What Wondrous Love

Charles Maggs preserved and underscored the plaintive quality of this familiar hymn tune from "Southern Harmony" in this accessible 3 octave setting. Simple rising and falling chord progressions in the midrange bells, supported by a slow, simple ostinato pattern in the lower bells, provide a plain backdrop to the simple presentation of the melody. The end of the first section then builds toward a bolder, more insistent restatement with a different tonal center, which finally subsides before returning to the original setting that rises and fades away to a final, quiet, hollow chord. This work makes a highly effective and quietly dramatic selection for use in worship during Lent, or at any other service where the focus is to be on Christ's sacrifice on the cross.