Hymn of the Week: February 27, 2022
by Pat Partridge, Canon Precentor
Christ Church Cathedral, St. Louis
Hymn 128: Christ Upon the Mountain Peak
Created specifically for a conference, Christ upon the mountain peak is solidly based on the scriptural accounts of the transfiguration event in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Within this biblical context, the poet Brian Wren has created a hymn of praise in which the worshiper and all creation are invited to join in praise of the glorified Christ. Of this text the author writes, "It makes a little attempt to probe the imagery or historical 'placing' of the transfiguration story, but retains some validity, perhaps, in its atmosphere of worship and adoration."
The tune MOWSLEY is the work of one of England's most beloved clergy, hymnal editors, and composers, the Rev. Canon Cyril Taylor. The use of the ascending leaps of a fourth and sixth gives the tune a quality of strength and imparts added emphasis to important words in the text. The tune is further distinguished by melodic lines that are constructed in the shape of an artch wnad within which the pitches move with a convincing sense of momentum. Mowsley is a tiny village in Leicestershire, where the composer grew up and his father served as rector.
Here is a sample of the hymn:
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