Richard Pennycuick <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>... In primary (elementary) school, I learnt a piece called "I Vow to Thee,
>My Country" and years later, discovered the theme in the trio of Jupiter.
>I've long forgotten the words but wondered who, if not Holst, was
>responsible for this or, indeed, whether the tune is a Holst original or
>collected perhaps from a shepherd in Devon.

It's an original melody by Holst, first used in _The Planets_ and later
adapted for the hymn (rarely encountered in church these days - I've sung
it only once in some 25 years of churchgoing).  To reduce the range, the
middle section (lines 3 & 4 of the six) is put down an octave in hymnbooks.

Virginia
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Personal homepage: http://www.ilrt.bris.ac.uk/~ggvhk/virginia.html