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Hymns: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1948/1950)

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1948 LDS Hymnbook
1950 LDS Hymnbook

In 1948, a new hymnbook that replaced both the Latter-day Saint Hymns (1927) and the Deseret Sunday School Songs was published under the title Hymns: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and served as the official hymnbook of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1948 to 1985. The 1948 edition included 387 hymns.

Background and Development

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With the deaths of Evan Stephens and George Careless in the early 1930s, the pioneer-era musicians that had dominated LDS hymnody had passed away, leaving the torch to a new generation of LDS musicians. Whereas the previous generation had heavily emphasized homespun music and were often heavily influenced by operatic composers like Arthur Sullivan, the new generation largely turned to more classical Protestant sources for inspiration. The music committee even specifically noted that many of the finest and favorite hymns in the Mormon tradition were adopted from Protestant sources rather than Mormon ones and suggested that they seek out more hymns from the Protestant tradition.[1] They were also influenced by the research and writings of Sterling Wheelwright, who felt that LDS hymnals were losing their relevance through focusing on upbeat but trivial hymns rather than intimate and meditative ones.[2] Overall, they sought to publish a hymnbook with a "better standard of musical expression" than previous LDS hymnals.[3] Still, Church leaders weren't entirely trusting of leaving Mormon musicians to their own devices to select hymns and they created an executive committee of four apostles to oversee their work.

The music committee, now proceeding with direct apostolic oversight, sponsored an ongoing hymn contest for Mormons and set about collecting Protestant hymns. The latter were often slightly edited to conform to LDS theology. Frank I. Kooyman provided several of the new Mormon hymn texts that the committee favored, such as “Thy Spirit, Lord, Has Stirred Our Souls” and “When in the Wondrous Realms Above.” New musical compositions were encouraged to be dignified, singable, and similar to older styles of hymns (particularly the Johann Sebastian Bach chorales),[4] perhaps best exemplified by Temple Square organist Alexander Schreiner’s neo-Bachian settings for hymns.[5] The world-renowned classical composer Leroy Robertson also submitted music that was deemed suitable for many of the texts that were accepted by the committee. It was acknowledged, however, that the general membership of the Church might prefer the lighter hymns the committee was seeking to eliminate over the “better standard of musical expression” they were pushing for. Thus, committee head Tracy Y. Cannon suggested that the transition be performed gradually.[6]

Publication

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The resulting hymnbook dropped many of the Evan Stephens hymns that were prominent in previous hymnbooks and incorporated less hymns by committee members than the previous hymnbook had. Leroy Robertson had twelve, Alexander Schreiner eleven, and Tracy Cannon only had five. Protestant hymns formed approximately half of the 387 hymns selected for inclusion.[7]

1950 Edition

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Despite the involvement of apostles, some Church leaders questioned the hymns chosen by the committee after publication, and members tended to complain about the size and poor binding of the book. Due to this lackluster response, the music committee yielded and revised the hymnbook, releasing a modified second edition in 1950. This second edition dropped some of the well-respected Protestant hymns in favor of some popular hymns included in previous LDS hymnbooks that they had deleted. This change, in turn set precedent for the waning control of the music committee and their ability to push for what they deemed to be properly ascetic over lighter popular music in the Church's hymnbooks.

The differences between the 1948 and 1950 editions were as follows:

1948 Hymns No. 1950 Hymns No.
Angels from the Realms of Glory 5 As swiftly my days go out on the wing 5
Cease, ye fond parents, cease to weep 9 In hymns of praise 9
Come, O thou King of kings 19 Come along, come along 19
Come, labor on 20 Come, O thou King of kings 20
From all that dwell below the skies 38 Each cooing dove 38
Father of light 39 The First Noel 39
Good Christian men, rejoice 52 From all that dwell below the skies 52
Hail to the brightness of Zion's glad morning 57 Guide us, O Thou great Jehovah 57
Hark! The evening hymn is stealing 58 Have I done any good in the world today 58
I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day 72 There is a land whose sunny vales 72
I Need Thee Every Hour 78 Beautiful Zion, built above 78
Mid pleasures and palaces 107 For our devotions, Father 107
Mine eyes have seen the glory 109 Precious Savior, dear Redeemer 109
Lead me into life eternal 110 Choose the right 110
O Lord responsive to thy call 138 O my Father, thou that dwellest 138
There is beauty all around 170 Dearest children, God is near you 170
I wander through the stilly night 171 Now to heaven our prayer 171
We Gather Together 182 Hail to the brightness of Zion's glad morning 182
Though in the outward Church below 183 Awake! O ye people, the Savior is coming 183
Rejoice, ye pure in heart 185 Mid pleasures and palaces 185
Sometime we'll understand 267 Not now, but in the coming years 267
Proud? yes, of our home 278 Rest, rest for the weary soul 278
Sometime, somewhere 286 Unanswered yet? the prayer 286
Thou dost not weep, to weep alone 294 I wander through the stilly night 294
Ye simple souls who stray 298 The Lord imparted from above 298
Sometime we'll understand 334 Not now, but in the coming years 334
Rock of Ages 338 Come, lay his books and papers by 338
Who are these arrayed in white 343 Reverently and meekly now 343

In 1960, two more hymns were added to the hymnal:

FIRST LINE HYMN NUMBER
Who's On the Lord's Side? 388
This Earth Was Once a Garden Place 389

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Harold B. Lee et al. to First Presidency, 25 October 1944, CMC Files 1939-49.
  2. ^ See Michael Hicks, Mormonism and Music: A History (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1989), 135
  3. ^ Tracy Cannon to G. W. Richards, 19 October 1945, CMD General Files, HDC.
  4. ^ Church Music Committee (CMC) to "Dear Friend," 1 August 1945, CMD Circular Letters, Church History Library, Salt Lake City, UT
  5. ^ Church Music Committee Minutes, 7 December 1944
  6. ^ Cannon to G. W. Richards, 19 October 1945, CMD General Files, Church History Library, Salt Lake City, UT
  7. ^ Hymns: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1948)
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