Hymn Frequency

[Damasta]

So I wondered which hymns are sung most frequently in Sacrament meeting. I decided not to ask the Board since it would vary from ward to ward, not to mention from region to region. Instead, I recorded the hymns sung in my ward sacrament meetings over the course of about a year (less the Sundays I was visiting my parents). Here's how it broke down:

Because sacrament hymns are sung every week, I expected them to be overrepresented. Thus, I considered them separately. I defined 'sacrament hymns' as hymns #146, #169–197 (as recommended in the Topics at the back of the hymn book). Out of a total of 50 sacrament hymns sung during the period of observation, one (#172) was sung six times; two (#187 and #193) were sung five times; one (#188) was sung four times; five (#146, #169, #171, #173, and #195) were sung three times; four (#170, #180, #181, and #196) were sung twice; seven (#175, #176, #184, #186, #191, #192, and #194) were sung only once; and the remaining ten (#174, #177–179, #182, #183, #185, #189, #190, and #197) weren't sung at all.

Because Christmas hymns are sung only in December, I expected them to be underrepresented. Thus, I considered them separately, as well. I defined 'Christmas hymns' as hymns #201–215. Only four Christmas hymns were sung (that's only one per Sacrament meeting, even though with opening, closing, and rest hymns we could've sung up to twelve): #201, #205, #207, and #213. The remaining eleven (#202–204, #206, #208–212, #214, and #215) weren't sung at all.

Because some hymns are arranged for a limited vocal range, I expected them to also be underrepresented. Thus, I considered them separately. I defined 'limited arrangement hymns' as those hymns which say '(Women)' (e.g. #309–318) or '(Men)'/'(Men's Choir)' (e.g. #319–327 and #329–337) plus #328 since it's written in Bass and Tenor clefs. Out of twenty-nine hymns, only one (#335) was sung. The remaining twenty-eight hymns (#309–334, #336, and #337) weren't sung at all.

Because patriotic hymns are only sung in July, I expected them to be underrepresented. Thus, I considered them separately, as well. I defined 'patriotic hymns' as hymns #338–341. None were sung.

You may wonder who was choosing these hymns. I wonder too. Apparently they hated both Christmas and America.

Anyway, on to the bulk of the hymns. Of the remainder of the hymns, three (#85, #131, and #270) were sung six times; four (#2, #62, #89, and #136) were sung four times; three (#112, #218, and #263) were sung three times; twelve (#1, #5, #30, #65, #86, #98, #138, #158, #222, #243, #251, and #274) were sung twice; forty-seven (#4, #6, #16, #21, #26, #31, #36, #44, #49, #54, #64, #79, #83, #84, #92, #94, #110, #114, #117, #120, #122, #128, #134, #137, #139, #140, #151, #154, #155, #219, #220, #237, #240, #248, #249, #252, #254, #258, #272, #277, #284, #287, #291, #292, #301, #304, and #305) were sung once; and the remaining two-hundred-and-fourteen hymns (#3, #7–15, #17–20, #22–25, #27–29, #32–35, #37–43, #45–48, #50–53, #55–61, #63, #66–78, #80–82, #87, #88, #90, #91, #93, #95–97, #99–109, #111, #113, #115, #116, #118, #119, #121, #123–127, #129, #130, #132, #133, #135, #141–145, $147–150, #152, #153, #156, #157, #159–168, #198–200, #216, #217, #221, #223–236, #238, #239, #241, #242, #244–247, #250, #253, #255–257, #259–262, #264–269, #271, #273, #275, #276, #278–283, #285, #286, #288–290, #293–300, #302, #303, and #306–308) weren't sung at all.

The general omissions that surprised me were (and particularly those in bold): #3, #7, #19 (We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet), #27 (Praise to the Man), #29 (A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief), #41, #52, #56, #58, #60 (Battle Hymn of the Republic), #66, #67, #78, #81, #97, #100 (Nearer, My God, to Thee), #103, #105, #106, #108, #111, #113, #116 (Come, Follow Me), #124, #129, #130, #141, #142, #143, #144, #152 (God Be with You Till We Meet Again), #165, #166, #199, #200, #221, #223, #239 (Choose the Right), #241 (Count Your Blessings), #242, #246, #250, #255, #259, #260, #264, #280, #293, #294 (Love at Home), #298, #300 (Families Can Be Together Forever), #302, #303 (Keep the Commandments), #308 (Love One Another).

I'm not sure if it was the music conductor choosing the hymns or a member of the bishopric, but dang! They avoided some really good hymns! Now we have a new bishopric and a new music conductor, so I'm hoping we get a better dose of Christmas hymns this December.

[Cuddlefish]

Apparently they hated both Christmas and America.

Islamic terrorists, maybe?

[bobtheenchantedone]

I was pretty sad when my mother was released from her calling as the person who chose the hymns each week. She made sure that we sang every sacrament hymn, every Christmas hymn, every patriotic hymn...

[Gimgimno]

When I first scanned the list, I thought this might simply be a case of a limited organist, but there are a few tricky ones in the sung list and some really easy ones that were skipped. I was going to justify omitting "A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief" on the grounds of degree of difficulty, but it's really not a very hard hymn to play--even on an organ. I can't think of any good reason why "Nearer, My God, to Thee," "Come, Follow Me" and "Count Your Blessings" weren't played, as they are three of the easiest hymns to play and among the most well-known in the hymnal. Also notable: #124, "Be Still, My Soul" was never played in your ward, despite it being (at least in my experience) one of the most overplayed hymns in the church. Don't get me wrong--I love the hymn--but it's requested almost as much as "Come Thou Fount," only without the novelty value.

I'm reassured by the exclusion of #168, "As The Shadows Fall," in your list, as every organist dreads that fateful hymn number. Five flats, a multitude of extra accidentals, a tricky moving baseline in the second half of the hymn and an unfamiliar melody that makes it difficult to rely on your ear. #256, "As Zion's Youth in Latter Days" being skipped also tips me off that the organist might have a no-play list. For some reason, that hymn is trickier than almost any other hymn that I can think of, perhaps in part because the right hand is so far below the staff that it seems a bit unnatural trying to read the chords quickly. I don't know what it is. It's just a difficult hymn.

In any case, that's my perspective as an organist. Some of those that were passed on were probably passed on because of how difficult they are to play.

My perspective as the man who picks the hymns in my ward is a little different. I don't really have a running record of all the hymns that we've sung in the last few months that I am able to consult--it's all in my sent box, I suppose, but I don't have it printed and I don't have it to look over when I choose hymns for the next few months. I think part of the reason why so many common ones were passed is because they typically are overplayed, so the music chair skips them under the assumption that they've sung them too recently. General conference historically also knocks a huge number of fantastic hymns out of the running for the coming months. Also, speaking topics in the ward have significant influence on the hymns that I select, so if there is never a week in the year devoted to the Word of Wisdom, for example, we are never going to sing "In Our Lovely Deseret." That might have been a factor in some of the omissions.

That's really neat that you tracked it for so long, though. You just might have inspired me to print out a checklist of all the hymns so we nail it next year.

--Gimgimno

(Oh, and what's the deal with missing so many Christmas hymns? There are four or five weeks in every December. There is no reason why every one isn't sung.)

[Damasta]

I'm inclined to say that the difficulty of a given hymn was probably not a factor in most cases. The man who was our organist at the time is now back East getting a Ph.D. in Organ Performance (that may not be the exact correct title). He was phenomenal. It was a joy to listen to him play. He did more than just play the simplified hymns in the hymn book. He improvised. He did things that boggled our minds. The other organists in the stake swooned when he played. In short, he was an artist and very capable. So I dare say that hymns were skipped because the person choosing the hymns didn't want to sing them. Or in the case of the more common hymns, perhaps since they're so common that the person choosing the hymns thought they'd already been sung several times.

[chillygator]

I'd never heard Nearer, My God, to Thee until Titanic came out while I was in Young Womens. We sang it nearly weekly from then on. Usually to girlish sighs of, "Oh, Jack!" If it wasn't such a pretty song, I might add it to my list of songs I never want to sing again because of that experience alone.

[Tao]

@ Damasta: Well done and well thought out.

@ chilly: I had thought that song had reached its height in tragic usage. It appears I was wrong.

[Gimgimno]

So I dare say that hymns were skipped because the person choosing the hymns didn't want to sing them.

Who wants to sing, "How Long, O God, Most Holy and True," anyway? I'm going to go on a limb and say that I can identify about a half dozen hymns on the unplayed list that were justifably unplayed. My opinion.

It's always awesome to hear somebody maximize an instrument. That's kind of how I think of it. For example, sometimes I feel limited by a piano that I'm playing on. No matter how passionately I play or how technically perfect I am, the piano is a limiting factor. At other times, I play on pianos that are so deep and rich that I feel like I am limiting the piano! The best performances are when brilliant pianists maximize the potential of those profoundly deep pianos.

Organs, at least for me, have a level of depth that I can't even begin to tap into. I really admire gifted organists who can channel that into beautiful music. It almost drives me to study the organ or get actual training. That's awesome that you got to hear that every week.

[Damasta]

I really admire gifted organists who can channel that into beautiful music. It almost drives me to study the organ or get actual training. That's awesome that you got to hear that every week.

My favorite was "The Spirit of God." He knew just when to play quietly and just when to make it majestic. It gave me chills in waves every time he did it.

[sqrt(-1)]

Who wants to sing, "How Long, O God, Most Holy and True," anyway? I'm going to go on a limb and say that I can identify about a half dozen hymns on the unplayed list that were justifably unplayed. My opinion.

Just for the record, I recently discovered "How Long, O God, Most Holy and True", and decided that it was one of my favorites. I LOVE THAT SONG. I also like number 120, Lean on my Ample Arm, and 37, The Wintry Day Descending to its Close.

Call me weird or eclectic with my musical tastes, but those are my favorites, probably because they are some of the most harmonically advanced in the hymn book. But seriously. I love hymn 126.


Edit: Also, +1 for random post resurrecting!

[dzhonatan]

As long as we've decided to resurrect a dead thread to talk about obscure favorite hymns, I'm a huge fan of #80. The words are by Rudyard Kipling, it's been quoted in General Conference, and yet I can't remember a single time ever singing it at church.

If I ever have a calling where I get to choose which hymns we sing, we're definitely going to sing it.

[bobtheenchantedone]

We sang an arrangement of #70 in my high school choir. My mother, who was in a choir my conductor also conducted, also sang it under him. After that, she really wanted to sing #70 in sacrament meeting. She assigned it three or four times before they finally actually sang it - the other times they changed it as the meeting was starting.

[Gimgimno]

My bishopric has been hinting to me over the past few weeks that I pick hymns that people don't know well enough. How was I supposed to know that most people don't know "Oh, What Songs of the Heart"? It's standard in my book. Then again, so are about 250 others.

I'm personally a fan of the hymns either written or composed by notables. They just happen to be really good. "O Savior, Thou Who Wearest a Crown" is one of my preferred sacrament hymns because it's very technically challenging on an organ compared to most other hymns because it's Bach. "Cast Thy Burden Upon the Lord" is one of my favorites as well--happens to be Mendelssohn. "A Mighty Fortress is Our God" proves to me that Martin Luther really knew God.

And we all like "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day," because it's Longfellow!

So I can appreciate your sentiment, dzhonatan.

[NerdGirl]

Dzhonatan, I also love #80. And it's actually been sung fairly often in all of the Canadian wards I've been in, interestingly enough, but I don't think I ever heard it sung when I lived in Provo. It's a good one.

[sqrt(-1)]

[quote="Gimgimno"] "A Mighty Fortress is Our God" proves to me that Martin Luther really knew God.
[\quote]

The other day in institute choir we sang that. The director shared some verses in it that aren't in the LDS hymn book, but none of us could come up with a reason why. I'd encourage you to look them up, if you're interested.

And I totally agree with your sentiment that famous people have the best hymns.

But I stand by what I said before. #126 is my fave.

[Anomalous]

Ha ha ha "Apparently they hated both Christmas and America." -That is definitely something I would say. I love you.

It makes me sad that we don't sing the hymns you mentioned very often...most likely because people began to think that they were "too popular." Well, they were popular for a reason. In my BYU ward, we sing the most random hymns ever, and they are usually too high or too low for half of the congregation.

[sqrt(-1)]

Like "The Wint'ry Day"? G above middle c for the tenors, and a high f for the sopranos?

[Gimgimno]

You want a hymn that's outside of everyone's range? Check out hymn #118, "Ye Simple Souls Who Stray." The soprano part goes from an A flat to an F. Ridiculous. The tenors only have to hit an E flat, and I think the basses only hit an A flat, but the fact that the melody is only four semitones short of a full two octave range makes it ludicrous to be sung in meetings.

That being said--it's a beautiful one.

[Portia]

Come on, we need to see a bar graph. Bar graph, bar graph! (chanting)

I love hymn tallies. Looking at various editions of foreign language hymnbooks is particularly fun.

I was shocked when we sang the French version of "In our Lovely Deseret" in a ward in Paris. Not only is the accenting all wrong (the iambs just don't . . . flow), the content just sounds . . . even more juvenile and stupid, which I had not thought possible. Pretty sure you will get either a look of incredulity or a slap in the face in France if you go around jauntily singing <i>je déteste le thé, le café, et tabaaaac!</i> no matter how much you abstain.