Silly Bull

Simone suggested in the comments here that the reason for composers of congregational music requiring more than two pages of music is simply untidy writing;

If the syllables line up in each verse, then you don't need more than 2 pages.

If you've ever sang one of Simone's songs, you'll know she knows a thing or two about tight writing.

Yet while I obviously agree with Simone agreeing with me, haven't hymn composers always been untidy? It's simply that now we shy away from the practice of inventing word abbreviations to make words which are clearly two syllables into one syllable words, in order that they fit. For example ever becomes e'er, or the classic Be Thou My Vision's heaven's becomes heavn's.

Maybe we don't need to write better, but just slur our words a bit more, missing a few syllables. Sure, we might sound intoxicated, but at least we'll be saving paper.

While we're on it, for those familiar with Mark Peterson's Hallelujah to the King of Kings, do you get as frustrated as I do when in the final verse some songleaders sing,

Blessed are those who will feast/At the glorious banquet of God himself

Except instead of singing the extra syllable 'At' as the fourth beat of the previous bar, we try to squeeze 'At the glorious banquet' into a length of time where it just shouldn't be. What we end up with is some kind of staccato quasi-rap, quasi speed-reading exercise.

Beloved songleaders, if you insist on squeezing the extra syllable in the wrong metre, then I'm going to have to insist you sing glorious as glor'ous, old school style.