During my doctoral research, I interviewed many composers of church music. This week, I’m delighted to feature music by several of the people I interviewed: Faye Lopez, Molly Ijames, and Brian Büda! If you’d like to read more about my research, click here!
About Molly Ijames
Molly Ijames and I got connected during my research because she worked for several years at SoundForth—the music publishing company that BJU founded and owned until 2014. Today, she ministers as a composer, teacher, and conference speaker in addition to her work as a choral director and pianist. Her writing is fresh, artistic, and well-crafted.
Molly Ijames’ Music
I asked Molly to share some of her favorite compositions with us, and here’s what she suggested!
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Start out with her energetic “Festival of Praise”—a choral setting of Psalm 95 with a four-hand piano accompaniment. It’s also available for SSAA.
People sometimes talk about how a different tune brings a fresh interpretation to a classic hymn text. Molly’s “Prayer to Jehovah,” a setting of the text “Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah,” does just that in a beautiful, meditative way. (It also has an optional string quartet accompaniment.)
Her rich setting of “O Love That Will Not Let Me Go” combines her original tune with an arrangement of the tune ST. MARGARET that congregations are likely familiar with. It’s available in SATB (print, digital) and SAB (print, digital) versions, and has an optional string quartet accompaniment.
Her arrangement of “O How Good It Is” is a wonderful way to introduce a new hymn to your congregation by having the choir sing this anthem and then having the congregation sing the hymn in a subsequent service.
Thanks for sharing your music with us, Molly!
