Monday, October 27, 2008

Top Ten Hymns

I thought it would be fun to try and narrow down the hundreds of hymns I love into a concise list of my favourite ten. I decided quite early on in the process that I would call this A top ten list of my favourite hymns, rather than THE top ten list, allowing for the fact that if I do this again in a month's time, the list will probably be different. I've included the tune names in italics. (and you'll have to forgive me for linking to cyberhymnal and their terrible electric versions of all these hymns. You have to imagine them with choirs and descants and pipe organs and alternate harmonizations and all that good stuff. Think English Cathedrals!)

1. Eternal Father, Strong to Save - Melita

2. For All the Saints - Sine Nomine

3. Jerusalem, the Golden - Ewing

4. Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven - Praise My Soul
This was our wedding processional, and I can't sing it now without getting teary.

5. We Plough the Fields and Scatter - Wir Pflugen

6. Once to Every Man and Nation - Ebenezer

7. Rejoice the Lord is King - Darwall

8. At the Name of Jesus - Weston

9. All my Hope - Michael (with the descant that Howells wrote - another wedding hymn)

10. There is a Green Hill Far Away - Horsley (preferably with last verse unaccompanied)

3 comments:

Crimson Rambler said...

WAAAHHHHHHHHHHH! (snif)

Julie said...

Great list! It would be hard for me to narrow down my list of favorites, too. Two of mine are "All Creatures Of Our God And King" and "Great Is Thy Faithfulness." The latter soothed Emily many a night when she was an infant and we still sing it at night before going to bed, only now she sings it with me.

Kathryn said...

2 of my desert island hymns too...I had All my hope at my first Mass, and also when I was licensed to these parishes. Eternal Father was my own father's all time favourite hymn (he had served in the Royal Navy, which kind of owns that hymn in these parts) so whenever I sing it I feel close to him, even 30 years after his death.
A lovely list all round. We get to sing "For all the saints" tomorrow as we're keeping All Saints then :-)