MOUNTAIN VESPERS :: FAQ
When can our church use a Vespers service?
Most churches use a Vespers service on Wednesday nights during the season of Lent. This service is also used up at Holden Village on a regular basis, and can be used for nightly worship. This might be an easy service to use as the nightly devotional on retreats or as the beginning of meetings. Mountain Vespers is appropriate for any evening, non-communion service.
Does Mountain Vespers follow the traditional liturgy?
Mountain Vespers was written based on the traditional Evening Prayer texts, adapted into easy-to-sing verse..
Can this service be used by amateurs as well as professionals?
The melodies are simple, as are the chords... beginners and children should be able (and encouraged!) to participate.
Do we need 'bluegrass' skills and instruments to play this service?
My conception of bluegrass is a loose one: all people are enouraged to play! 'Folk' might be a better word for the ensembles that mostly play this service. No fear necessary! The service can be led by one guitar player, a whole bluegrass band, or a piano with an 'everyday' church choir. For more information on 'bluegrass', go to the About Bluegrass page.
How can we get kids and beginners involved?
Give them a copy of the music, and a copy of the CD... Have them sit in with the older, or more experienced musicians... They will be honored, and they will learn quickly! This service is easy to play for beginners, but still enjoyable for older, and wiser folk -- the perfect chance for inter-generational playing!
Where can we get a recording or copy of the service?
Purchase Mountain Vespers :: the New Holden Evening Prayer from NinetyandNineRecords.com.
Where is this service used?
This service is presently being used by congregations across the country. Thousands of people have worshipped with the service at Holden Village, a Lutheran Ecumenical Retreat Center, and brought it home to their own congregations. The service is very grass-roots!
Does Mountain Vespers work with large and small congregations?
At Holden Village, as many as 500 people have worshipped using this service at one time. At times, the service was also used with congregations of 3!
Can we use this service with our choir?
The choral edition of Mountain Vespers is written in four-part harmony, and is very appropriate for a choir. This might be a way to attract young people to the choir. The way to sing bluegrass is to sing loud, and with energy!
How would you compare this service to more traditional Evening Prayer services?
The liturgy is the same. The only difference is that this service has been designed for guitar players, folk piano players and other folk musicians. This service may also be played by contemporary praise groups or guitar groups. Have no fear!
Is this a service that children and adults can use and enjoy?
I grew up in a Lutheran church that used primarily organ, and the good old Lutheran Book of Worship. I am still in love with the chorales of Bach, and I study the art of classical composition. But I also grew up with love for folk music and modern music, and I appreciate all of these forms equally.
There is a great rift, I believe, in the church community today between young and older folks... those who like the traditional hymns, and those who like contemporary music. Contemporary music has many forms, including both the 'praise' music, and rock and roll based music of the younger folks, and the slightly older 'contemporary' music of composers who very much appeal to a slightly older generation than the 'kids' of the church.
My hope is that 'bluegrass' is a genre wedged in between all of these categories: It has the energy of 'praise' music, with driving beat and rhythm, though none of the brash, electrified sounds of rock and roll 'praise'. It has the four part harmony similar to the hymns in the old hymnals, sharing a common past with the old English Protestant hymns of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. And it has the 'folk' quality of Ray Makeever and Marty Haugen services.
Do you give workshops?
I am available for workshops and commissions, and appreciate and welcome questions or comments.
Please contact Kent using the following form:
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