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

Friday, April 11, 2025

"Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to Me"

Last month, I watched the Concordia University Wisconsin chapel service from the 21st.  The hymn was "Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to Me," and I noticed a few small features.  It's sung to the tune "Ryburn."  Here's the fifth musical phrase:


In the second verse, the text here is "All coldness from my heart remove."  "All coldness" is sung to notes of all different pitches (F# A B), giving a sense of entirety.

In the third verse, the text is "And day and night, be all my care."  Here, "all" is sung with a melisma (D C#), providing a sense of entirety.

The sixth musical phrase:


In the second verse, the text here is "My ev'ry act, word, thought be love."  Similar to the above, the phrase "ev'ry act" is sung to notes of all different pitches (G F# E), but here, this articulation gives more of a sense of number.