# [Android Beta] 1650 Split Leaf Psalter with Tunes.



## kodos (Jan 14, 2017)

Dear Saints of the Puritan Board,
There has been a need for a 1650 Digital Split Leaf Psalter for some time now. The project is in Open Beta for Android at the moment. iOS Beta will occur sometime in early February. If you are interested in opting in - see the link below:

https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.charisdevelopment.thesixteenfifty

Currently, there are fourteen tunes, the entire psalter, with John Brown of Haddington's commentary integrated. More content is going in on an ongoing basis. People new to Psalmody need a resource like this - and so it has been on my heart for some time to work on this project.

If you want to see a video of it in action, go here:




__ https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10154937776999771

Reactions: Like 9 | Informative 1 | Rejoicing 2


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## Andrew P.C. (Jan 14, 2017)

Excellent work sir! Loving it! You have/are doing a great service!

Reactions: Like 2


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## au5t1n (Jan 14, 2017)

Rom,
That looks very high quality and very user-friendly. Thanks for sharing.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Backwoods Presbyterian (Jan 14, 2017)

We used it tonight in family worship. An excellent resource!

Reactions: Like 1


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## Pilgrim (Jan 14, 2017)

Do any of you prefer certain tunes with certain Psalms?


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## kodos (Jan 15, 2017)

It is now also available on the Amazon App Store for those who have Kindle Fire HDs or other devices that can access the Amazon ecosystem, but not the Google Play Store (I believe that also includes some Blackberry Devices).

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N9RZPI...8&qid=1484480910&sr=1-2&keywords=1650+psalter


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## Afterthought (Jan 16, 2017)

Pilgrim said:


> Do any of you prefer certain tunes with certain Psalms?


Personally, I don't know about "preference," but I do think certain tunes go well with certain Psalms and so I tend to match them accordingly; I don't think just one tune goes well with the words though, so the "certain tunes" tend to be a range of them. Tune recommendations found in the _Scottish Psalmody_ (plus a couple extra) can be found here (and the CCRPC website has a pdf with the tunes that are matched to the psalms in the _Comprehensive Psalter_).


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## Stope (Jan 17, 2017)

This is awesome! That said, I know nothing of the Psalter and Psalmody... Is there a link or a basic overview of what this is all about?


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## Ryan&Amber2013 (Jan 17, 2017)

Awesome. Thank you!


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## Jake (Jan 17, 2017)

Stope said:


> This is awesome! That said, I know nothing of the Psalter and Psalmody... Is there a link or a basic overview of what this is all about?



Psalmody is setting the Psalms of David to metrical versions so that they can be sung. The 1650 Scottish Psalter puts the entire 150 psalms to a single meter, meaning that you can use a variety of tunes in that meter to sing them. For example, you could sing the text below from Psalm 23 to tunes like the ones for O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing or Amazing Grace (as well as other suitable tunes you could find in this app!):

The Lord's my shepherd, I'll not want
He makes me down to lie
In pastures green he leadeth me
The quiet waters by.

You'll notice the translation is quite similar to the KJV. There are newer translations that are setup more like a traditional hymnal, such as the Book of Psalms for Worship.

Reformed churches historically use the Psalms exclusively or nearly exclusively, following the practice of Jewish worship continued in the NT church, although using metrical versions are a bit more modern. Metrical versions were seen as more singable by common people than intricate chants that had developed in the Roman Catholic Church. 

Sadly, outside of Reformed and some liturgical churches, it's rare to find the Psalms being sung today. Regardless of whether they are to be sung exclusively, I think we all agree here they should be used regularly.

Here are some resources:

Calvin's introduction to the Genevan Psalter (Psalter he worked with to get translated into French, versions now exist in other languages as well): http://spindleworks.com/library/calvin/calvinpsalterpreface.html

A sermon from Baptist minister John Gill on Singing the Psalms: http://web.archive.org/web/20160101...s.org/books/gill/Sermons&Tracts/sermon_54.htm

A good book of essays is: Sing a New Song: Recovering Psalm Singing for the Twenty-First Century, ed. Joel Beeke

Here is an article specifically about the Psalter translation in question here: http://reformation-scotland.org/ind...of-the-scottish-psalter-rev-david-silversides

Reactions: Informative 1


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## Stope (Jan 17, 2017)

Jake said:


> Psalmody is setting the Psalms of David to metrical versions so that they can be sung. The 1650 Scottish Psalter puts the entire 150 psalms to a single meter, meaning that you can use a variety of tunes in that meter to sing them. For example, you could sing the text below from Psalm 23 to tunes like the ones for O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing or Amazing Grace (as well as other suitable tunes you could find in this app!):
> 
> The Lord's my shepherd, I'll not want
> He makes me down to lie
> ...


Wow! So so helpful! Thanks for taking the time to share that for me. Indeed it looks like I have some work to do to get this all figured out for Family Worship!

Thanks again!

Reactions: Like 1


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## TylerRay (Jan 18, 2017)

Rom,

Thank you for your hard work! Unfortunately, I keep getting an error message: "The conncection to the server was unsuccessful (file///android_asset/www/index.html)"

Reactions: Like 1


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## kodos (Jan 18, 2017)

TylerRay said:


> Rom,
> 
> Thank you for your hard work! Unfortunately, I keep getting an error message: "The conncection to the server was unsuccessful (file///android_asset/www/index.html)"



Hi TylerRay - PM me your device information. I suspect I know the issue if this is an older device - the landing page times out because it is taking longer to load than anticipated. Send me a PM and I'll get on this for the next build.


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## Logan (Jan 20, 2017)

Very nice Rom. This is almost exactly what I envisioned a while back.

Reactions: Like 1


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## ReformedInSweden (Jan 26, 2017)

This is fabulous![emoji108] [emoji106]

Reactions: Like 1


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## earl40 (Jan 26, 2017)

Are metrical versions of Psalms different than Psalms set to tunes of know hymns such as Amazing Grace? In my most humble opinion to sing a Psalm to such would be a distraction. I ask this as one who has very little knowledge of the in and outs of music. 

I know I have heard that one can sing Psalms to Gilligan's Island which I find offensive to even jest about such.


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## kodos (Jan 26, 2017)

A psalm that is set to "Amazing Grace" (the tune is called New Britain) is still a metrical psalm. New Britain is Common Meter. Many psalters fix a psalm to a particular tune. Sometimes they do use well-known hymn tunes. The merits of such are endlessly debated.

However, in this particular psalter - the idea of the "split leaf" is that you can mix and match any psalm to any tune with a meter that fits. Since the 1650 lets you sing every psalm in Common Meter you can pick any of the CM tunes (or if you know what you are doing, tunes with other meters if they fit).

So find a few tunes that don't cause you offence and you can sing all the Psalms! Regardless of where people land regarding Exclusive Psalmody - we have been told to sing them. Psalters like this one make that fairly easy even with no musical abilities (I share in your lack of knowledge of music - I just know enough to be dangerous). I think people mostly "tongue in cheek" say that you can sing through the entire 1650 if you just know Gilligan's Island to demonstrate that if you know a single CM tune you can sing all of God's Songs. I don't know anyone who actually would. Though I wouldn't claim it is sinful to do so - if you used that tune with someone who had no idea what GI was, it would hardly cause offence. Unwise in our society however 

Regarding the app itself - an update: *Android users are now out of Beta*; update it if you haven't gotten an auto update - last night's update will give you tune recommendations to many of the psalms and we are now up to over sixty tunes in the library. Lots of new features since that original post was made.

Also, a sidenote that the *iOS Beta is available if you PM me *your email address. The app itself is in review by Apple at the moment for general release. I am praying they approve it.

Reactions: Like 2


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## earl40 (Jan 26, 2017)

kodos said:


> Regarding the app itself - an update: *Android users are now out of Beta*; update it if you haven't gotten an auto update - last night's update will give you tune recommendations to many of the psalms and we are now up to over sixty tunes in the library. Lots of new features since that original post was made.
> 
> Also, a sidenote that the *iOS Beta is available if you PM me *your email address. The app itself is in review by Apple at the moment for general release. I am praying they approve it.



Sorry about the above this simply went over my head. You may as well be speaking Chinese to me.  Is there an internet site that has a list of metrical Psalms to listen to, so that one can understand the words? Most of the recordings I have heard are rather poor quality so far as I understandable words. I ask because I would love to listen to them while I drive to redeem the short time we have on this earth.


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## kodos (Jan 26, 2017)

Earl, don't worry about the techno jargon.

I'm not sure what recordings you are listening to, some of them might be best to follow along with the actual text of the psalter. CCRPC has graciously made recordings of their congregation singing from the 1650 Psalter (the Comprehensive Psalter): http://www.christcovenantrpc.org/audio/psalm-singing/

If you want something "professional" (as in studio recordings) of the Book of Psalms for Worship (RPCNA) then you can visit Crown and Covenant. They sell MP3s of high-quality psalm singing. The free Psalm of the Month is here: https://www.crownandcovenant.com/v/vspfiles/assets/images/03 113C, Praise the Lord's Name.mp3

I started with C&C's recordings when I was new to psalm singing and they were very helpful since I was new to psalm singing.

Reactions: Like 2


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## Afterthought (Jan 26, 2017)

earl40 said:


> Is there an internet site that has a list of metrical Psalms to listen to, so that one can understand the words? Most of the recordings I have heard are rather poor quality so far as I understandable words. I ask because I would love to listen to them while I drive to redeem the short time we have on this earth.





kodos said:


> I'm not sure what recordings you are listening to, some of them might be best to follow along with the actual text of the psalter. CCRPC has graciously made recordings of their congregation singing from the 1650 Psalter (the Comprehensive Psalter): http://www.christcovenantrpc.org/audio/psalm-singing/


One can also find recordings of varying quality at http://scottishpsalter.com/recordings/ and on SoundCloud (a number of the SoundCloud recordings have been complied here: http://www.thepsalmssung.org/scottish/)

And the Presbyterian Reformed Church has some well done recordings of a few psalms: http://presbyterianreformed.org/psalms-cd/

There are also the _Worthy to be Praised_ CDs, which are generally well done: http://sing-the-psalms.webs.com/

I have heard that some like these (if you can find them; out of stock below), but I have never listened to them so cannot comment on the quality: http://www.crownandcovenant.com/Scottish_Metrical_Vol_1_c_p/cm530.htm

Project Psalms looks like it is finished: http://www.projectpsalms.net/

Reactions: Like 1


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## Pilgrim (Jan 27, 2017)

Afterthought said:


> And the Presbyterian Reformed Church has some well done recordings of a few psalms: http://presbyterianreformed.org/psalms-cd/



A brother sent me these CDs years ago. Good to see that they've put the content online and available for download. (Unless I'm missing something, I'm not sure that they have all of Vol I posted. I'm pretty sure it has more tracks than than 17. By contrast, they have 2 pages for Vol II with a total of 31 tracks.)

They used to have a track listing somewhere on their website (and probably the tunes as well) but I glanced at the website just now and didn't see it. I printed it out years ago but I don't know if I still have it.


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## Elizabeth (Jan 27, 2017)

So very much enjoying the Split-Leaf Psalter app. It is truly a blessing to open this app throughout the day. Thank you so much!

Reactions: Rejoicing 1


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## Pilgrim (Jan 27, 2017)

Afterthought said:


> One can also find recordings of varying quality at http://scottishpsalter.com/recordings/ and on SoundCloud (a number of the SoundCloud recordings have been complied here: http://www.thepsalmssung.org/scottish/)
> 
> And the Presbyterian Reformed Church has some well done recordings of a few psalms: http://presbyterianreformed.org/psalms-cd/
> 
> ...



The Westminster Standard is another one that I just came across. http://www.thewestminsterstandard.com/1650-scottish-metrical-psalter/


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