# Which Scottish Psalter should I ask for?



## au5t1n (Nov 27, 2010)

Some relatives are wanting a list of possible Christmas gifts to get me. For some time I have intended to buy a copy of the 1650 Scottish Psalter, but have not done so yet. I thought I would put that on the list. I know there are different kinds you can buy--e.g. with and without sheet music, split-leaf psalters, etc. I don't know a whole lot about it.

Is there a particular one you'd recommend, and why?


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## JML (Nov 27, 2010)

It depends on how musically inclined you are. If you can read music, I would suggest "The Comprehensive Psalter" which is the 1650 with the music. This is the one that Josh's church uses. If you can't read music, it might be better to get "The Psalms of David in Metre" which is just the words. My church uses this one. Each psalm in this one has a common meter version that you can sing. So even if you knew only one common meter tune, you could sing the entire psalter to that one tune. I don't know where to purchase "The Comprehensive Psalter" but Josh might be able to help direct you. To purchase the "Psalms of David in Metre", you can go to Crown and Covenant. Hope this helps.


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## Dearly Bought (Nov 27, 2010)

I would second the recommendation of the Comprehensive Psalter. My wife and I use it for our family worship. You can download midi files of every single tune. The pocket "Psalms of David in Metre" from the Trinitarian Bible Society is also great. It is available from Reformation Heritage in addition to Crown and Covenant. Get a copy of both. They're really not very expensive.


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## JML (Nov 27, 2010)

Dearly Bought said:


> They're really not very expensive.



Yes. The "Psalms of David in Metre" can be purchased for $8. Very inexpensive.

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Dearly Bought said:


> Get a copy of both



Where did you purchase your "Comprehensive Psalter"?


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## au5t1n (Nov 27, 2010)

Thank you both. I can read sheet music. I see that the comprehensive psalter is available for about $20, and the Psalms of David in Metre for $8. Those both seem to be in a reasonable price range. Does the comprehensive psalter give suggested tunes for each psalm, or just provide the sheet music for each tune in the back?

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John Lanier said:


> Quote Originally Posted by Dearly Bought View Post
> Get a copy of both
> Where did you purchase your "Comprehensive Psalter"?



Looks like it can be ordered here: Faith Presbyterian Church Reformed


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## Notthemama1984 (Nov 27, 2010)

Out of curiosity how many different psalters are there? Is the Scottish Psalter the holy grail of Psalters or is it just a preference?


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## NaphtaliPress (Nov 27, 2010)

FYI. The supply of Comprehensive Psalters has been bought out from FPCR; contact me or Josh if you want to get one. You can try ordering from FPCR but they will simply forward to me to fulfill.


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## au5t1n (Nov 27, 2010)

NaphtaliPress said:


> FYI. The supply of Comprehensive Psalters has been bought out from FPCR; contact me or Josh if you want to get one. You can try ordering from FPCR but they will simply forward to me to fulfill.


 
Thank you. I may ask you for one via PM sometime soon. Could you tell me a bit more about how it's structured? For instance, is the sheet music written under the words, or separately?


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## NaphtaliPress (Nov 27, 2010)

Music on top, words below. Not ideal; but best we could do in 2000. Tunes are reused throughout, maybe the most four or five but sometimes only once or twice.


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## Dearly Bought (Nov 27, 2010)

Let me briefly list a few more reasons why I really appreciate the Comprehensive Psalter. It is nicely bound hardcover with a blue ribbon marker that has stood up well to regular use. It not only includes the Psalter itself and various indexes, but also has some helpful short resources bound with it:

A "History of the 1650 Psalter" by William Beveridge
A brief glossary with several of the more archaic English and Scottish terms.
A non-exhaustive list of Psalms according to their subjects (e.g. God's saving deeds, Messiah's people, etc.). Perhaps to underline a rather crucial point, the author simply lists "frequently" under the subject of "God's justice in the condemnation of the wicked." 

In short, the Comprehensive Psalter reflects an obvious concern for equipping the saints to sing the Psalms with understanding.



Chaplainintraining said:


> Is the Scottish Psalter the holy grail of Psalters or is it just a preference?


In my humble opinion, the 1650 Scottish Psalter is the best metrical version of the Psalter currently available in the English language. David Silversides, a Reformed Presbyterian minister in Northern Ireland, has some excellent materials on this subject available in print and audio.


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## amg (Nov 27, 2010)

I have used the Psalms of David in Metre printed by TBS and I would highly recommend it. Also, things from TBS are top notch in quality. My church used to use the split leaf Psalter which was put together by Oxford. The only reason we stopped using them is because they stopped printing them. I still have one and I would highly recommend it as well if you come across one. I like it because it is very easy to mix and match different tunes with Psalms. I am not sure about other versions but the split leaf also has other passages of Scripture put into metre so that they too can be sung. What a blessing!


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## Dearly Bought (Nov 27, 2010)

Of course, now I'm reminded of one more version of the Scottish Psalter to recommend! The Trinitarian Bible Society publishes high quality Bibles bound with the Scottish Psalter. You can pick up a calfskin leather Authorized Version with the Psalter in the back for about forty bucks shipped. You would have to call their office to order or get a catalog since their online sales site is down for renovations right now. Check out the Windsor Text with Metrical Psalms. Contact info is at www.trinitarianbiblesocietyusa.org.


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## TexanRose (Nov 27, 2010)

The Comprehensive Psalter "assigns" a tune to each psalm or section of a psalm, and has the tune printed at the top, the words at the bottom. I'm going to go against the trend here and say that I would *not* recommend the Comprehensive Psalter, but only for reasons of personal preference. Those reasons are:

1. I don't always like the tune assignments. For instance, the Comprehensive Psalter puts the beginning of Psalm 103 with the tune Kilmarnock. While this is a suitable tune, I really prefer that part of Psalm 103 to the tune London New. I suppose I could flip back and forth between that section of Psalm 103 and the page that has the tune I want, but that would be awkward. 
2. The Comprehensive Psalter divides the psalms into sections. Some of these sections are really long! For instance, the Comprehensive Psalter has all of Psalm 108 in one section--that's ten stanzas! I find that six or maybe seven stanzas is a much more comfortable amount to sing at once. Of course you're not obligated to sing the whole section, but if you're like me, you'll feel like you're "supposed to" sing it the way it's divided.
3. The Comprehensive Psalter has different, newer, and usually simpler versions of some tunes. For instance, the tunes "Bishopthorpe" and "St. Lawrence" in the Comprehensive Psalter are simpler than in the split-leaf Psalter I use. While the newer versions might be easier to sing, I personally think they are not quite as beautiful. However, if you are just singing the melody line and not singing parts, the difference will probably not be noticeable. 

Since you can read music, I would recommend the split-leaf Psalter published by the Free Church of Scotland. The pages are split horizontally, with the tunes in the top half and the psalms in the bottom half--so you can turn to the psalm you're singing in the bottom half, and any tune you like in the top half (each psalm has three or four suggested tunes, if you don't know where to start). The best price I know of is at the FP bookroom, which is selling it for $28:
https://www.fpbookroom.org/acatalog/F_P_Bookroom_Psalm_Books_and_Psalmodies_74.html
You would want to make sure that you ordered the "staff" version and not the "sol-fa" version.

If you just wanted the words, I would recommend ordering through TBS--you can get a small words-only psalter through them for very little. I wouldn't recommend the Bibles with the psalms in the back, because if you sing from the psalms in the back regularly, those pages will get a lot more wear than the rest of the Bible, and before long the pages with the metrical Psalms will be falling out! Learned that one the hard way. 

Hope that helps.


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## au5t1n (Nov 27, 2010)

It helps a lot. Thank you! I'm leaning towards getting the TBS one with lyrics only, partly so I can choose which tune I want and partly because I'm not sure how helpful the sheet music would be to me anyway. I can read it, but not sing it straight from the page. There are plenty of MIDIs and recordings online to help me with learning and applying tunes, plus I've got a psalm CD and I'm ordering another.


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## JML (Nov 27, 2010)

I think you will greatly enjoy the psalter. 

On another note, I have been greatly encouraged by your desire for the things of God. I wish I had wanted things like a psalter when I was 20. May the Lord continue to bless you.


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## au5t1n (Nov 27, 2010)

John Lanier said:


> I think you will greatly enjoy the psalter.
> 
> On another note, I have been greatly encouraged by your desire for the things of God. I wish I had wanted things like a psalter when I was 20. May the Lord continue to bless you.


 
Thank you! God has been good to me in so many ways. I appreciate your helpful input and your pastor's gracious offer.


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## Glenn Ferrell (Nov 28, 2010)

I like having a split leaf Psalter for referrence as it provides traditional Psalm tunes, making suggestions for each Psalm, without assigning a specific tune to a particular Psalm or Psalm segment. The Free Church of Scotland version also suggests Psalms for various themes. However, in my everyday use, I'm glad to have the words only TBS version in both the Psalms only edition and in the back of my TBS AV Bible.

I prize the copy of the Psalms of David in Metre I have with the notes of John Brown of Haddington, which seems to be available still.

Amazon.com: The Psalms of David in Metre (9781161407068): John Brown: Books

But, the same can be found online:

Table of Contents

To answer another question in this thread: There have been many English Psalters, but the 1650 Scottish Psalter is the classic version comparable to the AV of the Bible, and is a faithful translation of the Hebrew text into metrical form. It remains my favorite though the congregation I presently serve uses the RPCNA Book of Psalms for Singing.


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## Peairtach (Nov 28, 2010)

*boliver*


Chaplainintraining said:


> Out of curiosity how many different psalters are there? Is the Scottish Psalter the holy grail of Psalters or is it just a preference?



There are other versions. The Free Church of Scotland recently came out with a new version called "Sing Psalms" with many and varied metres which is used alongside the 1650 in the FC.

*Austin*


> Is there a particular one you'd recommend, and why?



If you read sol-fah instead of, or in addition to, music, you may prefer a split-leaf Psalter with sol-fah.


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## NaphtaliPress (Nov 28, 2010)

Most Americans don't know so-fa do they? As to the question of split leaf versus a hymnal type production such as the _Comprehensive Psalter: _FPCR used the 1650 split leaf Irish psalter that Oxford put out as a pew psalter for nearly a decade. We got used to it; liked it; but it was an expensive book, sporadically available, and simply too flimsy for that purpose. For those reasons the session decided to try to produce their own. I believe I looked into producing split leaf and it wasn't practical or other factors weighed against it (I don't recall now; was ten years ago). The overriding concern was how well would the psalter hold up as a pew psalter and to provide a cheaper alternative for bulk purchasers (outfitting a church with split leaf was a small fortune at the time). Once split leaf was out, that left assigning a tune for each setting. Rev. Ruddell may recall more of the details as he was involved in tune selection and provided a couple of new tunes (he also has contributed new settings each year for the Psallo entry in _The Confessional Presbyterian_ journal).


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## au5t1n (Nov 28, 2010)

Thank you folks. I'll probably get multiple kinds over time.


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## JM (Nov 28, 2010)

I have the TBS Bible with the 1650 Psalter, love it.


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## Rev. Todd Ruddell (Nov 29, 2010)

When putting together the Comprehensive Psalter, we as a session had a pastoral concern that was decisive is assigning a particular tune for a particular Psalm setting. We were concerned that switching tunes for particular Psalm settings on a semi-regular basis would hinder the congregation's ability to memorize the words themselves. We believed (and I still do) that having an assigned tune augments the ability to memorize the words. I have found this to be true in my own singing/memory, and I have spoken with others who have had the same experience. As for some of the criticisms that have been brought up concerning the CP, I understand that there are preferences for certain tunes, and even length of Psalm settings--Alas, you can't please all of the people all of the time. I myself would like to see some corrections made, and perhaps we'll put our hand to a revision someday. But for now, we have a very workable Psalter, divided into a year's worth of settings, so that if one desires to do so, singing 6 Psalms per week, and all 6 of the week's Psalms on the Lord's Day, one can sing twice through the Psalter each year.


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## LawrenceU (Nov 29, 2010)

NaphtaliPress said:


> Most Americans don't know so-fa do they?



More than you might think. Quite a few in the Church of Christ, Primitive Baptist, and other southern acapella churches still use 'Sol-Fa', solfege, and/or shape note singing - usually with a moveable do. It is possible to still by shape note hymnals as well. They really are a great help in congregational singing. Even those that aren't trained in it seem to absorb the intervals by osmosis.


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## Kaalvenist (Nov 29, 2010)

As the instigator of the pocket edition of the 1650 Psalter published by the Trinitarian Bible Society, I have to recommend it.  Seriously, it is incredibly convenient to have a Psalter on your person at all times. I have one on me right now -- it's on its second deployment, and is getting rather worn with use and abuse (the wording on the cover has worn off, and the outside of the cover itself is starting to tear). Reformation Heritage has the cheapest price for it (even cheaper than TBS -- both RHB and the American office for TBS are in Grand Rapids, MI, and I always go to RHB to get my Pocket Psalters when I'm there). The larger version comes with a marker ribbon, which can be convenient (although it tends to wear out with age); and when getting a Bible from TBS, I always make sure to get ones with the Psalter in the back.

From my own perspective, as someone who came to exclusive psalmody when I didn't know many tunes, having a words-only Psalter was the best thing possible. Even though I only knew three or four tunes, I could still obey the divine directive and sing the Psalms. I would probably prefer a music edition for congregational singing, for the reasons already alluded to by others; but for private or family devotions, I don't think a words-only edition can be beat.


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## au5t1n (Nov 29, 2010)

A minister on this board has graciously offered to send me a TBS edition of the 1650 psalter. I agree that words only is best for my needs. I will try to stick to one tune per psalm segment for now. After all, there are so many psalms I've yet to learn, it hardly seems reasonable to load a bunch of tunes onto the few I already know instead of just learning a new one to a new tune.

I may very well procure a Comprehensive Psalter and/or a split-leaf psalter produced by the Free Church eventually, but for now my needs are met. Thank you everyone!


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## JM (Nov 30, 2010)

LawrenceU said:


> NaphtaliPress said:
> 
> 
> > Most Americans don't know so-fa do they?
> ...





[video=youtube;xEm9eyFs6A4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEm9eyFs6A4[/video]
[video=youtube;orU_iuBtY-I]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orU_iuBtY-I[/video]


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## Glenn Ferrell (Nov 30, 2010)

Compare this second video above to Scots Gaelic Psalm Singing. I compares to the Primitive Baptists I've heard in Eastern Kentucky.

YouTube - Gaelic psalms at Back Free Church, Isle Of Lewis- 20/21/oct/2003


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## au5t1n (Dec 1, 2010)

Glenn Ferrell said:


> Compare this second video above to Scots Gaelic Psalm Singing. I compares to the Primitive Baptists I've heard in Eastern Kentucky.
> 
> [video=youtube;k3MzZgPBL3Q]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3MzZgPBL3Q[/video]


 
That stuff is good for the soul. And I don't even know what they're saying. I'm partial to this one:

[video=youtube;fMqKxpq6QAE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMqKxpq6QAE&feature=related[/video]


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