Hymnody

Hymnody: the singing or composition of hymns

Christmas Hymns: “What Child is This?”

“What Child is This?” is included in the Russian and Latvian hymnbooks as well as the Ukrainian Children’s Songbook. The text was also included in an English MIA songbook in the 1960s and 70s. Well-known to many English speakers by both “What Child is This” and “Greensleeves,” this would be a wonderful addition to your […]

0 comments

Christmas Hymns: “Come, All Ye Shepherds”

This Christmas carol is available in the LDS Czech-language hymnbook. It also used to be in the old English children’s song book Sing With Me under the title “Carol of the Shepherds.” The Japanese, Portuguese, Samoan, and Spanish children’s books have also had translations of this carol. I undertook an extensive search for choral arrangements […]

0 comments

Christmas Hymns: “Sing We Now of Christmas”

Known in French as “Noël nouvelet” and in English by both “Sing We Now of Christmas” and “Sing We a New Noel,” this is available only in the French hymnbook. The English translation is fairly standard across other denominations’ hymnbooks in which it is included. I love the energy, the motion, and the minor tonality […]

1 comment

Christmas Hymns: “Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming”

This is a beautiful Christmas hymn known as “Es ist ein Ros entsprungen” in its original German. It is included in the Dutch, French, German, Icelandic, and Swedish LDS hymnbooks. According to Wikipedia, “The rose in the text is a symbolic reference to the Virgin Mary, and the hymn makes reference to the Old Testament […]

2 comments

Hymns: “Unanswered Yet?”

This hymn will be familiar to Danish, French, Japanese, Portuguese, and Spanish-speaking saints. In English it has gone by a few names including “Unanswered Yet?,” “The Prayer,” and “Sometime, Somewhere.” The lyrics are very lovely, although not exactly typical of those in our current (1985) hymnbook. Here is an English version from Deseret Sunday School […]

1 comment

Interview: Michael Moody on Creating the 1985 Hymnbook

Michael Moody was chairman of the 1985 Hymnbook Executive Committee. In this audio interview by The Mormon Channel for their program Conversations, he discusses his experience on the committee, as well as other events from his life. We’ve broken down the 90-minute interview to help you find the sections you are most interested in: Missionary […]

0 comments

Hymns: “If the Way Be Full of Trial, Weary Not”

There are nearly 70 hymns that were originally written in English that have been translated into other languages and are included in official LDS hymnbooks. “If the Way Be Full of Trial, Weary Not” is one of these. Included in the current Portuguese, Samoan, Spanish, and Tongan hymnbooks, it is well-known to a significant percentage […]

25 comments
Scroll to top