Dactylic and Anapestic

My books tell me that these two forms are rare in today's english-language hymn writing. Because English has far more accented syllables compared to other languages, it is more difficult to come up with a naturally-sounding text while strictly adhering to these meter patterns. That's what the books say. I say - neither one of them are for the beginner, the faint of heart, or those with a limited use of the language. :-)

Dactylic foot ( A u u )

This foot is rare in modern hymns as it is traditionally dependant on Latin word forms, and most Christians don't sing much Latin anymore. Here, however, are two notable examples, sung today to the same tune:

( A u u ) ( A u u )			( A u u ) ( A u u )
God save our gracious king! Long live our noble king! God save the king! Send him victorious, Happy and glorious, Long to reign over us; God save the king!			My country, 'tis of thee, Sweet land of liberty, Of thee I sing; Land where my fathers died, Land of the pilgrims' pride, From ev'ry mountainside Let freedom ring!

My books tell me that 6's and 4's lend themselves to this foot:

"Nearer, My God, to Thee"
"Guide Me to Thee"

Some commonly-used dactylic meters are:

64.64 and 64.64D
664.6664 - "God Save the King".  "My Country, 'Tis of Thee"
65.65D - "Away in a Manger", "The Lord Is My Shepherd", "Onward, Christian Soldiers"

Dactylic metering is also referred to as "galloping" as it has a natural gait to it. Hence, it is thought that any text used in this metering should be exuberant and "exciting"... or at least something stately that makes one want to just stand up and SING! (much the same effect as Trochaic foot). Because if this, it is very important to match the METER and the MATTER (subject matter) - it must flow easily and quickly. The rhymes are considered to be easily remembered.

Most of these standards for Dactylic metering, however, are broken and smashed to pieces by the very popular -

Soft-ly and tend-er-ly Jes-us is call-ing,
CalL-ing for you and for me;
See, on the por-tals He's wait-ing and watch-ing,
Watch-ing for you and for me.

While there is nothing 'galloping' or 'exuberant' about this text, it still lends itself to the metering beautifully, and the hearts of the singers have certainly overrode the wisdom of the scholars.

Anapestic foot ( u u A )

Anapestic is a classic poetic foot that was not considered fit for hymn use until Charles Wesley used it - and used it a lot.

One thing that makes it hard for me to readily recognize this meter is that it often starts off with one or two un-footed syllables before going in to the actual anapestic foot:

	u	A	(u	u	A)	(u	u	A)	(u	u	A)
	how	FIRM	a	foun-	DA-	tion	ye	SAINTS	of	the	LORD
	is	LAID	for	your	FAITH	in	his	EX-	cel-	lent	WORD!
	what	MORE	can	he	SAY	then	to	YOU	he	hath	SAID
	to	YOU	who	for	RE-	fuge	to	JE-	sus	have	FLED?

Again, 6's and 4's are thought to lend themselves well to this meter.

One thing I have noticed in studying these two triple meters (because there are three syllables) is that even the scholars do not agree on the metering of some texts. For example, I have seen "How Firm A Foundation" listed as Dactylic with a single syllable preceding and following three dactylic feet, and I have seen it listed as I show it above - Anapestic with a single syllable preceding three anapestic feet. It will take much more study on my part to join such a scholarly debate.

Scholars tell us that hymns employing these triple meters should be called the "Meters of Urgency" or of "Rapture". They note "a headlong dash, religious fervor", and even an "ecstasy" for the message successfully coupled to a triples metering. This is certainly true of this text:

u A (u u A) (u u A) (u u A)

Redeemer of Israel, our only delight,
On whom for a blessing we call,
Our shadow by day and our pillar by night,
Our King, our deliv'rer, our all!

We know he is coming to gather his sheep
And lead them to Zion in love,
For why in the valley of death should they weep
Or in the lone wilderness rove?

How long we have wandered as strangers in sin,
And cried in the desert for thee!
Our foes have rejoiced when our sorrows they've seen,
But Israel will shortly be free.

As children of Zion, good tidings for us.
The tokens already appear.
Fear not, and be just, for the kingdom is ours.
The hour of redemption is near.

Restore, my dear Savior, the light of thy face;
Thy soul-cheering comfort impart;
And let the sweet longing for thy holy place
Bring hope to my desolate heart.

He looks! and ten thousands of angels rejoice,
And myriads wait for his word;
He speaks! and eternity, filled with his voice,
Re-echoes the praise of the Lord.