Tag: hymn

May the Peace of God

May the Peace of God is based on Philippians 4:7 and offers an assurance that we do not need to be anxious about anything. God has it all covered in ways that we cannot even begin to understand. In times of doubt, pray. In times of uncertainty, pray. When we have troubled minds, pray. Protect yourself with the power of Jesus Christ and experience peace.

I love the poetic feel of the King James passage “and the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ”. I also like the NASB translation. “As the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Jesus Christ.” It just seems a little more clear in the NASB translation that it is God who protects our hearts and minds, not us.

For context, this scripture is embedded between an admonition to make our requests known to God and a reminder that we need not be anxious. There is also the instruction to focus on what is right and true, behave honorably, and to dwell on the good things.

My composition is written for SATB voices, with or without piano accompaniment. My church choir did it a few times with accompaniment. Later, after the choir was more familiar with the composition, they sang it a capella. Both went well even though we are a small choir. The mood is generally soft and reassuring, just like the scripture verses. The vocal range is moderate with optional divisi for the bass voices. It can be used at any point in a worship service, but was intended for a benediction response.

Would you like to see more of this composition? Click here. Interested in some of my other compositions? Visit MusicNotes through this link.

I Know Not How

I Know Not How That Bethlehem’s Babe was written by Harry Webb Farrington and is in Public Domain. As with many of my hymn tunes, I used words from a hymn that I didn’t know and re-set them with my own preferences and personality. Harry Webb Farrington was an American author, hymn writer, preacher, and teacher. Farrington was born in 1879 in the Bahamas and then moved to Maryland. Harry Webb Farrington was raised in the Darlington United Methodist Church.

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He worked for a while in a paper mill, then attended Lycoming College in Pennsylvania. He later graduated from Syracuse University in 1907 and continued his education at Boston and Harvard Universities. Farrington later became an ordained minister for the Methodist Church and served as pastor of Grace Methodist Church in New York City from 1920 to 1923. He died in 1930 after being paralyzed in an accident and was buried in Pine Lawn Cemetery in Long Island, NY. He wrote 30 or more hymns, including I Know Not How That Bethlehem’s Babe, Righteous Man of Galilee, and others.

The text describes the wonder of Jesus, from the manger birth through the resurrection. There is a sense of wonder and mystery, as well as celebration. When setting these words I focused on the celebration aspect. I did that by adding triangle, tambourine, and a rollicking melody in an easily singable range and four-part harmony.

If you would like to learn more about this piece click HERE, or send me a message.