THE AMAZING HYMNAL
We thought 8.6.8.6 had taught us how hymn meter works. Then came SM, LM, doubled meters, refrains—and something called HYFRYDOL. Apparently, the hymnal still has a few surprises for us.
By now, you may be getting pretty comfortable with four little numbers:
8.6.8.6.
Common Meter.
We’ve counted it. We’ve used it to match words with music. We’ve even used the Metrical Index to find other tunes that share the same pattern.
So perhaps we've figured this meter business out.
Not quite.
Open the Metrical Index again and suddenly our familiar CM has company:
SM.
LM.
SMD.
CMD.
LMD.
Then the abbreviations begin disappearing altogether and we find strings of numbers.
Some have refrains.
Some have alleluias.
One even has a chorus and bridge.
And eventually we encounter a category called:
Irregular.
Apparently, 8.6.8.6 was only the beginning.
But then we're going to do something different.
We're going to stop searching for tunes by their numbers and start looking at their names.
NEW BRITAIN.
ST. ANNE.
WINCHESTER NEW.
And then there's this one:
HYFRYDOL.
Who—or what—is HYFRYDOL?
Why does it appear with more than one hymn?
And why do hymn tunes have these strange names in the first place?
That's where this Collection is headed.
We're going to learn a little more of the language hiding in the back of the hymnal—and discover that a hymn tune has something we may never have realized.
Its own structure.
Its own name.
Its own history.
Its own identity.
THE AMAZING HYMNAL
SM, CM, LM... & Who's HYFRYDOL?
Coming March 15, 2027
FREE TO MEMBERS
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