Excerpt from Hymnal: Amore Dei
This little book was undertaken as a labor of love to meet a want felt in our own church, and it differs from other hymnals in several respects.
The collection is much smaller than the usual size, the aim not being to gather a complete body of sacred song, but practically to cover the range of devout affections which should be voiced by a worshipping congregation. Hymns which are really songs or poems were preferred to rhymed didactics. Formalism, whether theological or literary, has been avoided, and even beauty of poetic expression less sought for than the devotional quality. All the hymns chosen are either direct prayer and praise to God, or fervent meditations upon the story of the soul's life.
Hymns, however, are not written for speech but for song. While the text has been studiously selected, the compiler gave her first care to the music, and especially to secure such blending of words with music, that "voice and verse" might really be the two-fold expression of a single mood. Each stanza, each leading phrase, has been lovingly and critically studied in this regard.
The book is in two parts. In Part I the largest place is given to the modern English school, particularly to the compositions of Barnby, Dykes, Calkin, Sullivan, etc. The hymns here have much of the tender, reverent, and noble simplicity, which characterizes the music. This section contains also a few Welsh airs, which have a quality peculiarly their own. Part II draws chiefly from American sources, and contains the most familiar and well-loved hymns now current in our churches.
As musical fitness has always been the prime consideration, the usual method of classifying hymns by their subjects has not been followed. Poems upon the same theme may differ widely in tone of emotion, and therefore require different musical renderings. This requirement is often sacrificed in books where the arrangement is merely topical. The carefully prepared Index of Subjects will be a sufficient guide to the finding of any desired hymn.
Hymns which vary in important respects from their common versions are indicated by a †.
The preparation of this volume has already endeared it in my own home. It is eminently fitted for family use, and I believe that in the larger circle of the Christian congregation, it cannot fail to bring joy, beauty, and fervor into the service of sacred song.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works. Это и многое другое вы найдете в книге Hymnal