UU Hymn Videos

This featured hymn was written by Shelley Jackson Denham: #55, “Dark of Winter.” This is a very comforting hymn, and conducive to meditation and reflection.

Les Tacy, Music Director of Heritage UU Church, performs an instrumental version of this hymn. The lyrics are included below. Feel free to follow along and sing the lyrics as you hear the music played on the YouTube video, Dark of Winter.

Dark of Winter

Dark of winter, soft and still, your quiet calm surrounds me.
Let my thoughts go where they will; ease my mind profoundly.
And then my soul will sing a song, a blessed song of love eternal.
Gentle darkness, soft and still, bring your quiet to me.

Darkness, soothe my weary eyes, that I may see more clearly.
When my heart with sorrow cries, comfort and caress me.
And then my soul may hear a voice, a still, small voice of love eternal.
Darkness, when my fears arise, let your peace flow through me.

Heritage, and most other churches, were closed for in-person worship in December of 2020. As a result, musicians sought alternate means to provide music for congregants. Last year, Michael Tacy, Music Director at The Gathering at Northern Hills (GNH), produced a video, with the help of representatives of both GNH and Heritage UU Church. The video was of the carol “Silent Night,” #237 in our hymnal. It was also shared during Christmas Eve services for both Heritage and The Gathering.

For some background, we share excerpts from an article written by Susan Lewis in 2020,
“The Story Behind the Beloved Christmas Carol Silent Night.” For the complete article, click on this link: https://www.wrti.org/arts-desk/2020-12-19/the-story-behind-the-beloved-christmas-carol-silent-night

It was 202 years ago when “Silent Night” was first heard by Austrian villagers attending Christmas Eve mass in St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf. It’s a song about a calm and bright silent night, and the wonder of a tender and mild newborn child, words written in 1816 by a young priest in Austria, Joseph Mohr, not long after the Napoleonic wars had taken their toll.

It was Christmas Eve, 1818, when the now-famous carol was first performed as Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht. Joseph Mohr played the guitar and sang along with Franz Xaver Gruber, the choir director who had written the melody.

An organ builder and repair man working at the church took a copy of the six-verse song to his home village. There, it was picked up and spread by two families of traveling folk singers, who performed around northern Europe. In 1834, the Strasser family performed it for the King of Prussia. In 1839, the Rainer family of singers debuted the carol outside Trinity Church in New York City.

The composition evolved, and was translated into over 300 languages with many different arrangements for various voices and ensembles. It was sung in churches, in town squares, even on the battlefield during World War I, when, during a temporary truce on Christmas Eve, soldiers sang carols from home. “Silent Night,” by 1914 known around the world, was sung simultaneously in French, German and English.

Over the years, the carol’s mystique grew with its popularity. After the original manuscript was lost, for decades, some speculated that the music had been written by Haydn, Mozart or Beethoven. In 1994, an original manuscript was found in Mohr’s handwriting, with Gruber named as composer.

Listen to the YouTube video Silent Night.

Here is an instrumental rendition of the hymn “Let it be a dance,” #311, arranged and performed by Les Tacy, Music Director of Heritage UU Church. The original hymn was written by Ric Masten, who was known for his poetry and music. His performances were usually improvised. It is in that spirit of improvisation that this version was played and recorded. We hope you enjoy listening to the variations on this melodic hymn.

Hear the YouTube video, Let It Be a Dance.

Our hymn is #121, “We’ll Build a Land.”

This hymn features Michael Tacy, Music Director at the Gathering at Northern Hills. It was written by Carolyn McDade and Barbara Zanotti. The lyrics provide hope for a better future, a better place, a better time. Sing along with this video, or listen and meditate.

On this video Michael uses drone technology to provide some beautiful visuals, so you are encouraged to watch the video as well as listen. And take notice that at the end of the video is a labyrinth.

Experience the YouTube video We’ll Build a Land

In relation to this chosen hymn, let us refer to the words of Kimberely Debus, author of the blog farfringe.com:

“There’s a thing that’s been happening in our congregations that is reflective of what’s been happening in our society: anxiety. While we’d like to think we are our best selves at our congregations, we often are not. And suddenly, we find ourselves more anxious about things we can’t control and a bit overprotective of things we can. Things that were never an issue before are now a crisis, and things that require focus and attention get obscured by the day’s outrage.”

Let’s take a listen to this hymn, for which the lyrics are shown on the video. It is from the teal hymnal, “Singing the Living Journey,” so many of us may not be familiar with it. But the words stress the importance of our church being a haven of peace.

To quote Debus further: “In that one hour each week, we can experience a pause in the action, that can help us deal with anxiety. We should be offering worship that subtly (or not so subtly) pushes the rudder to help us correct course, that provides comfort for those worn, frayed nerves while challenging the status quo. We need sermons and readings that call us to our best selves. And we perhaps most of all, music that reminds us of who we are and who we want to be must ring through our sanctuaries.”

This rendition is by Michael Tacy, Music Director at fellow UU church, The Gathering at Northern Hills.

Enjoy the YouTube video: Let This Be a House of Peace

Our hymn is #145. According to Kimberley Debus, author of the blog farfringe.com, in regards to the history of this hymn, “Marion Franklin Hamm wrote the lyrics in 1933, in advance of the first hymnal shared by the AUA (American Universalist Association) and the UCA (Universalist Church of America), Hymns of the Spirit. It was intentionally written to celebrate the growing relationship between the two denominations, who were finding it useful to work together. As the final votes were cast and a new Unitarian Universalist Association was formed (in 1961), the assembled sang this very singable hymn together!” Thanks to Steph Tacy for the video production of this song. All vocal parts are recorded by Les Tacy.

Enjoy the YouTube video, As Tranquil Streams.

This hymn is written by the late Alicia S. Carpenter, 1930-2021, who wrote the words for several hymns in UU Singing the Living Tradition hymnal, including this hymn #360.

The music is attributed to the Genevan Psalter from 1543. The Genevan Psalter is a collection, including all 150 psalms. It was created under the supervision of John Calvin.

The lyrics to this hymnal are included on the video. Thanks to Steph Tacy for producing the video. Enjoy and sing along with Les Tacy, Music Director of Heritage, on the YouTube video Here We Have Gathered.

The Hymn is #73, Chant for the Seasons. This hymn features both Michael and Les Tacy combining to put this video together. Michael and Les performed the audio, and Michael produced the video.

With the Fall Equinox approaching, hymn #73, Chant for the Seasons, is a fitting tribute to the arrival of Fall. The lyrics are by UU minister Rev. Mark Belletini. Grace Lewis-McLaren has adapted a Czech tune, “Praha”, for the song. Usher in the new season as you listen and sing along with this beautiful song. The words are on the screen for you to follow.

Experience the YouTube video, Chant for the Seasons.