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 Piano Music:
The King of Love My Shepherd Is - David Angerman
“The King of Love My Shepherd Is” is an Anthony G. Petti (1932-1985) adaption of the 1868 Sir Henry W. Baker (1821-1877) paraphrase of Psalm 23. Baker took Holy Orders in the Church of England in 1844. He was closely associated with hymnody in the Church. Besides writing, translating, and composing a number of hymns, his most notable role was as Editor-in-Chief of the first edition of Hymns Ancient and Modern (1861) which sold over 60 million copies. “The King of Love My Shepherd Is” has proven to be his most enduring work. It is said that as he lay dying his final words were those of the 3rd stanza: "Perverse and foolish, oft I strayed, but yet in love he sought me; and on his shoulder gently laid, and home, rejoicing, brought me." It is sung to the tune ST. COLUMBA, a traditional Irish melody.
The King of love my Shepherd is, Whose goodness faileth never;
I nothing lack if I am his And he is mine for ever.
Where streams of living water flow My ransomed soul he leadeth,
And where the verdant pastures grow With food celestial feedeth.
Perverse and foolish oft I strayed, But yet in love he sought me,
And on his shoulder gently laid, And home, rejoicing, brought me.
In death's dark vale I fear no ill With thee, dear Lord, beside me;
Thy rod and staff my comfort still, Thy cross before to guide me.
Thou spread'st a table in my sight; Thy unction, grace bestoweth:
And O what transport of delight From thy pure chalice floweth!
David Angerman (b. 1955) has been Director of Music and organist at Bethany Lutheran Church, Austin, Texas, since 1980. He holds a Bachelor of Music Education Degree and Master of Church Music Degree from Baylor University and a Master of Music Degree in Organ Performance from the University of Texas in Austin. As a composer he has to his credit more than 100 published works including choral and handbell music as well as organ and piano solos. He has also written the music for several youth and children's musicals, and co-authored, along with Joseph Martin and Mark Hayes, KEYS FOR THE KINGDOM, a piano method for the Christian student, published by Shawnee Press. Many of his published works have been awarded Editor's Choice designations.
In the Garden - Lari Goss
"In the Garden" (sometimes rendered by its first line "I Come to the Garden Alone" is a gospel song written by American songwriter C. Austin Miles (1868–1946), a former pharmacist who served as editor and manager at Hall-Mack publishers for 37 years. Austin Miles used the -word vision to describe the encounter that led to his writing "In the Garden." The setting was Philadelphia, where Miles was employed as an editor for a music publisher. March 1912. At home Miles sat in a window-less room of his own-—-a combination study, photo lab, and music parlor. He reached for his Bible. "It opened at my favorite chapter, John 20," he later explained. John's account of the Resurrection: two angels and then a "gardener" ask a distraught Mary Magdalene why she is crying. Because "they" have taken my Lord away. And then gardener Jesus says one word that transforms the scene: "Mary." He speaks her name, and she knows who he is. Rabboni. As Miles read the familiar story, he felt as if he were a bystander on-site. In another century, as if this were an episode of the old Walter Cronkite television series: "You Are There: At the' Garden Tomb."
"Under the inspiration of this vision," Miles explained, he wrote "In the Garden," the words coming to mind as quickly as he could write them down. (And the text stands as first written, never being revised.) Later in the day Miles wrote the music.
Miles described his activity as "reading" John 20; some would say he was praying. It's an ancient art lost on many Christians intent on studying the Scripture. One prayer pattern involves imagining oneself in a gospel scene. "You Are There." Ignatius of Loyola advised believers to "see the persons in your imagination, contemplating and meditating in detail the circumstances surrounding them, and then draw some spiritual profit from this scene." He goes on, suggesting that we imagine the sounds, smells, tastes, and touch "always endeavoring to draw some spiritual fruit from this" application of the senses.
Though Austin Miles described himself as an observer in the story, he wrote "In the Garden" in first person, as if he had stepped into Mary's shoes: Jesus is walking and talking directly with him—and you and me. Calling us by name.
I come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses;
And the voice I hear falling on my ear, the Son of God discloses.
He speaks and the sound of His voice is so sweet the birds hush their singing,
And the melody that He gave to me within my heart is ringing.
I’d stay in the garden with Him though the night around me be falling,
But He bids me go; through the voice of woe His voice to me is calling.
And He walks with me, and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own.
And the joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known.
Lari Goss is best known within the Christian music industry in the areas of music production, orchestral arranging and keyboard artistry.Whether arranging for ten or 100 pieces, his music is consistently noted by the dimension of unparalleled quality, undergirding power and heartwarming richness it lends alongside the other musical components of a project. When music to stir the heart and emotions of the listener is the requirement, Lari is widely recognized as the arranger of choice. In addition to being one of gospel music's most respected producers and arrangers, Lari also is an accomplished artist in his own right. He has recorded several successful piano/keyboard albums and has written scores of songs, including the widely performed and recorded "Cornerstone". His keyboard style is distinctive and unique and his "Goss Sound" is legendary in the recording industry. Besides his musical vocation, Lari also uses his industry networking for philanthropic purposes hosting the Lari Goss Invitational, a charity golf tournament that in previous years has benefited the Tennessee Baptist Children's Home.
The notoriety he has received from his keyboard artistry as well as his producer/arranger credentials have developed into an ever-increasing demand across the United States for Lari's involvement as a speaker/teacher at various music symposiums and seminars. He is an Artist-in-Residence at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee, where he teaches graduate level courses one day a week in Orchestration and Recording Studio Accompanying.
Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee - Marianne Kim
"The Hymn of Joy" (often called "Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee" after the first line) is a poem written by Henry van Dyke in 1907 with the intention of musically setting it to the famous "Ode to Joy" melody of the final movement of Ludwig van Beethoven's final symphony, Symphony No. 9. Van Dyke wrote this poem in 1907 while staying at the home of Williams College president Harry Augustus Garfield. He was serving as a guest preacher at Williams at the time. He told his host that the local Berkshire Mountains had been his inspiration. The lyrics were first published in 1911 in Van Dyke's Book of Poems.
Van Dyke wrote of this hymn: “These verses are simple expressions of common Christian feelings and desires in this present time—hymns of today that may be sung together by people who know the thought of the age, and are not afraid that any truth of science will destroy religion, or any revolution on earth overthrow the kingdom of heaven. Therefore this is a hymn of trust and joy and hope.” This hymn is generally considered by hymnologists to be one of the most joyous expressions of hymn lyrics in the English language.
Henry Van Dyke (1852-1933) chaired the committee that wrote the first Presbyterian printed liturgy, The Book of Common Worship of 1906. In 1908–09 Dr. van Dyke was an American lecturer at the University of Paris. By appointment of President Wilson, a friend and former classmate of van Dyke, he became Minister to the Netherlands and Luxembourg in 1913. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters and received many other honors. Among his popular writings are the two Christmas stories, The Other Wise Man (1896) and The First Christmas Tree (1897). Various religious themes of his work are also expressed in his poetry, hymns and the essays collected in Little Rivers (1895) and Fisherman’s Luck (1899).
Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee, God of glory, Lord of love;
Hearts unfold like flow’rs before Thee, Op’ning to the sun above.
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness; Drive the dark of doubt away;
Giver of immortal gladness, Fill us with the light of day!
All Thy works with joy surround Thee, Earth and heav’n reflect Thy rays,
Stars and angels sing around Thee, Center of unbroken praise.
Field and forest, vale and mountain, Flow’ry meadow, flashing sea,
Singing bird and flowing fountain Call us to rejoice in Thee.
Thou art giving and forgiving, Ever blessing, ever blest,
Wellspring of the joy of living, Ocean depth of happy rest!
Thou our Father, Christ our Brother, All who live in love are Thine;
Teach us how to love each other, Lift us to the joy divine.
Mortals, join the happy chorus, Which the morning stars began;
Father love is reigning o’er us, Brother love binds man to man.
Ever singing, march we onward, Victors in the midst of strife,
Joyful music leads us Sunward In the triumph song of life.
A Chicago-based composer, pianist, organist, and harpsichordist, Marianne Kim (b. 1972) has been noted for her vibrant performances and compositions in a wide diversity of musical styles, including classical, jazz, Broadway musicals, R&B, and gospel, alongside traditional and contemporary church music. Born and raised in Korea, Marianne studied piano and composition at Pusan High School of Arts and earned a BM in composition at Pusan National University. After working professionally for more than a decade in the United States, she returned to school and earned dual Masters of Music in jazz studies and organ performance with scholarships and prizes from Northern Illinois University.
About the Hymns:
I Stand Amazed in the Presence
Charles Gabriel (1856-1932) grew up on an Iowa farm and learned music by playing the reed organ in his home. He became one of the most prolific composers of gospel songs of his day. Gabriel's musical activities ranged from teaching in the singing schools that were so popular in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, to authoring texts, composing songs, anthems, and cantatas, and editing song collections. He was associated with the leading gospel song publishers of his day, including Homer Rodeheaver, Hope, and E. O. Excell. Though self-trained, he started leading singing school educational events as a teenager. He worked with Grace Episcopal Methodist Church in San Francisco from 1890-1892, and then moved to Chicago where he worked for Homer Rodeheaver’s publishing firm. Gabriel is credited with between 7000 and 8000 songs, thirty-five gospel song collections, Sunday school song books, collections for men's and women’s choirs, numerous cantatas, including 41 Christmas cantatas, and music education texts. He wrote under numerous pseudonyms, making it often difficult to know the precise number of songs he wrote.
The words and music of the gospel hymn “I Stand Amazed” were written in 1905 when Gabriel was 49 years old, after more than three decades into his life’s work in music. The hymn’s words indicate he was not self-absorbed, as some with his talent over such a long stretch of time might have been. Instead, Gabriel focused his attention on the One who had gifted him musically. Gabriel’s composition shows he saw his own faults (a sinner, condemned, unclean), but that’s not where he dwelt. Gabriel evidently had emerged from his own struggles – including his father’s death when Charles was still a teenager, and his failed first marriage - to recognize the Lord’s work in his life. Look at Him, hold Him in awe, and open your mouth in joyous response as you look forward to a face-to-face encounter. That sums up Gabriel’s song-message. It’s not hard to find something amazing about Him – you just have to look.
On the Day of Resurrection
Michael Peterson composed the text for “On the Day of Resurrection” in 1985, as part of a class taught by hymn writer Gracia Grindal at Luther Northwestern (now Luther) Theological Seminary in St. Paul, Minn. Mark Sedio, a well-known Lutheran composer and organist, immediately set the text to music.
The hymn begins by exploring Luke 24:13-35, the post-resurrection narrative on the road to Emmaus. The Risen Christ, unrecognized, joins Cleopas and another follower and asks them what they are discussing. Cleopas responds, “Are you the only person who doesn’t know what happened in Jerusalem recently?” They offer a brief account of Christ’s encounter with the chief priests and rulers, his crucifixion and the report of the women at the tomb. Christ responds, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” Christ continues to explain all that the Scriptures had to say about him.
As they approach a village, the followers invite Jesus to join them for the evening since it is so late. Then follows one of the most poignant passages in the New Testament: “When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.” These were the same actions—taking the bread, giving thanks (blessing), breaking it and giving it to others at the table—that Christ’s followers had seen before. The feeding narratives of the 4,000 and 5,000 found in Mark 6:39-41, Luke 9:10-17 and John 6:1-14 also record those actions. Of course, the “Last Supper” narratives found in the Gospels of Matthew (26:26-29), Mark (14:22-25) and Luke (22:14-20), as well as Paul’s account in I Corinthians 11:23-26, also cite the ritual.
The hymn places us in the middle of this narrative: “Jesus comes to us, unknown.” In four short stanzas we are pulled closer and closer to the action. Stanza two ends: “Jesus walks with us, unknown.” Stanza three: “Jesus speaks to us, unknown.” Stanza four: “Jesus stays with us, unknown.” In stanza five, the action changes as “the guest becomes the host” and “Jesus is himself made known.” The final stanza assumes that we, like those earlier followers, will want to share the news of the risen Christ: “Jesus is through us made known.”
Michael Peterson is a native of New Auburn, Wis. He received degrees in voice, music education, and theater arts from Winona State University, Winona, Minn., and then continued his study at Luther Seminary. He has served congregations in Shawana and Menomonie, Wis.
Henry Smart, the composer of the tune LANCASHIRE, was a musician and organist in Blackburn, Lancashire. He wanted to write a tune for Reginald Heber's beautiful Missionary Hymn, "From Greenland's Icy Mountains". He said, "I shall call it Lancashire."
Henry Smart was blind for the last 15 years of his life. During those years he served as organist in St. Pancras Church, London.
First United Methodist Church, Lewisville, Texas
A Community of Everyday People Learning to Love Like Jesus
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