Authors: Tammy-Jo Mortensen

In past issues of Gathering, we have been featuring hymns from various cultures from Voices United. This began with Loraine McKenzie Shepherd’s lists of the cultures she catalogued, and then we continued compiling some more lists. In the Advent/Christmas/Epiphany 2022-2023 issue, we were planning to feature hymns with a German...

The focus of this Advent/Christmas/Epiphany issue is cultural appropriation. In the Music for Worship section of Gathering Pentecost 1 2021, we focused on Indigenous composers and music resources. I gained much wisdom from Cree and Dene songwriter Sherryl Sewepagaham a few years ago. She shared some customs from her Cree...

Even though I haven’t been in active music leadership during most of the pandemic, I’ve still learned many things, including how much support the many facets of the church provided us when we needed it most. Help came from colleagues, teamwork between churches, seminars, national United Church support, licensing agencies...

If you are looking for hymns for Earth Day or for Wild/Forest Church, or for services with a creation theme, then look no further! Our full communion partner, The United Church of Christ in the United States, has posted a wonderfully curated list of hymns called “ Sing for the...

Looking for Canadian music for handbells? Look no further! The newly launched Handbell Musicians of Canada (HMC) has a new list up on their website. You will find their compositions spreadsheet under Resources. This is a list I built for a presentation at the International Handbell Symposium in Vancouver in...

Some of the most memorable moments I’ve spent with musicians of various churches where I’ve worked has been away from the church itself—on tour or at a retreat. Don’t get me wrong, the time spent at the church is really valuable in many ways, but you sure get to know...