I can\u2019t imagine a better interpretation of this than this glorious version by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. It ties in, of course, with this Sunday\u2019s scripture, which includes arguably the most famous verse in John\u2019s Gospel.<\/p>\n
The hymn is actually one part of a longer oratorio devoted to telling the story of the crucifixion:<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n The Crucifixion: A Meditation on the Sacred Passion of the Holy Redeemer<\/em>\u00a0is an\u00a0oratorio\u00a0composed by\u00a0John Stainer<\/a>\u00a0in 1887. It is scored for a\u00a0SATB\u00a0choir and\u00a0organ, and features solos for\u00a0bass\u00a0and\u00a0tenor.\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Stainer intended that piece would be within the scope of most\u00a0parish church\u00a0choirs; it includes five\u00a0hymns<\/a> for congregational participation.\u00a0<\/sup>The text was written by\u00a0W J Sparrow Simpson<\/a>, the\u00a0librettist\u00a0of Stainer\u2019s earlier\u00a0cantata,\u00a0Mary Magdalene<\/i>.\u00a0<\/sup>The work is dedicated \u201cto my pupil and friend W. Hodge and the choir of\u00a0Marylebone Church<\/a>\u201c, who first performed it on February 24, 1887, the day after\u00a0Ash Wednesday.<\/p>\n Although the composer\u00a0Ernest Walker<\/a>\u00a0dismissed the work, writing in 1924 that \u201cMusicians today have no use for\u00a0The Crucifixion<\/i>\u201c, and even Stainer characterized his work as \u201crubbish,\u201d\u00a0<\/sup>the work continues to be performed today. The oratorio has been recorded several times, including a well-known recording from\u00a0RCA Victor<\/a>\u00a0in 1929, featuring\u00a0Richard Crooks<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Lawrence Tibbet.<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n About the composer<\/strong>:<\/a><\/p>\n Sir John Stainer<\/b>\u00a0(6 June 1840\u00a0\u2013 31 March 1901) was an English composer and organist whose music, though not generally much performed today (except for\u00a0The Crucifixion<\/a><\/i>, still heard at\u00a0Passiontide<\/a>\u00a0in many churches of the\u00a0Anglican Communion<\/a>), was very popular during his lifetime. His work as choir trainer and organist set standards for\u00a0Anglican church music<\/a>\u00a0that are still influential. He was also active as an academic, becoming Heather Professor of Music at\u00a0Oxford<\/a>.<\/p>\n His work as a composer was much esteemed during his lifetime but is not well known today.\u00a0The Crucifixion<\/i>\u00a0is one of the few major works of his that is still regularly performed. It is often given in Anglican churches during\u00a0Holy Week<\/a>\u00a0and forms part of the repertoire of numerous choirs. He also made a lasting contribution to the music of Christmas in his\u00a0Christmas Carols New and Old<\/i>\u00a0(1871), produced in collaboration with the Revd.\u00a0H. R. Bramley<\/a>, which marked an important stage in the revival of the\u00a0Christmas carol<\/a>. The book includes Stainer\u2019s arrangements of what were to become the standard versions of \u201cWhat Child Is This<\/a>\u201c, \u201cGod Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen<\/a>\u201c, \u201cGood King Wenceslas<\/a>\u201c, \u201cThe First Nowell<\/a>\u201c, and \u201cI Saw Three Ships<\/a>\u201c, among others.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Give a listen to \u201cGod So Loved the World,\u201d which our choir will be singing this Sunday for the Communion hymn:<\/p>\n