Category: Hymns by other people

If ye love Me, keep My commandments

Playout date: 31 January 2007
Duration: 3:12
Views at the time added to HTV: 66,348
Likes at the time added to HTV: 76
Dislikes at time added to HTV: 11
Popularity % ” ” ” =L/(L+D): 87.4%
Comments at time added: 32
Total interactions at time added: 119
Camera: Panasonic DMZ -FZ30
Post Production: None
Location: Church of Holy Sepulchre, Warsaw
Other people featured: Nowa Orkiestra Kameralna
Genre: Concert
Music used: If ye love me, by Thomas Tallis
Languages used: English
Animals/plants featured: None
Other remarks:

This performance by Richard Berkeley’s Nowa Orkiestra Kameralna of Thomas Tallis’ wonderful setting of John 14:15-17 has been enjoyed by many people in this YT clip. Indeed, although the Church (where Chopin’s heart lies entombed in a pillar) was full of people on the night, one hundred times as many have heard this thanks to the wonders of YT and social media.

Richard Berkeley was then and remains now one of the treasures among the non_polish community of Warsaw. He has contributed immensely to the cultural and social life of this city and of my family’s experience of it. His view that music brings people together is only part of it. His great personality also has that effect. When I look through my contacts I am sometimes amazed to see the number of people I met through Richard.

Richard, if you should chance to be reading this, thank you.

Love Unknown

Playout date: 26 November 2006
Duration: 2:52
Views at the time added to HTV: 4,637
Likes at the time added to HTV: 16
Dislikes at time added to HTV: 2
Popularity % ” ” ” =L/(L+D): 88.9%
Comments at time added: 1
Total interactions at time added: 19
Camera: Panasonic DMZ -FZ30
Post Production: Windows Movie Maker – slight use
Location: Basilica of the Holy Cross, Warsaw
Other people featured: Richard Berkeley (conductor) and the Nowa Orkiestra Kameralna
Genre: Charity Concert (for Halemba mine disaster victims)
Music used: My Song is Love Unknown by Samuel Crossman
Languages used: English
Animals/plants featured: None
Other remarks:

 

On the video you will see some information about how this was a Charity concert for the mine Disaster at Halemba in 2006. Money was raised for the families of the victims.

What may I say?

Last year, I sang this at my mother’s funeral last year as it was her particular request from me that I should do so, this was her all time favorite hymn and also one of mine. While she was still with us, but ill, one of the last videos I watched with my mother was this one. She was as ever moved to tear by it.

Let me just give you the wonderful words of Crossman:

My song is love unknown,
My Saviour’s love to me;
Love to the loveless shown,
That they might lovely be.
O who am I,
That for my sake
My Lord should take
Frail flesh and die?

He came from His blest throne
Salvation to bestow;
But men made strange, and none
The longed-for Christ would know:
But O! my Friend,
My Friend indeed,
Who at my need
His life did spend.

Sometimes they strew His way,
And His sweet praises sing;
Resounding all the day
Hosannas to their King:
Then “Crucify!”
is all their breath,
And for His death
they thirst and cry.

Why, what hath my Lord done?
What makes this rage and spite?
He made the lame to run,
He gave the blind their sight,
Sweet injuries!
Yet they at these
Themselves displease,
and ’gainst Him rise.

They rise and needs will have
My dear Lord made away;
A murderer they save,
The Prince of life they slay,
Yet cheerful He
to suffering goes,
That He His foes
from thence might free.

In life no house, no home,
My Lord on earth might have;
In death no friendly tomb,
But what a stranger gave.
What may I say?
Heav’n was his home;
But mine the tomb
Wherein he lay.

Here might I stay and sing,
No story so divine;
Never was love, dear King!
Never was grief like Thine.
This is my Friend,
in Whose sweet praise
I all my days
could gladly spend.

May you be able to recognise such a Friend for yourself in the Friend of sinners, Lord, Creator and Kinsman Redeemer Jesus Christ.

Come thou fount of every blessing

Playout date: 22 October 2006
Camera: Logitech Webcam
Post Production: Windows Movie Maker – slight use
Location: Home
Other people featured: None
Genre: Hymn
Music used: Cyberhymnal.net’s arrangement of hymn tune “Hyfrydol“
Languages used: English
Animals featured: None

The beautiful hymn by Robert Robinson, this time sung to the tune Hyfrydol.

I did both voices, the melody and the bass part. Can you work out which is the one I’m singing on the video?

An interesting story about this hymn, courtesy of cyberhymnal.org where I also got the midi (this is allowed by them, by the way, as long as you credit, which I am doing)

Robert Robinson had a difficult time with his faith in the latter part of his life, having been converted at 17 and having written this and other hymns as a young man. The story is told of how one day, he en­count­ered a wo­man who was stu­dy­ing a hymn­al, and she asked how he liked the hymn she was hum­ming. In tears, he re­plied, “Madam, I am the poor un­hap­py man who wrote that hymn ma­ny years ago, and I would give a thou­sand worlds, if I had them, to en­joy the feel­ings I had then.”

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Restu kun mi

Playout date: 3 October 2006
Camera: Logitech Webcam
Post Production: None
Location: Home
Other people featured: None
Genre: Song only
Music used: Abide with me Karaoke track
Languages used: Esperanto
Animals featured: None

This is, obviously, Abide with me sung in Esperanto and it has been very well received by Esperantists, some of whom have asked me to do more similar pieces and I have always intended to do them – for reasons of the way my family has developed that intention hasn’t been easy to put into fruition.

For the record I didn’t do the translation – as explained in the comments, most of which are in Esperanto on YT – I took the Esperanto version from the standard little green Esperanto hymnbook “la Esperanta Himnaro” which contains hundreds of well translated hymns from around the Christian world and is a great joy if you can but lay hands on a copy.

 

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