Sing A Song Sunday - Now The Day Is Over

Today's journey into Rise Up Singing led me to page 134 and the song Now the Day Is Over, a hymn (classified as a lullaby in the book but a hymn everywhere else). The words were written by Sabine Baring-Gould, and the music was written by Joseph Barnaby in the 1860's.

I can see why the folks who wrote Rise Up Singing placed this into the lullaby section. It certainly feels lullaby-like, very smooth phrases and a limited tessitura. The lyrics are certainly spiritual in nature and reference themes of Christianity - hence, the hymn classification every other place.

Sheet Music: http://library.timelesstruths.org/music/Now_the_Day_Is_Over/pdf/
YouTube Version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWR2vVXZE5A

Here is the chart for the song.

This is a song that I would not use in its original format in my music therapy sessions. My reluctance comes from the obvious references to Christian themes. So, I would never initiate this song, but if a client brought up their spiritual preferences in the therapeutic session (probably only in individual sessions), I could use this song as is.

I can certainly see using the melody and harmonic structure of this piece to assist clients in relaxation therapeutic music experiences. Since the music is in the public domain, it may be used without fear of copyright infringement (but, be mindful of the fact that it is the intellectual property of someone else - don't take credit for someone else's work). I would definitely change the lyrics for general use with my clients.

How would you use this with your clients? 

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