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:
Bagatelle on “Jesus
Loves Me” – John Barr
"Jesus Loves
Me" was written by Anna
Bartlett Warner (1827–1915). The lyrics first appeared
as a poem in the context of an 1860 novel called Say and Seal, written
by her older sister Susan
Warner (1819–1885), in which the words were spoken as
a comforting poem to a dying child. The tune was added in 1862 by William Bradbury (1816–1868). Along with his
tune, Bradbury added his own chorus "Yes, Jesus loves me, Yes, Jesus Loves
me" After publication as a song it
became one of the most popular Christian hymns in churches around the
world, especially among children.
Anna’s
family home was quite close to the United States Military Academy at West
Point, in New York, in the era just before the Civil War. Each Sunday Anna taught
Bible classes to the cadets. Her remains are buried in the military
cemetery, and her family home is now a museum on the grounds of the United
States Military Academy.
Her
original poem follows:
Jesus loves me! This I
know,
For the Bible tells me so.
Little ones to Him belong;
They are weak but He is strong.
For the Bible tells me so.
Little ones to Him belong;
They are weak but He is strong.
Jesus loves me! Loves me
still,
Tho I'm very weak and ill,
That I might from sin be free,
Bled and died upon the tree.
Tho I'm very weak and ill,
That I might from sin be free,
Bled and died upon the tree.
Jesus loves me! He who
died
Heaven's gate to open wide;
He will wash away my sin,
Let His little child come in.
Heaven's gate to open wide;
He will wash away my sin,
Let His little child come in.
Jesus loves me! He will stay
Close beside me all the way.
Thou hast bled and died for me;
I will henceforth live for Thee.
Close beside me all the way.
Thou hast bled and died for me;
I will henceforth live for Thee.
John Barr (b. 1938) studied organ and composition at
Manchester College and Union Theological Seminary. Dr. Barr was music teacher
at Hillcrest School for Missionary Children in Jos, Nigeria, 1962-65. He later became Professor of Organ and Piano
at Bridgewater College, Bridgewater, VA, until his retirement. He is organist
at Bridgewater Church of the Brethren.
Prelude and
Fugue in G Major – J. S. Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) was a German composer and musician
of the Baroque period. He enriched established German styles through
his skill in counterpoint, harmonic and motivic organization, and the adaptation of
rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France. Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg
concertos, the Mass in B minor, The
Well-Tempered Clavier, two Passions,
keyboard works, and more than 300 cantatas,
of which nearly 100 cantatas have been lost to posterity. His music is revered for its
intellectual depth, technical command, and artistic beauty. Bach's abilities as an organist were highly
respected throughout Europe during his lifetime, although he was not widely
recognized as a great composer until a revival of interest and performances of
his music in the first half of the nineteenth century. During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth
century, Bach was recognized by several prominent composers. Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig
van Beethoven,
Frédéric
Chopin, Robert Schumann,
and Felix Mendelssohn were among his admirers; they began
writing in a more contrapuntal style after being exposed to Bach's music. Beethoven described him as "Urvater der Harmonie",
the "original father of harmony".
He is now generally regarded as one of the main composers of the Baroque
period and as one of the greatest composers of all time. A highly devout Christian, Bach signed all of
his compositions “soli Deo Gloria” (to God alone be the glory).
Continuing our “Bach to School” celebration, this series of
Preludes and Fugues is particularly appropriate, as they were used as teaching
pieces by J. S. Bach.
About the Piano Music:
Make Me a Channel of
Your Peace – Laura Wasson
Blessed is he who loves and does not therefore
desire to be loved; blessed is he who fears and does not therefore desire to be
feared; blessed is he who serves and does not therefore desire to be served;
blessed is he who behaves well toward others and does not desire that others
behave well toward him; and because these are great things, the foolish do not
rise to them.
A popular hymn version of the prayer is "Make Me A
Channel of Your Peace", adapted and set to music in 1967 by South African
songwriter Sebastian Temple (Johann Sebastian von Tempelhoff, 1928-1997). It is
an anthem of the Royal British Legion
and is usually sung every November at the Service of Remembrance
at Royal Albert Hall, London. In 1997, it was part of the Funeral of
Diana, Princess of Wales, and was sung by Sinéad O'Connor
on the Princess Diana tribute album.
Make me a channel of your
peace. Where there is hatred let me bring your love;
Where there is injury, your pardon Lord; And where there's doubt, true faith in you.
Where there is injury, your pardon Lord; And where there's doubt, true faith in you.
Make me a channel of your peace. Where there's despair in
life let me bring hope;
Where there is darkness, only light; And where there's sadness, ever joy.
Where there is darkness, only light; And where there's sadness, ever joy.
Oh, master grant that I may never seek So much to be consoled
as to console,
To be understood as to understand, To be loved as to love with all my soul.
To be understood as to understand, To be loved as to love with all my soul.
Make me a channel of your peace. It is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
In giving to all men let we receive; And in dying that we're born to turn around.
In giving to all men let we receive; And in dying that we're born to turn around.
About the Choral Music:
Draw
the Circle Wide – Mark Miller
Mark Miller believes
passionately that music can change the world. He also believes in Cornell
West’s quote that ‘Justice is what love looks like in public.’ His dream is
that the music he composes, performs, teaches and leads will inspire and
empower people to create the beloved community. Mark is Assistant Professor of Church Music
at Drew Theological School and is a Lecturer in the Practice of Sacred Music at
Yale University. He also is the Minister of Music of Christ Church in Summit,
New Jersey. Since 1999 Mark has led music for United Methodists and
others around the country, including directing music for the 2008 General
Conference. Mark received his Bachelor of Arts in Music from Yale University
and his Master of Music in Organ Performance from Juilliard. Mark is a lifelong United Methodist. He is the
grandson, son, brother, uncle, and cousin to United Methodist
clergy.
“Draw
the Circle Wide” was written for a United Methodist weekend choral workshop in
Lake Junaluska, NC, in 2008.
Draw the circle, draw the circle
wide.
No one stands alone; we’ll stand
side by side.
Draw the circle wide, draw it wider
still.
Let this be our song: no one stands
alone.
Standing side by side, draw the
circle wide.
About the Hymns:
Rejoice, Ye Pure in
Heart
Anglican priest and professor Edward Hayes Plumptre
(1821-1891) composed “Rejoice, ye pure in heart” as a processional hymn for a
choir festival in one of England’s majestic places of worship, Peterborough
Cathedral. Plumptre was a
distinguished scholar of his day. Educated at University College, Oxford, he
then became a fellow at Brasenose College, Oxford, receiving his ordination in
the Anglican Church in 1846. After serving as a clergyman, he became chaplain
and professor of New Testament exegesis at King’s College, London, and dean of
Queen’s College, Oxford. His most prominent position as a clergyman was that of
dean of Wells Cathedral.
Of the original 11 stanzas, five appear in our hymnal. Omitted stanzas refer to this processional in martial terms as warriors who “march in firm array.” This kind of imagery is not only consonant with the times, but also reflects the theology of the Anglican Communion that views its role on earth as the “Church Militant” while the church in heaven is the “Church Triumphant.” Hymnologist William Reynolds noted that it “was not unusual for a cathedral processional to take from ten to thirty minutes, and the hymn that was sung by both the choir and the congregation needed to have enough stanzas for this.” It was first published in the third edition of Plumptre's Lazarus and Other Poems (1868) and in the Appendix to Hymns Ancient and Modern (1868).
Of the original 11 stanzas, five appear in our hymnal. Omitted stanzas refer to this processional in martial terms as warriors who “march in firm array.” This kind of imagery is not only consonant with the times, but also reflects the theology of the Anglican Communion that views its role on earth as the “Church Militant” while the church in heaven is the “Church Triumphant.” Hymnologist William Reynolds noted that it “was not unusual for a cathedral processional to take from ten to thirty minutes, and the hymn that was sung by both the choir and the congregation needed to have enough stanzas for this.” It was first published in the third edition of Plumptre's Lazarus and Other Poems (1868) and in the Appendix to Hymns Ancient and Modern (1868).
Arthur H. Messiter (b. Frome, Somersetshire, England,
1834; d. New York, NY, 1916) composed MARION for this text in 1883 and named it
after his wife. The tune was published in the Hymnal with Music as Used
in Trinity Church (1893), a hymnal compiled by Messiter during his
long term of service as organist/ choirmaster at Trinity Church (Episcopal) in
New York City (1866-1897). Educated by
private tutors in England, Messiter immigrated to the United States in 1863 and
had an active musical career in Philadelphia, which included an organist
position at St. James the Less. At Trinity Church in New York City, he modeled
with distinction the British cathedral tradition of music. Messiter was an
editor of the Episcopal Hymnal (1893), compiled the Psalter (1889)
and Choir Office Book (1891), and wrote a musical history of
Trinity Episcopal Church, New York (1906).
Wounded
World that Cries for Healing
Shirley Erena Murray (b. 1931) is a hymn text writer,
born in Invercargill, New Zealand. Her texts have appeared in more than 100
collections worldwide and have been translated into several languages. She has
been an editor with the New Zealand Hymnbook Trust and received international
acclaim for her writing, including being made a Fellow of the Royal School of
Church Music (2006) and becoming a Member of the NZ Order of Merit (2001) for
services to the community through hymn writing. She is the first citizen to be
so honored. Most recently, she has been honored by the Hymn Society in the
United States and Canada at its July 2009 annual conference by being named a
Fellow of the Society in recognition of her contributions as a hymn writer to
the international community of congregational song. Also, in 2009, she was
awarded the title of Honorary Doctor of Literature (D.Litt.) from the
University of Otago. Murray has been the Erik Routley Fellow (PCUSA) in 1996
and her hymns have been included in the worship of the World Council of
Churches' Assemblies. She has worked with Dr I-to Loh, musical ethnologist from
Taiwan, in paraphrasing Asian hymns into English and providing texts for `Sound
the Bamboo' (1990, 2000).
“Wounded
World” appears in Every Day In Your Spirit (Hope,
1996)—the second of her four volumes of hymns. She writes this about the text:
“An overtly political hymn, written for an ecumenical occasion called Healing the Health System. There was outrage when, in
1992, our government made drastic cuts to health and welfare benefits. This was
first sung in St. Peter’s Anglican Church, Wellington, as a hymn of protest and
resolve.” She paints a dire outlook that is only broken by the “Jesus of the
healing Spirit.” The turmoil of the financial crisis of her homeland is evident
throughout the second stanza. The final stanza celebrates those who try to pick
up the pieces and tend to the brokenness, recalling Christ’s washing of the
disciples’ feet.
The tune
“Beach Spring” is attributed to Benjamin Franklin White, who with the help of
Elisha J. King, published The Sacred Harp (Philadelphia, 1844), where it
was sung with the text of “Come, ye sinners, poor and wretched.” Named after
the Beech Spring Baptist Church in Harris County, Georgia, the church was given
its name because of its close proximity to two beech trees at a spring. Although the original spelling of the name
should be “Beech,” White’s misspelling “Beach,” has stuck with the hymn
throughout the ages. White was mostly a self-taught singing school teacher from
South Carolina. Eventually he moved to Hamilton in Harris County, Georgia,
where he worked at many different vocations, including a stint in the Georgia
Militia. Eventually White married Thurza Golightly, and together the two had 14
children (the same number of children that White’s parents had). At some
point along the timeline of Benjamin Franklin White’s history, a rumor was
started that he worked closely with William Walker (who was his brother-in-law)
to publish Southern Harmonies, but this rumor was probably not true.
The two books were wildly popular in the south, but both contained the
same southern white spirituals which were popular in the more rural areas. In
the 20th century, the tunes from The Sacred Harp, and Southern
Harmonies entered into more denominational hymnals and inspired many
different composers to arrange the melodies in various ways. The Sacred Harp
is one of the most used books in the four-shape notation and has gone through
numerous editions that have been published throughout the years, and even to
the present days.
