Description
The history behind “More Holiness Give Me”: Philip Paul Bliss was born in 1838 and grew up in rural Pennsylvania and Ohio. When he was 10 years old and selling vegetables to help support the family, Philip first heard a piano and was unable to resist the temptation that lured him through an open door and into the parlor. Barefoot and ragged, he stood spellbound until the music ceased. Philip, in ecstacy, cried out, “O lady, play some more.” The young lady, surprised at the unexpected intrusion by the ragged stranger, rudely ordered him out of the house, but he left with sweet memories of the music. By the 1870s Bliss began to devote a great deal of energy to the composition of sacred music. In 1873 he wrote “More Holiness Give Me,” the hymn rendered by the following artists in this episode: The Brigham Young Unversity Singers, Ron Staheli, Lex de Azevedo, Kenneth Cope, Michael Dowdle, and the Brigham Young University Men’s Chorus.
Marylou Cunningham Leavitt discusses the creation of Hymn number 22, "We Listen to a Prophet's Voice." Marylou shares her conversion story, how the hymn came about, and how it almost did not make it into the hymnbook. The episode includes a performance of the hymn by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
Published 09/10/12
Janice Kapp Perry wrote the music for the beloved hymn "As Sisters in Zion." She is also a major contributor for many songs in the Children's Songbook. Hear the history behind these songs. Janice herself shares some of the stories of how the songs came about.
Published 02/06/12
Joseph J. Daynes was the first Tabernacle organist (from 1867 to 1900). Joseph learned to play the piano nearly as soon as he learned to walk. By the time he was four he was able to play tunes that no teacher had taught him. At six his progress had become nearly phenomenal, and the family story...
Published 01/30/12