Issue 10 - Shaped Notes

The prelude this Sunday was composed by David Cherwien (music director of the National Lutheran Choir as well as a founding member of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians). The piece is based upon the opening hymn "I Come with Joy". This tune was not in our green or blue hymnals --- I'm really happy to see that it made its way into Evangelical Lutheran Worship (our new "cranberry" hymnal). All hymns have a tune name. For instance, the hymn "All Creatures of Our God and King" has a tune name of "Lasst uns erfreuen". This is because different texts can be set to "Lasst uns erfreuen" --- on Easter Sunday, we sang the text "Now All the Vault of Heav'n Resounds" to that tune. "I Come with Joy" has a tune name of "Dove of Peace". The middle staff in the picture above shows the tune (now you can practice it before Sunday!)

Notice anything strange about it? What's that you say? You've never sung notes that have shapes like triangles and squares before?

Well, welcome to shaped-note singing! You've probably heard of solfege (do re mi fa sol la ti do) or at least you remember being taught it by Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music. Well, solfege originates with Guido d'Arezzo in the late First Century. Shaped-notes came along in America in the early 1800's as a written method to correspond with these syllables. For instance, what we know as "do" is the backwards-looking triangle, and so on.

The tune "Dove of Peace" was first published in The Southern Harmony, and Musical Companion in 1835 (now known mostly just as Southern Harmony). It was compiled by the great Baptist song leader William "Singin' Billy" Walker. Walker's description on the book is "A Choice Collection of Tunes, Hymns, Psalms, Odes and Anthems, selected from the most eminent authors in the United States and well adapted to Christian Churches of every denomination, singing schools and private societies." Walker pretty much makes it sound like this is the be-all, end-all hymnal! And truly, it was! This hymnal is the greatest collection of American Folk Tunes yet compiled and is an important document for our nation - as well as for our churches. That we have such an outstanding collection of our early folk tunes (numbering 300 plus!) is an American treasure. Just thirty short years after its first printing, Walker boasted that over 600,000 copies had been sold... we'll see how quickly that happens with the ELW!!!

The postlude this Sunday is a festive Fanfare by Jacques Lemmens. I'll write about it next time I play it!

(Image: "Dove of Peace" from Southern Harmony, and Musical Companion by William Walker)