"All things bright and beautiful"
This song, also known as "All things bright and beautiful," was written by Cecil Francis Alexander, Anglican children's-hymn-writer, and found in her collection Hymns for Little Children (1848), published at the height of the High Church Anglican movement to bring people to the Church of England. The collection was very influential, as she wrote complex theology in simplified, poetic ways for children. Three of her hymns have never, in fact, gone out of currency: "All things bright and beautiful," "Once in Royal David's city," and "There's a green hill far away," for praise, Christmas, and Lent, respectively. Many composers have set her delightful verse to music including its more popular tune, the English folktune "29th of May" set by Martin Shaw (tune called "Royal Oak", to contemporary composer John Rutter. This version sung by the Victorian-camp children in 2017 was set to a "German Air" in the collection Songs of Happy Life, edited by Sarah J. Eddy (1897).
The hymns speaks to all the beauties of nature, from ripe fruits, to creatures great and small, to trees and sunsets. Most importantly, it speaks to what God gave us: "eyes to see them, and lips that we might tell, how great is God Almighty, who made all things well" (v. 4). The hymn is longer than these verse, but even by early-century they had been excised to these four. Incidentally, the (American) titles to the four novels by English-veterinarian James Herriot taken from this hymn.
In the Carousel, above:
- Illustrated page from The Children’s Book of Hymns, illustrated by Cicely M. Barker (London: Blackie & Son, 1929)
- Score: Hymn #84 "Each Little Flower that Opens" Songs of Happy Life, edited by Sarah J. Eddy (1897).
- Lunch with the Victorian Choir Camp, 2017
- Ready to sing: Community Choristers Spring 2024 Choir
Audio link above: Victorian Choir Camp, 2017 to "German Air" tune
Video link below: Community Choristers Spring 2024 Choir to "Royal Oak" folktune; soloists: Alice Kostiak, Jesse & Josiah Weesner; Anna Bergfield & Hannah Mooney; Aurea Andrei & Matilda Fuller
This page has paths:
- Part 5: Folk Songs Alisa Clapp-Itnyre
- Part 7: Early 20th-Century Hymns Alisa Clapp-Itnyre