How Great Thou Art
Original Swedish poem 1885 by Carl Boberg. English translation 1949 by Stuart K. Hine. Public domain.
Verse 1
O CLord my God, when FI in awesome Cwonder
Consider Call the worlds Thy Ghands have G7made
I Csee the stars, I Fhear the rolling Cthunder
Thy Ampower throughFout the Cuniverse disG7played
Chorus
Then Csings my Fsoul, my CSavior God to GThee
How Cgreat Thou C7art, how Fgreat Thou Cart
Then Csings my Fsoul, my CSavior God to GThee
How Cgreat Thou G7art, how great Thou Cart
Verse 2
When Cthrough the woods and Fforest glades I Cwander
And Chear the birds sing Gsweetly in the G7trees
When CI look down from Flofty mountain Cgrandeur
And Amhear the brook Fand feel the Cgentle G7breeze
Chorus
Then Csings my Fsoul, my CSavior God to GThee
How Cgreat Thou C7art, how Fgreat Thou Cart
Then Csings my Fsoul, my CSavior God to GThee
How Cgreat Thou G7art, how great Thou Cart
Verse 3
And Cwhen I think that FGod, His Son not Csparing
Sent CHim to die, I Gscarce can take it G7in
That Con the cross, my Fburden gladly Cbearing
He Ambled and Fdied to take aCway my G7sin
Verse 4
When CChrist shall come with Fshout of acclaCmation
And Ctake me home, what Gjoy shall fill my G7heart
Then CI shall bow in Fhumble adoraCtion
And Amthere proFclaim, my CGod, how great Thou G7art
Playing Tips
🎸 Strum Pattern — Verse
For the verses, we use a gentle down-up pattern on beats 1 and 3 and let the chord ring through beats 2 and 4. The space in between gives the words room to land. Do not rush. How Great Thou Art is a song of wonder, and wonder needs space.
🔊 Dynamics — Chorus
The chorus is one of the biggest moments in any worship service. We hold back during the verses and open everything up on "Then sings my soul." Full band, full volume. The contrast is what makes it powerful. If the verse is a whisper, the chorus becomes a shout.
→ Transitions — Chorus
On the last word of each verse before the chorus, we use a short lift. After "displayed," pause for one beat, then bring the full band in on "Then." That single beat of silence signals the congregation that the chorus is coming and gives them half a second to breathe before singing out.
🎵 Band Direction
Keys carry a lot of the texture in this hymn. A sustained pad under the verses and a full chord voicing on the chorus creates the contrast that makes How Great Thou Art work. Bass should walk up through the chord changes on the chorus entrance. Let the guitar strum freely on the chorus.
🎤 Vocal
Key of C is comfortable for most congregational singing. The melody peaks at G on "Then sings my soul," which most voices can reach without strain. If your lead vocalist has a lower range, Bb works well and the chord shapes are still straightforward.