USA)
As an American I can really appreciate the African American spiritual Deep River. Those songs are so beautiful, forged in the time when those songs were created the black Church as a place where one hour a week, people of color could feel "free". People clung to those songs like a raft in a storm. Places like the black church helped preserve people's mental health, in a time when all odds were stacked against them and freedom seemed like a pipe dream. What a beautiful place to play it in! Thanks Ben. From one Buddhist-pagan brother to my Christian brother, with no separation whatsoever, thanks so much. 😊🙏
Benjamin, I can’t tell you how refreshing it is to witness a male organist without the narcissist and, far too often, vicious ego.. And I know more than a few of them…. Especially enjoyed your phrasing on the harmonium (a lovely instrument - in the great long ago I learned to play - self taught - on an old reed organ in my grandmother’s home). Young man, you are indeed a “Master of the Manuals”.. Wishing you and yours all the very best in health, laughter and love that life may offer. Best wishes, this day, and always from Yakima, Washington, U.S.A. Wm.
Astonishing how there is always more to be told. Seems every inch of the land has a tale goung back millennia. So super you could take the harmonium to play in this teeny church. Loved it.
I pray that this beautiful Old Church with its rich history continues to stand. Thank you Ben for the explanation of the harmonium and although small it has a beautiful sound.
Ben, I love you. Your music moves me to tears. I love the old churches of England the glory of God that is expressed through your music. Oh my Ben thank you thank you thank from some American
As a person who has devoted her life to church music as a singer, organist, and music director, I understand and share your preference for playing in empty churches. Now retired, I get to sub for my organist friends. Naturally, that involves practicing in many different empty churches. Thank you, Ben. These videos feed my soul.
I am a member of St. Cuthbert of Lindisfarne Catholic Church in Indianapolis, IN, USA. We are a community in formation of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, i.e. former Anglicans in full communion now with the Catholic Church. We hope someday to have our own church building, rather than share space in a modern church of the local Archdiocese. Would that we had something as small as this church, built of stone, and filled with such beautiful sounds! 🙏
And you can take comfort in the knowledge that you had quite a lot to do with the fact that we're able to relax into that peace and breathe. Thank you, Ray!
My favorite episode yet? Quite possibly. The harmonium sounds glorious, and with the beautiful stained glass? More incredible than any cathedral. Thank you, Ben, you bring beauty to our world. ❤
Be thou my vision, has to be my most favourite hymn. We were walking along a path into a horseshoe valley, all of a sudden that hymn could be heard being played on a harp and a violin. Spooky was not the word. As we rounded the bend we saw two people sat on a huge boulder. They had been practicing for a concert later on that day in the valley.
I watch as many of your videos as I can find, and I'm a patreon supporter. Our God amazes me by having bestowed on one person the ability to use 10 digits, 2 feet, as well as heart and sight, to share such beauty with us. Thanks be to God.
My goodness, Ben. Why did I not learn to play the harmonium? In my 70's I'm tempted, if I could only find a teacher! The sound is BEAUTIFUL. 'Be thou my vision'...'Londonderry Air' ........heavenly! This video is THE BEST! 👍
Danny Boy / Londonderry Air (22:20) is a very difficult piece of music for me as my mother has requested it for her funeral. It makes me sad but I also love it for the last sentence: " ... But when ye come, and all the flowers are dying, If I am dead, as dead I well may be, You'll come and find the place where I am lying, And kneel and say an Ave there for me. And I shall hear, though soft you tread above me, And all my grave will warmer, sweeter be, For you will bend and tell me that you love me, And I shall sleep in peace until you come to me! "
The late Andrae Crouch, a Gospel song writer, wrote a beautiful set of words that he sang to the tune, "Londonderry Air." The song is called, "He Looked Beyond My Fault." "Amazing Grace! shall always be my song of praise. For it was grace that bought my liberty. I'll never know just why Christ came to love me so; He looked beyond my fault and saw my need." CHORUS: "I shall forever lift my eyes to Calvary, To view the Cross where Jesus died for me. How marvelous the grace that caught my falling soul. He looked beyond my fault and saw my need." He recorded this song in a live concert he and his group did at Carnegie Hall sometime in the 1970's. It's on RUclips (of course!) at ruclips.net/video/l6op5vXS_d4/видео.html
"Be Thou My Vision" was beautiful ! We sang it at church this morning. I play the Moller pipe organ and Steinway grand there. I've been a church musician 48 of my 62 years!
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart. It’s hard to imagine what Henry V, the warrior king, would have made of Ben playing plainsong on a harmonium or George Pullen playing Londonderry Air. Ben is no longer organist at St Martin’s but he is giving pleasure to tens of thousands instead.
Hi Ben, I have enjoyed listening and watching you play since you started on UTube. I have never heard any organist play a harmonium with such feeling and expression. I am in my late seventeen now but was a musician for many years so I don't hand out laudettes very often, but your empathy with whatever you play always moves me. Thank you and please continue to give pleasure.
Now 70years young, whilst learning the piano as a boy I started playing the harmonium for Sunday school. I later progressed to the small one manual pipe organ in the church. This was in the 1960s in Newcastle NSW Australia. Unfortunately the church was demolished after the 1989 earthquake and having since moved to Sydney I have no knowledge of what became of these instruments. These days I play modern midi keyboards with many virtual instruments. I still however remember fondly, the sounds and touch of these instruments of my youth. Your playing brought back these lovely memories for me. Thanks Ben.
Once again a beautiful video. A blissfully beautiful church, a beautifully crafted story of history and the old world of England...and more and always the most important, your delightful engaging music .. Thank you for another wonderful Sunday vlog
Dear Ben, you got the jackpot with this harmonium. This travel-harmoniums are rare. Please continue and make more harmonium-videos. This are so great instruments.
Well, it’s 5:45 AM on a Saturday. Coffee is brewing and I’ve spent some time listening to comforting music. Now time for some prayer and meditation. Thank you Ben.
Lord of all Hopefulness. ❤ Sung at my wedding. Family funerals and now the community choir I sing with is often asked for it to be sung at weddings. An old favourite.
❤From county Wicklow, Ireland warmest greetings and blessings 🇮🇪☘️always! Ben, more history, more knowledge, more prayerful music. A wonderful way to relax on a beautiful Sunday evening. Thank you Ben. Fr. Noel
I understand your feelings being an introverted musician. Being an 81 year old pianist who strictly plays for my own enjoyment I agree with your enjoyment in performing for your own satisfation. Truly look forward to your weekly offering.
So well worth the wait, Ben. The church is a building that just seems to invite light into the interior, while at the same time glowing and sparkling when it's viewed from the outside. In short, it's a structure that seems to know exactly what to do with light... a remarkable quality in something (presumably) inanimate. And the harmonium is well matched to the building, since it knows just what to do with sound. On the day this was recorded it seemed for all the world like a mother rocking and singing a fretful child to sleep. Emotionally perfect for the circumstances -- especially for these times. What a great reflection of an Introvert Church's version of a liturgical mirror of the trinity: building + instrument + artist = a peace that passes understanding. Thank you so much.
Montana is quite the desert when it comes to beautiful churches and oregan music! Thanks for the glimpse of old England and the beautiful churches. Best of all playing the organ in the spirit of another age.
25:26 Comparisons that flashed through my head in chronological order before I heard the final word of your sentence: 1 cows 2 chickens 🥚🐣🐥 3 bulls🐂 🎯 4 sheep/ goats But not doggos. That would never have occurred to me. 😻💛🐶
Demolishing small settlements to improve the setting of the manor house was a common occurrence. Nice that you addressed it here at Bossington. You are a good lad all round.
Can't stop watching you. This time caught a glimpse of a photo of a minesweeper on the wall. HMS Bossington.. Named after the little village. One of many glorious little ships.
Lord Of All Hopefulness, a beautiful hymn, one of my (many) favourites, I always enjoy singing it at mass on a Sunday. Wonderfully and movingly played Ben.
What a lovely, thoughtful video! The stained glass windows were so beautiful and I appreciate your sharing their history with us. You put so much thought and care into your videos, I feel very blessed to have found your channel and look forward to your new video each week. Your work is well worth supporting!
Fifield Bavant - The Smallest Church in Wiltshire. It’s one if my favourites and I didn’t see any dogs. I guess you edited them out!! You looked like you were having such fun all by yourself. And then a surprise visitor arrived - Its perfect. It qualifies as an introvert church I’m sure. I know it’s an old episode but you did mention it! Liz❤
i am so happy. Lord of All Hopefulness played so beautifully was a treat. pulling stops along the route you really made the b&m sound its best. thanks ;-)
Introvert Church. Nathanial Hawthorn wrote of forests in the mountains as a cathedral, not bothered with priests or parishioners; where every soul has the direct connection with the creator.
Ben, so peaceful having the harmonium played in this church. Are you familiar with the charity that saves organs from being dismantled and thrown in the garbage? The Pethericks, who have a channel from France, saved an organ, and I wondered whether you'd be able to connect with them regarding the latest organ they saved from destruction. I think you'd enjoy seeing the vlogs they did regarding dismantling an organ in the UK, transporting it to France, and reassembling it in the convent they're currently renovating. I'd love to see you play that one!!
The old harmonious does have a fine sound at your hand. The repairs do add a certain character to the instrument. We are hearing of strange political events in the sacred isle. You bring a great image of peace and tradition. Thank you!
An episode filled with such beauty and tranquility. I adore this little church in every way. The stained glass windows are truly beautiful, with tender image of mother and child, surrounded by purple hues and floral motifs. I thought your choices for music and poetry were perfectly suited and were executed with such heart and soul as always! You possess a gift for bringing places to life. Also, I am definitely stealing the ‘introvert church’ term. I have to say in my own personal experience, I have found that venturing to a few of these ‘introvert churches’ in the North has occasionally resulted in calamity…my car wheel stuck in a ditch, single track roads with no parking, my car stuck in the mud in a farmer’s field, a very isolated location in the dead of Winter, lost in fog on tiny country roads etc…maybe it’s just me!?
Another great post, Ben. I so enjoyed all the musical selections played on the simple but appropriate harmonium. Beautiful church; beautiful surroundings; beautiful music. Thank you so much for your dedication to providing wonderful history and music to your many followers.
Thank you once again Ben, for another gem of a video. I was slightly taken aback by the photo of HMS BOSSINGTON, a TON class Mine Countermeasures Vessel later converted to minehunter. Of course, Bossington village church! As a junior officer I served in six TONs; all of the almost 100 vessels built were named after villages ending -ton, although a few temporarily reverted to the names of their parent RNR units. Anyway, I digress! The Royal Navy have a rich tradition of celebrating faith at sea, even flying a 'church pennant' (flag) during a service. Although many sailors have rich and powerful voices, they are in the main lustily discordant. So those ships big enough to require some form of accompaniment to keep the singing on course were / are provided with an 'OPS' - 'Organ, Portable, Small'. These days, modern digital tech has replaced the keyboard, although I imagine the QE class aircraft carriers may well have an OPS lurking somewhere below deck. Anyway, in the not so distant past, the OPS supplied to ships was more often than not a harmonium. I therefore wonder if your instrument, having a Chatham provenance, might have spent time at sea on board various Chatham based warships. Might be interesting to investigate, although it's just a thought. By the way, apart from the hideous pedal string, your venerable OPS is in dire need of a bit of TLC, at least a good dusting and a dollop of decent furniture polish on the case! And maybe sympathetically restore the labels on the stops? But whatever: many thanks once again, your Sunday vignettes are priceless. 😊
How nice to hear a traditional form of the Kyrie played. It exudes numinousness. How interesting to hear something of the story of “blind George” Pullen. I had not heard of him before.
I really enjoy your channel, and my ears perked up just now when you said "introvert church." No wonder I love your channel and music so much. "How Great Thou Art" is one of my favorite hymns. I have it on a wood engraving beside my bed. Hymn #535.
I love all your videos but this one is my favourite. I absolutely loved hearing your harmonium played in this beautiful, peaceful church. I love the song By Thou My Vision and best of all back at St. Martins when you played How Great Thou Art. Whenever I sing that song, be it in Church, out in the backyard watering the garden or, now, you playing it, my heart feels glad. It was my Grandmother's favourite hymn and we sang it at her funeral. Not only are the words beautiful and so full of praise but I think of my dear Grandmother every time I hear it. This is one I will keep coming back to see, I'm sure.
Wonderfully filled w /history of church, countryside, ect. The church is beautiful along w/the countryside. Amazing music to inspire the soul and bring peace! ❤ Thank You. Texas Lady
What a perfect end to a Sunday. Ben can play anything. I loved the interpretation of "Deep River". What a cute little church. They all are charming. By the way, the church of Our Lady and St Alphege in Bath was also designed by Giles Gilbert Scott (a bigger and totally different building, very interesting).
I enjoy your presence as much as the music. You have such a calm demeanor. Your commentary is perfect . I love to hear about the history of the churches you visit and am amazed that they are still maintained.
I love the understated elegance of the interior. The exterior stonework is delightful; I especially like the schoolhouse style bell tower. The harmonium sounds lovely in that room; I can imagine an Estey organ in that room. There really is no place for a proper pipe organ. You have really taken command of your harmonium; such expressive playing. Slane is a favorite tune; it is a simple melody, but it carries the harmony so well. (On an unrelated note, I used to sing Deep River a few times a year for church services.) Your playing of Deep River evokes the longing for freedom of the slaves and their devotion. Your ability to tell a story or read a passage with such inflection is a real talent. The tale of "Blind George" is very pleasurable in your telling of it. Your telling of the RUclips story is captivating in its simplicity and fascination. Thank you for this 31 minutes and 46 seconds of reverie; an opportunity to escape into your world of exploration, history, and wonderfully expressive playing.
We have a harmonium in the choir loft where I sing from. I keep meaning to take a picture but once I get up there, my focus is on mass. I will grab one this week at practice. It’s been sitting there and I had no idea what it was until this channel.
I thought of a comment by George Guest of St. John's College - Cambridge fame which he recorded in his autobiography, A Guest at Cambridge. "For many people the harmonium ('Never' the late Dean Bezzant used to delight in saying, 'was an instrument more inappropriately named!') is equally abhorrent but, given an instrument in reasonable condition and an adequate technique on the part of the player (especially in the steady manipulation of the pedals supplying the wind) the harmonium still has a part to play in those places of worship which do not possess an organ." p. 183-4
"Londonderry Air," aka "Oh Danny Boy," one of the most requested songs on St. Patrick's Day...and Chatham, I take it that was the name of the town from which the HMS Chatham was named? On August 1992, the HMS Chatham tied up on the pier opposite us (USS Gridley) in Bahrain, what a shipload of characters! Back to the here and now...your videos are informative and insightful, also giving us, your audience, a peek into a green and blissful realm of Heaven.
Yet another lovely video in another beautiful little church and what a glorious sound that little harmonium delivered. Wonderful stuff, keep up the good work Ben
Your harmonium sounded so good and at home. Thank you. You could use automobile seat belt, red one would be the right one. Scrap auto yard could give you what you need. It is indestructible, not affected by humidity and one little block of wood with screws at each end and it is good for a long time. .
Whato Ben, I really enjoy your videos taking us to little known churches. Your music and poetry matches these splendid buildings. I feel we should mention the full name of the architect in this case: Sir George Gilbert Scott to differentiate him from his son, the architect George Gilbert Scott (the younger) who also designed churches but sadly killied himself in his father's hotel at St Pancras and Sir George's grandson, Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, the designer of Liverpool's Anglican cathedral, Battersea Power Station and the (now) Tate Modern gallery.
The dynamic little harmonium, Ray's gift that keeps on going... Such a quaint, serene and utterly at-peace aura in and around that little church. Can you just imagine the day coming when all that will be razed to build blocks of flats? Cheers.
@@KyleighBrown-t4x I agree, but , unfortunately, we must be realistic. It is so sad that this is happening everywhere. Sad that so few appreciate all that has gone before!
Aside from the Organ music that I love. What I most enjoy of your videos, is being able to see these churches, they look really different to what churches look like where I live, and in some way, the inspire me more to one day be able to acomplish my dream of building a church. This one was the most beaufitul so far, God Bless you.
I really enjoy your videos. Beyond the principle organ-related content, the narration and videography are first rate. I recently watched an ambitious 2022 French production which is currently available on RUclips in a German language version (Die Magie der Orgel) which attempts to present the history of the organ in about 90 minutes. The film had the full resources of a highly funded public broadcaster behind it. Yet I think your videos are more engaging, compelling and entertaining.
As a retired disabled Anglo-Catholic Cathedral style Choirmaster and Organist living in California USA, your videos every Sunday bring me to tears! O how I miss exactly what you are doing; playing in an empty church to myself and GOD! Yes, I miss the men and boys, girls and all the other choirs I once trained! But, what I miss most of all is making music for my loving Lord and God. Ben, relish these moments for they will be with you, long after you have left this realm. Your videos bring to me and many others, the sweetest of gifts, the loveliest of memories and the visions of a heaven yet to be for eternity! - Kenneth Leon Knott
Well said I know how ufeel❤
SarumChoirmaster Kenneth Leon Knott. FEEL your heartfelt love of Ben's videos. I appreciate how you miss serving God in the church. A Lifelong Anglo Catholic, I am member of StFrancis Anglican in Dallas Tx., an ACNA parish. I also miss my works for God at His church since a disability. It will be nice to share Ben's gifts !❤
@@MaryAnnLaRue😊😊😊
I don't play but I was brought up in a CoI tradition & my father was organist & choirmaster. Ben's videos take me back to my childhood....those happy, innocent days!
I don't have words to describe how beautiful it was when you played the Kyrie on that church, really amazing.
I agree!
From another introvert church musician... Actually I savour both playing in solitude and for the congregation - in very different ways. In solitude, it's like I'm praying with my hands. With the congregation, it's an amaziingly and uniquely unified and unifying experience. Congregational hymn singing is probably most unified experience most of us will ever have! Have to admit though, the public playing is exhausting and then i savour these moments, later on Sunday afternoon when I can relax and enjoy your gift. You are a blessing!
Your University should create an archive of these historical video documentaries.
Almost 4400 views and less than 900 "likes". Come on, folks, the least we can do is give the man a "thumb up".
We had “be thou my vision” at our wedding over 60 years ago. Lovely.
How lovely 🌹 It's my favorite hymn
Yes, yes listeners, you are not mistaken. Londonderry Air is the melody of Danny Boy. The melody is an old Irish folk song of unknown origin, fitting well with Ben's theme of music of unknown origins that have survived the test of time. Londonderry Air was given to Frederic Weatherly, the publisher of Danny Boy, by his Irish born sister-in-law (Frederic himself was an Englishman). He had written the lyrics of Danny Boy earlier to another tune but realized that Londonderry Air was more suitable to the wistful longing of the lyrics of Danny Boy and had it published in 1913 to the change. Whether you mourn the loss of a son gone to war or lost through illness, or through the loss of boyhood innocence through the ravages of time, you cannot forget Londonderry Air for whatever current version fills the needs of your heart. Thank you Ben.
I'm amazed at the truly magnificent and glorious sounds produced by that old portable organ. What a treasure you have found. 🙏
The sound was fabulous in the hymn "Be Thou My Vision"!
Laying bed with pneumonia this has has been very refreshing I thank the Lord that I found your videos, today program have been very uplifting not just the music but also the photos and your talk by the I’m on the mend only the weeks to go to be back to old self my the The Lord send you many supporters
What a tiny perfect church. All the features on the outside give it such character.
The only thing I missed, and yes I know I am wanting too much, was a little sounding of the bell...
I hope that Ray can see these videos. 😊 When he gave you the harmonium I bet he had no idea that you would use it to grace these “introvert churches” w/ heavenly music once again!!!
That little instrument with its articulation is almost human! I'll make a gentleman's bet there are times when you prefer it over a big pipe organ due to its sweetness -Ron (USA)
As an American I can really appreciate the African American spiritual Deep River. Those songs are so beautiful, forged in the time when those songs were created the black Church as a place where one hour a week, people of color could feel "free". People clung to those songs like a raft in a storm. Places like the black church helped preserve people's mental health, in a time when all odds were stacked against them and freedom seemed like a pipe dream. What a beautiful place to play it in! Thanks Ben. From one Buddhist-pagan brother to my Christian brother, with no separation whatsoever, thanks so much. 😊🙏
Playing "Deep River" on this harmonium was a perfect choice. Beautiful and interesting!
Benjamin, I can’t tell you how refreshing it is to witness a male organist without the narcissist and, far too often, vicious ego.. And I know more than a few of them…. Especially enjoyed your phrasing on the harmonium (a lovely instrument - in the great long ago I learned to play - self taught - on an old reed organ in my grandmother’s home). Young man, you are indeed a “Master of the Manuals”.. Wishing you and yours all the very best in health, laughter and love that life may offer. Best wishes, this day, and always from Yakima, Washington, U.S.A. Wm.
Astonishing how there is always more to be told. Seems every inch of the land has a tale goung back millennia. So super you could take the harmonium to play in this teeny church. Loved it.
Grace to you
I pray that this beautiful Old Church with its rich history continues to stand. Thank you Ben for the explanation of the harmonium and although small it has a beautiful sound.
Ben, I love you. Your music moves me to tears. I love the old churches of England the glory of God that is expressed through your music. Oh my Ben thank you thank you thank from some American
What a lovely and peaceful spot. Be Thou My Vision is a favorite of mine.
As a person who has devoted her life to church music as a singer, organist, and music director, I understand and share your preference for playing in empty churches. Now retired, I get to sub for my organist friends. Naturally, that involves practicing in many different empty churches. Thank you, Ben. These videos feed my soul.
We enjoy each week your diversity and variety of each week…we love it…thank you Ben
I am a member of St. Cuthbert of Lindisfarne Catholic Church in Indianapolis, IN, USA. We are a community in formation of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, i.e. former Anglicans in full communion now with the Catholic Church. We hope someday to have our own church building, rather than share space in a modern church of the local Archdiocese. Would that we had something as small as this church, built of stone, and filled with such beautiful sounds! 🙏
your peace in our hearts Lord, at the end of the day............... nice
And you can take comfort in the knowledge that you had quite a lot to do with the fact that we're able to relax into that peace and breathe. Thank you, Ray!
My favorite episode yet? Quite possibly. The harmonium sounds glorious, and with the beautiful stained glass? More incredible than any cathedral. Thank you, Ben, you bring beauty to our world. ❤
Pleased to hear it. Thanks.
Be thou my vision, has to be my most favourite hymn. We were walking along a path into a horseshoe valley, all of a sudden that hymn could be heard being played on a harp and a violin. Spooky was not the word. As we rounded the bend we saw two people sat on a huge boulder. They had been practicing for a concert later on that day in the valley.
I watch as many of your videos as I can find, and I'm a patreon supporter. Our God amazes me by having bestowed on one person the ability to use 10 digits, 2 feet, as well as heart and sight, to share such beauty with us. Thanks be to God.
My goodness, Ben. Why did I not learn to play the harmonium? In my 70's I'm tempted, if I could only find a teacher! The sound is BEAUTIFUL. 'Be thou my vision'...'Londonderry Air' ........heavenly! This video is THE BEST! 👍
Danny Boy / Londonderry Air (22:20) is a very difficult piece of music for me as my mother has requested it for her funeral. It makes me sad but I also love it for the last sentence:
" ... But when ye come, and all the flowers are dying,
If I am dead, as dead I well may be,
You'll come and find the place where I am lying,
And kneel and say an Ave there for me.
And I shall hear, though soft you tread above me,
And all my grave will warmer, sweeter be,
For you will bend and tell me that you love me,
And I shall sleep in peace until you come to me! "
Incredible words that hit me like a thunderbolt.
The late Andrae Crouch, a Gospel song writer, wrote a beautiful set of words that he sang to the tune, "Londonderry Air." The song is called, "He Looked Beyond My Fault."
"Amazing Grace! shall always be my song of praise.
For it was grace that bought my liberty.
I'll never know just why Christ came to love me so;
He looked beyond my fault and saw my need."
CHORUS:
"I shall forever lift my eyes to Calvary,
To view the Cross where Jesus died for me.
How marvelous the grace that caught my falling soul.
He looked beyond my fault and saw my need."
He recorded this song in a live concert he and his group did at Carnegie Hall sometime in the 1970's. It's on RUclips (of course!) at ruclips.net/video/l6op5vXS_d4/видео.html
Such beautiful words.....🌈
Thank you for sharing these beautiful lyrics!🎶
love your videos. Thank you so much. Peaceful and beautiful. Beautiful English countryside
"Be Thou My Vision" was beautiful ! We sang it at church this morning. I play the Moller pipe organ and Steinway grand there. I've been a church musician 48 of my 62 years!
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart. It’s hard to imagine what Henry V, the warrior king, would have made of Ben playing plainsong on a harmonium or George Pullen playing Londonderry Air. Ben is no longer organist at St Martin’s but he is giving pleasure to tens of thousands instead.
Thank you again for your glimpse into England's green and pleasant land...
Hi Ben, I have enjoyed listening and watching you play since you started on UTube.
I have never heard any organist play a harmonium with such feeling and expression. I am in my late seventeen now but was a musician for many years so I don't hand out laudettes very often, but your empathy with whatever you play always moves me. Thank you and please continue to give pleasure.
Now 70years young, whilst learning the piano as a boy I started playing the harmonium for Sunday school. I later progressed to the small one manual pipe organ in the church. This was in the 1960s in Newcastle NSW Australia. Unfortunately the church was demolished after the 1989 earthquake and having since moved to Sydney I have no knowledge of what became of these instruments. These days I play modern midi keyboards with many virtual instruments. I still however remember fondly, the sounds and touch of these instruments of my youth. Your playing brought back these lovely memories for me. Thanks Ben.
Once again a beautiful video.
A blissfully beautiful church, a beautifully crafted story of history and the old world of England...and more and always the most important, your delightful engaging music ..
Thank you for another wonderful Sunday vlog
I love old songs and the older the better. This is a great video. Thanks.
O Come, O Come, Immanuel is old!
Dear Ben,
you got the jackpot with this harmonium. This travel-harmoniums are rare.
Please continue and make more harmonium-videos. This are so great instruments.
Well, it’s 5:45 AM on a Saturday. Coffee is brewing and I’ve spent some time listening to comforting music. Now time for some prayer and meditation.
Thank you Ben.
Pleasure. More to come.
Lord of all Hopefulness. ❤ Sung at my wedding. Family funerals and now the community choir I sing with is often asked for it to be sung at weddings. An old favourite.
❤From county Wicklow, Ireland warmest greetings and blessings 🇮🇪☘️always! Ben, more history, more knowledge, more prayerful music.
A wonderful way to relax on a beautiful Sunday evening. Thank you Ben. Fr. Noel
I understand your feelings being an introverted musician. Being an 81 year old pianist who strictly plays for my own enjoyment I agree with your enjoyment in performing for your own satisfation. Truly look forward to your weekly offering.
Magical, sanity in torrid world.
So well worth the wait, Ben. The church is a building that just seems to invite light into the interior, while at the same time glowing and sparkling when it's viewed from the outside. In short, it's a structure that seems to know exactly what to do with light... a remarkable quality in something (presumably) inanimate.
And the harmonium is well matched to the building, since it knows just what to do with sound. On the day this was recorded it seemed for all the world like a mother rocking and singing a fretful child to sleep. Emotionally perfect for the circumstances -- especially for these times. What a great reflection of an Introvert Church's version of a liturgical mirror of the trinity: building + instrument + artist = a peace that passes understanding. Thank you so much.
You make that little Harmonium sing like a person.❤
Montana is quite the desert when it comes to beautiful churches and oregan music! Thanks for the glimpse of old England and the beautiful churches. Best of all playing the organ in the spirit of another age.
Introvert church! Love it!
What a beautiful gem of a church. Thanks so much for sharing it with us ❤
I grew up with a harmonium. Beautiful memories when I hear the sound of this instrument.
25:26 Comparisons that flashed through my head in chronological order before I heard the final word of your sentence:
1 cows
2 chickens 🥚🐣🐥
3 bulls🐂 🎯
4 sheep/ goats
But not doggos. That would never have occurred to me. 😻💛🐶
Once again, you have made the most beautiful music and wonderful video! Thank you and may God continue to bless you!!
I have to tell you how very much I love your channel-the beautiful scenery and gorgeous music. Thank you so much, Ben!! It’s so lovely!!💖
Demolishing small settlements to improve the setting of the manor house was a common occurrence. Nice that you addressed it here at Bossington. You are a good lad all round.
Can't stop watching you. This time caught a glimpse of a photo of a minesweeper on the wall. HMS Bossington.. Named after the little village. One of many glorious little ships.
Lord Of All Hopefulness, a beautiful hymn, one of my (many) favourites, I always enjoy singing it at mass on a Sunday. Wonderfully and movingly played Ben.
What a lovely, thoughtful video! The stained glass windows were so beautiful and I appreciate your sharing their history with us. You put so much thought and care into your videos, I feel very blessed to have found your channel and look forward to your new video each week. Your work is well worth supporting!
so nice that you are spreading Christian chants, that's it, may the Lord be with you
Dear Ben,
THANK YOU.
Your weekly video is anxiously awaited, as it brings peace and harmony in an otherwise upside down world.
Kind regards
D+W fm SA
Fifield Bavant - The Smallest Church in Wiltshire. It’s one if my favourites and I didn’t see any dogs. I guess you edited them out!!
You looked like you were having such fun all by yourself. And then a surprise visitor arrived - Its perfect. It qualifies as an introvert church I’m sure.
I know it’s an old episode but you did mention it!
Liz❤
i am so happy. Lord of All Hopefulness played so beautifully was a treat. pulling stops along the route you really made the b&m sound its best. thanks ;-)
Introvert Church. Nathanial Hawthorn wrote of forests in the mountains as a cathedral, not bothered with priests or parishioners; where every soul has the direct connection with the creator.
Folk tunes. Introvert church. Yes, we are on the same page. Carry on, Ben! 🎶
Ben, so peaceful having the harmonium played in this church. Are you familiar with the charity that saves organs from being dismantled and thrown in the garbage? The Pethericks, who have a channel from France, saved an organ, and I wondered whether you'd be able to connect with them regarding the latest organ they saved from destruction. I think you'd enjoy seeing the vlogs they did regarding dismantling an organ in the UK, transporting it to France, and reassembling it in the convent they're currently renovating. I'd love to see you play that one!!
The old harmonious does have a fine sound at your hand. The repairs do add a certain character to the instrument. We are hearing of strange political events in the sacred isle. You bring a great image of peace and tradition. Thank you!
BM ~ The Key to a long, pleasurable, life 🎹❤🛐🎶
An episode filled with such beauty and tranquility. I adore this little church in every way. The stained glass windows are truly beautiful, with tender image of mother and child, surrounded by purple hues and floral motifs.
I thought your choices for music and poetry were perfectly suited and were executed with such heart and soul as always! You possess a gift for bringing places to life.
Also, I am definitely stealing the ‘introvert church’ term. I have to say in my own personal experience, I have found that venturing to a few of these ‘introvert churches’ in the North has occasionally resulted in calamity…my car wheel stuck in a ditch, single track roads with no parking, my car stuck in the mud in a farmer’s field, a very isolated location in the dead of Winter, lost in fog on tiny country roads etc…maybe it’s just me!?
Exceptional
Another great post, Ben. I so enjoyed all the musical selections played on the simple but appropriate harmonium. Beautiful church; beautiful surroundings; beautiful music. Thank you so much for your dedication to providing wonderful history and music to your many followers.
this video was so wonderful. and you made me so happy with how great thou art! I sang along and it made me tear up. Our God is so good.
Thank you once again Ben, for another gem of a video. I was slightly taken aback by the photo of HMS BOSSINGTON, a TON class Mine Countermeasures Vessel later converted to minehunter. Of course, Bossington village church! As a junior officer I served in six TONs; all of the almost 100 vessels built were named after villages ending -ton, although a few temporarily reverted to the names of their parent RNR units. Anyway, I digress! The Royal Navy have a rich tradition of celebrating faith at sea, even flying a 'church pennant' (flag) during a service. Although many sailors have rich and powerful voices, they are in the main lustily discordant. So those ships big enough to require some form of accompaniment to keep the singing on course were / are provided with an 'OPS' - 'Organ, Portable, Small'. These days, modern digital tech has replaced the keyboard, although I imagine the QE class aircraft carriers may well have an OPS lurking somewhere below deck. Anyway, in the not so distant past, the OPS supplied to ships was more often than not a harmonium. I therefore wonder if your instrument, having a Chatham provenance, might have spent time at sea on board various Chatham based warships. Might be interesting to investigate, although it's just a thought. By the way, apart from the hideous pedal string, your venerable OPS is in dire need of a bit of TLC, at least a good dusting and a dollop of decent furniture polish on the case! And maybe sympathetically restore the labels on the stops? But whatever: many thanks once again, your Sunday vignettes are priceless. 😊
What beautiful music you made out of a harmonium! Thank you!
How nice to hear a traditional form of the Kyrie played. It exudes numinousness.
How interesting to hear something of the story of “blind George” Pullen. I had not heard of him before.
I really enjoy your channel, and my ears perked up just now when you said "introvert church." No wonder I love your channel and music so much. "How Great Thou Art" is one of my favorite hymns. I have it on a wood engraving beside my bed. Hymn #535.
I love all your videos but this one is my favourite. I absolutely loved hearing your harmonium played in this beautiful, peaceful church. I love the song By Thou My Vision and best of all back at St. Martins when you played How Great Thou Art. Whenever I sing that song, be it in Church, out in the backyard watering the garden or, now, you playing it, my heart feels glad. It was my Grandmother's favourite hymn and we sang it at her funeral. Not only are the words beautiful and so full of praise but I think of my dear Grandmother every time I hear it. This is one I will keep coming back to see, I'm sure.
Yes, the 'Introvert - church', just what I feel. I understand. And I love the 'Danny-boy", of coarse.
Wonderfully filled w /history of church, countryside, ect. The church is beautiful along w/the countryside. Amazing music to inspire the soul and bring peace! ❤ Thank You.
Texas Lady
What a perfect end to a Sunday. Ben can play anything. I loved the interpretation of "Deep River". What a cute little church. They all are charming. By the way, the church of Our Lady and St Alphege in Bath was also designed by Giles Gilbert Scott (a bigger and totally different building, very interesting).
I enjoy your presence as much as the music. You have such a calm demeanor. Your commentary is perfect . I love to hear about the history of the churches you visit and am amazed that they are still maintained.
Wow, fifty thousand views.. even been in a stadium with fifty thousand people.. Ben, you have a lot of fans. God Bless,
I love the understated elegance of the interior. The exterior stonework is delightful; I especially like the schoolhouse style bell tower. The harmonium sounds lovely in that room; I can imagine an Estey organ in that room. There really is no place for a proper pipe organ. You have really taken command of your harmonium; such expressive playing. Slane is a favorite tune; it is a simple melody, but it carries the harmony so well. (On an unrelated note, I used to sing Deep River a few times a year for church services.) Your playing of Deep River evokes the longing for freedom of the slaves and their devotion.
Your ability to tell a story or read a passage with such inflection is a real talent. The tale of "Blind George" is very pleasurable in your telling of it. Your telling of the RUclips story is captivating in its simplicity and fascination. Thank you for this 31 minutes and 46 seconds of reverie; an opportunity to escape into your world of exploration, history, and wonderfully expressive playing.
We have a harmonium in the choir loft where I sing from. I keep meaning to take a picture but once I get up there, my focus is on mass. I will grab one this week at practice. It’s been sitting there and I had no idea what it was until this channel.
I thought of a comment by George Guest of St. John's College - Cambridge fame which he recorded in his autobiography, A Guest at Cambridge. "For many people the harmonium ('Never' the late Dean Bezzant used to delight in saying, 'was an instrument more inappropriately named!') is equally abhorrent but, given an instrument in reasonable condition and an adequate technique on the part of the player (especially in the steady manipulation of the pedals supplying the wind) the harmonium still has a part to play in those places of worship which do not possess an organ." p. 183-4
Wow, you are absolutely correct about the acoustics of the building adding to the brilliance of the harmonium.
"Londonderry Air," aka "Oh Danny Boy," one of the most requested songs on St. Patrick's Day...and Chatham, I take it that was the name of the town from which the HMS Chatham was named? On August 1992, the HMS Chatham tied up on the pier opposite us (USS Gridley) in Bahrain, what a shipload of characters!
Back to the here and now...your videos are informative and insightful, also giving us, your audience, a peek into a green and blissful realm of Heaven.
.. HMS Chatham; built at the 16th Century Royal Navy Chatham Dockyard. Admiral Nelson's HMS Victory was built there too.
When you have been to all the churches in the English, Scottish, Welsh, and Irish countryside, come to America and explore ours.
A beautiful and moving video. Thank you.
Yet another lovely video in another beautiful little church and what a glorious sound that little harmonium delivered. Wonderful stuff, keep up the good work Ben
Your harmonium sounded so good and at home. Thank you. You could use automobile seat belt, red one would be the right one. Scrap auto yard could give you what you need. It is indestructible, not affected by humidity and one little block of wood with screws at each end and it is good for a long time. .
That was lovely, many thanks to you, Ben Maton !
Beautiful music! From the video, your little harmonium is in need or some lemon oil to condition the wood as it appears to be very dry.
It also looks like it could use a good dusting, as you can see his finger marks on the top.
@@russbetts1467 I didn't remark on the dust as Ben has to cart his harmonium all over the countryside on a trolley.
Whato Ben,
I really enjoy your videos taking us to little known churches. Your music and poetry matches these splendid buildings.
I feel we should mention the full name of the architect in this case: Sir George Gilbert Scott to differentiate him from his son, the architect George Gilbert Scott (the younger) who also designed churches but sadly killied himself in his father's hotel at St Pancras and Sir George's grandson, Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, the designer of Liverpool's Anglican cathedral, Battersea Power Station and the (now) Tate Modern gallery.
Deep river was perfectly expressive
Ben. What a wonderful treat to hear you playing a favourite of mine on your wee organ.🤗🤗🥰🥰💕💕
The dynamic little harmonium, Ray's gift that keeps on going... Such a quaint, serene and utterly at-peace aura in and around that little church. Can you just imagine the day coming when all that will be razed to build blocks of flats? Cheers.
What a depressing end to your comment. And, it started so well. 😮😢
@@KyleighBrown-t4x I agree, but , unfortunately, we must be realistic. It is so sad that this is happening everywhere. Sad that so few appreciate all that has gone before!
Just lovely!
Once again, thanks so much for another soul refreshing video! You do wonderful work!
Aside from the Organ music that I love. What I most enjoy of your videos, is being able to see these churches, they look really different to what churches look like where I live, and in some way, the inspire me more to one day be able to acomplish my dream of building a church. This one was the most beaufitul so far, God Bless you.
Londonderry Air was glorious!! ❤
Agincourt Meadow, St. James and the Harmonium. A perfect combination to give us a peak into our soul.
Ben, thank you playing Slane. I read the hymn "Lord of all hopefulness" daily during Daytime Prayer.
I really enjoy your videos. Beyond the principle organ-related content, the narration and videography are first rate. I recently watched an ambitious 2022 French production which is currently available on RUclips in a German language version (Die Magie der Orgel) which attempts to present the history of the organ in about 90 minutes. The film had the full resources of a highly funded public broadcaster behind it. Yet I think your videos are more engaging, compelling and entertaining.
Magnificent Ben, absolutely Magnificent.