Evan Stephens

[Bernard Gui]

In a now defunct (thank heaven) thread, ttribe gave this link to a review of a book by Michael Quinn:

http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/publications/review/?vol=10&num=1&id=280

To my shame, I have to admit that I am an LDS musician and I know nothing about

Evan Stephens other than he wrote a lot of our hymns, founded the Tabs, and was

rumored to be homosexual because he never married.

This is not a thread about homosexuality. Please don't bring it up again.

It is about what an extraordinary person Stephens was. After reading the section

in the review about the real Evan Stephens, I am astounded at the depth of his

virtue and goodness. Unbearable tragedy, unrequited love, supreme self-control,

artistic excellence, grinding hard work, purity of heart, vision, generosity...

In the right hands, his life story would be an interesting and compelling motion

picture that would enlighten many about LDS culture in the late 19th and early

20th centuries. It would appeal to all audiences, IMO.

Bernard

[Pahoran]

In a now defunct (thank heaven) thread, ttribe gave this link to a review of a book by Michael Quinn:

http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/publications/review/?vol=10&num=1&id=280

To my shame, I have to admit that I am an LDS musician and I know nothing about

Evan Stephens other than he wrote a lot of our hymns, founded the Tabs, and was

rumored to be homosexual because he never married.

This is not a thread about homosexuality. Please don't bring it up again.

It is about what an extraordinary person Stephens was. After reading the section

in the review about the real Evan Stephens, I am astounded at the depth of his

virtue and goodness. Unbearable tragedy, unrequited love, supreme self-control,

artistic excellence, grinding hard work, purity of heart, vision, generosity...

In the right hands, his life story would be an interesting and compelling motion

picture that would enlighten many about LDS culture in the late 19th and early

20th centuries. It would appeal to all audiences, IMO.

Bernard

Yes, Evan Stephens was a wonderful man.

Pity that some people like to defame him posthumously.

Regards,

Pahoran

[USU78]

He was an unofficial member of my father's mother's family, as her father, the creator of the Logan Tabernacle Choir and a published composer of hymns and other music back in his day, had been a student and became a lifelong chum of Stephens.

As such, my grandmother and her sisters and brother used to tell family stories about him. She and my grandfather, visiting Salt Lake so my grandfather could catch his train to go do his doughboy bit, visited for several hours with Stephens.

This is how close the family was to him.

Despite Quinn's claims that Stephens was both a homosexual because he never married in this life, and then speculated that Stephens predated the young men who were his students and who boarded with him during their studies with him.

Here's the family tale on Stephens' failure to marry. He was involved with a young woman, an actress in local productions, and with whom he was acting. During the rehearsals of a melodrama, somebody made a terrible mistake: they loaded a live round in the stage pistol that was supposed to be loaded with blanks. She was killed on stage in front of Stephens.

He never got over it and never married.

The rumors during his life were that he might have been carrying on with his housekeeper, whom he apparently considered marrying, but wouldn't/couldn't because of his European notions of fitness. There were, apparently, background differences that made marriage to her unthinkable. The family were convinced these rumors were nonsense. There is certainly no evidence anything ever happened, except that, after his death, she had herself sealed to him . . . which, of course, fed the rumors.

The thought that he was light in the loafers would have been laughable to those who actually knew and were close to him.

A wonderful poet, teacher, musician, composer . . . I hope his tremendous works will never be taken out of the hymnal.

[Bernard Gui]

A wonderful poet, teacher, musician, composer . . . I hope his tremendous works will never be taken out of the hymnal.

Thank you for sharing these experiences! I have to learn more about him. My grandmother was raised in Sanford, Colorado, an LDS

pioneer settlement. She was an excellent pianist. The Church sent musicians around to the settlements to train local members to

sing and play. I believe her instructor was Spencer Cornwall. On reflection, I believe she had the gift of pitch recognition (perfect pitch).

She could transpose hymns or parlor music to any key. Grampa played the cello and they spent many evenings playing in the living

room of their small home in Manassa. She taught dozens of kids in their town to play the piano, and she served as ward organist

almost her whole life. When I learned to play the violin, we would play together. Their favorite song was

"Whispering Hope." They also played in a church dance band and grampa played saxophone in the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad band.

The community dance hall was unusual...the floor was built on carriage springs, so when the people danced it would bounce up and down.

Bernard

[mapman]

Evan Stephens wrote some of my favorite hymns. He and the other Welsh pioneers were known for their singing ability and brought joy to the trek to Utah with their voices. Brigham Young had some Welsh singers form a choir to sing at general conference which became the Mormon Tabernacle Choir directed by Evan Stephens. One of my ancestors Elenor Jones was part of Stephen's choir.

[Scott Lloyd]

In a now defunct (thank heaven) thread, ttribe gave this link to a review of a book by Michael Quinn:

http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/publications/review/?vol=10&num=1&id=280

To my shame, I have to admit that I am an LDS musician and I know nothing about

Evan Stephens other than he wrote a lot of our hymns, founded the Tabs, ...

Hate to nitpick, BG, but Evan Stephens did not found the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. George Careless and Ebenezer Beesley both predated him as directors, and there were others who came before them.

There has been a Tabernacle Choir virtually from the time there has been a Salt Lake Tabernacle. That would date it from the 1860s, as this history written by Roger Miller, a music professor at the University of Utah and a former member of the General Music Committee of the Church, shows.

Evan Stephens's era was around or near the turn of the century. Incidentally, the choir this year is observing 100 years of musical recording. Stephens was the director during that first recording session, and one of the first recordings was his composition, "Let the Mountains Shout for Joy." Here's my Church News piece about the observance this year and an album that has just been released in connection with it.

[ttribe]

In a now defunct (thank heaven) thread, ttribe gave this link to a review of a book by Michael Quinn:

http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/publications/review/?vol=10&num=1&id=280

Not to be a wet blanket, but I don't think I gave that link.

[Alf O'Mega]

With eighteen hymns in the latest official hymnal, Evan Stephens is still strongly represented, although it was perhaps inevitable that his standing would have eroded since 1927, when one in five of the hymns were his (84 out of 421).

My sense is that his music has not aged well in most cases. My favorites are "Father, Thy Children to Thee Now Raise," "For the Strength of the Hills," and "Ye Simple Souls Who Stray." (Regarding that last one, not a peep out of you, Schryver!) But I simply can't stand "In Remembrance of Thy Suffering" and "What Was Witnessed in the Heavens?" And the "Hosannah Anthem" that is often (always?) sung at temple dedications is sounding more threadbare all the time.

Besides, other than "True to the Faith" and "Let Us All Press On," I don't hear most of the rest of his hymns sung much these days. I suspect that the next hymnal will include fewer than a dozen Stephens hymns. And as long as my favorites make the cut, I won't be too upset about that.

[Bernard Gui]

Hate to nitpick, BG, but Evan Stephens did not found the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. George Careless and Ebenezer Beesley both predated him as directors, and there were others who came before them.

Not a nitpick. I did say I don't know much about him, and now I'm proving it.

Evan Stephens's era was around or near the turn of the century. Incidentally, the choir this year is observing 100 years of musical recording. Stephens was the director during that first recording session, and one of the first recordings was his composition, "Let the Mountains Shout for Joy." Here's my Church News piece about the observance this year and an album that has just been released in connection with it.

Great! Thanks for the further information about Stephens. They had to haul the recording equipment on a train and today you can

put a professional digital recorder in your pocket. How times have changed.

Hate to nitpick, but Handel wrote the Hallelujah Chorus.

Bernard

[Bernard Gui]

My favorites are "Father, Thy Children to Thee Now Raise," "For the Strength of the Hills," and "Ye Simple Souls Who Stray."

I like those, too.

My parents served a stake mission in the San Ildefonso Indian Pueblo in New Mexico back in the late '60s. They sang

"for the Strength of the Hills" in a sacrament meeting and were embarrassed to sing the words,

"Where the red untutored Indian seeketh here his rude delights" with the Pueblo Saints. They wrote a letter to the Church music

committee, and family lore is that their letter resulted in the omission of that verse in the hymnal. Those are words

of a bygone era, as is the style of some of his music, but do not diminish his work.

Bernard

[Bernard Gui]

Not to be a wet blanket, but I don't think I gave that link.

No worries. It was 'thesomoetimesaint,' not you. You posted directly under his, and I read it wrong.

Thanks for the correciton.

Bernard

[Bernard Gui]

Stephens' life is such an extraordinary story.

A movie in the manner of the great Merchant/Ivory flicks would

have vast appeal. Told truthfully, it has universal and moving human values.

At the same time, it could dispel a lot of myths about the LDS church that

arose at the turn of the century. If I had the ability and resources, I would make the movie

myself.

Bernard

[Scott Lloyd]

Hate to nitpick, but Handel wrote the Hallelujah Chorus.

Beethoven wrote a Hallelujah Chorus as well. Both his and Handel's are on the new Tab Choir album (and both are mentioned in my Church News story).

Checkmate.

[Alf O'Mega]

Beethoven wrote a Hallelujah Chorus as well.

I don't think he'd appreciate you mentioning it, though. It's not as atrocious a piece as Wellington's Victory, but what is? I guess if you swing for the fences, you're going to strike out occasionally, but P! U! what a stench!

Now I'm going to go put on the second movement of the Emperor Concerto and see if I can re-convince myself of Beethoven's immortality.

[Scott Lloyd]

I don't think he'd appreciate you mentioning it, though. It's not as atrocious a piece as Wellington's Victory, but what is? I guess if you swing for the fences, you're going to strike out occasionally, but P! U! what a stench!

Now I'm going to go put on the second movement of the Emperor Concerto and see if I can re-convince myself of Beethoven's immortality.

All I can say is, meh. I'm not a Beethoven apologist.

[Alf O'Mega]

All I can say is, meh. I'm not a Beethoven apologist.

There is still time to repent.

Still, even Tchaikovsky said something that has been aphorized as: "Mozart makes me weep and tremble. Beethoven just makes me tremble." (The actual quote is less pointed and less quotable.) But having deposited, er, composed the 1812 Overture, he should talk!

[USU78]

Stephens' life is such an extraordinary story. A movie in the manner of the great Merchant/Ivory flicks would have vast appeal. Told truthfully, it has universal and moving human values. At the same time, it could dispel a lot of myths about the LDS church that arose at the turn of the century. If I had the ability and resources, I would make the movie myself.

Bernard

You're absolutely right! Very "Remains of the Day," isn't it?

[Bernard Gui]

Beethoven wrote a Hallelujah Chorus as well. Both his and Handel's are on the new Tab Choir album (and both are mentioned in my Church News story).

Checkmate.

L I B ! Learn something new every day.

But Handel wrote the only true HC.

Bernard

[USU78]

L I B ! Learn something new every day.

But Handel wrote the only true HC.

Bernard

Here's a college chorus and orchestra doing Beethoven's

from his Mount of Olives.

I'll go with Beethoven over Handel every time on this one.

[Scott Lloyd]

Here's a college chorus and orchestra doing Beethoven's

from his Mount of Olives.

I'll go with Beethoven over Handel every time on this one.

You rascal, you are deliberately trying to antagonize Alf O'Mega.

[Bernard Gui]

Here's a college chorus and orchestra doing Beethoven's

from his Mount of Olives.

I'll go with Beethoven over Handel every time on this one.

Uhhhh....no. Doesn't make me want to stand up and shout hallelujah.

Now that I've seen the video, I do know the piece. Might have even performed it.

I've never called it the Hallelujah Chorus, but simply the Hallelujah (from Christ

on the Mt. of Olives). It's OK Beethoven, but I wouldn't put it up there with Handel's

Hallelujah. Not all Beethoven is great...but when it's great it's really great.

In this case, Handel rules.

Try this one on for size:

Let's see you do that with Beethoven!

Bernard

[Scott Lloyd]

Uhhhh....no. Doesn't make me want to stand up and shout hallelujah.

Now that I've seen the video, I do know the piece. Might have even performed it.

I've never called it the Hallelujah Chorus, but simply the Hallelujah (from Christ

on the Mt. of Olives). It's OK Beethoven, but I wouldn't put it up there with Handel's

Hallelujah. Not all Beethoven is great...but when it's great it's really great.

In this case, Handel rules.

Try this one on for size:

Let's see you do that with Beethoven!

Bernard

Hilarious.

Incidentally, I don't think Handel's piece is formally called "Hallelujah Chorus" either, but simply "Hallelujah" or "Hallelujah" from "Messiah."

[USU78]

Uhhhh....no. Doesn't make me want to stand up and shout hallelujah.

Now that I've seen the video, I do know the piece. Might have even performed it.

I've never called it the Hallelujah Chorus, but simply the Hallelujah (from Christ

on the Mt. of Olives). It's OK Beethoven, but I wouldn't put it up there with Handel's

Hallelujah. Not all Beethoven is great...but when it's great it's really great.

In this case, Handel rules.

Try this one on for size:

Let's see you do that with Beethoven!

Bernard

Roll over Beethoven, tell Tschaikowsky the news!

[Bernard Gui]

Hilarious.

Incidentally, I don't think Handel's piece is formally called "Hallelujah Chorus" either, but simply "Hallelujah" or "Hallelujah" from "Messiah."

In my orchestra score it's just Chorus.

Bernard