"" (You my soul sing) is a

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...

in German by

Paul Gerhardt Paul Gerhardt (12 March 1607 – 27 May 1676) was a German theologian, Lutheran minister and hymnodist. Biography Gerhardt was born into a middle-class family at Gräfenhainichen, a small town between Halle and Wittenberg. His father died in ...

, a paraphrase of

Psalm 146 Psalm 146 is the 146th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version, "Praise ye the LORD. Praise the LORD, O my soul". In Latin, it is known as "Lauda anima mea Dominum". In the slightly different numbering sy ...

Johann Georg Ebeling Johann Georg Ebeling (8 July 1637 – 4 December 1676) was a German composer who was born in Lüneburg and died in Stettin. Ebeling is known as editor and composer of hymns by Paul Gerhardt. He published in 1667 120 songs by Gerhardt, adding new ...

wrote the well-known melody in 1666. The song in 10 stanzas was first published in 1667 in the collection (Spiritual devotions by Paul Gerhardt) of songs by Gerhardt. It is No. 302 in the current Protestant hymnal .

History and text

Paul Gerhardt wrote the hymn as a paraphrase of Psalm 146, in 1653, five years after the end of the

Thirty Years War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an es ...

, when he was a minister in

Mittenwalde Mittenwalde () is a town in the Dahme-Spreewald district, in Brandenburg, Germany. It is situated 30 km southeast of Berlin (centre). On May 28, 1562, the town of Mittenwalde lent Berlin 400 guilders, a debt which has never been repaid, thou ...

, south of Berlin. Johann Georg Ebeling, a church musician at the Nikolaikirche, wrote the well-known melody in 1666. The song in 10 stanzas with eight regular lines each was first published in 1667 in the collection (Spiritual devotions) of songs by Gerhardt. It is, shortened to eight stanzas, No. 302 in the current Protestant hymnal . The first stanza, expressing the request to the own soul to sing beautifully praising the creator for life, corresponds to verses 1 and 2 of the psalm (). Stanzas 2 and 3 are not part of the current Protestant hymnal. The fourth stanza, about trust in the God of Jacob as the highest treasure, granting eternal content ("ewig unbetrübt"), corresponds to verses 5 and 6 (). Stanzas five to seven expand the good things God does, namely protecting those who suffer violence, feeding the hungry and setting prisoners free, corresponding to verse 7 (). Stanzas eight and nine mention the light for the blind and comforter of the weak, strangers, orphans and widows as in verses 8 and 9 (). The last stanza, corresponding to verse 10 (), compares the singer to a wilted flower, who will not cease to add to the praise of God.

Tune and settings

The tune (in B♭-major or C major) begins with a rising broken chord, reaching the tenth on the fifth note, which has been called a "rocket"

motif Motif may refer to: General concepts * Motif (chess composition), an element of a move in the consideration of its purpose * Motif (folkloristics), a recurring element that creates recognizable patterns in folklore and folk-art traditions * Moti ...

. It follows the structure of the bar form. For the last two lines, the melody is similar in shape to the first two lines, again rising to the highest note in five steps and holding it for two beats. In the first stanza this accents the term "being" in "My heart and whole being" ("Mein Herz und ganzes Wesen"). Other hymns on the same melody include "Lift up your hearts, ye people", "We stand united with you" and "Give thanks to God, the Father".

References

External links

* Berthold Haerte
Predigt zu Paul Gerhardts Lied: Du meine Seele singe und Psalm 146
oberrieden.ch 29 July 2012 {{Authority control 17th-century hymns in German Lutheran hymns based on Psalms 1666 works Hymn tunes Hymns by Paul Gerhardt