'Firmly I believe and truly'

[John Ainslie]

You may be singing this hymn today - and probably to the tune OMNI DIE, from 'Omni die dic Mariae', a Latin hymn which it fits rather well. Here's the first verse:
Omni die dic Mariae
mea, laudes, anima:
eius festa, eius gesta
cole splendidissima.
(Every day sing praise to Mary, O my soul; foster her most wonderful feasts and deeds.)

But it is one of my least favourite tunes and really doesn't fit 'Firmly I believe' at all. The first word is 'firmly' - and quite evidently an important one that sets the mood of the whole piece. In OMNI DIE it disappears in an up beat. But did you know that when the hymn appeared in the 1912 Westminster Hymnal, it was set to this tune, but in 4/4 time, i.e. Firm-ly I be-|lieve and truly | God is three and | God is One__ ? It makes for an extraordinarily dull tune, but at least it kept 'firmly' firm. Look how Elgar sets 'Firmly' in the Dream - in 3/4 time but with 'Firm-' firmly on the first beat: he then puts the next accented beat on (be-)lieve, not on 'I'.

So the editors of Praise the Lord Revised (Paul Inwood, Stephen Dean and yours truly) proposed the tune HALTON HOLGATE - a strong, assertive tune to suit that first word. You'll find the tune indexed in Laudate, but it isn't there: presumably Stephen had to omit it at the last moment as an alternative to OMNI DIE. HALTON HOLGATE you will find in A&MR set to this hymn - and you'll also find it in the English Hymnal and elsewhere.

It's nearly 40 years since Praise the Lord Revised was published. O tempora, o mores! One day I'll tell you how a tune full of sharps came to be called CORPUS CHRISTI FLATS.

[musicus]

OMNI DIE is, perhaps, my least favourite hymn tune too: it is lumpy and undistinguished, and Newman's words deserve better. I don't know HALTON HOLGATE, but I'll look it up in PLR.

If, as you say, PLR's 40th anniversary is imminent, perhaps that would be a good time for its editors jointly to consider writing something for M&L to mark the occasion. All three are, thank God, alive and well, and PLR is still widely used and respected, if only as a resource to be dipped into.

[Mithras]

One day I'll tell you how a tune full of sharps came to be called CORPUS CHRISTI FLATS.

That would be interesting, but not as interesting as learrnig how that version of Anima Christi got through.

Mithras

[Nick Baty]

editors of Praise the Lord Revised (Paul Inwood, Stephen Dean and yours truly

And don't forget the massive input of Monsieur Richard Dubois!

[nazard]

Growing up in Birmingham I always sang this to the tune "Stuttgart", which it fits well enough. When I came to Somerset I used this tune, and although surprised, the congregation picked it up immediately and no one has ever asked me to change back. On the other hand, they don't know "Halton Holdgate", which I enjoy.

As a matter of interest, why were you singing "Firmly I believe and truly" today?

[John Ainslie]

That would be interesting, but not as interesting as learrnig how that version of Anima Christi got through.
Mithras

It's a translation or some would say 'version' by Fr James Quinn SJ of 'O salutaris hostia', not 'Anima Christi'. 'O priest and victim, Lord of life' is a thought-provoking amplification of 'O salutaris hostia' to point up the paradox of Christ being both sacrificer and sacrificed, and thereby Lord.

As a matter of interest, why were you singing "Firmly I believe and truly" today?

...because of Peter's act of faith in the Gospel, 'Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God' (NRSV: the JB 'who shall we go to?' is sloppy English!).

[Mithras]

That would be interesting, but not as interesting as learrnig how that version of Anima Christi got through.
Mithras

It's a translation or some would say 'version' by Fr James Quinn SJ of 'O salutaris hostia', not 'Anima Christi'. 'O priest and victim, Lord of life' is a thought-provoking amplification of 'O salutaris hostia' to point up the paradox of Christ being both sacrificer and sacrificed, and thereby Lord.

[(NRSV: the JB 'who shall we go to?' is sloppy English!).

[list=][/list]


No, John, I was thinking of the harmonisation of the hymn tune to Soul of My Saviour....

M

[contrabordun]

Same as nazard - Stuttgart is my mental default mode and works very well, Halton Holdgate is a splendid tune and Omni Die just doesn't work at all, but I've only ever seen it used in the CofE.

[Lakelark]

In the absence of our Director of Music yesterday, a straw poll was conducted amongst the choir and stand-in organist. The result was that Firmly I believe and truly would be sung to Omni Die, despite the fact that the last time we sang the words it was to Halton Holgate. I should add that this took place in a Catholic cathedral, not the CofE. The result was some half-hearted singing by the assembly.

May I add that in my Anglican days we sang these words to "an English traditional melody" named Shipston. And the 20th-century Light Music Group produced a setting in the 1960s which changed the tune completely for verses 3 and 4: I don't think this caught on.

The objections to Omni Die seem to be based on anomalies of rhythm. IMHO it is exactly this feature of contra-rhythm which makes for a more careful attention on the part of the singers to the words they are singing. Examples from Tudor composers, Mozart, Haydn, et alii, are too numerous to mention. Any feature which prevents hymns from being churned out at fourpence-halfpenny a yard seems to have some merit. Which is why I was quite happy to use Omni Die yesterday morning, though I concede that it did not go down well.

[contrabordun]

IMHO it is exactly this feature of contra-rhythm which makes for a more careful attention on the part of the singers to the words they are singing. Examples from Tudor composers, Mozart, Haydn,

Yes, but they were writing new music with those specific words in mind, picking and choosing which syllables they wanted accented.
Whereas Omni Die, as the OP mentioned, was originally written for completely different words which it fits very well (the apparently random long notes that give such a sense of jerkiness to FIB&T turning out to be closely related both to the sense of the Latin and also to the scansion and rhyme scheme).

You're not suggesting that somebody first decided that the key stresses in the first line should be -lieve and -ly and then set out to find an existing hymn tune that did that?

[Lakelark]

Of course not, contrabordun! I perceive the twinkle in your eye.

However, I can't help feeling that in this thread we are tending to strain the gnats and swallow the camel. I can't see any really serious problem with FIBAT being sung to OD: it may not be ideal, but there is much worse that we should eradicate at a stroke. I refer to the psalm settings which proceed from the stable of M Haugen and the like, in which the psalm texts are whipped, mangled, concertinaed and beaten into submission, simply so that the original melody (if it can be so dignified) is retained undisturbed and unadapted. And while I'm about it I will add the beloved Berthier Gloria and the Lourdes Gloria too. Let's get thoroughly indignant about that: the texts are from Holy Scripture and the Liturgy of the Church, and those who listen to them should be able to hear them clearly and understand what they hear.

[gwyn]

Lakelark said,

I can't help feeling that in this thread we are tending to strain the gnats and swallow the camel. I can't see any really serious problem with FIBAT being sung to OD: it may not be ideal, but there is much worse that we should eradicate at a stroke. I refer to the psalm settings which proceed from the stable of M Haugen and the like, in which the psalm texts are whipped, mangled, concertinaed and beaten into submission, simply so that the original melody (if it can be so dignified) is retained undisturbed and unadapted. And while I'm about it I will add the beloved Berthier Gloria and the Lourdes Gloria too. Let's get thoroughly indignant about that: the texts are from Holy Scripture and the Liturgy of the Church, and those who listen to them should be able to hear them clearly and understand what they hear.

Amen to that. Beautifully put might I add.

[Nick Baty]

The Lourdes Gloria, a simple refrain followed by chanted verses? Don't see the mangling and submission there.

[johnquinn39]

I refer to the psalm settings which proceed from the stable of M Haugen and the like, in which the psalm texts are whipped, mangled, concertinaed and beaten into submission, simply so that the original melody (if it can be so dignified) is retained undisturbed and unadapted.

Perhaps this is another thread, but I do not believe the above to be true. IMHO the texts of Haugen are often superior to the lectionary texts: e.g. - 'Shepherd me o God, beyond my wants ...' ; 'O God, I seek you, my soul thirsts for you'.

In my view, Haugen's setting of ps 51 (Have mercy on me God...), in which he uses the grail version, serves the text perfectly well.

Fr Mike Joncas' 'Eagles wings' is also excellent.

The original melodies of the above composers are, in my view, all well-constructed.

Would you disagree that 'Shepherd me, O God' is a masterpiece in terms of melody and word-setting?

[contrabordun]

However, I can't help feeling that in this thread we are tending to strain the gnats and swallow the camel...

Well, yes, there's much in that, but OTOH, the OP was about the gnats.