"" (literally: Dearest Jesus, we are here) is a
Lutheran hymn with text written by
Tobias Clausnitzer
Tobias Clausnitzer (5 February 1619 − 7 May 1684) was a German Lutheran pastor and hymn writer.
Leben und Wirken
Born in Thum, Clausnitzer studied theology at the University of Leipzig from 1642. In 1644, he became military chaplain (''Feldpr ...
in 1663, and a
hymn tune
A hymn tune is the melody of a musical composition to which a hymn text is sung. Musically speaking, a hymn is generally understood to have four-part (or more) harmony, a fast harmonic rhythm (chords change frequently), with or without refrain ...
,
Zahn No. 3498b, based on a 1664 melody by
Johann Rudolph Ahle
Johann Rudolph Ahle (24 December 1625 – 9 July 1673) was a German composer, organist, theorist, and Protestant church musician.
Biography
Ahle was born in Mühlhausen, Thuringia. While not much is known of his early musical training, he attende ...
(Zahn No. 3498a). A prayer for illumination, it is suitable for the opening of a church service and to be sung before a sermon. The song is part of the Protestant hymnal ''
Evangelisches Gesangbuch'' as EG 161. It is also part of the Catholic hymnal ''
Gotteslob'' as GL 149. It is popular also in English translations such as "Blessed Jesus, at your word" by
Catherine Winkworth.
History
Clausnitzer wrote the text "" in 1663, as a prayer for illumination. It was often sung before a sermon in a church service, and also at the beginning of school lessons.
The hymn is part of the German Protestant hymnal ''
Evangelisches Gesangbuch'', as EG 161. It is part of the German Catholic hymnal ''
Gotteslob'' of 2013, as GL 149 in the section ''Eröffnung'' (Opening), and of many other hymnals and songbooks. The song is published in more than 100 hymnals.
Catherine Winkworth translated it as "Blessed Jesus, at your word". Other hymns sung to the same tune are "Blessed Jesus, here we stand" and "Word of God, Come Down on Earth".
Text, melody and settings
"" is in three
stanza
In poetry, a stanza (; from Italian language, Italian ''stanza'' , "room") is a group of lines within a poem, usually set off from others by a blank line or Indentation (typesetting), indentation. Stanzas can have regular rhyme scheme, rhyme and ...
s of six lines each. The
bar form
Bar form (German: ''die Barform'' or ''der Bar'') is a musical form of the pattern AAB.
Original use
The term comes from the rigorous terminology of the Meistersinger guilds of the 15th to 18th century who used it to refer to their songs and the ...
has a of two lines, and an of two lines, with a rhyming scheme ABABCC. The text is given as in GL 149, and in Winkworth's translation:
Musical settings
The hymn appears in the vocal and organ works of
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...
. He harmonised the slightly simplified tune as a four part chorale (
BWV 373
Johann Sebastian Bach's chorale harmonisations, alternatively named four-part chorales, are Lutheran hymn settings that characteristically conform to the following:
* four-part harmony
* SATB vocal forces
* pre-existing hymn tune allotted to the ...
, transcribed below) and wrote two
chorale preludes of the same tune for organ (
BWV 730, and
BWV 731) The chorale prelude
BWV 633 to the same hymn and its embellished variant
BWV 634
The (BWV; ; ) is a catalogue of compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach. It was first published in 1950, edited by Wolfgang Schmieder. The catalogue's second edition appeared in 1990. An abbreviated version of that second edition, known as BWV2a ...
form part of the ''
Orgelbüchlein
The ''Orgelbüchlein'' (''Little Organ Book'') BWV 599−644 is a set of 46 chorale preludes for organ — one of them is given in two versions — by Johann Sebastian Bach. All but three were written between 1708 and 1717 when Bach served as org ...
''.
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Sigfrid Karg-Elert
Sigfrid Karg-Elert (November 21, 1877April 9, 1933) was a German composer in the early twentieth century, best known for his compositions for pipe organ and reed organ.
Biography
Karg-Elert was born Siegfried Theodor Karg in Oberndorf am Neckar, ...
composed a
chorale prelude as one of his
66 Chorale improvisations for organ
The 66 Chorale improvisations for organ, Op. 65, were composed by Sigfrid Karg-Elert between 1906 and 1908, and first published in six volumes in 1909. The composition was dedicated to "the great organist Alexandre Guilmant".
Volume 1. Advent, C ...
,
Op. 65, published in 1909.
Melody
The version of the melody used in recent German hymnals is slightly different from the one employed in Bach's settings.
References
Cited sources
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External links
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Gotteslob / Liedertexte(in German)
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17th-century hymns in German
1663 works
Lutheran hymns