Hinckley’s Poem Turns to Touching Song

Many LDS members didn’t recognize one of the songs sung at President Hinckley’s funeral. That’s because the song was actually a poem written by President Hinckley and put into music.

LDS composer, Janice Kapp Perry did not write the song specifically for President Gordon B. Hinckley’s funeral. She actually wrote it for her niece who died of cancer. Her niece found the poem to be uplifting and inspiring. When Janice put the Hinckley poem in music, she never thought it would used as a touching piece at the LDS Prophet’s funeral.

“It’s the most beautiful accompanying poem that I’ve ever heard,” said Janice.

She has been an accomplished LDS composer for quite sometime now but putting Gordon B. Hinckley’s poem to a song seemed overwhelming at first.

“I just knew how he would have wanted it to go just by thinking it through,” Janice says.

What resulted was a beautiful simple melody that accompanied Hinckley’s poem about death.

Janice was encouraged to write the Prophet and ask his permission to publish the song. She wrote him a letter but he died soon after she had sent it.

“Mostly I was sad to lose him. But as a secondary thought, I wish that I could have heard from him first,” say Janice.

The next day the letter came.

“I thought, well how can that be? He’s gone,” says Janice.

The letter was written right before Hinckley had died and in it, he thanked Janice for the music.

Days latter, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sang the song at Hinckley’s funeral.

“This has been an extremely significant experience in my life,” says Janice.

You can get a copy of the music at Janice’s web site just by clicking the link below.
http://www.ldsmag.com/radio/images/WhatIsThisThingThatMenCallDeath.pdf

The Story Behind the Hymn
“What Is This Thing That Men Call Death?”
–Janice Kapp Perry
During President Hinckley’s funeral the Tabernacle Choir sang a hymn text written by President Hinckley which I set to music in December. I would like to share with you the story of how it came to be: About two months before my niece Kathy Blacker died, on January 11, 2008, she found a three-verse poem by President Hinckley among her files. Although she was resigned to dying, she had some fears about the dying process and his words greatly comforted her, especially the second verse which described exactly what she was feeling. She wrote to President Hinckley’s office to ask permission to have the poem printed on her funeral program, and she received a very nice letter from his secretary, Don H. Staheli, saying that President Hinckley gave his permission for her to do so. The letter also conveyed some very comforting words from President Hinckley which were helpful to Kathy in her final weeks, and he said he would remember Kathy in his prayers.
Kathy then suggested that I write and ask permission to give the poem a hymn setting. I did so, and Brother Staheli conveyed President Hinckley’s permission for me to write the hymn. After offering some heartfelt prayers that I might be able to write appropriate music for his profoundly beautiful and moving text, I wrote the hymn setting and sent a copy to President Hinckley’s office for approval at the end of December. I received no immediate response.
Kathy passed away January 11 and after her funeral I sent a copy of her funeral program to President Hinckley’s office so he could see how nicely his poem was displayed along side my brother Gary Kapp’s painting of Christ. When I heard President Hinckley had passed away last Sunday night I was feeling a little sad to think I hadn’t received a letter with his official approval. But the very next day after his passing, the hoped-for letter arrived with his approval, his permission for me to publish it in a future volume of my series “Inspirational New Hymns for Choir & Home,” and leaving it to my discretion as to whether to submit it to the Church Music Division. The timing was so unusual and I was extremely grateful to receive the letter as a tender mercy in my life. Then on Monday afternoon Craig Jessop, Mormon Tabernacle Choir Director, heard about the hymn and had his office callme to obtain a copy of the hymn for consideration for President Hinckley’s funeral. On Tuesday, while traveling in California, I learned that the hymn would be performed by the Tabernacle Choir at President Hinckley’s funeral on Saturday. Having seen the great comfort this hymn brought to my niece who died just two weeks before President Hinckley passed away, my great desire is for people throughout the world to have a free copy of these magnificent words of President Hinckley to comfort them in times of the loss of loved ones. This is just one more way his influence could be felt down through time.