Music Monday: Christmas in July

As we begin this final week in July, we celebrate Christmas! Yes, Christmas in July; remembering that it is Jesus who is always with us bringing hope and light into a world of darkness. Especially now, as we continue living life in a global pandemic, journeying uncharted paths, we are reminded it is hope that we need! Hope that comes from the gift of God’s love to us. Without it, we are lost, wandering in the wilderness alone. Jesus is the light of the world; our hope! So, put on your ugly Christmas sweater, light a candle, make some hot chocolate, and join in singing some of our favorite yuletide carols. You might even learn a little history behind these favorite songs: What Child Is This, O Little Town of Bethlehem, Silent Night, and Joy to the World. Be sure to listen to the end for a special, Sleigh Ride, 4-hands piano duet reprise! Merry Christmas…in July!

Need some music to rejuvinate your Monday?

Today’s Music Monday features a staple of the organ repertoire: Leon Boëllmann’s (1862-1897) organ blockbuster Suite gothique (1895). Although, Boëllmann’s promising career was cut short by tuberculosis at age 35, he managed to amass a catalog of more than 150 compositions before his untimely death. Boëllmann’s best known work by far is this piece, the four-movement Suite Gothique; especially the final toccata, with its menacing pedal theme, which has long been a staple of concert programs.

“Be Still, My Soul”

The formation of “Be Still, My Soul” as it appears in [most hymnals] covers three countries – Germany, Scotland, and Finland – and well over 100 years.

Little is known about the author of this hymn. Katharina Amalia Dorothea von Schlegel was born in 1697. Other than she was connected with a small court at Köthen, north of Halle, in Germany, little is known of her life. The hymn comes to us via [an English] translation by Jane L. Borthwick (1813-1897), a member of the Free Church of Scotland.

The tune FINLANDIA complements this stirring poem wonderfully. The melody comes from a symphonic tone poem by Jean Sibelius (1865-1957) by the name of Finlandia, Op. 26. Sibelius wrote it as a patriotic offering in 1899 reflecting portions of Finnish history. Out of agitated and tumultuous opening music, symbolizing the struggles of the Finnish people, emerges the serenity of the hymn-like melody we know as FINLANDIA, symbolizing hope and resolution.

Finally, David Evans (1874-1948), a Welsh Oxford-trained organist-choirmaster and music professor, matched the translation with the tune for the Revised Church Hymnary (London, 1927). This pairing was brought to the United States when it was used in the Presbyterian Church, U.S.A. for The Hymnal (1933).
-Dr. Michael Hawn

Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.
Leave to thy God to order and provide;
In every change, He faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul: thy best, thy heav’nly Friend
Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.