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John Henry Hopkins, Jr.

Browse piano sheets by John Henry Hopkins, Jr. on Zen Virtual Piano. John Henry Hopkins, Jr. (1820–1891) was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He studied at the University of Vermont and at General Theological Seminary in New York City, graduating in 1850. He then became the seminary’s first church music instructor and was founding editor of the Church Journal from 1853 to 1868. A United Methodist hymn history calls Hopkins the author and composer of We Three Kings of Orient Are. He wrote the carol around 1857, drawing on the journey of the magi in Matthew 2:1-12, and it was first published in his Carols, Hymns, and Songs in 1863. He also shaped how the piece could be performed. Verses two, three and four are sung as solos by the Kings Gaspard, Melchior and Balthazar, while only the first and fifth verses are sung as a trio. Hopkins recommended men’s voices for the Kings, with the music set in the G clef for the accommodation of children.

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Where did John Henry Hopkins, Jr. study?

He studied at the University of Vermont and at General Theological Seminary in New York City, graduating in 1850.

When did Hopkins write We Three Kings?

A United Methodist hymn history says he wrote the carol around 1857 and that it was first published in Carols, Hymns, and Songs in 1863.

How did Hopkins arrange the verses?

Verses two, three and four are solos for the three Kings, and verses one and five are sung as a trio. He suggested men’s voices for the Kings and a G-clef setting for children.