Help me out here, y’all. Nobody seems to know what a psalm is. Well, some claim to, and I’m sure they do, but… it’s rather recursive. Not to mention exclusive.
Psalmist: an author of psalms, esp. David
Psalm: a spiritual song or hymn contained in the book of Psalms
David: second king of Israel, author of psalms
Okay.
I was thinking, though, that the Psalmody Circle was a tad wider. In fact, I was beginning to think of myself as a psalmist. But I can’t find an accommodating definition in any of the dictionaries or commentaries that I’ve looked at so far. Aren’t there modern psalmists? (Oh my goodnesss! Even my spell check accepts the word “psalmist” [singular] as a word, but not “psalmists,” plural!) I’ve heard them spoken of before, and I know about Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16, but how are they Scripturally, orthodoxly, and modernly defined?
Anyone? Anyone?
Daddy?
Song of Ascents 
And by the way, I already have a sort of idea of what I think psalms and psalmists are; I’m just trying to figure out where Christendom in general has gotten its ideas about the subject and whether I’m missing something that’s in the Book concerning it. 🙂
Maybe I can help a little. Piecing things together from the Hebrew words that give us the word psalm, a psalm is a poem (set to music) that contemplates and gives insight into God. So, from that perspective, a psalmist is one who beholds God and reveals what he/she beholds through music. In the Greek, the word psalm comes from a verb that means to strike or “twang” the musical strings. This word is translated in the New Testament to mean “make melody,” “sing,” or “sing praises.” Thus, I would say, my friend, that you are certainly a psalmist. 🙂