Unless stated otherwise, my source for hymn texts and tunes is The Lutheran Service Book.

Friday, March 18, 2022

"Through Jesus' Blood and Merit"

I found a couple small features to note in "Through Jesus' Blood and Merit," sung to the tune "Lob Gott getrost mit Singen."

Here's the third musical phrase:


In the second verse, the text here (based on part of Romans 8:38-39) is "No want, no pain whatever."  The three syllables of "whatever" are each sung to a different pitch (A F# D), musically giving a sense of breadth.

The last musical phrase:


In the third verse, the text (still drawing from Romans 8) is "Nor darkest depths of gloom."  "Depths" is sung with a descending melisma (D C B), giving a sense of its meaning.  In Lutheran Worship, this line is "Nor depth of deepest gloom," where "deepest" is sung with a melisma (D C B A), which gives a sense not only of the meaning, but also of the superlative nature of this adjective (more notes for a greater degree).