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If you sing/use this song, please contact the composer and say thank you to David Welker!
Voicing/Instrumentation: Guitar, Guitar Chords Available
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Comments for this piece:
From Danielle the Choir Pianist: I'm delighted to see this beautiful song getting more attention! Thanks for posting it here.
More about David Welker:
I am a hobby classical guitarist. While I have had no formal musical theory or arranging training, I did play the trombone in the BYU Marching Band, - akin to staying at the Holiday Inn Express. I began playing the trombone at the age of 10 upon quitting guitar lessons because my mother said I had to play something. I started playing the guitar when I was 8 when I quit piano lessons after only one lesson, because basically I'm a quitter. Sadly, I was not mature enough to fully appreciate classical guitar at the time, so I quit that too and started playing the trombone in the band. I later began dabbling with other guitars, the banjo and even the mandolin. I picked classical back up after our first child was born when my wife told me my other guitars were just too noisy. So I bought a Yamaha Classical guitar at the main Yamaha store in Shibuya, Japan and tried to retrain myself. Recently a young man I worked with on my mission sent me "How Great Thou Art" which he had arranged for classical guitar. I played it back for him and he challenged me to arrange something myself and send it back. That something became "The Lord is My Shepherd"...and I am now slowly arranging some of my other favorite hymns...these are all arranged at my ZPD. I always stay true to the number of verses in the actual hymn, and try to mix things up in different verses so I don't get bored. There are some easier verses and some that I can just play. Feel free to play the whole arrangement, or just the verses you like! Recordings are done on my phone in the living room...often with some funny background noise! These are provided simply to give an idea of what I had in mind...as you can tell I'm still practicing... I have a list of songs I'm going to get to, so in the event anyone had a request I may move it up my list if it is there. If you would like a TABLATURE version of a song, please email me.
A classical guitar setting for one of the oldest known Christmas Carols, dating to the 5th century. Ironically, I stumbled upon this fantastic hymn while recently binge watching The Blacklist...There truly is beauty everywhere!
Lyrics attributed to St. James the Less, First Bishop of Jerusalem
1 Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
and with fear and trembling stand.
Ponder nothing earthly minded,
for with blessing in His hand
Christ our God to earth descending
comes, our homage to demand.
2 King of kings, yet born of Mary,
as of old on earth He stood,
Lord of heaven now incarnate
in the body and the blood,
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heav’nly food.
3 Rank on rank the host of heaven
streams before Him on the way,
as the Light of light descending
from the realms of endless daycomes,
that pow’rs of hell may vanish,
as the shadows pass away.
4 At His feet the six-winged seraph,
cherubim with sleepless eye,
veil their faces to the Presence,
as with ceaseless voice they cry,
“Alleluia! Alleluia!Alleluia, Lord Most High!”
Lyrics: Attributed to St. James the Less, First Bishop of Jerusalem
1 Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
and with fear and trembling stand.
Ponder nothing earthly minded,
for with blessing in His hand
Christ our God to earth descending
comes, our homage to demand.
2 King of kings, yet born of Mary,
as of old on earth He stood,
Lord of heaven now incarnate
in the body and the blood,
He will give to all the faithful
His own self for heav’nly food.
3 Rank on rank the host of heaven
streams before Him on the way,
as the Light of light descending
from the realms of endless day
comes, that pow’rs of hell may vanish,
as the shadows pass away.
4 At His feet the six-winged seraph,
cherubim with sleepless eye,
veil their faces to the Presence,
as with ceaseless voice they cry,
“Alleluia! Alleluia!
Alleluia, Lord Most High!”
