JJ Piano: Piano Hymns Volume 1

A couple of weeks back, a brother in Christ from South Africa was chatting to me about how the church he was planting didn’t have any musicians. Growing up in a rural Presbyterian church that had no instrumentalists, I understood his struggle.

Without musicians, churches are left to three options: (1) backing tracks; (2) MIDI files; or (3) no musical instruments.

However, I found there are two main problems with backing tracks and MIDI files:

1. Backing Tracks — Often, the music ends up being too loud, and therefore draws the focus away from the congregation’s singing to the vocalists/instruments in the backing track.
2. MIDI — The music can feel too basic and robotic, so singing along can be mechanical, inadvertently diverting the congregation’s focus away from praising God.

For this reason, I decided to put together an album of hymns that encourage congregational praise to God. Intentionally, they only have one instrument (the piano) which serves the purpose of giving the congregation cues for when to sing and fills in gaps between verses and choruses.

Furthermore, as a lover of hymns both old and new, I decided to focus on including songs that have rich Biblical lyrics and have stood the test of time. This being said, I have also included some contemporary hymns such as ‘Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery,’ and ‘In Christ Alone.’

If you are interested in using the album or know a brother or sister who would, please feel free to share it with them.

• Spotify
• Apple Music
• YouTube (For those who like to sing along, the YouTube videos feature the lyrics!)

I pray that God would use these tracks to support and encourage churches across the world who do not have musicians, and for the benefit of the body of Christ, however they may be used.