The local congregation to which I belong allows me to sing
in the choir, which proves the people with whom I attend church believe in
charity. In recent weeks we have been practicing a hymn we will sing Easter
Sunday titled “My Shepherd Will Supply My Need.” I noticed on the cover it is
billed as an American folk hymn. That prompted me to look more closely at the
history of this piece of music.
The arrangement we are using is by Mack Wilberg and has been
sung and recorded more than once by the Tabernacle Choir out of Salt Lake City.
The choir in my local congregation is no Tabernacle Choir, but our rehearsals
have produced a hymn that is stirring, even though we have not yet practiced
with the instrumentation. CLICK HERE to listen
to one of the YouTube recordings of this hymn while you read the rest of this
blog post.
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| Isaac Watts |
The words to “My Shepherd Will Supply My Need” were written
by Isaac Watts (1674-1748). He is considered by many
as the father of English hymnody. He was an English Christian
minister (Congregational), hymn writer, theologian, and logician. He was a
prolific and popular hymn writer and is credited with some 750 hymns. Many of
his hymns remain in use today and have been translated into numerous languages.
To learn more about this hymn writer and his history, please CLICK HERE.
This particular hymn is a re-working of the familiar text of Psalm 23, which begins:
'The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want'. Here is the text of this hymn:
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| Ctsy Cadetgray |
My Shepherd will supply
my need:
Jehovah is His Name;
In pastures fresh He
makes me feed,
Beside the living stream.
He brings my wandering
spirit back
When I forsake His ways,
And leads me, for His
mercy's sake,
In paths of truth and
grace.
When I walk through the
shades of death
Thy presence is my stay;
One word of Thy
supporting breath
Drives all my fears
away.
Thy hand, in sight of
all my foes,
Doth still my table
spread;
My cup with blessings
overflows,
Thine oil anoints my
head.
The sure provisions of
my God
Attend me all my days;
O may Thy house be my
abode,
And all my work be
praise.
There would I find a
settled rest,
While others go and
come;
No more a stranger, nor
a guest,
But like a child at
home.
This hymn was also performed by the Choir of Washington
National Cathedral in a memorial service in September 2001, shortly after the
attacks on Washington and New York City on September 11. To listen to a
recording of that performance, please CLICK HERE.
This folk hymn is usually sung to the Appalachian folk tune “Resignation”
by an unknown composer. It first
appeared in the 1835 hymnbook, Southern Harmony, a collection of church music
from the rural American south. Like most folk music, it is fairly
repetitious and entirely pentatonic, meaning it uses
only a five-note scale analogous to the black keys on the piano. The basic tune
itself is easy to learn both vocally and instrumentally.
Above is a copy of the musical score and words for this
hymn. However, it is important to keep in mind that in the nineteenth century
and before, hymnals did not generally include the musical score. Only the words
of the hymns were printed. As long as the meters matched, most could be sung to
more than one tune. The person leading a congregation in singing would not only
announce the name of the hymn, and for those fortunate enough to have a printed
hymnal, the page number, but he or she would also announce the name of the tune
to which it would be sung.
Appalachian music is the traditional music of the mountain regions
of Appalachia in the Eastern United States. Several cultures have influenced
the music of this region over the decades, both European and African. English
ballads, Irish and Scottish traditional music (especially fiddle music), hymns,
and African-American blues.
Religious music, including white Country gospel, was
probably the most prevalent music heard in Appalachia. During the
Colonial period the press was controlled by a clergy which had no interest in
the spread of secular music, therefore, not much of the latter survived in
written form. There were three types of religious music: ballads, hymns,
and revival spiritual songs. The latter directly arose out of the call
and response of the African song tradition. These were popularized among
the white inhabitants after the revival circuit started in Kentucky in 1800.
Their simpler, repetitious text of verse and refrain was easier to sing and
learn and produced an emotional fervor in the congregation.
The fiddle was at first the main instrument, often played by itself since pianos were
not only expensive to purchase, but difficult to transport over the rough,
stair-step terrain of that mountain range. Early tunes tended to be more
rhythmic as opposed to using a lot of harmony.
Although Appalachian music in earlier days was generally
played primarily on a fiddle, I tried unsuccessfully to find a version of “Resignation”
using only that instrument, or perhaps the violin combined with other
traditional instruments such as a dulcimer or banjo. Here is a rendition using
both violin and piano. CLICK HERE.
As much as I love the Mack Wilberg’s arrangement for “My
Shepherd Will Supply My Need,” this piano version is probably closer to the
original meter of the tune. CLICK HERE.
I felt so impressed by the history of this American folk
hymn, I decided to use part of it in one of my latest books, Diantha.
My secondary romance involves Hilaina, a young woman who, along with her
mother, came from the Appalachian region. When she invites Buck to Sunday
supper, after the meal, they read from the Bible and sing this hymn.
Here is an excerpt from the book:
Elmira turned to Buck. “Know ‘My
Savior Will Supply My Need’ sung to ‘Resignation?’ Hilaina’s pa favored that
tune.”
“Can’t say I know that one.”
“Time you learned.”
The two women cleared their throats
and began to sing in unison.
My Shepherd will supply my need:
Jehovah is His Name;
In pastures fresh He makes me feed,
Beside the living stream.
Buck winced inside upon hearing Elmira
sing with a slightly flat, gravelly voice. Hilaina’s voice sounded clear and he
could tell she stayed on key. He liked the catchy melody with several repetitions.
He formed his mouth and folded his tongue as he silently practiced whistling
it. It would be easy to learn.
By the third verse, he felt
comfortable enough to softly join in as an accompaniment to their vocal performance.
When the song ended, Elmira smiled at Buck, the first smile he had seen on the
woman’s face.
“Ain’t nary heard such slap-fine
whistling since afore Hilaina’s pa passed. I’d be right pleased to sing it
again.”
They ended up singing the hymn three
more times until Buck got the notes and timing down perfectly and the three
performed the number in perfect harmony.
As the sun began to set, while Buck
walked back to the livery, he reviewed the afternoon he had spent with Hilaina
and her mother. As much as he felt the heightened awareness that came from
being in the same room with Hilaina and regretted the necessity of keeping his
hands to himself and not pulling her on his lap in the presence of her mother,
he admitted he also enjoyed being around Elmira Dowd. He failed to reconcile
the jokes and snide remarks about mothers-in-law he heard through the years
with the thought of her as a member of his family. He enjoyed her abrupt manner
of speaking so different from her daughter. Besides, Elmira seemed to
appreciate his whistling as much as Hilaina did. Being with them filled him
with a sense of belonging to a family again, something he never really felt living
and working on the Grassy Fork Ranch.
Buck began to whistle the new tune
Hilaina and her ma had taught him that day. He did not remember all the words
to the hymn, but the last line kept repeating itself in his head:
No more a stranger, nor a guest,
But like a child at home.
Diantha
is currently on preorder and scheduled to be released on April 1, 2019. You may
read the full book description by CLICKING HERE.
Sources:
https://www.reformedworship.org/article/june-1990/hymn-month
Hymnary.org
Wikipedia
YouTube.com
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