Variations on an American Hymn Tune (1986)

Adrian Self (b. 1952) — Variations on an American Hymn Tune (1986) for organ

This piece is based on the hymn tune SALVATION, which first appeared Ananias Davisson’s shape note hymnal “Kentucky Harmony” (1816). Adrian Self first encountered the tune while serving a job exchange at Central Baptist Church in Westerly, Rhode Island (USA), and he wrote the piece to play while in the USA.

English composer Adrian Self (b. 1952) grew up in Somerset and Cornwall and is a graduate of Southampton and Huddersfield Universities. He was a member for a number of years the music editorial department at Oxford University Press before becoming Director of Music at Cartmel Priory in Cumbria in 1990. In 1995 he founded “animus Music Publishing,” a publisher of contemporary British church music. Self’s output as a composer includes works in nearly every musical genre, including ten orchestral concerti, many works of chamber music, and numerous choral and organ compositions.

Published by animus Music Publishing (http://www.animusi.co.uk/)