Unless stated otherwise, my source for hymn texts and tunes is The Lutheran Service Book.
Showing posts with label Only Begotten Word of God Eternal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Only Begotten Word of God Eternal. Show all posts

Friday, October 27, 2023

"Only-Begotten, Word of God Eternal"

A couple years ago, I noticed some features in "Only-Begotten, Word of God Eternal," sung to the tune "Iste confessor."  Here's the first musical phrase:


In the first verse, the text here is "Only-begotten, Word of God eternal," and in the fourth verse, the text is "God in three persons, Father everlasting."  "Eternal" and "everlasting" are both sung with a melisma (G F E D and F G F E D, respectively), and since the words are drawn out, there's a sense of duration.

Here's the second musical phrase:


In the third verse, the text here is "By Your past blessings, by your present bounty."  Here, "bounty" is sung with a melisma (C B A), providing a sense of that abundance.

The fourth verse ends with the lines "To You be praises, thanks, and adoration, / Glory forever," and the last line is sung to this musical phrase:


As with "eternal" and "everlasting" above, "forever" is sung with a melisma (E F E D), giving a sense of duration.