Salomé’s 'Grand Choeur' in G major

Passion Chorale

Played by Jonathon Kingston. The hymn tune of the month this time is “Passion Chorale” which was originally composed by Hans Leo Hassler (1564-1612). The most common text associated to this hymn tune is “O Sacred Head, Now Wounded” which is a Christian Passion hymn based on a Latin text written during the Middle Ages. Paul Gerhardt (1607-1676) originally wrote a German version “O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden” that was then subsequently translated many different times to English. Many other composers have since written organ music based on this tune.
Hans Leo Hassler, born in Nuremburg, was a German composer and organist of the late Renaissance and early Baroque eras. He came from a family of famous musicians, receiving his early education from his father, with his elder brother Jakob Hassler also being an accomplished composer. Hans later studied in Venice with Andrea Gabrieli where he learned the polychoral style which he brought back to Germany. Hassler served as organist and composer in Augsburg, then director of town music and organist in the Nuremberg, and finally as court musician in Dresden.

Tell Out My Soul

Played by Jonathon Kingston. This month’s hymn, “Tell Out, My Soul”, is a Christian hymn paraphrasing the Magnificat written by Timothy Dudley-Smith (1926 – ) in 1962. In the early days this hymn was paired to a tune by Michael Baughen but it was later paired and greatly enhanced by the sweeping music of Walter Greatorex’s (1877 – 1949) grand tune, Woodlands. The tune’s title refers to one of the schoolhouses at Gresham’s School, Norfolk, where Greatorex was director of music. Timothy Dudley-Smith is an English hymn writer and now retired bishop of the Church of England. Born in Manchester, United Kingdom, he was educated at Tonbridge School and Pembroke College, Cambridge before he studied theology at Ridley Hall. Dudley-Smith is a prolific writer of texts for hymns and a member and honorary vice-president of the Hymn Society of Great Britain and Ireland. In 2003, he was appointed an OBE “for services to hymnody”