What Joy Shall Fill My Heart (Band Gr. 4.5)

What Joy Shall Fill My Heart, dedicated to the composer’s mother, is based on a traditional Swedish melody set to an original text by Carl Boberg in 1885. Boberg, a Swedish editor and future politician, was walking home along the coast as a violent storm approached. Inspired by the rolling thunderstorm and calm thereafter, juxtaposed with the sound of distant church bells pealing, he wrote the poem “O Store Gud” (in English, “O Great God”). Once combined with the Swedish folk tune, his stanzas of awe and wonder gained popularity around the world, particularly following Stuart Hine’s 1953 translation to English, known as “How Great Thou Art.”

Genre: Band | # of Players: Standard
Series: Diamond Band Series
Level: 4.5 | Duration: 5:15

Instrumentation
Flute 1
Flute 2
Oboe
English Horn
Bassoon
B-flat Clarinet 1
B-flat Clarinet 2
B-flat Clarinet 3
B-flat Bass Clarinet
B-flat Contrabass Clarinet
Alto Saxophone 1
Alto Saxophone 2
Tenor Saxophone
Baritone Saxophone

B-flat Trumpet 1
B-flat Trumpet 2
B-flat Trumpet 3
F Horn 1
F Horn 2
Trombone 1
Trombone 2
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
B-flat Baritone T.C.
Tuba

Timpani [4 drums]
Percussion 1: Chimes, Glockenspiel
Percussion 2: Suspended Cymbal, Crash Cymbals
Percussion 3: 4 Concert Toms, Bass Drum