January 7, 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:

Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern - Max Drischner

"Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern" (How lovely shines the morning star) is a hymn by Philipp Nicolai written in 1597 and first published in 1599. The words in seven stanzas are based on Psalms 45, a mystical wedding song. Jesus is identified with the morning star, according to Revelation 22:16, and with the bridegroom of the psalm. Nicolai wrote the words in response to a pestilence in 1597.  He published the chorale first in 1599 in his book Frewdenspiegel deß ewigen Lebens ("Mirror of Joy of the Life Everlasting") in Frankfurt, together with "Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme".  He introduced it: "Ein Geistlich Brautlied der Gläubigen Seelen / von Jesu Christo irem himlischen Bräutgam: Gestellt ober den 45. Psalm deß Propheten Dauids" (A spiritual bridal song of the believing soul / concerning Jesus Christ, her heavenly bridegroom, founded on the 45th Psalm of the prophet David). This hymn is often referred to as "The Queen of Chorales".  The chorale theme "Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern" was codified then, but research by C. S. Terry has shown the tune to predate Nicolai's publication by at least 61 years.

The chorale appeared as a hymn in German hymnals and in several translations in English hymnals, starting with How bright appears the Morning Star! by John Christian Jacobi, in his Psalmodica Germanica, 1722.  Additional hymns were written on the same tune such as "O heilger Geist, kehr bei uns ein" of Michael Schirmer (1640).

The first verse (in an anonymous English translation beginning "How splendid shines the morning star") appeared in the Southern Harmony, an 1835 shape-note tunebook compiled by William Walker, where it is set to a tune called Morning Star by composer J. C. Lowry. This arrangement is repeated in the current An American Christmas Harp, with the addition of two more stanzas in a translation by William Mercer (1811-1873).

A fairly literal translation of the seven verses by Frances Browne:

How beautifully shines the morning star
full of grace and truth from the Lord, the sweet root of Jesse!
You son of David from the line of Jacob, my king and my bridegroom,
have taken posession of my heart, [you who are] lovely,friendly,
beautiful and glorious, great and honourable, rich in gifts,
lofty and exalted in splendour!

Ah my pearl, my precious crown, true son of God and Mary,
a king of most noble birth! My heart calls you a lily,
your sweet gospel is pure milk and honey.
Ah my dear flower, hosanna, heavenly manna,
that we eat, I cannot forget you!

Pour most deeply within my heart, you clear jasper and ruby,
the flames of your love, and make me rejoice, so that I may remain
in your chosen body a living rib!
Because of you, gracious rose of heaven,
my heart is sick and smouldering, wounded with love.

A joyful light from God comes to me  when with your dear eyes
you look on me as a friend.  Oh Lord Jesus, my beloved good,
your word, your spirit, your body and blood refresh me within.
Take me like a friend in your arms, so that I may become warm
with your grace.  To your word I come invited.

Lord, God, Father, my mighty hero, before the world you have
loved me in your son. Your son has betrothed me to himself,
he is my treasure, I am his bride, most greatly I rejoice in him.
Yes, yes. Heavenly life he will give me in the the world above!
My heart shall praise him forever.

Pluck the strings on the harp and let the sweet music
resound full of joy, so that with dear Jesus, my most beautiful bridegroom,
in constant love I may make my pilgrimage!
Sing, leap, rejoice, triumph, thank the Lord!
Great is the king of honour!

How full I am therefore of heartfelt joy
that my treasure is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end;
To his reward he will take me up to paradise, and so I clap my hands
Amen! Amen! Come, you sweet crown of joy,
do not long delay, I wait for you with longing.

Max Drischner (1891-1971) was a German composer, Kantor, organist, and harpsichordist.  Drischner was born in Silesia. After completing his secondary education, he pursued studies in theology in Leipzig and Breslau, beginning in 1910. By 1914, however, he had decided to quit his theological studies in favor of studying music. At this time, Drischner relocated to Berlin, and was enrolled in the Berlin University of the Arts, where he studied harpsichord.  In 1924, Drischner was named Kantor and organist of St. Nicholas Church in Brieg.  While in Brieg, Drischer built a reputation for himself as a choirmaster, as well, organizing and directing many successful events, and founding a youth choir. This earned him a renown that stretched beyond Brieg. His efforts earned him the title of Kirchenmusikdirektor ("Church music director"), a very high honor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church.

Watchman, Tell Us of the Night – James Mansfield

Isaiah 21 sets the broader context for this hymn. It concerns a special vision that God gave Isaiah about Babylon, a city on the Euphrates River south of modern Baghdad, Iraq. In this vision, the military and political leaders of Babylon are eating a banquet together when their celebration is interrupted by a word from the Lord to watch for someone who will bring news to Judah. Horsemen from one of Judah’s neighbors are preparing for battle. A watchman was needed to observe the battle. The gods of Babylon would not be able to save the city and it would fall. “Fallen, fallen is Babylon; and all the images of her gods lie shattered on the ground.” (Isaiah 21: 9, NRSV)

But what of the people of Judah? In verse 10, the Lord says that the people of Judah have suffered greatly. The all-powerful God of Israel would save them. And then in verses 11-12, the specific verses upon which this hymn is based, there is hope offered by the oracle from Dumah, a small crossroads in the desert three hundred miles south of Jerusalem where merchants traveling between Babylon, Edom, and Syria could exchange information. A traveler from the region of Seir (near Edom) asks a question: “Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night? The watchman said, the morning cometh, and also the night: if ye will enquire, enquire ye: return, come.” (KJV) The implication is that the morning will bring a time of peace, but then in the night, war will again break out.

Sir John Bowring (1792-1872), a staunch Unitarian, provides a poetic interpretation of this text that elaborates on the dialogue between the traveler and the watchman. A distinguished scholar, Bowring was ranked by some as one of the great minds of his day in the English-speaking world. Among his gifts was his ability as a linguist, publishing translations of poetry from such varied languages as Russian, Batavian, Spanish, Polish, Serbian, Bohemian, Czech, and Hungarian. He was also a social progressive. Bowring advocated free trade, parliamentary reform, education for all, and prison reform among others.  Few hymnwriters have been as conversant in national and international politics. Sir John (knighted in 1854) was heavily involved in developing commercial relationships on behalf of Great Britain and, in this capacity, traveled to France, Switzerland, Italy, and Germany on the European continent, as well as Syria in the Middle East, and Siam (now Thailand) in south Asia.

In addition, Bowring was a Member of Parliament twice, a consul at Canton, in charge of trade in China, and a governor of Hong Kong — the connections with China being his most unsuccessful political endeavor. He was evidently relieved of his duties in Hong Kong because Bowring “was full of conceit and without any very clear idea of political principles on a large scale.” Some suggest that Bowring’s policies and poor relationships with the Chinese contributed, at least in part, to the second Opium War (1856-1858) — a situation that led to the Chinese putting a price on his head.  His difficulties in China notwithstanding, Bowring’s political skills must have been respected in some quarters. Even after retirement in 1860, his public service continued as a commissioner to Italy and other diplomatic posts in Europe and Hawaii. With the exception of John Newton, the former slave-trader-turned-Anglican-priest who penned “Amazing Grace,” we find few hymnwriters with such a colorful and international lifestyle.

Despite a demanding political and diplomatic career, Sir John maintained an active avocation as a translator of poetry, composer of original poems, and writer of essays on political and religious themes. The poet was undoubtedly aware of the region of the world in which the hymn was situated. It was first published in Bowring’s Hymns (1825). The poem is distinctive for its perfect symmetry: In the first two lines of each stanza, the traveler asks the watchman what he sees. The final two lines of each stanza provide the watchman’s response. The poem is also an excellent example of how a hymn can gradually build to a climax. Each stanza adds intensity and hope.

United Methodist Hymnal editor, Carlton R. Young, notes that this hymn was first sung in the United States in January 1830, at the Park Street Church in Boston. After Pastor Rufus Anderson concluded his sermon, the famous composer, music educator, church musician, and choral conductor, Lowell Mason (1792-1872), led “the choir in singing the composer’s setting for solo voices, choir, and congregation, and keyboard. It was published as sheet music, ‘Missionary or Christmas Tune’ in Watchman! Tell us of the night: a missionary or Christmas hymn . . . and included in the Boston Handel and Haydn Society Collection of Church Music, 9^th Edition (Boston, 1830).”  Dr. Young notes that the hymn reflects “Bowring’s unfailing Unitarian postmillennial optimism that the Kingdom of God can be established on earth.” Certainly, Bowring’s breadth of experience as a traveler and understanding of many cultures, languages, and world events gave him a perspective that few in his day could match. Indeed, the hymn may be partly autobiographical—Bowring, the perpetual traveler searching the world for peace.

Joseph Parry (1841-1903) was born in Wales into a poor but musical family. Although he showed musical gifts at an early age, he was sent to work in the puddling furnaces of a steel mill at the age of nine. His family immigrated to a Welsh settlement in Danville, Pennsylvania, in 1854, where Parry later started a music school. He traveled in the United States and in Wales, performing, studying, and composing music, and he won several Eisteddfodau (singing competition) prizes. Parry studied at the Royal Academy of Music and at Cambridge, where part of his tuition was paid by interested community people who were eager to encourage his talent. From 1873 to 1879 he was professor of music at the Welsh University College in Aberystwyth. After establishing private schools of music in Aberystwyth and in Swan sea, he was lecturer and professor of music at the University College of South Wales in Cardiff (1888-1903). Parry composed oratorios, cantatas, an opera, orchestral and chamber music, as well as some four hundred hymn tunes.  ABERYSTWYTH, Parry's best known hymn tune, was composed in 1876 and named after the Welsh seaside resort where he was teaching. It was first published in Edward Stephen's Ail Llyfr Tonau acEmynau (The Second Book of Tunes and Hymns, 1879) as a setting for the Welsh hymn "Beth sydd i mi yn byd.”

Watchman, tell us of the night, what its signs of promise are.
Traveler, what a wondrous sight: see that glory-beaming star.

Watchman, does its beauteous ray news of joy or hope foretell?
Traveler, yes; it brings the day, promised day of Israel.

Watchman, tell us of the night; higher yet that star ascends.
Traveler, blessedness and light, peace and truth its course portends.

Watchman, will its beams alone gild the spot that gave them birth?
Traveler, ages are its own; see, it bursts o’er all the earth.

Watchman, tell us of the night, for the morning seems to dawn.
Traveler, shadows take their flight; doubt and terror are withdrawn.

Watchman, you may go your way; hasten to your quiet home.
Traveler, we rejoice today, for Emmanuel has come!

James Mansfield has a PH.D. in Music Composition from the University of Iowa and is a retired staff composer/editor from Lorenz Music Publishing.  Many composers on the staff at Lorenz wrote under more than one name, sometimes corresponding to particular styles.

We Three Kings – Gordon Young

"We Three Kings", also known as "We Three Kings of Orient Are" or "The Quest of the Magi", is a Christmas carol written by the Reverend John Henry Hopkins, Jr., who wrote both the lyrics and the music. It is suggested to have been written in 1857 but did not appear in print until his Carols, Hymns and Song in 1863. John Henry Hopkins, Jr., then an ordained deacon in the Episcopal Church, was instrumental in organizing an elaborate holiday pageant (which featured this hymn) for the students of the General Theological Seminary in New York City in 1857 while serving as the seminary's music director.   Although there is no scriptural basis for stating dogmatically that there were three wise men, the fact that three distinct gifts are mentioned has given rise to this traditional idea. Master artists throughout the centuries have depicted three wise men on camels as one of their favorite nativity themes.

We three kings of Orient are; bearing gifts we traverse afar,
field and fountain, moor and mountain, following yonder star. 

Born a King on Bethlehem's plain, gold I bring to crown him again,
King forever, ceasing never, over us all to reign.

Frankincense to offer have I; incense owns a Deity nigh;
prayer and praising, voices raising, worshiping God on high.

Myrrh is mine; its bitter perfume breathes a life of gathering gloom;
sorrowing, sighing, bleeding, dying, sealed in the stone-cold tomb.

Glorious now behold him arise; King and God and sacrifice:
Alleluia, Alleluia, sounds through the earth and skies.

O star of wonder, star of light, star with royal beauty bright,
westward leading, still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light. 

Gordon Young (1919-1998) was born in McPherson, Kansas, and during his lifetime was recognized as one of this country's great church organists. He was a prolific and talented composer for both organ and choir, with nearly 1000 published works.  During the course of his career, he was a radio organist in Tulsa, a music critic and columnist for daily newspapers in Oklahoma and Pennsylvania, and choirmaster in churches in Philadelphia and Kansas City. Mr. Young taught organ in conjunction with Wayne State University and for 15 years was organist and choir director at the First Presbyterian Church in Detroit.

About the Choral Music:

The Star Carol – Alfred Burt

Alfred Shaddick Burt (1920-1954) was an American jazz musician who is best known for composing the music for fifteen Christmas carols between 1942 and 1954.

Burt’s father, Bates G. Burt, was rector of All Saints Pontiac, an Episcopal church in Pontiac, Michigan. At the age of 10, having shown an early interest in music, Alfred received his first musical instrument, a cornet, as a present from his parents. Though he would learn to play several other instruments, including the piano, Alfred spent most of his life playing cornet and trumpet in bands and orchestras, with a special interest in jazz. Burt studied music at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, with an emphasis on Music Theory.

A tradition that the elder Burt had begun upon moving to Pontiac in 1922 was the creation of a Christmas card, which he sent to family members and parishioners. On these cards were original Christmas carols, with both the words and music by the Reverend Burt. After Alfred graduated college, his father asked him to take over as composer and write the music for the family Christmas card in 1942. Burt finished the last of his carols on February 5, 1954. Less than 2 days later, he died of lung cancer. "The Star Carol" would be used on the final Burt family Christmas card that holiday season. 

       Long years ago on a deep winter night,
       High in the heav'ns a star shone bright,
       While in a manger a wee baby lay,
       Sweetly asleep on a bed of hay.

       Jesus the Lord was that baby so small,
       Laid down to sleep in a humble stall;
       Then came the star and it stood overhead,
       shedding its light 'round His little bed.

       Dear baby Jesus, how tiny Thou art,
       I'll make a place for Thee in my heart,
       And when the stars in the heavens I see,
       Ever and always I think of Thee.

About the Hymns:

Sing We Now of Christmas

The text for “Sing We Now of Christmas” comes from a 15^th century French Carol,  Noël nouvelet. The English text was written by an unknown translator in the 17^th or 18^th century.  The lyrical structure of the carol takes us through the story of Christ’s birth. The text connects to two scripture passages—Luke 2:8-20, which tells the story of the angels and shepherds, and Matthew 2:1-12, which tells the story of the wise men and their gifts. The tune for this hymn comes from the same Traditional French Carol as the text.  The importance of this song is that it highlights several of the most important parts of Christ’s birth; from the rejoicing of heaven and earth (with shepherds and angels), to the fulfilling of prophecies (the coming of the wise men). It reminds us that Christ’s birth changed the world. It reminds us that God became man and took a weak body of flesh to become closer to us.