October 15, 2017

Each week, you may find information here about the music in the traditional worship services at First United Methodist Church in Lewisville, Texas.  Some of this information is original; much of it is "borrowed" from other sources such as Wikipedia, GBOD, and hymnary.org.  It is my hope that this information will enhance your understanding and enrich your worship experience.  

About the Organ Music:

Lord of All Gentleness - Derek Healey

Joyce Torrens (1901-1953), who wrote under the name of Jan Struther, became famous for a newpaper column in which she presented herself in the character of Mrs. Miniver, a briskly sensible and humerous middle-class woman whose spirit seemed to embody a certain sort of plucky Englishness.  Mrs. Miniver was turned into an Oscar-winning film in 1942, which was crucial in the effort to gain public support of American entry into World War II, with its portrayal of the hardships suffered by an English family during the Bitz.  This hymn was written in 1929 at the request of Torren’s London neighbor, Canon Percy Deamer of Westminster Abbey, for his new edition of Songs of Praise.  Deamer was delighted by its success, stating that he “lately returned from a service of university students, who have speedily made it their favorite”.

SLANE is an old Irish folk tune associated with the ballad "With My Love on the Road" in Patrick W. Joyce's Old Irish Folk Music and Songs (1909). It became a hymn tune when it was arranged by David Evans (PHH 285) and set to the Irish hymn "Be Thou My Vision" published in the Church Hymnary (1927). SLANE is named for a hill in County Meath, Ireland, where St. Patrick's lighting of an Easter fire–an act of defiance against the pagan king Loegaire (fifth century)–led to his unlimited freedom to preach the gospel in Ireland.

, where it became crucial to the effort to gain public support for American entry into WWorld War II. With its portrayal of the hardships suffered by an English family during the Blitz. 

This hymn was written in 1929 at the request of Torren’s London neighbor, Canon Percy Dearmer of Westminster Abbey, for his new edition of Songs of Praise.  Deamer was delighted by its success, stating that he “lately returned from a service of university students, who have speedily made it their favourite”. 

Lord of all hopefulness, Lord of all joy,
Whose trust, ever childlike, no cares can destroy,
Be there at our waking, and give us, we pray,
Your bliss in our hearts, Lord, at the break of the day.

Lord of all eagerness, Lord of all faith,
Whose strong hands were skilled at the plane and the lathe,
Be there at our labors, and give us, we pray,
Your strength in our hearts, Lord at the noon of the day.

Lord of all kindliness, Lord of all grace,
Your hands swift to welcome, your arms to embrace,
Be there at our homing, and give us, we pray,
Your love in our hearts, Lord, at the eve of the day.

Lord of all gentleness, Lord of all calm,
Whose voice is contentment, whose presence is balm,
Be there at our sleeping, and give us, we pray,
Your peace in our hearts, Lord, at the end of the day.

This contemporary setting is from a suite by Dr. Derek Healey, who was born in England in 1936 and studied composition with Herbert Howells at the Royal College of Music. In 1969, Healey moved to Canada where he received his doctorate from the University of Toronto and where he subsequently taught at the Universities of Victoria, Toronto and Guelph. Ten years later he became Professor of Musical Composition at the University of Oregon at Eugene. Since retiring he resides in Brooklyn.  Healey has written about his style and influence: "The first pieces with which I am satisfied were written in the Neo-Classic style, a style which appealed to me coming from an organist's background; the composers I particularly liked were Hindemith and Milhaud. After some four or five years I became concerned with the strict limitations of classicism and this resulted in a period in Italy where I studied the techniques of the Second Viennese and Post-Webern schools with Boris Porena and Goffredo Petrassi. The techniques of these composers have stayed with me ever since as a continuum on which to place other current interests, the most important of these being ethnic music (N.W. Canadian and other Pacific based musics) and also techniques learnt from electronic music.”

Blest Be the Tie – Michael Barker

John Fawcett (1740-1817) was born into a poor family in Yorkshire, England, and was orphaned at age 12.  To survive, he accepted a lengthy apprenticeship to a tailor.  While still in his teens, he heard the great George Whitfield preach and became a Christian.  Fawcett became active in a Baptist church and was often asked to speak.  At age 25 (and newly married), he was invited to serve as pastor of a small church at Wainsgate.  The poor people of that little village were able to pay very little, and much of Fawcett's pay came as potatoes and other produce.  Once his wife, Mary, began having children, they found it difficult to survive.

Fawcett learned that the pastor of a large Baptist church in London was retiring, and he let the church know that he would be interested in serving them.  They called him to be their pastor at a much larger salary, so John and Mary packed their household and prepared to move.  But, as the story is told, Mary told John that she didn't think she could leave these people whom they had both learned to love, and John admitted that he shared her sentiment; so, the two of them unpacked the wagon and told the London church know they wouldn't be coming.

Fawcett, who wrote a number of hymns during his lifetime, wrote the hymn, "Blest Be the Tie," to convey his sentiments and those of his wife to the poor people among whom they had chosen to live.  Fawcett served that little church for the rest of his life –– 54 years in all.

 Lowell Mason arranged DENNIS and first published it in The Psaltery (1845), a hymnal he compiled with George. Webb. Mason attributed the tune to Johann G. Nageli (1773-1836) but included no source reference. Nageli presumably published the original melody as the setting for "0 selig, selig, wervor dir" in his Christliches Gesangbuch (1828). Nageli was an influential music educator who lectured throughout Germany and France. Influenced by Johann Pestalozzi, he published his theories of music education in Gangbildungslehre (1810), a book that made a strong impact on Lowell Mason. Nageli composed choral works, including settings of Goethe's poetry. He received his early instruction from his father, then in Zurich, where he concentrated on the music of ]. S. Bach. In Zurich, he also established a lending library and a publishing house, which published first editions of Beethoven’s piano sonatas and music by Bach, Handel, and Frescobaldi.  The tune name DENNIS is thought to refer to a town in Massachusetts.

Blest be the tie that binds Our hearts in Christian love;
The fellowship of kindred minds Is like to that above.

Before our Father’s throne, We pour our ardent prayers;
Our fears, our hopes, our aims are one, Our comforts, and our cares.

We share our mutual woes, Our mutual burdens bear;
And often for each other flows The sympathizing tear.

When we asunder part, It gives us inward pain;
But we shall still be joined in heart, And hope to meet again.

Michael Barker is a church music composer, having written choral anthems, handbell music, and organ music, as well as instrumental settings of familiar hymns and carols.

Lobt Gott, ihr christen, Allzugleich - J. S. Bach

Nikolaus Herman (c.1480-1560) was schoolmaster, organist and Kantor in Joachimsthal, Bohemia, just over the mountains from Saxony. Johann Matthesius, Luther’s first biographer and headmaster of the Latin school and minister of the church there, was a close friend and colleague.  Luther wrote to him as ‘viro pio et erudito’. Nikolaus Herman’s importance lies in his hymns, which were published in several volumes. He wrote both text and music, but most melodies are used for several texts. His poems are rhymed syllabic verses with no fixed meter. His Sunday Gospels, which retell Bible stories in rhymed stanzas, remained models for a succession of works of the same type well into the 17^th century. In his endeavors to express Christian beliefs in the form of hymns, Herman’s texts are close to those of Luther. Though never attaining the poetic force of the latter’s work, many have retained their place in the standard German Lutheran hymn repertory: above all “Lobt Gott, ihr Christen, allzugleich”, “Erschienen ist der herrlich Tag”, “Die helle Sonn leucht jetzt herfür”, “Hinunter ist der Sonnen Schein” and “Wenn mein Stündlein vorhanden ist”. Many of his melodies show clear affinities with folk music: in particular the traditions of Bergreihen (songs in folk style from the region of the Erzgebirge between Saxony and Bohemia) and Abendreihen (evening dances sung in a circle). In a number of melodies he employed elements of plainchant, sometimes alongside folk elements. Thus his well-known tune for “Lobt Gott, ihr Christen, allzugleich” is probably connected with the Christmas antiphon “Hodie Christus natus est nobis”, while that for “Erschienen ist der herrlich Tag” is at least indirectly related to the Easter antiphon “Ad monumentum venimus gementes”.

Praise God, you Christains, all together, on his highest throne,
who today unlocks his heavenly kingdom and bestows on us his son.

He comes from his Father's bosom and will be a little baby,
he lies there poor, naked and bare in a little crib.

He shows all his might, he becomes humble and small,
and he takes on a servant's form, the creator of all things.

He makes a wonderful exchange with us: he takes on flesh and blood
and in his Father's kingdom gives us in return clear divinity.

He becomes a servant and I a lord, what an exchange that is!
How could he be more friendly, dear little Jesus.

Today he again unlocks the door to the beautiful paradise,
the cherub no more stands in front, to God be glory, honour and praise

He lies at his mother's breast, her milk is his food,
he in whom angels see their delight. For he is David's scion.

He was destined to spring from his lineage in this last time,
through whom God wanted to set up his kingdom, Christendom.

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period.  He enriched established German styles through his skill in counterpoint, harmonic and motivic organization, and the adaptation of rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France.  Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg concertos, the Mass in B minor, The Well-Tempered Clavier, two Passions, keyboard works, and more than 300 cantatas, of which nearly 100 cantatas have been lost to posterity.  His music is revered for its intellectual depth, technical command, and artistic beauty.  Bach's abilities as an organist were highly respected throughout Europe during his lifetime, although he was not widely recognized as a great composer until a revival of interest and performances of his music in the first half of the nineteenth century.  During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, Bach was recognized by several prominent composers.  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven,  Frédéric Chopin, Robert Schumann, and Felix Mendelssohn were among his admirers; they began writing in a more contrapuntal style after being exposed to Bach's music.  Beethoven described him as "Urvater der Harmonie", the "original father of harmony".  He is now generally regarded as one of the main composers of the Baroque period and as one of the greatest composers of all time.  A highly devout Christian, Bach signed all of his compositions “soli Deo Gloria”  (to God alone be the glory).   

About the Choral Music:

Make This Church A Welcome Place – Joel Raney

Joel Raney’s (b. 1956) taste for gospel music began in a rural Baptist church in Alabama, an influence that shows strongly in his work to this day. Joel's interest in music of all kinds has led to everything from classical and jazz performance to pop vocal arranging. He has conducted Broadway productions, and has been honored for outstanding musical direction of theater in both Chicago and Los Angeles. Since 1988 he has worked as a composer and producer of commercial music in Chicago and has written soundtracks for more than 2000 television and radio commercials, plus numerous scores for short films.  Joel is a choral and keyboard clinician, and performs throughout North America as a piano soloist and in duo-concert with organist Jane Holstein.  He has over 200 titles in print, including choral anthems, musicals and cantatas, handbell compositions, piano solos, and instrumental works. 

This anthem, with text by J. Paul Williams, focuses on the church as a welcome place for all to gather in unity and inclusion. The church is called to reach out beyond the doors and walls, making this a powerful worship moment for services of church community and outreach.

            Lord of mercy, Lord of grace, make this church a welcome place.

            To the hungry soul and the poor, may there be an open door.

            To the weary and distressed, may this be a place of rest.

            Lord of mercy, Lord of grace, make this church a welcome place.

            Reaching out to others, serving both great and small,

            Sharing our abundance with one and all.

           

            Lord of mercy, Lord of grace, make this church a holy place,

            Where we come to seek the truth; fill our hearts and worship you

            In our words and through our deeds, knowing you will meet our needs.

            Lord of mercy, Lord of grace, make this church, make this church,

            Make this church a welcome place.  Amen.

About the Hymns:

Come Christians, Join to Sing

Christian Henry Bateman (1813-1899) was ordained into the Church of England after being a Congregational minister.  His miisterial studies were under the auspices of the Moravian Church, where he served for a time before changing to the Congregational Church at age 30. Following his ministry at Richmond Place Congregational Church in Edinburgh, Scotland, and successive Congregational parishes in Hopton, Yorkshire, and Reading, Berkshire, he took Holy Orders in the Anglican Church at age 56 and served as a curate and vicar in several Anglican parishes.

“Come, Children, Join to Sing” first appeared in a collection published in Edinburgh, Sacred Melodies for Children (1843), along with a number of other hymns for children by Bateman. The original “Hallelujah, Amen!” was changed by the Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., in their 1933 hymnal, to “Alleluia! Amen!”  It has remained that way ever since.  The original incipit (opening line of the hymn) was “Come, children, join to sing.” Though changed to include all age groups, Bateman’s text contains direct, uncomplicated language suited for children. Since very few of the words have more than two syllables and “Alleluia! Amen!” is interjected three times in each stanza, the hymn is easy for children to learn and sing.

MADRID, also known as SPANISH HYMN, was a popular Spanish folk melody that was arranged for piano by Benjamin Carr in 1825.  In 1826, it was published in Philadelphia with the following title: Spanish Hymn, arranged and composed for the Concerts of the Musical Fund Society of Philadelphia by Benjamin Carr.  The Air from an Ancient Spanish Melody.  Printed from the Condensed Score of the Society, and Presented to the Composer as a Tribute of Respect and Regard by Some of the Members, his Friends (Philadelphia, 1826).  Montague Burgoyne published the tune in A Collection of Metrical Versions (London, 1827). 

Benjamin Carr (1768-1831) was born in London and studied with Dr. Samuel Arnold and Charles Wesley, II.  He emigrated to America in 1793, and the following year, he became a publisher in both Philadelphia and New York.  He was organist of St. Peter’s Church, Philadelphia, and also music director of St. Joseph’s Roman Cathholic Church from 1801.  His liturgical works were published in Masses, Vespers, Litanies, Hymns, Psalms, Anthems & Motetts (1805) for Roman Catholics and the Collection of Chants and Tunes for the Use of the Episcopal Church in the City of Philadelphia (1816).  In addition, Carr wrote operas and piano pieces.

O Spirit of the Living God

Henry Hallam Tweedy (1868-1953) hailed from the northeast, born in Binghamton, N.Y. He was granted degrees from Phillips Andover Academy, Yale University, Union Theological Seminary and the University of Berlin.  A Congregational pastor, he served churches in New York and Connecticut, and later taught practical theology from 1909-1937 at Yale Divinity School.  He co-authored several books, including Training the Devotional Life (1919) and Religious Training in School and Home (1917). His most important contribution, however, was as editor of the hymnal Christian Worship and Praise (1939). In addition to editing a hymnal, Tweedy published a practical volume, The Minister and His Hymnal, and won several hymn contests sponsored by the Homiletic Review and the Hymn Society of America.

Tweedy said he composed “O Spirit of the Living God” because “some of the old Pentecostal hymns were to me unsatisfactory, and I was eager to interpret the symbolism of the story in Acts in a way that modern men could understand and sincerely mean.”  The text is an exposition of Acts 2, a passage focused on Pentecost. The hymn was first published in the Methodist Hymnal (1935).

FOREST GREEN is an English folk tune associated with the ballad "The Ploughboy's Dream." Ralph Vaughan Williams turned FOREST GREEN into a hymn tune for The English Hymnal (1906), using it as a setting for "O Little Town of Bethlehem."