Hymn of the Week: Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring, J.S. Bach
Hymn of the Week: Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring
Johann Sebastian Bach
This sustaining, soaring and infinitely soothing hymn is one we hear over and over, at weddings, funerals, holy day celebrations; played on organ, piano, guitar, cello; sung in “classical” and “popular” versions. It has become a beloved piece of our shared culture.
In our hymnal, the tune of the chorale has been set (without Bach’s glorious accompaniment) as Hymn 336 “Come with us, O blessed Jesus.” These words are attributed to John Henry Hopkins, Jr. (1820-1891).
Hopkins, a clergyman of many talents, was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to pioneer parents: his father, who became Episcopal Bishop of Vermont, was from Ireland and his mother from Germany. Hopkins was ordained deacon in 1850, served as the first instructor of church music at the General Theological Seminary in Vermont, and in 1871, after being ordained a priest, was rector of Trinity Church in Plattsburg, New York. He founded and edited an important Episcopal publication, The Church Journal (1853-68) and composed a number of hymns, the most famous being “We Three Kings of Orient Are.” Hopkins published and edited several influential books of hymns in the mid-nineteenth century; his Carols, Hymns and Songs (1863) was instrumental in promoting hymnody in the Episcopal church. He was also well known for designing stained glass windows and other church ornaments.
The music to this hymn appeared in print in Germany the seventeenth century. It was composed by Johann Schop (1590-ca. 1665) as a setting for “Werde munther,” a sacred poem written by Schop’s friend Johann Rist. A celebrated violinist and composer, Schop excelled in dance music as well as in liturgical melodies. He was Kappelmeister to the city of Hamburg, and, happily for many, in this post was allowed to travel and perform his music in foreign courts. He was admired throughout Europe, and several of his hymns, including the one featured here, were set by J. S. Bach in his Cantatas.
As a side note, I share here a personal musical anecdote:
The Dame Myra Hess transcription featured above brought to mind my days as a young musician and teacher, when I was living in Chicago. While my budget was tight (a friend and I had a running joke about our end of month checkbook balance, comparing how much less than 10 cents we had left over – a reliable laugh) there were many wonderful cultural institutions in Chicago open to me. Every Wednesday at noon, I would head to Washington Avenue, make my way up the grand staircase of the Chicago Public Library Cultural Center, sit under the Tiffany Favrile glass dome (the world’s largest), taking in the magnificent Italianate mosaics with their beautiful colors, patterns and nourishing quotations, and then listen to the free Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert. These performances were inaugurated in 1977 (and are still going strong, even if in virtual form at the moment) to recall the free London lunchtime concert series Dame Hess instituted during World War II, in the years of nightly air raids and beyond. Almost a million Londoners heard those 1700 concerts. Over the course of the last 43 years, Chicagoans and visitors have heard over 2200 Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts!
A little information about Dame Myra Hess (1890-1965): Hess was born (and died) in London and began piano lessons at the age of five. She went on to study at the Royal Academy of Music, and made her professional debut at age 17 with Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No 4, Sir Thomas Beecham conducting. After touring in Britain and Europe, she then became a favorite performer in America. She was also a beloved teacher. Not only did Hess found and organize the London lunchtime series, heard Monday through Friday without fail for six and a half years, she also played in 150 of those concerts. Her sangfroid was such, playing even as bombs were falling, that she became an inspiration to many. King George VI made Hess a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1941 for her contribution to the morale of the populace of London.
A renowned interpreter of Mozart, Beethoven and Schumann, Hess also championed contemporary music. Her arrangement of Bach’s chorale BWV 147 “Wohl mir, dass ich Jesum habe” as “Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring” (transcribed for solo and duo piano) is one of her most enduring legacies.
Explore here if you would like to know more about the architecture and history of the stunning Chicago Public Library Cultural Center.
