One of the greatest pieces of music ever written, and
the greatest melody of all time, was written by a deaf
German composer in 1824. Since its premiere, Ludwig
van Beethoven’s Ode to Joy has been a favorite of
audiences for its exuberance, its heroism, its triumph,
and—well, might as well use the word, its joy! Such
a great piece of music was certainly worthy of being
sung in church, and it was only a matter of time before
someone got the idea to write a hymn to the tune.
That so...(+)
One of the greatest pieces of music ever written, and
the greatest melody of all time, was written by a deaf
German composer in 1824. Since its premiere, Ludwig
van Beethoven’s Ode to Joy has been a favorite of
audiences for its exuberance, its heroism, its triumph,
and—well, might as well use the word, its joy! Such
a great piece of music was certainly worthy of being
sung in church, and it was only a matter of time before
someone got the idea to write a hymn to the tune.
That someone (well, there may have been more than one,
but the most successful in this area) was Henry van
Dyke, a Presbyterian minister in New York. His famous
words, “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee,” were first
published in 1911. Van Dyke was inspired to write the
hymn while guest preaching at Williams College in
Williamstown Massachusetts—he said the Berkshire
Mountains put him in the mood. Of his purpose in
writing it, van Dyke said:
“These verses are simple expressions of common
Christian feelings and desires in this present
time—hymns of today that may be sung together by
people who know the thought of the age, and are not
afraid that any truth of science will destroy religion,
or any revolution on earth overthrow the kingdom of
heaven. Therefore this is a hymn of trust and joy and
hope.”
Needless to say, the hymn was an unqualified success
which usually makes it into hymnals—though somehow,
it got left out of Soul-Stirring Hymns of the Faith.
Great Hymns of the Faith includes it.
This arrangement is not one of the beginner ones which
so many fledgling musicians (myself included) have
performed in their first concert. It is also not
entirely in Beethoven’s style—Beethoven himself
proved what Beethoven could do when he wrote the Ninth
Symphony. Instead, this is my version of it—written
hopefully with God’s help. I tried to make it grand
and really bring out the joy, much like Beethoven
did—only, all you need to perform this version is a
piano. I hope that one day, this arrangement brings
joy to your church, somewhere out there. Enjoy!
This sheet music is part of the collection of crosby3145 :
Nothing that exists is more
worthy of praise than God, so
it follows that he is
deserving of our best music.
Unsurprisingly, many pieces by
the greatest composers of
all-time appear throughout our
hymnals. Not all of these
were Christians, though
several were—Johann
Sebastian Bach, George
Frederic Handel, and Felix
Mendelssohn, for instance.
Saved or not, none of these
composers would have been able
to do what they did were it
not for a special gift from
God in the area of music.
It’s only natural, then,
that we should use their
pieces when we’re praising
God.
My approach to arranging these
hymns has been varied. Some,
I’ve tried to do in the
composer’s style—May the
Grace of Christ Our Savior;
Rise, Crowned with Light; O
Sacred Head, Now Wounded; and
the Mozart ones (which
aren’t quite as good, I’m
afraid). In Glorious Things
of Thee Are Spoken, I didn’t
bother to try to copy Haydn at
all, as he already wrote his
own piano variations on
it—this one is in my style.
Not Worthy, Lord, and Holy
Ghost, with Light Divine, are
more in my style. Still
others are, I think, hybrids.
I didn’t bother to try to
copy Beethoven on Joyful,
Joyful, We Adore Thee (how
could any composer top what he
did with it in the Ninth
Symphony), but I think some of
his influence slipped in on
the third statement of the
theme. While Shepherds
Watched Their Flocks by Night
is probably more in Mozart or
Beethoven’s style than
Handel’s, as I was looking
at their variations on other
pieces when arranging it.
Now, there are far more than
ten hymns by classical
composers out there, but these
are the ones I wound up
picking for this edition.
Whether you play classical
music all the time, or whether
you have little experience
with it, I hope you enjoy
these arrangements and that
they bring God glory, as Bach
always wrote at the end of his
pieces. And if you like
these, be sure to check out
the other works of Beethoven,
of Tchaikovsky, of
Gottschalk—of any of these
composers. After all, these
men spent their whole lives
writing music, and what you
see here is only the tip of
the iceberg. Enjoy! Sheet music list : › Fugue on O Sacred Head, Now Wounded › Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken › His Matchless Worth › Holy Ghost, with Light Divine › Jesus, I My Cross Have Taken › Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee › May the Grace of Christ Our Savior › Not Worthy, Lord! › Rise, Crowned with Light › While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks