0:00:03 > 0:00:06They're sung in concert halls...
0:00:09 > 0:00:11..on the terraces...
0:00:15 > 0:00:17..in school...
0:00:21 > 0:00:24..and of course, in church.
0:00:26 > 0:00:30Well, as the new Methodist hymn book, Singing The Faith is published,
0:00:30 > 0:00:36I'm here in Oxford to find out what makes a hymn not just inspire, but endure.
0:00:41 > 0:00:45We have a celebration of hymns, both old and new from our congregation,
0:00:45 > 0:00:48from Wallingford Parish Church Choir
0:00:48 > 0:00:53and from soloists, Wynne Evans and Melanie Marshall.
0:01:04 > 0:01:06It was here in Oxford
0:01:06 > 0:01:11as undergraduates in the 18th century that John and Charles Wesley founded the movement
0:01:11 > 0:01:15which became the Methodist Church.
0:01:16 > 0:01:22Charles wrote so many hymn texts - more than 8,000 in all -
0:01:22 > 0:01:26that it's said that Methodism really was born in song.
0:01:29 > 0:01:33So where better for our congregation to sing out their faith
0:01:33 > 0:01:36than here - at Oxford's Wesley Memorial Church -
0:01:36 > 0:01:41starting with Charles's hope never to tire of singing God's praise.
0:03:58 > 0:04:03John Betjeman described hymns as "the poems of the people".
0:04:03 > 0:04:08They've given countless phrases to the English language
0:04:08 > 0:04:14and are Britain's most distinctive contribution to Christian worship and literature.
0:04:14 > 0:04:19No other country has produced such an abundance of great hymn writers,
0:04:19 > 0:04:22like the man they call the "Father of Hymnody", Isaac Watts
0:04:22 > 0:04:25and of course, Charles Wesley himself.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27His work has certainly stood the test of time
0:04:27 > 0:04:30and in fact there are nearly 80 of his best-loved hymns
0:04:30 > 0:04:32in this new edition.
0:04:34 > 0:04:41Hymns have always been special to this year's head of the Methodist Church, the Reverend Alison Tomlin.
0:04:41 > 0:04:45I think the reason that I sing is because
0:04:45 > 0:04:49music touches the depths of who we are -
0:04:49 > 0:04:53music touches the heart, music touches the soul.
0:04:53 > 0:04:57And sometimes it's more possible to express what is going on for us
0:04:57 > 0:05:02in our worship and in my personal praying by singing it.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05# Hum, hum... # Keep going...
0:05:05 > 0:05:09Let me hear you. # Come all ye people come and pray... #
0:05:09 > 0:05:13Another advocate of community hymn-singing is the hymn writer,
0:05:13 > 0:05:15John Bell.
0:05:15 > 0:05:20Methodists do it very well because they believe they can sing and they live out that belief.
0:05:20 > 0:05:23Anglicans and some others believe that the choirs can sing
0:05:23 > 0:05:26and so the congregation feels it's not their job so much.
0:05:26 > 0:05:28When you reverse that
0:05:28 > 0:05:31and allow people to know all God's people have a voice,
0:05:31 > 0:05:33and that when God says, "Sing me a new song,"
0:05:33 > 0:05:37it's not just the choir that's involved, it's the whole community.
0:05:37 > 0:05:42When you persuade people that that is their duty and their joy,
0:05:42 > 0:05:45then magic things happen and people enjoy it.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48For me personally, it's very important,
0:05:48 > 0:05:50because my mother, who was a singer,
0:05:50 > 0:05:54sang her faith when she was washing up, when she was cleaning,
0:05:54 > 0:05:59in the garden. I was brought up singing my faith
0:05:59 > 0:06:03and it goes on being very, very important to me.
0:08:22 > 0:08:27The last Methodist hymn book, Hymns And Psalms, was published in 1983.
0:08:27 > 0:08:32Singing The Faith has been produced in response to the explosion
0:08:32 > 0:08:36in the amount of music that has been written for worship since then.
0:08:36 > 0:08:40With literally thousands of hymns to choose from,
0:08:40 > 0:08:45how on Earth do you decide what to include and what to leave out?
0:08:45 > 0:08:47We sang them!
0:08:47 > 0:08:51Every hymn and psalm, we have sung,
0:08:51 > 0:08:54to ensure that it was singable.
0:08:55 > 0:08:59We want the hymn book to be for congregational use,
0:08:59 > 0:09:04for people to use it in our churches and chapels on a Sunday.
0:09:04 > 0:09:09The only possible way to do that was actually to try out every hymn and every psalm.
0:09:12 > 0:09:17The new hymn book is very much a matter of preserving
0:09:17 > 0:09:22the best of the old and trying to bring in the best of the new.
0:09:22 > 0:09:26Singing is an emotional experience - it's not just from the head.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28It's from the heart as well.
0:09:28 > 0:09:33A great hymn enables us to join those two things together.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39Some hymns lend themselves to being sung in different ways
0:09:39 > 0:09:46on different occasions, like the hymn that's often thought of as the unofficial Welsh National Anthem,
0:09:46 > 0:09:49Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer.
0:09:49 > 0:09:53And in fact it was in the Methodist hymn book which was published
0:09:53 > 0:09:56in 1933 that those words were first partnered
0:09:56 > 0:09:59with that magnificent tune, Cwm Rhondda,
0:09:59 > 0:10:04so it's going to be sung for us now, of course, by a Welshman - the wonderful tenor, Wynne Evans.
0:10:09 > 0:10:15# Guide me, O thou great redeemer
0:10:15 > 0:10:20# Pilgrim through this barren land
0:10:20 > 0:10:26# I am weak, but thou art mighty
0:10:26 > 0:10:31# Hold me with thy powerful hand
0:10:31 > 0:10:34# Bread of heaven
0:10:34 > 0:10:36# Bread of heaven
0:10:36 > 0:10:41# Feed me now and evermore
0:10:41 > 0:10:47# Feed me now and evermore
0:10:57 > 0:11:03# Open now the crystal fountain
0:11:03 > 0:11:08# Whence the healing stream doth flow
0:11:08 > 0:11:14# Let the fiery cloudy pillar
0:11:14 > 0:11:19# Lead me all my journey through
0:11:19 > 0:11:22# Strong deliverer
0:11:22 > 0:11:24# Strong deliverer
0:11:24 > 0:11:29# Be thou still my strength and shield
0:11:29 > 0:11:35# Be thou still my strength and shield
0:11:45 > 0:11:51# When I tread the verge of Jordan
0:11:51 > 0:11:56# Bid my anxious fears subside
0:11:56 > 0:11:59# Death of death
0:11:59 > 0:12:02# And hell's destruction
0:12:02 > 0:12:07# Land me safe on Canaan's side
0:12:07 > 0:12:10# Songs of praises
0:12:10 > 0:12:13# Songs of praises
0:12:13 > 0:12:18# I will ever give to thee
0:12:18 > 0:12:24# I will ever give to thee
0:12:24 > 0:12:27# Bread of heaven
0:12:27 > 0:12:30# Bread of heaven
0:12:30 > 0:12:37# Feed me till I want no more
0:12:37 > 0:12:48# Feed me till I want no more. #
0:12:51 > 0:12:57The new book from the Methodist Church has over 800 hymns and songs.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00These are for singing at every stage of life,
0:13:00 > 0:13:04at every time of the year
0:13:04 > 0:13:07and at every point on a journey of faith.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13There's a hymn for every human emotion and condition
0:13:13 > 0:13:15and more than ever, hymns are a resource
0:13:15 > 0:13:18for life in the modern world.
0:13:18 > 0:13:19# Alleluia... #
0:13:19 > 0:13:22The largest number of hymns by a living composer
0:13:22 > 0:13:24in singing the faith,
0:13:24 > 0:13:2544 of them in all,
0:13:25 > 0:13:28are by John Bell.
0:13:28 > 0:13:30People's understanding of God and discipleship
0:13:30 > 0:13:34is much more often based on what they sing
0:13:34 > 0:13:36than on what they hear preached.
0:13:36 > 0:13:40You sing a hymn, perhaps four or five times a year
0:13:40 > 0:13:42but you only hear the best sermon once in your life,
0:13:42 > 0:13:46unless the vicar thinks, "That's so good, I'll do it again next Sunday."
0:13:46 > 0:13:48A hymn only has longevity
0:13:48 > 0:13:51as long as it speaks to people.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54When it becomes an antique that you bring out and dust,
0:13:54 > 0:13:56we should leave it alone.
0:13:56 > 0:13:58It's very interesting how some of the oldest hymns,
0:13:58 > 0:14:02like, O Come O Come Emmanuel or some of the hymns by Martin Luther,
0:14:02 > 0:14:04endure forever.
0:14:05 > 0:14:08So, I would never write off old hymns because they're old.
0:14:08 > 0:14:11There are some which speak
0:14:11 > 0:14:16with an eternal truth and resonance.
0:14:21 > 0:14:27The music is a means, by which the words can be conveyed.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30A good example of that would be the word "alleluia".
0:14:30 > 0:14:33On its own, it doesn't really say very much
0:14:33 > 0:14:36but put that to a melody and the delight in it comes out.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38The same with Happy Birthday To You.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41I mean, if I were to say that to you, it would be pretty dull,
0:14:41 > 0:14:45but if I were to sing it to you, then it might be more enjoyable.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48So, the music is the vehicle by which the words
0:14:48 > 0:14:51are both remembered
0:14:51 > 0:14:53and also transmitted.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56When the music becomes so decorative
0:14:56 > 0:14:59that it becomes a distraction from the words,
0:14:59 > 0:15:02then we're in danger of getting the balance askew.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05You will often include modern day issues
0:15:05 > 0:15:07that other writers shy away from.
0:15:07 > 0:15:10Abuse, for example.
0:15:10 > 0:15:13Are you deliberately trying to push boundaries with that?
0:15:13 > 0:15:15We have been remiss
0:15:15 > 0:15:19in allowing these very genuine experiences of life
0:15:19 > 0:15:21to be reflected in words and music
0:15:21 > 0:15:24and in worship.
0:15:24 > 0:15:31That means people who are affected by these particular eventualities
0:15:31 > 0:15:36have a part of their life always omitted. Always omitted.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39We'll, we're about to sing one of your hymns now.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42Tell us about it, what prompted you to write it?
0:15:42 > 0:15:45The hymn, Today I Awake...
0:15:47 > 0:15:52..comes out of realising that we didn't have many hymns for mornings.
0:15:52 > 0:15:56It doesn't matter if it's a dull morning or if it's a bright morning,
0:15:56 > 0:15:58it's a new morning, it's a new day.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00And I wanted to celebrate that.
0:16:00 > 0:16:04And remember that within the Celtic tradition,
0:16:04 > 0:16:06the old Saints, Columba and Patrick
0:16:06 > 0:16:09had an affection for wrapping round themselves
0:16:09 > 0:16:11the attributes of God.
0:16:11 > 0:16:14And also it celebrated that God was three persons -
0:16:14 > 0:16:15Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
0:16:15 > 0:16:17So in this hymn,
0:16:17 > 0:16:21we surround ourselves with the attributes of God
0:16:21 > 0:16:23and we remember Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
0:16:23 > 0:16:27all one God in the Trinity.
0:19:07 > 0:19:11What makes some of the hymns we love really powerful
0:19:11 > 0:19:13is the unforgettable bond
0:19:13 > 0:19:15in our minds and memories
0:19:15 > 0:19:19of the words and the music.
0:19:19 > 0:19:23But for me, it's the words that really count
0:19:23 > 0:19:27and I think that's because many hymn verses started life as poems,
0:19:27 > 0:19:30often written at times of great emotional insight.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33And however long ago
0:19:33 > 0:19:35the words were written,
0:19:35 > 0:19:36the sentiments might well echo
0:19:36 > 0:19:38our own today.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41Like those expressed by the 17th-century writer
0:19:41 > 0:19:45of My Song Is Love Unknown.
0:19:45 > 0:19:48In his text, Samuel Crossman is full of wonder for a God
0:19:48 > 0:19:53who is not just a majestic king able to create the Heavens,
0:19:53 > 0:19:54but also a caring friend,
0:19:54 > 0:19:56showing love to the loveless,
0:19:56 > 0:19:59willing to die for our sake.
0:20:03 > 0:20:08# My song is love unknown
0:20:08 > 0:20:11# My saviour's love to me
0:20:11 > 0:20:14# Love to the loveless shown
0:20:14 > 0:20:19# That they might lovely be
0:20:19 > 0:20:22# But who am I
0:20:22 > 0:20:25# That for my sake
0:20:25 > 0:20:32# My Lord should take frail flesh and die?
0:20:35 > 0:20:40# He came from his blest throne
0:20:40 > 0:20:44# Salvation to bestow
0:20:44 > 0:20:46# But men made strange, and none
0:20:46 > 0:20:52# The longed-for Christ would know
0:20:52 > 0:20:56# But O! My friend
0:20:56 > 0:20:59# My friend indeed
0:20:59 > 0:21:05# Who for my need his life did spend
0:21:10 > 0:21:16# In life no house, no home
0:21:16 > 0:21:20# My Lord on Earth might have
0:21:20 > 0:21:23# In death no friendly tomb
0:21:23 > 0:21:29# But what a stranger gave
0:21:29 > 0:21:32# What may I say?
0:21:32 > 0:21:35# Heav'n was his home
0:21:35 > 0:21:43# But mine the tomb wherein he lay
0:21:49 > 0:21:54# Here might I stay and sing
0:21:54 > 0:21:57# No story so divine
0:21:57 > 0:22:00# Never was love, dear king
0:22:00 > 0:22:04# Never was grief like thine
0:22:04 > 0:22:07# This is my friend
0:22:07 > 0:22:10# In whose sweet praise
0:22:10 > 0:22:12# I all my days
0:22:12 > 0:22:21# Could gladly spend. #
0:22:34 > 0:22:36In 1761, John Wesley published
0:22:36 > 0:22:39his Seven Rules For Singing
0:22:39 > 0:22:43and in one of them he said, "Sing lustily and with good courage.
0:22:43 > 0:22:47"Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep;
0:22:47 > 0:22:49"but lift your voice with strength.
0:22:49 > 0:22:52"Be no more afraid of your voice now,
0:22:52 > 0:22:54"nor more ashamed of its being heard,
0:22:54 > 0:22:57"then when you sung the songs of Satan."
0:22:57 > 0:23:00PIANO PLAYS
0:23:00 > 0:23:03Someone who helps congregations
0:23:03 > 0:23:05sing lustily and with good courage,
0:23:05 > 0:23:07is Paul Leddington Wright.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11He's conducted numerous editions of Songs Of Praise, including this one
0:23:11 > 0:23:15and has contributed to the new hymn collection.
0:23:15 > 0:23:17It's been great fun,
0:23:17 > 0:23:21seeing what the needs are of the book.
0:23:21 > 0:23:24I think there are times when there is a tune,
0:23:24 > 0:23:26which couples with a set of words.
0:23:26 > 0:23:31So, you see a true marriage of melody and of text
0:23:31 > 0:23:32and it really works
0:23:32 > 0:23:36and then it can be absolutely scintillating.
0:23:36 > 0:23:39They support each other, like a true marriage of a man and a woman,
0:23:39 > 0:23:43how in a great relationship, things can really take off
0:23:43 > 0:23:45and it's the same with a good hymn.
0:23:46 > 0:23:49If you're writing a new tune,
0:23:49 > 0:23:51the words are always the springboard.
0:23:51 > 0:23:55I'll look at the text and decide on the sort of style it might go
0:23:55 > 0:23:59and then I'll just play around, literally sitting at the piano
0:23:59 > 0:24:01and play around with melodic ideas,
0:24:01 > 0:24:04harmonic ideas and see what emerges.
0:24:06 > 0:24:07Tell us about our next piece,
0:24:07 > 0:24:09because you've written the music.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12Well, the words are by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
0:24:12 > 0:24:14and I'm sure everybody knows
0:24:14 > 0:24:17that he was a German pastor
0:24:17 > 0:24:20and he was imprisoned in the Second World War.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23His writings are so important,
0:24:23 > 0:24:26so valuable to the work of the church, and very sadly
0:24:26 > 0:24:28he was martyred,
0:24:28 > 0:24:31literally days before the end of the Second World War,
0:24:31 > 0:24:33which is just such a tragedy.
0:24:33 > 0:24:35But one of his texts,
0:24:35 > 0:24:37"We turn to God
0:24:37 > 0:24:39"when we are sorely pressed,"
0:24:39 > 0:24:41is in the book
0:24:41 > 0:24:43and there are just three verses
0:24:43 > 0:24:46and it's just really about how, in times of trouble
0:24:46 > 0:24:48and in times of need,
0:24:48 > 0:24:50we turn to God and God is there to help us
0:24:50 > 0:24:52and he is with us whatever,
0:24:52 > 0:24:54through thick and through thin.
0:26:48 > 0:26:52Christianity spread across the globe
0:26:52 > 0:26:55to become the world's largest single faith.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58In many parts of the world it's continuing to grow.
0:27:02 > 0:27:04Whereas some of the early Christian missionaries
0:27:04 > 0:27:07imposed their own Western ideas on other cultures,
0:27:07 > 0:27:11today, British churches are drawing on the music and traditions
0:27:11 > 0:27:14of many other parts of the world to inspire their own worship.
0:27:14 > 0:27:16From the global church,
0:27:16 > 0:27:21I tend to take courage in approaching subjects
0:27:21 > 0:27:25which otherwise might be avoided.
0:27:25 > 0:27:30And also, you find a liveliness in music in other cultures,
0:27:30 > 0:27:33which we don't always have here.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35Typically, hymns in Britain are quite foursquare.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38People are a wee bit afraid of syncopation
0:27:38 > 0:27:41as if it were a medical procedure that wasn't very good for them.
0:27:41 > 0:27:45And so, when we sing a song from Africa or from South America,
0:27:45 > 0:27:46and it is slightly lively,
0:27:46 > 0:27:49people think, "Oh, no. This is not quite right."
0:27:49 > 0:27:51What's happening is a part of our brain
0:27:51 > 0:27:54is being encouraged to be part of worship,
0:27:54 > 0:27:57which lies dormant when we're singing a foursquare hymn.
0:28:03 > 0:28:07Christ's church is an international church, it's a global church
0:28:07 > 0:28:09and it's about all those people who have a faith,
0:28:09 > 0:28:15who worship the same God, wherever they might live on this globe.
0:28:15 > 0:28:18You know, clearly we wanted to have something from another country
0:28:18 > 0:28:22and I felt that this song was great fun - Santo Santo Santo.
0:28:22 > 0:28:24It's got very jazzy rhythms,
0:28:24 > 0:28:26very syncopated
0:28:26 > 0:28:27but it's very workable.
0:30:29 > 0:30:30Life-giving God
0:30:30 > 0:30:34Thank you for words that challenge
0:30:34 > 0:30:37Thank you for music that inspires
0:30:37 > 0:30:40Thank you for song and dance
0:30:40 > 0:30:42And tears and laughter
0:30:44 > 0:30:46May our worship offer you
0:30:46 > 0:30:50All the praise you deserve
0:30:50 > 0:30:52And may it also unite us
0:30:52 > 0:30:55In your service and in Your Name
0:30:55 > 0:30:57Amen.
0:31:00 > 0:31:03Well, a truly classic and inspiring hymn
0:31:03 > 0:31:05may well have been written centuries ago
0:31:05 > 0:31:08but it might also be a relative youngster,
0:31:08 > 0:31:10like our last one today,
0:31:10 > 0:31:14written in 1972 by Methodist minister, Fred Pratt Green.
0:31:14 > 0:31:17And in this timeless favourite, he sums up
0:31:17 > 0:31:22just how much hymns and great music can bring to our worship.
0:31:22 > 0:31:25So, from me, to hymn lovers everywhere, goodbye.
0:33:27 > 0:33:28Next week,
0:33:28 > 0:33:32Songs Of Praise comes face to face with some famous people,
0:33:32 > 0:33:34as Aled visits Madame Tussauds'
0:33:34 > 0:33:37wax museum to discover how a French woman
0:33:37 > 0:33:40created a British institution.
0:33:40 > 0:33:43And he'll introduce more fantastic hymns.
0:33:59 > 0:34:02Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:34:02 > 0:34:05E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk