"Across the Sky the Shades of Night"

In March, I started working through Georg Phillip Telemann's Fast allgemeines Evangelisch-Musicalisches Lieder-Buch, a collection of some four hundred hymn tunes (more details here).  A few months ago, I learned his arrangement of "Allein Gott in der Höh'."  Although the text that was originally paired with this tune is "All Glory Be to God on High" (LSB #947), I found myself thinking about "Across the Sky the Shades of Night" (LSB #899), which is sung to the same tune, and I noticed a small feature.

Here's the first phrase:

The first line is, of course, "Across the sky the shades of night."  The phrase "across the sky" is sung to a group of notes that spans a fifth (G to D), and this musical distance provides a sense of the breadth of that "across."  That each note is a different pitch furthers this sense.

LSB #605 "Father Welcomes"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Galatians 3:26-27, Romans 6:1-7, Mark 16:16, John 3:3-6

Galatians 3:26-27:  "26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.  27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ."

Romans 6:1-7:  "1 What shall we say then?  Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?  2 By no means!  How can we who died to sin still live in it?  3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

"5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.  6 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.  7 For one who has died has been set free from sin."

Mark 16:16:  "'Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.'"

John 3:3-6:  "3 Jesus answered him, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.'  4 Nicodemus said to him, 'How can a man be born when he is old?  Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?'  5 Jesus answered, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.  6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.'"

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Galatians 3:26-27 and Romans 6:1-7 are the basis for the refrain.  Mark 16:16 and John 3:3-6 appear at the end of the second verse:  "Those who are baptized and believe / Shall be born again."

The beginning of the first verse ("Little children, come to Me, / For My kingdom is of these") is from Matthew 19:13-14:  "13 Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray.  The disciples rebuked the people, 14 but Jesus said, 'Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.'"

The beginning of the third verse ("Let us daily die to sin; / Let us daily rise with Him") seems to echo Luther's Small Catechism:  "[Baptism] indicates that the Old Adam in us should by daily contrition and repentance be drowned and die with all sins and evil desires, and that a new man should daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever."

"Italian Hymn" (TLH #227)

"All My Heart This Night Rejoices"

Earlier this year, when I transposed "Fröhlich soll mein Herze" in order to record it, I found a slew of small features to note in the hymn "All My Heart This Night Rejoices" (TLH #77).

I'll go phrase by phrase.  Here's the first:

In the tenth verse, the text here is "Hither come, ye heavy-hearted."  As if to reflect the "heav[iness]," the melody descends at the end.

I didn't find any musical features in the second or third phrases, but I did notice some merisms in the text:  "far and near" in the first verse and "great and small" in the eighth.

The fourth musical phrase:

In the eleventh verse, the text here is "Every hand outstretchèd."  "Outstretched" is sung with a melisma (F G F), and this expanded pronunciation (indicated by the accent) gives a sense of the word's meaning.

The sixth and seventh musical phrases (combined because they're so short):

In the first verse, the text here is "Till the air / Ev'rywhere."  Each syllable of "ev'rywhere" is sung to a different pitch (Bb Ab G), giving a sense of that breadth.

In the eighth verse, there's an-other merism here:  "Hail the Star / Near and far."

In the fifteenth verse, the text here is "There on high, / In that joy."  "High" is sung to the highest note in the phrase (and even in the whole tune), and this gives a sense of its meaning.

The eighth musical phrase:

In the fourth verse, the text here is "Left His throne above us?"  (This completes the sense from earlier in the verse:  "Should the Son of God not love us, / Who, to cheer / Suff'rers here, / Left His throne above us?")  Pitch-wise, "throne" (sung to an Ab) really is above "us" (sung to an Eb).

LSB #604 "I Bind unto Myself Today"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  1 Peter 1:1-9, Matthew 28:19, Romans 6:4, John 6:39

1 Peter 1:1-9:  "1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,

"To those who are elect exiles of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with his blood:

"May grace and peace be multiplied to you.

"3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.  6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith - more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.  8 Though you have not seen him, you love him.  Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls."

Matthew 28:19:  "'Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit'"

Romans 6:4:  "We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life."

John 6:39:  "'And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.'"

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The text is public domain:

I bind unto myself today

The strong name of the Trinity

By invocation of the same,

The Three in One and One in Three.

I bind this day to me forever,

By pow'r of faith, Christ's incarnation,

His Baptism in the Jordan River,

His cross of death for my salvation,

His bursting from the spiced tomb,

His riding up the heav'nly way,

His coming at the day of doom,

I bind unto myself today.

I bind unto myself today

The pow'r of God to hold and lead,

His eye to watch, His might to stay,

His ear to hearken to my need,

The wisdom of my God to teach,

His hand to guide, His shield to ward,

The Word of God to give me speech,

His heav'nly host to be my guard.

Against the demon snares of sin,

The vice that gives temptation force,

The natural lusts that war within,

The hostile foes that mar my course;

Or few or many, far or nigh,

In ev'ry place and in all hours,

Against their fierce hostility,

I bind to me those holy pow'rs.

I bind unto myself the name,

The strong name of the Trinity

By invocation of the same,

The Three in One and One in Three,

Of whom all nature has creation,

Eternal Father, Spirit, Word.

Praise to the Lord of my salvation;

Salvation is of Christ the Lord!

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Matthew 28:19 appears in both the first and last verses ("the strong name of the Trinity").  The other passages aren't so easy to identify.  Part of the passage from 1 Peter 1 and Romans 6:4 could be cited for the second verse ("His cross of death for my salvation, / His bursting from the spiced tomb"), and 1 Peter 1 and John 6:39 could be cited for the last line ("Salvation is of Christ the Lord!"), but there's not a strong resemblance between any of these.

Incidentally, the phrases "few or many, far or nigh" are merisms.

"Komm, o komm, du Geist" (TLH #226)

"O Jesus Christ, Thy Manger Is"

When I recorded "O Jesu Christ, dein Kripplein" back in September, I noticed a small connection between it and the text "O Jesus Christ, Thy Manger Is" (TLH #81).  (In The Lutheran Service Book, "O Jesus Christ, Thy Manger Is" [#372] is sung to the tune "In paradisum.")

Here's the second musical phrase:

In the first verse, the text here (describing the manger) is "My paradise at which my soul reclineth."  The phrase "my soul reclineth" is sung to a descending group of notes (Bb Ab G F Eb), musically giving a sense of this "reclin[ing]."

LSB #603 "We Know That Christ Is Raised"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Romans 6:3-11, John 3:1-6, Romans 8:11

Romans 6:3-11:  "3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

"5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.  6 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.  7 For one who has died has been set free from sin.  8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.  9 We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.  10 For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.  11 So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus."

John 3:1-6:  "1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.  2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, 'Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.'  3 Jesus answered him, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.'  4 Nicodemus said to him, 'How can a man be born when he is old?  Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?'  5 Jesus answered, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.  6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.'"

Romans 8:11:  "If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you."

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The text from Romans 6 is the main source for the hymn.  The first line of the hymn is taken directly from verse 9.

The text from John 3, particularly verses 3-5, seems to appear in the line "Reborn, we share with Him an Easter life" in the second verse.  While Romans 8:11 overlaps a bit with the text from Romans 6, it could be cited for this line too.

"St. Bernard"

This tune isn't in Lutheran Worship or The Lutheran Service Book; this is twice through the arrangement in The Lutheran Hymnal (#378), although I transposed it from Eb major to F major.  Some of the parts are pretty high, so to make it easier, I played the soprano and alto parts on soprano recorder and the tenor part on alto recorder.

"Boylston" (TLH #225)

"O Come, O Come, Emmanuel"

About two years ago, I noticed a couple small features in the seventh verse of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel":

O come, Desire of nations, bind

In one the hearts of all mankind;

Bid Thou our sad divisions cease,

And be Thyself our King of Peace.

The hymn is sung to the tune "Veni Emmanuel."  Here's the second musical phrase:

In the line "In one the hearts of all mankind," "all" is sung with a melisma (A F# E), musically giving a sense of breadth.

The third musical phrase:

In the line "Bid Thou our sad divisions cease," "divisions" is sung with a melisma (F# G F# E).  The syllables are divided among more notes than they would be normally, so there's a sense of the word's meaning.

LSB #602 "The Gifts Christ Freely Gives"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Ephesians 1:3-7, 1 John 5:6-8

Ephesians 1:3-7:  "3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.  In love 5 he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.  7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace"

1 John 5:6-8:  "6 This is he who came by water and blood - Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood.  And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.  7 For there are three that testify:  8 the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree."

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Ephesians 1:3-7 seems to be the basis for the hymn.  Each verse of the hymn (save perhaps for the doxology at the end) expands upon "every spiritual blessing" from verse 3.  Specifically, verses 4-5 appear in the hymn's first verse ("To be... His chosen, saved and free! / Saints blest with these rich gifts / Are children who proclaim / That they were won by Christ"), and verse 7 appears in the hymn's fifth verse ("The body and the blood / Remove our ev'ry sin") and third verse ("Forgiveness that we need / Is granted to us there").

1 John 5:6-8 appears mostly in the second verse, which is all about Baptism.  Blood isn't mentioned in the hymn until the fifth verse, though.

"Komm, Heiliger Geist, Herre Gott" (TLH #224)

"Once He Came in Blessing"

A couple years ago, I noticed two small features in "Once He Came in Blessing," sung to the tune "Gottes Sohn ist kommen."  Here are the third and fourth musical phrases:

In the first verse, the text here is "Came in likeness lowly, / Son of God most holy."  "Lowly" is sung to a descending group of notes (G F Eb), and to some degree, this illustrates that humility.  "Holy" is sung with a melisma (F Eb D C Bb), musically giving a sense of degree (for "most").

LSB #601 "All Who Believe and Are Baptized"

Biblical citations in the hymnal:  Mark 16:16, Colossians 2:12-13, Acts 2:38, Revelation 7:13-15

Mark 16:16:  "'Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.'"

Colossians 2:12-13:  "12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.  13 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses"

Acts 2:38:  "And Peter said to them, 'Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'"

Revelation 7:13-15:  "13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, 'Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?'  14 I said to him, 'Sir, you know.'  And he said to me, 'These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation.  They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

"15 'Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence."

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The text is public domain:

All who believe and are baptized

Shall see the Lord's salvation;

Baptized into the death of Christ,

They are a new creation.

Through Christ's redemption they shall stand

Among the glorious, heav'nly band

Of ev'ry tribe and nation.

With one accord, O God, we pray:

Grant us Your Holy Spirit.

Help us in our infirmity

Through Jesus' blood and merit.

Grant us to grow in grace each day

That by this sacrament we may

Eternal life inherit.

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Mark 16:16 appears in the first two lines.

Colossians 2:12-13 is cited apparently for the lines "Baptized into the death of Christ, / They are a new creation," although these lines bear a stronger resemblance to Romans 6:3-4:  "3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life." and 2 Corinthians 5:17:  "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."

The text from Revelation 7 appears at the end of the first verse, although the part about "the glorious, heav'nly band / Of ev'ry tribe and nation" comes a bit earlier than the cited text; it's in Revelation 7:9:  "After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands."  Revelation 7:14 also seems to be referred to in the lines "Help us in our infirmity / Through Jesus' blood and merit." in the second verse.

Acts 2:38 seems to appear at the beginning of the second verse:  "With one accord, O God, we pray: / Grant us Your Holy Spirit."