January 28, 2018

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:

Machs mit mir Gott - Sigfrid Karg-Elert

Johann Hermann Schein (1586-1630) was son of a minister and teacher. At the age of seven, when his father died, he moved with his family to Dresden, where within six years he joined the choir of the Elector of Saxony as a boy soprano. In addition to singing in the choir, he received a thorough musical training with Rogier Michael, the Kapellmeister, who recognized his extraordinary talent. He went on to study at the University of Leipzig (1603), from 1603 to 1607 he studied at Pforta (or Schupforta near Naumburg), and finally, from 1608 to 1612, attended again the University of Leipzig, where he studied law in addition to liberal arts.  Upon graduating, Johann Hermann Schein was employed briefly by Gottfried von Wolffersdorff as the house music director and tutor to his children. Due to his demonstrated abilities, he became Kapellmeister at Weimar, and shortly thereafter became Kantor at the Thomasschule (and Thomaskirche) in Leipzig, a post which he held for the rest of his life. He preceded J.S. Bach in this post by more than a century.  He wrote many chorale texts and their melodies.

Deal with me, God, according to your kindness, help me in my suffering;
when I call to you, do not deny me: when my soul departs,
then take it , Lord, in your hand; all is good, if the end is good.

I shall follow you willingly, dearest Lord, you will not let me perish.
Ah, you are not far from me, even if I must die here at once,
forsake my dearest friends who sincerely love me.

The body rests calmly in the earth, the soul takes flight to you;
in your hands unscathed the soul breaks through death to life.
But here there is only a vale of tears, anxiety, distress, trouble, toil everywhere.

Death, the devil, hell, the world and sin can harm me no more;
in you, O Lord, I find deliverance, I am consoled by your grace.
Through your love and grace your only son has paid for me all the debt.

Why then should I be sad, since I come through so well,
clothed with Christ's pure innocence I go forth like a bride?
Farewell, disdainful world, to live with God delights me.

Sigfrid Karg-Elert (1877-1933) was a German composer of considerable fame in the early twentieth century.  The cultural climate in Germany in the 1920s and 1930s was very hostile to the internationally oriented, French-influenced Karg-Elert; and although his works were admired outside Germany, especially in the U.K. (the Organ Music Society of London held a ten-day festival in his honor in 1930) and in the U.S.A., in his home country his music was almost completely neglected.  Karg-Elert regarded himself as an outsider. Notable influences in his work include composers Johann Sebastian Bach (he often used the B.A.C.H. motif in Bach's honor), Edvard Grieg, Claude Debussy, Max Reger, Aleksandr Scriabin, and early Arnold Schoenberg. In general terms, his musical style can be characterized as being late-romantic with impressionistic and expressionistic tendencies. His profound knowledge of music theory allowed him to stretch the limits of traditional harmony without losing tonal coherence.

Mein Jesu, der du mich - Johannes Brahms

Johann Wilhelm Petersen (1649-1727) was born at Osnabrück; his father Georg Petersen, Kanzlei-beamter at Lubeck, having gone to reside at Osnabrück representing Lübeck in the negotiations which ended in the Peace of Westphalia. Petersen attended the University of Giessen, Leipzig, Wittenberg, and Jena; the degree of M.A. being conferred on him by Giessen in absentia. He returned to Giessen, and began to lecture on philosophy and rhetoric as private docent. About 1675, he visited Spener, at Frankfurt, which was an important turning-point in his life. He began to lecture at Rostock, as Professor of Poetry (D.D. from Rostock, 1686), and in the same year accepted the pastorate of the St. Aegidien church at Hannover. In May, 1678, he was appointed Court preacher at Eutin by Duke August Friedrich of Holstein, and general superintendent of the diocese of Lübeck. In Advent, 1688, he became pastor of St. John's church and superintendent at Lüneburg. He was unpopular with his fellow clergy because he refused to take fees for hearing confessions, he befriended Fraulein Rosamunde Juliane von Asseburg, and began publicly to teach her ideas of the Millennial Kingdom. Being accused of Chiliasm and having his opinions condemned by the theological faculty of Helmstädt, he was removed from his office in the end of January, 1692. Thereafter, he resided at various places, made tours over Germany, during which he propagated his views, and expounded his peculiar doctrines by books and pamphlets.

Apart from his importance as a theological writer, Petersen was the author of hymns. A considerable number of them are in Latin, his manuscript being entitled Cithara sacra. Of these he contributed seven to Freylinghausen's Geistreiches Gesang-Buch , 1704. His German hymns were published as Stimmen aus Zion, in two parts, Halle, 1698 and 1701. These are hymns in prose and not versions of the Psalter. Some are obscure, mystical, and diffuse. Others of his hymns appeared in the Pietistic hymn-books of the period, 1692-1704.

Only one verse of “Mein Jesu, der du mich zum Lustspiel ewiglich” could be found:

My Jesus calls to me, Holds out eternal bliss.
He deigns to choose me. Hear, Lord, Thy servant meek
Sings loud the Bridegroom’s praise, In Thee rejoices.

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) was a German composer and pianist.  Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, Brahms spent much of his professional life in Vienna, Austria. In his lifetime, Brahms's popularity and influence were considerable; following a comment by the nineteenth-century conductor Hans von Bülow, he is sometimes grouped with Johann Sebastian Bach and Ludwig van Beethoven as one of the "Three Bs".

Brahms is often considered both a traditionalist and an innovator. His music is firmly rooted in the structures and compositional techniques of the Baroque and Classical masters. He was a master of counterpoint, perfected in the Baroque period, and of thematic development, characteristic of the Classical era. Brahms aimed to honor the "purity" of these established "German" structures and advance them into a Romantic idiom, in the process creating bold new approaches to harmony and melody. While many contemporaries found his music too academic, the diligent, highly constructed nature of Brahms's works was a starting point and an inspiration for a generation of composers.

The last composition of any composer carries a certain level of mystique, and that is true of Brahms’ eleven chorale preludes for organ.  They were written in the summer of 1896 after Clara Schumann’s death, and it is highly probable that Brahms was already aware of his own illness at that point.  While there is evidence that Brahms intended to prepare them for publication, there is also a recorded statement that they could be seen as more private companion pieces to the Vier ernste Gesänge.  Like those songs, the preludes are settings of religious texts - Lutheran hymns and their associated chorale melodies.  The original autograph of all eleven was found on Brahms’s desk after his death in 1897.  The eleven were eventually edited and released by Eusebius Mandyczewski  in 1902.  The pieces were of such obvious significance and quality that they were assigned the posthumous opus number 122, by which they are still known.  As Brahms had no particular personal relationship to the organ, the fact that he turned to it again after forty years for his final opus is remarkable.

The genre of the chorale prelude, forever associated with Johann Sebastian Bach, was for Brahms a means of paying homage to his musical heritage.  He followed the conventions of the form, the most important of which was to paraphrase and elaborate upon the lines of pre-existing Lutheran chorale melodies.  Brahms’s use of counterpoint and harmony show a mixture of baroque techniques with romantic sensibility.  They are all rather short, along the lines of the preludes in Bach’s Orgelbüchlein.  Brahms chose some extremely familiar melodies and some obscure ones.  While several are associated with texts about death and eternity, other topics, including penitence and even Christmas, are also included.  He probably was contemplating thoughts of mortality while composing them, though, and it may not be a coincidence that the last music he would ever write would be No. 11, the second setting of “O Welt, ich muß dich lassen” (“O world, I now must leave thee”) with its fading echoes and transfigured, lingering closing bars.  These masterpieces, their composer’s final testament, remain staples of the romantic organ repertoire. 

Llanfyllin - Wilbur Held

John Ernest Bode, M.A., (1816-1874) was educated at Eton, the Charter House, and at Christ Church, Oxford, earning a B.A. and M.A.. Taking Holy Orders in 1841, he became Rector of Westwell, Oxfordshire; and then of Castle Camps, Cambridgeshire. He was Tutor of his College, and Classical Examiner. In addition to his Bampton Lectures, and Ballads from Herodotus, he published Hymns from the Gospel of the Day for each Sunday and Festivals of our Lord, 1860; and Short Occasional Poems, Lond., Longmans, 1858. His well-known hymn, “O Jesu, I have promised" was first published in Hymns from the Gospel.

“O Jesus, I have promised” has been set to several tunes.  This setting uses LLANFYLLIN, a traditional Welsh tune which derives its name from a small town in Powys, Wales.

O Jesus, I have promised to serve Thee to the end;
be Thou forever near me, my Master and my Friend;
I shall not fear the battle if Thou art by my side,
nor wander from the pathway if Thou wilt be my guide. 

O let me feel Thee near me, the world is ever near;
I see the sights that dazzle, the tempting sounds I hear;
my foes are ever near me, around me and within;
but, Jesus, draw Thou nearer, and shield my soul from sin. 

O let me hear Thee speaking in accents clear and still,
above the storms of passion, the murmurs of self-will;
O speak to reassure me, to hasten or control;
O speak, and make me listen, Thou Guardian of my soul.

O Jesus, Thou hast promised to all who follow Thee,
that where Thou art in glory, there shall Thy servant be;
and, Jesus, I have promised to serve Thee to the end;
O give me grace to follow, my Master and my Friend. 

Wilbur C. Held (1914-2015) was born in Des Plaines, Illinois, and received his B.M. and M.M. degrees at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago. He then attended Union Theological Seminary in New York City where he earned his S.M.D. A member of the Episcopal Church, for many years Dr. Held was Professor of Organ and Church Music at The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.  He remained in this position for over 30 years, and for most of that time was also organist-choirmaster at Trinity Episcopal Church in Columbus, Ohio.  Dr. Held started composing little pieces for the organ because he felt there was a lack of teaching material aimed at developing style and registration, especially for the romantic use of the instrument.  Having written several suites primarily for pedagogical use, he turned his attention to broadening the repertoire for church use, continuing to stress modest technical requirements and flexibility of registration. To date he has published 325 organ works. He has served on the national councils of both the AGO and the Hymn Society of America, and has appeared as recitalist at their national conventions.

About the Choral Music:

Here Am I, Send Me – John Purifoy

John Purifoy (b. 1952) is a composer and arranger with numerous published choral cantatas, anthems and keyboard collections. His stage musical "Lambarene," based on the life of Dr. Albert Schweitzer, received workshop productions at the state theatre of New Jersey and the North Shore Musical Theater near Boston.  Mr. Purifoy served as editor and director of music publishing for Word, Inc. from 1975-1982. He is the recipient of the Freedom’s Foundation Award and five-time recipient of the ASCAP Standard Award. 

Purifoy wrote both the words and music to this mission anthem based on Isaiah 6:8.

            Here am I, send me.  Here am I, Lord, send me.

            Unto thee, willingly, yielded I come.

            Show the path that I must walk, compel me then to go,

            And if I stray bring back the light of day,

            For here am I, send me I pray.

            Send me to be what’s created in me, formed in your image I stand.

            Turn my weakness into your power, power to be at last all I’m able to be.

            Here am I, send me.  Here am I, Lord, send me.

            Precious Holy Spirit, come, fill me anew.

            Give me wisdom, send me strength,

            Grant that I may be a mirror of your never ending love,

            For here am I, send me I pray.

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 in the Presbyterian hymnal 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.

I Love to Tell the Story

"I Love to Tell the Story" is a well-known hymn which was written as a poem by an English evangelist, Katherine Hankey (1834-1911). Hankey was the daughter of a wealthy banker and was associated with the Clapham sect of William Wilberforce, a group of prominent evangelical Anglicans from the Clapham area. This group helped to establish the British and Foreign Bible Society, promoted the … abolition of slavery, and was involved in improving the lot of England's working classes. Hankey taught Bible classes for shop girls in London, visited the sick in local hospitals, and used the proceeds of her writings to support various mission causes. Her publications include Heart to Heart (1870) and The Old, Old Story and Other Verses (1879).

Hankey had a serious spell of sickness while in a mission in Africa. During her long days of convalescence, she wrote a long on the life of Jesus in 1866 in two parts. The first part was a poem of fifty stanzas, titled "The Story Wanted" (dated January 29, 1866) and second part titled "The Story Told" (dated November 18, 1866). Certain verses were taken from Part I. by Dr. W. H. Doane in 1867 to make the popular and familiar hymn beginning, "Tell me the old, old story". From Part II. certain verses were selected to make the hymn, "I Love to Tell the Story".

Apart from the context of the larger poem, some of the couplets of this text appear rather shallow or repetitious; thus the Psalter Hymnal includes only the original stanzas 1, 3, and 4. But the entire original poem provides a fine autobiographical testimony to Hankey's evangelical fervor, which she expressed in her writings and in her support of foreign and home missions (she taught church school classes to the rich and poor of London). The text simply affirms the Christian's zeal to "tell the old, old story of Jesus and his love" to the unsaved as well as to the saved, here on earth and in glory.

The tune HANKEY was composed by William G. Fischer and appeared in Fischer's Joyful Songs, Nos. 1 to 3 published in 1869 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by Methodist Episcopal Book Room. Fischer also added a refrain to the original text. The tune set to Hankey's text was published in Joyful Songs (1869) and in many gospel hymnals. The hymn was popularized through its use in the Ira D. Sankey and Dwight L. Moody crusades.

In his youth, Fischer (1835-1912) developed an interest in music while attending singing schools. His career included working in the book bindery of J. B. Lippencott Publishing Company, teaching music at Girard College, and co-owning a piano business and music store–all in Philadelphia. Fischer eventually became a popular director of music at revival meetings and choral festivals. In 1876 he conducted a thousand-voice choir at the Dwight L. Moody/Ira D. Sankey revival meeting in Philadelphia. Fischer composed some two hundred tunes for Sunday school hymns and gospel songs.