Interestingly enough Lucy Broadwood conducted some correspondence with the Rev McDermott (see The Snail's link) in which she recorded that the vicar at her local church in Surrey in her childhood days (ie mid 1800's - around 1880) was a bit of a throwback to the 18th century and insisted on the congregation singing in unison ... no bands or harmony involved. The result was a fairly raucous shouting (I presume some musicality must have been involved, as she records that this singing was what gave her her love of modal tunes). At the same time she also stated that her parents (mother born in East Anglia in the early 1800's, and father - from Rusper area) had been used to church bands ... but these were recorded as being, again, raucous, and fairly poor in musical terms. Both versions of church music were effectively knocked on the head with the general introduction of the American organ in the late 1800's - leading presumably to the style of hymn singing we became more accustomed to in the 20th century .. ie tune lines which speaking personally seem to have been designed only for first sopranos (far too high) or real tenors, and rather more sedate than what had gone before.