Electronic hymn number display

[Hare]

I have heard of the above, as a replacement for the traditional hymn board and card numbers, but does anyone have any experience of them, or where they can be obtained please?

[Nick Baty]

If you Google "Electronic hymn board" quite a few come up.
They look, well, interesting....

[NorthernTenor]

Hare,

I'm no tree-hugger, but I'd rather stick with the version that doesn't require electricity - tho' I see the point of investigating the most efficient illumination where required. On the other hand, I might have missed something - do you have a requirement that might be met better by one of these devices?

[contrabordun]

If your power supply fails, your congregation is going to be hard put to it in most places to see the words to read 'em, so it won't matter if they don't find the right hymn.

[Hare]

I have seen, somewhere, a device that just displays one big number, ie the next one. At present we have a standard board that accepts 5 numbers. People say "we don't know what number is the Gloria etc". I would like one of those boards that has slots to specify "Gloria" "Sanctus" etc, but they are obviously wider than usual, and we are a small building and it would not fit. There are also those who cannot read the numbers, and won't forsake their usual seat near the back. I have been putting the numbers in the parish newsletter for a while but PP will only allow them to be on back page and a lot of people don't read that far until they get home. (His reasoning is that if it was on the front he would need to advertise there in advance what preface/EP he is going to use, but inevitably he decides that after we have said "we lift them up unto the Lord"!) Newsletter editor needs the column space so list has gone, leading to complaints from those who can't see the board.

[gwyn]

There's a church in Cardiff that has one. I attended Mass there one Sunday morn, we'd got to the Offertory before I'd become aware of its existence. No substitute for the real thing if you ask me. It's a bit like the meat counter display in Tesco that tells you it's your turn. Not good (the hymn board that is, not Tesco meat).

[Hare]

There's a church in Cardiff that has one. I attended Mass there one Sunday morn, we'd got to the Offertory before I'd become aware of its existence. No substitute for the real thing if you ask me. It's a bit like the meat counter display in Tesco that tells you it's your turn. Not good (the hymn board that is, not Tesco meat).

Was it a big building?

[gwyn]

Hare asked

Was it a big building?

I guess it'd seat about 2-300 Hare.

[contrabordun]

I have seen, somewhere, a device that just displays one big number, ie the next one.

That's the most logical thing if you're going electronic - normal ones only have 5/6 slots etc on account of it being a tad inconvenient to change them during Mass and the digits have to be smaller to keep the overall size within reasonable limits. One big number, (or ideally, space for a few letters and a number) would be good.

[docmattc]

I experienced an electronic, one number only, hymn board only once many years ago. On the very rare occasions I'm not at the organ I tend to look through the whole list of music before Mass to see what's on the menu and it seemed very odd not to be able to do that. I found my eye constantly drawn to the display during other things to see if the next number had popped up yet, and the temptation to plunge into the hymnbook to see what was next mid-sermon (when the offertory hymn number appeared) almost to great to resist.

[HallamPhil]

30 years ago when I was MD at the German Catholic Church of St Boniface in Whitechapel there was a hymn number projector next to the organ which projected onto the East Wall not just the number of the hymn but also alongside the verses. This would have been particularly useful (had my German been up to the mark - no pun intended) for excising dodgy verses. I mention this because I had to use 'faith of our fathers' at a recent Diocesan Pilgrimage.

[Psalm Project]

I experienced a digital hymn number board in a German church in 1996!
It was a single display located on the wall to one side of the sanctuary - Large red numbers, about four digits only - single line.
There was a small keypad - not unlike a calculator keypad - at the pipe organ console in the rear gallery.
Obviously the organist needed to remember to change the number (or cancel out the previous one).
You really need a multi-number arrangement. You would be surprised how many people leaf through their hymnals before mass begins (they do in my church), based on numbers displayed on the boards. We have conventional number boards (4) which accept the Hayes & Finch Numbers / Letters

[gwyn]

I think there would be a need for a scrolling display, this would allow for "Gloria 595"; or Regina Coeli 867" or "Acclamation 29". Anything less would soon frustrate and confuse, or wrose still, whip up apathy.

There is the potential for typos too.

[docmattc]

I think there would be a need for a scrolling display,

As in "This train is for Norwich, calling at Ely, Thetford, Attleborough and Norwich"

[Nick Baty]

Can't remember when we last used a hymnboard.
We produce service sheets every week – and once you get into the whole Calamus licence thing it's great.
It's rare we'd use a complete song or hymn and announcing verses spoils the flow.
Also, there really isn't one collection which does the job so, like many others, we use items from a variety of resources.
Our service sheets are very basic – just the words people need (so no Holy etc as, obviously, they know them) and melody lines when appropriate.
Also, we're using an increasing amount of music where people don't need the words at all.