Lowell Mason (PHH 96) arranged DENNIS and first published it in The Psaltery (1845), a hymnal he compiled with George. Webb (PHH 559). Mason attributed the tune to Johann G. Nageli (b. Wetzikon, near Zurich, Switzerland, 1773; d. Wetzikon, 1836) but included no source reference. Nageli presumably published the original melody as the setting for "0 selig, selig, wervor dir" in his Christliches Gesangbuch (1828). Nageli was an influential music educator who lectured throughout Germany and France. Influenced by Johann Pestalozzi, he published his theories of music education in Gangbildungslehre (1810), a book that made a strong impact on Lowell Mason. Nageli composed mainly" choral works, including settings of Goethe's poetry. He received his early instruction from his father, then in Zurich, where he concentrated on the music of]. S. Bach. In Zurich, he also established a lending library and a publishing house, which published first editions of Beethoven s piano sonatas and music by Bach, Handel, and Frescobaldi.

The tune name DENNIS is thought to refer to a town in Massachusetts. It is a simple tune, initially built with several sequences. Sing stanzas 1 and 6 in unison and the others in parts, perhaps using no accompaniment on stanza 4 for occasions of sorrowful, parting. Two groups can also sing the entire hymn antiphonally, by half-stanzas, especially if one group is parting from the other. Sing the tune in two long lines, with, one pulse per measure.

--Psalter Hymnal Handbook