Sing cheerfully: “The wicked who fight against Zion will surely be smitten at last!”
And then: “While they who reject this glad message will never such happiness know!”

Yeah! Smite them wicked! w00t!

I am a huge hymn snob, Devyn, but the opposite kind. I love to sing the hymns that nobody ever sings. I’m with you on the church leaders thing, though.

I could go on and on about hymns I don’t like, but I have to say that all of the “sunshine” hymns tie for the top spot (right on, ESO!). Oh yeah, that and “I Believe in Christ” should be cut in half (both the length and number of verses).

Come to that, context often dictates whether or not I like a particular hymn. For example, four-verse two pagers are fine for the opening hymn, but I hate them all when they are the closing hymn — especially when a meeting goes overtime. A good hymn selector knows to pick short hymns for the end of the meeting. (When it’s my job, for example, I always pick one-verse two liners.)

I can also hate pretty much any hymn when it’s done too slow. A guy in my ward has an iPhone app where he can tap in the beat and it will give him the metronome marking. He thought I would be interested to know (I was) that our ward sings everything at 60, no matter the designation in the book. This wasn’t a surprise.

As for singing hymns too fast, it can be done; but it’s so rare that I won’t fault anyone for erring on the side of speed.

1. Redeemer of Israel
2. Glory to God on High
3. Praise to the Lord, the Almighty
3. A Mighty Fortress Is Our God

One that seems to be a favorite among members that really annoys me is Called to Serve. The message is fine, but for some reason, I just don’t like the hymn. (I disliked it even before my mission, so it’s not just because I got sick of singing it all the time.)

In no particular order:
Oh Savior Thou Who Wearest a Crown (I like to imagine this being played by a large all brass orchestra, several hundred horns)
Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing (I like to imagine this being played on bagpipes)
Abide With Me

Keri–In our lovely Deseret–also does nothing for me.

I think the main problem with Called to Serve is that it is a primary song. It works there (although should probably be shorter for them) but sounds kind of like circus music on the organ.

RE: speed
This is a constant complaint, but don’t you think the congregation is to blame? I know I have seen even very talented musicians dragged down to slow speed by the crowd.

A man a few rows behind me a few weeks ago clearly shares the complaint, because he sang considerably faster than everyone around him, the chorister, and the organ. I totally understand the impulse to do that for the first few bars, but then I think he should have given up. He didn’t.

My top twenty*, in alphabetical order:

1. Angels we Have Heard on High
2. As Now We Take the Sacrament
3. Come, Follow Me
4. How Firm a Foundation
5. How Great the Wisdom and the Love
6. How Great Thou Art
7. I Need Thee Every Hour
8. I Stand All Amazed
9. In Humility, Our Savior
10. Let Us All Press On
11. Lord, I Would Follow Thee
12. The Lord is my Light
13. My Father
14. Praise to the Lord, the Almighty
15. Reverently and Meekly Now
16. The Spirit of God Like a Fire
17. Sweet Hour of Prayer
18. What Songs of the Heart
19. Where Can I Turn for Peace
20. With Humble Heart

* I don’t think I’m a musical snob, but I do know and can play each and every one of the hymns (some better than others, though). When you know the many hundred, it’s hard to pick just one or two. If I could pick only two, it would be What Songs of the Heart and How Firm a Foundation. The latter if I could only have one. But maybe I’d pick How Great Thou Art over them both. Hm…

Orwell, I completely agree about splitting “I Believe in Christ” in half. Along similar lines, Rigel Hawthorne suggested in a comment at Mormon Matters last year some fun alternate words:

I’m a darned long song;
I’m way too long.
It’s like you’re singing two whole songs.
You sing me once then repeat again
I cycle back and never end!

I’m a darned long song;
I’ll make you yawn.
You’ll wish the electric chair’s turned on!
I’m like a torture chamber’s rack
I’ll make the terror suspect crack.

I really like “A Poor, Wayfaring Man of Grief” and “Be Still My Soul”. Also, I know I’m the 500,000th person to say this, but we should bring “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing” back to our hymn book. (In her Sunstone music session, Kristine of BCC had us sing “O My Father” to the music of “Come, Thou Fount” and it was wonderful.)

I hate—HATE!!!”Who’s on the Lord’s Side–Who?” I imagine people pointing fingers all over the place.

I love: Our Savior’s Love, God is Love, and Be Thou Humble.

My brother-in-law sang a song at my niece’s funeral called “He’s Alive.” I don’t know much about the song and it wasn’t beautiful but it was so full of emotion and love for the Savior. I wish it wasn’t taboo to show joyous emotion in our meetings. It seems like the only appropriate display is tears. If a person acts overjoyed people think they’re crazy and are embarrassed for them.

Very few people can bear a joyous exuberant testimony and get away with it.

Plus I think a little rhythm in our music wouldn’t hurt anyone.

The cousins sang Bridge Over Troubled Water at my sister’s funeral and the bishop could hardly bear it. It’s sort of hypocritical to me that we insist on “reverent” music and are so irreverent in our meetings otherwise.

Devyn, I’ll bet you dollars to donuts that lots of what you think are “new” hymns are some of the oldest “traditional hymns of Mormonism.” We just need to get familiar with more hymns in general–the number of hymns we sing in any given week has dropped from probably a dozen back when Priesthood mtg., Sunday School, Sacrament Mtg., RS, and Primary were all separate meetings with their own opening and closing and intermediate hymns to 4 or 5. Also, most organists/choristers who choose music don’t do any hymns often enough for people to become familiar with them. When I’m in charge, I choose 6 or 8 hymns that I’m hoping to teach the congregation over a year, then program them as choir prelude first, then special musical numbers and congregational hymns so that people hear it once every 6 weeks or so for a year and it becomes “traditional” for them.

ESO–the sunshine ones are fun if you transpose them to a minor key!

#17–I LOVE “Wintry Day”–it has a certain hopeful melancholy which I find achingly beautiful. One hymn that I wish they’d put back in the hymnbook is “Think Not, When You Gather to Zion.” Elder Maxwell said it should provide food for thought to anybody about to marry, go on a mission, or attend a Church college.

By the way, am I the only one who cringes when people sing to the accompaniment in the last half of “High on a Mountain Top?”

My faves are
- Our Savior’s Love
- Be Still My Soul
- For the Beauty of the Earth

Amongst my not so faves are
-O My Father (can’t say exactly why, the tune moves up and down the scale too much maybe?)
- Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel – something about the “worker’s seal” makes me think of a Communist anthem! Not that there’s anything wrong with communists – some of my best friends are commies. :)

Patti, regarding “Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel,” you’re not the only one who thinks it sounds Communist. See my rewrite here (in which I notice I referred to a comment you made about the song at FMH).

As our sacrament meeting music director (see rant) I have long thought about adding ‘God Save the Queen’ into a meeting lineup, just to see the looks on people’s faces.

Now for the off-topic-rant: I refuse to call myself a ‘chorister’. As was pointed out in a stake music training several years ago, the primary definition for ‘chorister’ is ‘choir boy’ (with the secondary definition being ‘choir leader’) – and since I am leading congregational singing, ‘chorister’ is not the correct title. In fact, we were told (not sure if this is accurate) that the Church Handbook does not use ‘chorister’ in the official name of the calling, either.

Favorite: “Oh, My Father” – largely for its music and message, because especially because it contains the only mention of our Mother in Heaven.

One that always makes me think of Halloween: “Follow the Prophets” – I half expect to hear ghosts howling during the intro.

One I find annoying: “I Hope They Call Me on a Mission” – don’t hope for it, live right and put your papers in.