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:
God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen - Noel Goemanne
(c.1994, H.W.Gray)
Though its roots are somewhat ambiguous, “God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen” seems to have been well known by the time Charles Dickens published his famous A Christmas Carol (1843); when Ebenezer Scrooge heard it being sung outside the door of his office on Christmas Eve. Exact origins of the carol are difficult to trace, as it has appeared in collections from many places in England including broadsides as early as 1760 – large pieces of paper printed only on one side enabling a publisher to disseminate information quickly. Broadsides were commonly used as posters to publicize events and make announcements as well as publishing popular songs and ballads. A precisely datable reference to the carol is found in the November 1764 edition of the Monthly Review.[6] Some sources claim that the carol dates as far back as the 16th century.[7] The most common version with eight stanzas appeared in Christmas Carols Ancient and Modern (London, 1833) by William Sandys (1792-1874), the source upon which most hymnals have based their selection of stanzas. His collection included, according to the subtitle, “the most popular [carols] in the West of England, and the airs to which they are sung.”
Historically, two tunes are associated with this text. The first possible printed version of the commonly known version GOD REST YOU MERRY was an instrumental variation by Samuel Wesley (1757-1834), the younger son of Charles Wesley (1707-1788), titled The Christmas Carol, Varied as a Rondo, for the Piano Forte (London, n.d.). It appears that the work was composed in the second decade of the nineteenth century, as a review of it was published in 1815.
The Oxford Book of Carols (London, 1928) provides two tunes (Nos. 11 and 12). The first version, virtually unknown this side of the Atlantic, is cited as the “usual version” and identified by Routley as “Cornish”. This was the tune identified by Sandys in his collection. The second version, the one popularly sung today, is listed “as sung in the London streets”. The London tune was collected by E. F. Rimbault (1816-1876), a London organist, and first printed in A Little Book of Christmas Carols, with Ancient Melodies to which they are Sung in Various Parts of the Country (1846). The melody as we know it was standardized over several publications, a customary process for establishing the commonly known version of a folk tune.
God rest you, merry gentlemen, Let nothing you dismay,
Remember Christ our Saviour Was born on Christmas-day
To save poor souls from Satan's power, Which long time had gone astray.
In Bethlehem, in Jewry This blessed babe was born
And laid within a manger Upon this blessed morn
The which his mother Mary Nothing did take in scorn.
From God that is our Father The blessed angels came
Unto some certain shepherds, With tidings of the same;
That he was born in Bethlehem The Son of God by name.
Fear not, then said the Angel, Let nothing you affright,
This day is born a Saviour Of virtue, power and might;
So frequently to vanquish all The friends of Satan quite.
The shepherds at those tidings Rejoiced much in mind,
And left their flocks a-feeding In tempest, storm and wind,
And went to Bethlehem straightway, This blessed Babe to find:
Now when they came to Bethlehem, Where our sweet Saviour lay,
They found him in a manger Where oxen feed on hay.
The blessed Virgin kneeling down Unto the Lord did pray.
With sudden joy and gladness, The shepherds were beguil'd,
To see the Babe of Israel Before his mother mild.
O then with joy and cheerfulness Rejoice each mother's child.
Now to the Lord sing praises, All you within this place
Like we true loving brethren, Each other to embrace,
For the merry time of Christmas Is coming on a-pace.
God bless the ruler of this house and long may he reign;
many happy Christmases may live to see again.
God bless our generation who live both far and near
and we wish you a happy new year.
O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy,
O tidings of comfort and joy.
Noël Goemanne (1926-2010) was born in December in Poperinge, Belgium, and was named "Noël" in honor of Christmas, and during his long career as a composer of sacred music, he wrote many choral and organ pieces to celebrate that season. He attended The Lemmens Institute and the Royal Conservatory of Liege in Belgium. Outspoken about the importance of music from his earliest years, he was arrested during World War II for publicly playing the music of the Jewish composer Felix Mendelssohn during the Nazi occupation. In 1952, he and his wife Janine immigrated to the United States, and he took the position of church organist at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Victoria, Texas. When the liturgical rites of the Catholic Church changed in the early 1960s, he was quick to adapt to the changes while adhering to classical good taste. He composed the first Vatican II-approved Masses in English for use in the Church. Goemanne held organist and choirmaster positions at St. Rita's Catholic Church and Out Lady, Queen of Martyrs Church in Detroit, Michigan; St. Monica's Catholic Church and Holy Trinity Seminary in Dallas; and, finally, Christ the King Catholic Church from 1972 until his death. During his long composing career, Goemanne received the "Pro Ecclesia" medal from the Vatican in 1977, the award from the Institute of Sacred Music, Manila, Philippines in 1974, and numerous ASCAP awards.
About the Piano Music:
He is Born - Mark Hayes
(c.2018, Lorenz Publishing)
"Il est né, le divin Enfant" (English: He is born, the divine Child) is a traditional French Christmas carol, which was published for the first time in 1862 by R. Grosjean, organist of the Cathedral of Saint-Dié-des-Vosges, in a collection of carols entitled Airs des Noëls lorrains. The text of the carol was published for the first time in a collection of ancient carols, published in either 1875 or 1876 by Dom G. Legeay. The text of the carol, which is written in four stanzas, details the birth of Jesus and the wait of 4000 years for the event, as told by the prophets. It both observes the humility of God's birth in a stable and calls on the Kings of the Orient to attend the child. The carol has been translated into English numerous times. One translation (close in meaning and keeping to the original meter) is by Edward Bliss Reed (1930):
He is born, the Heav'nly Child, Oboes play; set bagpipes sounding
He is born, the Heav'nly Child. Let all sing His nativity.
'Tis four thousand years and more, Prophets have foretold His coming,
'Tis four thousand years and more, Have we waited this happy hour.
Ah, how lovely, Ah, how fair, What perfection is His graces,
Ah, how lovely, Ah, how fair. Child divine, so gentle there.
In a stable lodged is He, Straw is all He has for cradle.
In a stable lodged is He, Oh how great humility!
Jesus Lord, O King with power, Though a little babe You come here,
Jesus Lord, O King with power, Rule o'er us from this glad hour.
Mark Hayes is an award-winning concert pianist, composer, arranger and conductor. His personal catalog, totaling over 1,000 published works, includes work for solo voice, solo piano, multiple pianos, orchestra, jazz combo, small instrumental ensembles, and choruses of all kinds. Mark received a Bachelor of Music degree summa cum laude in Piano Performance from Baylor University in 1975. He has conducted the SWACDA and MCDA Community and Church Honor Choir, and served as guest conductor at Carnegie Hall, featuring his Te Deum and Magnificat. In 2010, Baylor University Center for Christian Music Studies awarded Mark the Award for Exemplary Leadership in Christian Music. Mark arranged and orchestrated the music for Civil War Voices, which won six awards including "Best Musical" in the 2010 Midtown International Theatre Festival in New York. He conducted the world premiere of his work for chorus, orchestra and narrator, The American Spirit, at Lincoln Center in May 2011 and the world premiere of his Requiem in Lincoln Center in May 2013. Whether concertizing on the other side of the globe or composing at his home in Kansas City, Missouri, Mark is blessed to live out his mission "to create beautiful music for the world”.
About the Vocal Solo Music:
Sweet Little Jesus Boy – Robert MacGimsey
(c.1934, Carl Fischer)
Robert MacGimsey (1898-1979) was born in Pineville, Louisiana. MacGimsey spent most of his formative years in the company of blacks who lived and worked for and with his family. Due to their influence he wrote in an "African American" style, and he is often mistakenly assumed to be a black composer. His most famous song was "Sweet Little Jesus Boy" (1934), a well-known Christmas carol written in the style of an African-American spiritual.
Sweet little Jesus Boy They made You be born in a manger
Sweet little Holy Child They didn't know who You were
Didn't know You'd come to save us Lord, to take our sins away.
Our eyes was blind; we could not see.
We didn't know who You were.
Long time ago, You were born.
Born in a manger, Lord, Sweet little Jesus Boy.
The world treat You mean, Lord; Treat me mean, too.
But that's how things is down here.
We didn't know ‘twas You.
You done told us how we been a-tryin'
Master, You done showed us how Even when You’s dyin'.
It just seems like we can't do right; Look how we treated You
Please, please, forgive us, Lord,
We didn't know ‘twas You.
Sweet little Jesus Boy Born a long time ago
Sweet little Holy Child
We didn't know who You were.
About the Hymns:
Away in a Manger
The origin of this popular Christmas hymn is shrouded in apocryphal associations with Martin Luther (1483-1546). Methodist hymnologist Fred Gealy (1894-1976) noted that “evidence suggests that [“Away in a Manger”] is wholly an American product. The original two-stanza form probably originated among German Lutherans in Pennsylvania about 1885.” The hymn first appeared with two stanzas in Little Children’s Book for Schools and Families, a Sunday school collection published in 1885 by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in North America.
Stanza three first appeared unattributed in Gabriel’s Vineyard Songs (1892), compiled by gospel composer Charles H. Gabriel (1856-1932). Gealy conjectured “the song may have been contributed by an editor or publisher who thought the two narrative stanzas needed to be supplemented by a prayer.”
The only German version of the carol is clearly a translation from the English because the metrics are not natural to the German language. Furthermore, this version was first included in Herbert W. Werneke’s Christmas Songs and Weihnachts-Lieder (1934), a privately published collection. The false association between “Away in a Manger” and Luther appears to have been made by James R. Murray (1841-1905), who in his Dainty Songs for Little Lads and Lasses (1887) called it “‘Luther’s Cradle Hymn,’ composed by Martin Luther for his children and still sung by German mothers to their little ones.” However, no one has uncovered an original German version by the reformer. Theophilus Baker Stork (1814-1874) wrote Luther at Home (1872), in which he stated, “Luther’s carol for Christmas, written for his own child Hans, is still sung.” The irony of this assertion is that we actually have a Luther hymn that may have been written for young Hans, “Von Himmel hoch da komm ich her” (1531), published in Joseph Klug’s Gesangsbuch (1535).
“Away in a Manger” is sung to several tunes. With the original two-stanza text, AWAY IN A MANGER, also known as MUELLER, was first published in James R. Murray's Dainty Songs for Little Lads and Lasses (1887) and initialed “J. R. M.” Murray (1841-1905) compiled the songbook and is now thought to be the tune's composer. However, Murray's hymnbook erroneously described this song as: "Luther's Cradle Hymn. Composed by Martin Luther for his children, and still sung by German mothers to their little ones." As a result, the hymn was wrongly attributed to Luther for many years. As a young man taught by such famous music teachers as Lowell Mason, George Root, and William Bradbury, Murray also studied at the Musical Institute in North Reading, Massachusetts. From 1868 until the Chicago fire of 1871 destroyed the company, he edited the Song Messenger for the publishing firm of Root and Cady. He then returned to his birth place, Andover, and taught music in the public schools. From 1881 to 1905 he was an editor for the John Church Company of Cincinnati, an important publisher of church school materials and gospel music, including the monthly Musical Visitor. Murray composed many gospel songs and tunes and compiled a number of church school songbooks that contained his music.
Away in a manger, no crib for a bed,
The little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head.
The stars in the bright sky looked down where He lay,
The little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.
The cattle are lowing, the Baby awakes ,
But little Lord Jesus, no crying He makes.
I love Thee, Lord Jesus, look down from the sky,
And stay by my cradle till morning is nigh.
Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever, and love me, I pray.
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care,
And take us to heaven to live with Thee there.
In the Bleak Midwinter
Christina Georgiana Rossetti (1830-1894) was the author of three collections of mostly religious poetry and four devotional books. She came from a family steeped in the arts. Her deep faith is thought to be partially the result of the solace that she found in writing as a result of her poor health from age sixteen.
Christina’s father, Gabriele Rossetti, was a professor of Italian at King’s College, London, living in exile in England. Her brothers Dante Gabriel and William Michael gave birth to a nineteenth-century art movement, the Pre-Raphaelites, for which the beautiful Christina often served as a model, especially for portraits of the Madonna. Among the family friends was Charles Dodgson, who, under the pseudonym of Lewis Carroll, authored the famous Alice in Wonderland. Her most famous hymns are the Christmas texts, "Love Came Down at Christmas" and "In the Bleak Midwinter,"
"In the Bleak Midwinter" is a Christmas carol based on a poem by the English poet Christina Rossetti written before 1872 in response to a request from the magazine Scribner's Monthly for a Christmas poem. It was published posthumously in Rossetti's Poetic Works in 1904. The poem became a Christmas carol after it appeared in The English Hymnal in 1906 with a setting by Gustav Holst. In verse one, Rossetti describes the physical circumstances of the Incarnation in Bethlehem. In verse two, Rossetti contrasts Christ's first and second coming. The third verse dwells on Christ's birth and describes the simple surroundings, in a humble stable and watched by beasts of burden. Rossetti achieves another contrast in the fourth verse, this time between the incorporeal angels attendant at Christ's birth with Mary's ability to render Jesus physical affection. The final verse shifts the description to a more introspective thought process.
The poem became a Christmas carol after it appeared in The English Hymnal in 1906 with the tune CRANHAM by Gustav Holst. Gustav Holst (1874-1934) was a renowned British composer and musician. Having studied at Cheltenham Grammar School, he soon obtained a professional position as an organist, and later as choirmaster. In 1892, Holst composed a two-act operetta, which so impressed his father that he borrowed the money to send Holst to the Royal College of Music. Severe neuritis in his right hand later caused him to give up the keyboard, and Holst turned to the trombone and composing. In 1895 Holst met Ralph Vaughan Williams, and the two became lifelong friends. Vaughan Williams helped Holst land his first job as a singing teacher. Holst became very interested in Indian and Hindu culture, and composed a number of operas translated from Sanksrit myths. Holst is best known for his composition, The Planets. He composed a total of thirty operas.
In the bleak mid-winter Frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, Water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, Snow on snow,
In the bleak mid-winter Long ago.
Our God, Heaven cannot hold Him Nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away When He comes to reign:
In the bleak mid-winter A stable-place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ.
Enough for Him, whom cherubim Worship night and day,
A breastful of milk, And a mangerful of hay;
Enough for Him, whom angels Fall down before,
The ox and ass and camel Which adore.
Angels and archangels May have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim Thronged the air -
But only His mother In her maiden bliss
Worshipped the Beloved With a kiss.
What can I give Him, Poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd I would bring a lamb;
If I were a wise man I would do my part;
Yet what I can, I give Him - Give my heart.
First United Methodist Church, Lewisville, Texas
A Community of Everyday People Learning to Love Like Jesus
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