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

Friday, September 23, 2022

"Spread the Reign of God the Lord"

Last year, I noticed a detail in "Spread the Reign of God the Lord," sung to the tune "Gott sei Dank."  Here's the third phrase:


In the first verse, the text here, describing where the reign of God is to be spread, is "Ev'rywhere His creatures call."  "Ev'rywhere" is sung with a melisma (G C B A), and each syllable is sung to a different pitch.  Both of these features provide a sense of breadth.