WILBURMUSIC
I am blessed to be able to lead worship every week at my church in Franklin, TN. Part of the joy of crafting the weekly service is choosing and writing hymns and Psalms settings that go along with what we are studying as a congregation.
I wrote this collection of songs from lyrics that spoke to my heart, my fears and anxieties, my desire for repentance and assurance, and the overflow of gratitude and worship that comes from walking in the tender mercies of the Lord and seeing His grace unfold day by day.
This is my sixth studio album, but it is incredibly special to me.
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I have been blessed with deeply talented friends, and this album has given me the chance to work with them specifically with music. This has opened up opportunities to co-write lyrics and tunes, to let others produce and arrange a few of the songs, and to give full voice to the gifts and talents that the Lord has given to others. It’s been a great joy and an honor! You will get to hear from Nathan Clark George, Rachel Wilhelm, Jonathan & Amanda Noel, Paul Ranheim and Kirk Sauers, Melanie Penn, Michael Montogomery, Karin Simmons, Jackson Pent, and more!
The joy for me in sharing this music is that it was born out of relationships in community as songs written for congregational singing at Cornerstone Presbyterian Church in Franklin, TN. In addition, these are melodies that sing of dear friends and their encouragement to me as an artist and friend, of our monthly long talks over food and drink and memes, and of gracious friends (some of whom I’ve never met) whose affirmation by financially supporting this project is appreciated beyond words. One of the blessings of a project like this is the opportunity to work collaboratively with other musicians and friends.
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This is an overflow of weekly congregational music written with a specific time and place in mind--and that particularness is what will hopefully speak to you in your own context. God's Word is faithful and a sure foundation.
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In Beauty of Holiness is a collection of some of the most requested songs from My Cry Ascends (2010) and Christ Is Our Cornerstone (2012). In choosing six songs from each album, I was also able to have the re-mixed and re-mastered for better audio quality. Particularly in the songs from Cornerstone, I think you will hear them in a whole new light as the audio space is opened up with greater clarity and presence.
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These are some of my favorites that I think you will enjoy in this new collection of songs by request.
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As God calls us week by week before the Throne of Grace, one of my chief pleasures and blessings is serving the congregation at Cornerstone Presbyterian by planning and encouraging corporate worship. The writing of these songs filled specific musical and theological needs in our services. I present them here not as an absolute, but as an expression of God’s goodness and grace to our particular worshipping community. If they fill a need elsewhere, I am doubly humbled and blessed.
This was a community project with singers, instrumentalists, choir, and congregation from Cornerstone Pres in Franklin, TN and our mother church, Parish Pres.
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credits
released October 29, 2012
Credits
Piano: Gregory Wilbur
Guitar: Nathan Clark George
Solo Viola: Henry Haffner
Bass: Danny O’Lannerghty
Chamber Ensemble
Violin: Sue Steffens, Michael Snyder, Emma Pent, Frank Auer, Josh McGuire, Jonathan Dillard, Sarah McGuire, Sarah Leaver
Viola: Henry Haffner, Lincoln Pent
Cello: Jackson Pent, Rachel Leaver
Bass: Jeremy Steffens
Flute: Bill Randall
Soprano Sax/Ocarina: David Steffens
Trumpet/Flugel Horn: Greg Bumpus
Percussion: Benjamin George
Production
Mixed and Mastered by Tom Laune at Bridgeway Studio, Nashville, TN
Recording Engineer: Nathan Clark George
Producers: Nathan Clark George and Gregory Wilbur
Orchestrations by Gregory Wilbur
Artwork by Abe Goolsby, Officina Abrahae
Cover Photo of Cornerstone Presbyterian Church by Gregory Wilbur
Artist Photo by Ian Kern
Recording Photos by James Esmond
Initial Tracking Recorded at Cornerstone Presbyterian Church, June 11-13, 2012.
Choir, Strings and Congregation Recorded at Cornerstone Presbyterian Church, July 23-25, 2012.
Vocals Recorded at Parish Presbyterian Church
My Cry Ascends is a graceful collection of new Psalms and hymns for the church composed by Greg Wilbur. The music is recorded in a folk tradition with elements of Celtic style and southern harmony. Listeners will enjoy the hardy musical instrumentation: piano, viola, flutes, tin whistle, acoustic guitar, mandolin, bagpipe, hammer dulcimer and percussion. Rich biblical texts and expressive tunes feature the singing of Michael Card, Steve Green, Wes King, Katy Snow, Nathan Clark George and Bruce Carroll. The songs were written with congregational singing in mind, and it is our hope that this CD will bring these wonderful pieces into wider familiarity as an appropriate offering to the Most High God as He calls His people into worship.
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