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; most of it is copied from other websites 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:
Of the Father's Love Begotten - Wilbur Held
(c.1970, Concordia Publishing House)
Of the Father's Love Begotten is a Christmas carol based on the Latin poem Corde natus by the Roman poet Aurelius Prudentius, from his Liber Cathemerinon (hymn no. IX) beginning "Da puer plectrum" The ancient poem was translated and paired with a medieval plainchant melody Divinum mysterium. Divinum mysterium was a "Sanctus trope" - an ancient plainchant melody which over the years had been musically embellished. An early version of this chant appears in manuscript form as early as the 10th century, although without the melodic additions, and "trope" versions with various melodic differences appear in Italian, German, Gallacian, Bohemian and Spanish manuscripts dating from the 13th to 16th centuries. Divinum mysterium first appeared in print in 1582 in the Finnish song book Piae Cantiones, a collection of seventy-four sacred and secular church and school songs of medieval Europe compiled by Jaakko Suomalainen and published by Theodoric Petri. In this collection, Divinum mysterium was classified as "De Eucharistia" reflecting its original use for the Mass.
The text of the Divinum mysterium was substituted for Prudentius's poem when it was published by Thomas Helmore in 1851. In making this fusion, the original meter of the chant was disturbed, changing the original triple meter rhythm into a duple meter and therefore altering stresses and note lengths. A later version by Charles Winfred Douglas corrected this using an "equalist" method of transcription, although the hymn is now found in both versions as well as a more dance-like interpretation of the original melody.
Of the Father’s love begotten, Ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega, He the source, the ending He,
Of the things that are, that have been, And that future years shall see,
Evermore and evermore!
At His Word the worlds were framèd; He commanded; it was done:
Heaven and earth and depths of ocean In their threefold order one;
All that grows beneath the shining Of the moon and burning sun,
Evermore and evermore!
He is found in human fashion, Death and sorrow here to know,
That the race of Adam’s children Doomed by law to endless woe,
May not henceforth die and perish In the dreadful gulf below,
Evermore and evermore!
O that birth forever blessèd, When the virgin, full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving, Bare the Savior of our race;
And the Babe, the world’s Redeemer, First revealed His sacred face,
Evermore and evermore!
This is He whom seers in old time Chanted of with one accord;
Whom the voices of the prophets Promised in their faithful word;
Now He shines, the long expected, Let creation praise its Lord,
Evermore and evermore!
O ye heights of heaven adore Him; Angel hosts, His praises sing;
Powers, dominions, bow before Him, And extol our God and king!
Let no tongue on earth be silent, Every voice in concert sing,
Evermore and evermore!
Righteous judge of souls departed, Righteous king of them that live,
On the Father’s throne exalted None in might with Thee may strive;
Who at last in vengeance coming, Sinners from Thy face shalt drive,
Evermore and evermore!
Thee let old men, thee let young men, Thee let boys in chorus sing;
Matrons, virgins, little maidens, With glad voices answering:
Let their guileless songs re-echo, And the heart its music bring,
Evermore and evermore!
Christ, to Thee with God the Father, And, O Holy Ghost, to Thee,
Hymn and chant with high thanksgiving, And unwearied praises be:
Honor, glory, and dominion, And eternal victory,
Evermore and evermore!
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. He 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.
Chorale on "Vom Himmel Hoch - Johann Pachelbel
"Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her" ("From Heaven Above to Earth I Come") is a hymn text relating to the Nativity of Jesus, written by Martin Luther in 1534. The hymn is most often sung to a melody that first appeared in 1539 and that was likely composed by Luther as well. That version became a classic Christmas carol, and many composers referred to it in their compositions. "Vom Himmel hoch" was first published as a hymn with 15 stanzas of four lines in the "Wittenberg hymnal" of 1535, under the header "Ein kinderlied auff die Weinacht Christi" ("A children's song on the Nativity of Christ"). In that publication, the text was coupled to the melody of the then well-known secular song "Ich kumm aus frembden Landen her." It was Luther's only contrafactum, reusing a tune of a secular composition for a religious text. In 1539, the hymn was published with a new melody that was probably composed by Luther himself, in Geistliche lieder / auffs new gebessert vnd gemehrt /zu Witteberg. D. Marti. Luther. Viel Geistliche gesenge / von andern frommen Christen gemacht. Gedruckt zu Leyptzick durch Valten Schumann (Spiritual Songs / newly improved and extended /…made by other pious Christians).
The traditional English lyrics are a translation made by Catherine Winkworth (with all 15 verses) in 1855:
From heaven above to earth I come To bear good news to every home;
Glad tidings of great joy I bring, Whereof I now will say and sing:
To you this night is born a child Of Mary, chosen virgin mild;
This little child, of lowly birth, Shall be the joy of all the earth.
This is the Christ, our God and Lord, Who in all need shall aid afford;
He will Himself your Savior be From all your sins to set you free.
He will on you the gifts bestow Prepared by God for all below,
That in His kingdom, bright and fair, You may with us His glory share.
These are the tokens ye shall mark: The swaddling-clothes and manger dark;
There ye shall find the Infant laid By whom the heavens and earth were made.
Now let us all with gladsome cheer Go with the shepherds and draw near
To see the precious gift of God, Who hath His own dear Son bestowed.
Give heed, my heart, lift up thine eyes! What is it in yon manger lies?
Who is this child, so young and fair? The blessed Christ-child lieth there.
Welcome to earth, Thou noble Guest, Through whom the sinful world is blest!
Thou com’st to share my misery; What thanks shall I return to Thee?
Ah, Lord, who hast created all, How weak art Thou, how poor and small,
That Thou dost choose Thine infant bed Where humble cattle lately fed!
Were earth a thousand times as fair, Beset with gold and jewels rare,
It yet were far too poor to be A narrow cradle, Lord, for Thee.
For velvets soft and silken stuff Thou hast but hay and straw so rough,
Whereon Thou, King, so rich and great, As ’twere Thy heaven, art throned in state.
And thus, dear Lord, it pleaseth Thee To make this truth quite plain to me,
That all the world’s wealth, honor, might, Are naught and worthless in Thy sight.
Ah, dearest Jesus, holy Child, Make Thee a bed, soft, undefiled,
Within my heart, that it may be A quiet chamber kept for Thee.
My heart for very joy doth leap, My lips no more can silence keep;
I, too, must sing with joyful tongue That sweetest ancient cradle-song:
Glory to God in highest heaven, Who unto us His Son hath given!
While angels sing with pious mirth A glad new year to all the earth.
Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706) was a German Baroque composer, organist and teacher, who brought the south German organ tradition to its peak. He composed a large body of sacred and secular music, and his contributions to the development of the chorale prelude and fugue have earned him a place among the most important composers of the middle Baroque era. Pachelbel's music enjoyed enormous popularity during his lifetime; he had many pupils and his music became a model for the composers of south and central Germany. Today, Pachelbel is best known for the Canon in D, as well as the Chaconne in F minor, the Toccata in E minor for organ, and the Hexachordum Apollinis, a set of keyboard variations.
Pachelbel studied music at Altdorf and Regensburg and held posts as organist in Vienna, Stuttgart, and other cities. In 1695 he was appointed organist at the St. Sebalduskirche in Nürnberg, where he remained until his death. He also taught organ, and one of his pupils was Johann Christoph Bach, who in turn gave his younger brother Johann Sebastian Bach his first formal keyboard lessons.
About the Piano Music:
Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming - Pepper Choplin
(c.2021, Lorenz Publishing)
"Es ist ein Ros entsprungen" ("A rose has sprung up"), most commonly translated to English as "Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming" or "A Spotless Rose", is a Christmas carol and Marian Hymn of German origin. The text is thought to be penned by an anonymous author, and the piece first appeared in print in the late 16th century. The English translation "Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming" was written by Theodore Baker in 1894.
This German carol from the Rhineland region combines the story of Luke 1-2 and Matthew 2 with Isaiah's prophecies about the "rose" from the "stem of Jesse " (Isa. 11:1; 35:1-2). Stanzas 1 and 2 are a combination of folklore ("amid the cold of winter") and Christological interpretation of Isaiah 11:1 and 35: 1-2. Stanza 3 introduces imagery from John 1.
"Es ist ein Ros entsprungen," may date to the fifteenth century. However, the earliest manuscript containing the text, found in St. Alban's Carthusian monastery in Trier and preserved in the Trier municipal library, is dated around 1580. It was first published with twenty-three stanzas in Alte catholische geistliche Kirchengesiinge (Cologne, 1599). Originally stanza 2 interpreted the "rose" as being Mary, mother of Jesus, but in Musae Sionae (1609) Michael Praetorius changed the interpretation to point to Christ as the rose in accord with actual biblical imagery.
Michael Praetorius (1571-1621) was a German composer, organist, and music theorist. He was one of the most versatile composers of his age, being particularly significant in the development of musical forms based on Protestant hymns, many of which reflect an effort to improve the relationship between Protestants and Catholics. After receiving his musical education, from 1587 he served as organist at the Marienkirche in Frankfurt. From 1592/3 he served at the court in Wolfenbüttel, under the employ of Henry Julius, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg. He served in the duke's State Orchestra, first as organist and later (from 1604) as Kapellmeister.
His first compositions appeared around 1602/3. Their publication primarily reflects the care for music at the court of Gröningen. The motets of this collection were the first in Germany to make use of the new Italian performance practices; as a result, they established him as a proficient composer. These "modern" pieces mark the end of his middle creative period. The nine parts of his Musae Sioniae (1605–10) and the 1611 published collections of liturgical music (masses, hymns, magnificats) follow the German Protestant chorale style. From 1613 until his death, Praetorius was employed by the court in Dresden, where he was declared Kapellmeister von Haus aus and worked with Heinrich Schütz.
A literal translation of the original German text is:
A rose has sprung up, from a tender root.
As the old ones sang to us, Its lineage was from Jesse.
And it has brought forth a floweret In the middle of the cold winter
Well at half the night.
The rosebud that I mean, Of which Isaiah told
Is Mary, the pure, Who brought us the floweret.
At God’s immortal word, She has borne a child
And remained a pure maid. Who makes us blessed.
The floweret, so small That smells so sweet to us
With its clear light Dispels the darkness.
True man and true God! He helps us from all trouble,
Saves us from sin and death.
Pepper Choplin is a full-time composer, conductor and humorist. He has gained a reputation as one of the most creative writers in church music today. With a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, he went on to earn a Master of Music degree in composition from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. With a diverse musical background, Choplin incorporates varied styles such as folk, Gospel, classical, and jazz. His published work includes over 280 anthems for church and school choir with 19 church cantatas and a book of piano arrangements. In 2013, he made his Carnegie Hall debut in a joint concert with Joseph Martin. Since then, he has twice premiered his cantatas at Lincoln Center with 200 voices and orchestra. He also visits many schools, churches and conferences to conduct and to entertain. Beyond his choral music, Choplin has produced two humorous CDs and an inspirational recording. Currently, he attends Greystone Baptist Church in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he served as music minister for twenty-two years.
About the Choral Music:
Emmanuel - Don Besig
(c.1998, Harold Flammer Music, div. of Shawnee Press)
Don Besig was a public school music teacher for over thirty years in western New York. He taught at all levels and since his retirement has continued to serve as a guest conductor, clinician and adjudicator. Recognizing a need for choral music written especially for student singers and volunteer church choirs, he began composing for his own choral groups in 1960. He is also the recipient of several ASCAP Plus Awards Don is a graduate of Ithaca College and a member of Phi Mu Alpha and ASCAP. He and Nancy Price collaborate to write music and lyrics.
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, the world awaits you this day,
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, come dwell among us, we pray.
We wander in the darkness like a traveler in the night.
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, come and fill the world with light.
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, the world prepares for your birth,
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, come reign o’er all of the earth.
We long to find the meaning of your everlasting love.
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, come to earth from heav’n above.
All the world awaits with gladness knowing you will soon appear;
ending all our gloom and sadness, calming all our doubt and fear.
Come to us, O Lord Emmanuel. Let us know the moment is near.
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, the world will echo your name.
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, your wonders we will proclaim.
The restless world is waiting to receive the Promised One.
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, help us know you when you come.
We will know you when you come.
Nunc Dimittis - George Dyson
(c.1924, Oxford University Press)
The “Nunc Dimittis” or “Canticle of Simeon” is found in Luke 2:21-35 and is the last in historical sequence of the three great Canticles of the New Testament, the other two being the Magnificat (Canticle of Mary) and the Benedictus (Canticle of Zachary). The title is formed from the opening words in the Latin Vulgate, "Nunc dimittis servum tuum, Domine" ("Now thou dost dismiss thy servant, O Lord"). The circumstances under which Simeon uttered his song-petition, thanksgiving, and prophecy are explained by Luke 2:26: "And he had received an answer from the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Christ of the Lord." Brief though the Canticle is, it abounds in Old-Testament allusions. Thus, in the following verses, "Because my eyes have seen thy salvation" alludes to Isaiah 52:10, rendered afterwards in Luke 3:6, "And all flesh shall see the salvation of God". Verse 31, "Which thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples" accords with Psalms 97:2; and verse 32, "A light to the revelation of the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel", recalls Isaiah 42:6.
The text of the Nunc Dimittis is given in full in the brief evening prayer found in the Apostolic Constitutions. In the Roman Office, the canticle is assigned to Complin. If St. Benedict did not originate this canonical Hour, he gave to it its liturgical character; but he nevertheless did not include the Canticle, which was afterwards incorporated into the richer Complin Service of the Roman Rite, where it is preceded by the beautiful responsory, "In manus tuas, Domine, commendo spiritum meum" (Into thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit), with the Antiphon following, "Salva nos, Domine, vigilantes, custodi nos dormientes" (O Lord, keep us waking, guard us sleeping), all this harmonizing exquisitely with the spirit of the Nunc Dimittis and with the general character of the closing Hour of the Office.
Sir George Dyson (1883-1964) was an English musician and composer. After studying at the Royal College of Music (RCM) in London, and army service in the First World War, he was a schoolmaster and college lecturer. In 1938 he became director of the RCM, the first of its alumni to do so. As director he instituted financial and organizational reforms and steered the college through the difficult days of the Second World War. As a composer Dyson wrote in a traditional idiom, reflecting the influence of his teachers at the RCM, Hubert Parry and Charles Villiers Stanford. His works were well known during his lifetime but underwent a period of neglect before being revived in the late 20th century.
Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart, depart in peace: according to Thy word.
For mine eyes have seen: have seen Thy salvation,
Which Thou hast prepared before the face of all people;
To be a light to lighten the Gentiles: and to be the glory of Thy people Israel.
About the Hymns:
Savior of the Nations, Come
(c.1969, Concordia Publishing)
“Savior of the Nations, Come”, by Martin Luther (1483-1546), was one of 37 hymns composed by the reformer. The English translation that we sing is actually a third-hand version from the German “Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland” in 1523 which was, in turn, a translation of the Latin “Veni, Redemptor gentium” ascribed to Ambrose of Milan (c. 340-397). The music of this Advent chorale is an adaptation of a plainsong melody. Some sources cite as many as six Reformation melodies derived from plainsong sources. Plainsong is a body of melodies that developed in the Roman Catholic Church throughout and beyond the medieval period. Therefore Luther’s composition is less an original hymn than a reworking of an existing Latin text and plainsong tune. While Luther did compose original hymns, he also borrowed hymns from his Roman Catholic heritage, translating them into the vernacular German and making them accessible for congregational use. Luther’s translation was included in two volumes in 1524: Enchiridion Oder handbüchlein and Johann Walther’s Geistliches Gesangbuchlein (“Spiritual Songbook”).
This hymn establishes that the Savior of the world came not only to Jews, but to “Heiden”—literally to the heathen. However, “Heiden” does not carry a negative connotation; it is simply a reference to the Gentiles. Stanza one begins as a petition for the “Savior of the nations…[to] come” now! in the original German. The language of petition soon gives way to amazement that God would be born of a woman on earth.
The original German hymn consists of eight stanzas and is essentially a reaffirmation of the article related to the Incarnation from the Nicene Creed: “We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father; through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation, he came down from heaven, was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became truly human.”
This melody is first documented as a Roman Catholic Latin hymn based upon Gregorian chant in manuscript form in Einsiedeln (Schwyz) around 1120. The Lutheran Reformation in the early 16th century led to the creation of a new repertory of sacred music based on the chorale. Chorales were initially sung by the congregation in unison and unaccompanied. Most were adapted from chant, from German devotional songs (many of which were themselves reworkings of chant) and from secular songs, or were composed using conventional melodic types and formulae. Techniques of adaptation ranged from simple contrafactum to ingenious reworkings, such as Luther's reshaping of the Gregorian hymn Veni Redemptor gentium as the chorale Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland.
Savior of the nations, come; Virgin’s Son, make here Thy home!
Marvel now, O heaven and earth, That the Lord chose such a birth.
Not by human flesh and blood; By the Spirit of our God
Was the Word of God made flesh, Woman’s offspring, pure and fresh.
Wondrous birth! O wondrous Child Of the virgin undefiled!
Though by all the world disowned, Still to be in heaven enthroned.
From the Father forth He came And returneth to the same,
Captive leading death and hell High the song of triumph swell!
Thou, the Father’s only Son, Hast over sin the victory won.
Boundless shall Thy kingdom be; When shall we its glories see?
Brightly doth Thy manger shine, Glorious is its light divine.
Let not sin o’ercloud this light; Ever be our faith thus bright.
Praise to God the Father sing, Praise to God the Son, our King,
Praise to God the Spirit be Ever and eternally.
In This Time of Waiting - David MacGregor
(c.2019, Willow Publishing)
David MacGregor is a Scottish Guitarist, Composer, Producer, Music Educator, Recording and Touring Artist. Since 2004, David has planned, written and performed his own specialized touring projects all over North American, Latin America and Europe. He has released 5 albums including his 2020 Solo Album ‘Looking for a Place Called Home’ that was picked in ‘September’s top guitar releases’ by UK based ‘Guitarist Magazine’, where David was compared to some of the worlds best (Jazz) guitarists Pat Metheny, Martin Taylor and John Etheridge. In 2021 he also released a collaboration album with Jazz Singer Louise Phelan ‘Remembering Ella and Joe’ in tribute to Ella Fitzgerald and Joe Pass. Throughout his travels David has learned that each and every one of us do things a little differently depending on our cultural backgrounds. He believes that we should all learn from our differences and grow together, this is what he is always aiming for with his life and music. His playing and composition style is a mix of all the different sounds that the world has to offer and he is always learning by continuing to collaborate and play with musicians from all over the world.
In this time of waiting, we will sing of peace,
Peace in Jesus Savior, Prince of Peace..
In our expectation we will sing of peace;
hearts of longing, we will sing of peace.
I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light
(c.1975, Celebration)
Kathleen Thomerson (b. 1934) is Organist and Music Director at Mt. Olive Lutheran Church in Austin, Texas. She was born in Tennessee and grew up in Mississippi, California, and Texas. College music study was at the Universities of Colorado and Texas, the Flemish Royal Conservatory in Antwerp, and privately in Paris. Before retirement in Austin, she lived in Collinsville, Illinois, when her husband was a biology professor at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. Her best-known hymn text is "I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light." It was written as a scriptural meditation and prayer. It was inspired by many Bible verses, including Genesis 1:17, Isaiah 60:19, Psalm 75:16, Psalm 139:12, Ephesians 3:17, Ephesians 5:8, Galatians 4:6, Hebrews 1:3, 1 Thessalonians 5:5, 2 Peter 1:19, 1 John 1:5-7, and Revelation 21:23.
I want to walk as a child of the light; I want to follow Jesus.
God set the stars to give light to the world;
The star of my life is Jesus.
I want to see the brightness of God. I want to look at Jesus.
Clear Sun of Righteousness, shine on my path,
and show me the way to the Father.
I’m looking for the coming of Christ. I want to be with Jesus.
When we have run with patience the race,
we shall know the joy of Jesus.
In him there is no darkness at all;
The night and the day are both alike.
The Lamb is the light of the city of God.
Shine in my heart, Lord Jesus.
First United Methodist Church, Lewisville, Texas
A Community of Everyday People Learning to Love Like Jesus
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