What Wondrous Love
Composer
Difficulty
Easy
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Voicing(s)
Instruments
Category
Instrumental Only?
No
Description
Grade K-2 Children's Choir (or Easy Access anthem for Grade 3-6 - or ANY age choir) for unison treble voices and violin (or flute or oboe).
- Text Source: What Wondrous Love, attr. Alexander Means; Kyrie eleison
- Tune Source: WONDROUS LOVE, Southern Harmony, 1835
- Worship Use: (World) Communion
- Vocal Part(s): Unison treble voices
- Vocal Range: d to d’
- Key: D Dorian
- Meter: Alternating 3/2 and 2/2
Teaching Guide
- Teach the choristers to chant the text (using correct singing diction) of the Kyrie eleison section; talk about the meter.
- Teach the choristers to sing the Kyrie eleison melody with text.
- Teach the body of What Wondrous Love phrase by phrase, in rhythm, to the choristers; pay close attention to tuning melodic intervals.
- Teach each phrase with text and melody together.
- Integrate the sections of the anthem together, reinforcing their memory of the numbers of beats between sections.
- Practice the anthem with the violin several during several rehearsals before attempting to use this anthem in worship. (Be prepared in case your choristers need to have their melody line reinforced by the organ or another instrument.
Audio
Lyrics
Kyrie eleison, Christe eleison, Kyrie eleison.
What wondrous love is this, O my soul, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this, O my soul!
What wondrous love is this that caused the Lord of bliss
to bear the dreadful curse for my soul, for my soul,
to bear the dreadful curse for my soul.
When I was sinking down, sinking down, sinking down,
When I was sinking down, sinking down,
When I was sinking down beneath God’s righteous frown,
Christ laid aside His crown for my soul, for my soul,
Christ laid aside His crown for my soul.