About Dr. Larry

Dr. Larry Frazier, Professor of Music (retired) at the University of West Georgia, has compiled a series of half hour radio programs to bring listeners to a more profound appreciation of the hymn.

Dr. Larry Frazier Welcomes You

Larry Frazier has sung numerous performances as bass soloist in Handel’s Messiah and in other large-scale choral works ranging from Bach’s St. John Passion and Magnificat to Brahms’ Requiem, which he sang with the San Antonio Symphony in a special performance upon the death of President Lyndon Johnson, as well as over 150 performances of leading bass roles with professional companies such as the New Orleans Opera, Indianapolis Opera, Syracuse Opera, Opera Memphis, and The National Opera. He created the starring role of The Elder in the world premier of James Oliverio’s StarChild as well as in the Emmy Award-winning film version of this multi-media opera, which was seen state-wide over Georgia Public Television.

Recent concert appearances include solo performances in Italy at the Chiesa di Santa Maria della Pieta, Venice, and in Verona; he also sang as guest cantor at Washington National Cathedral, Washington, D.C. In preparation for his career he was an apprentice artist with The Santa Fe Opera, a first-place winner in the Texoma Region as well as national finalist in the National Association of Teachers of Singing Artist Award Auditions, and a first-place district winner and regional finalist in The Metropolitan Opera Auditions.

Dr. Frazier created a majority of the episodes of The Hymn of the Week while his wife, Mary Lynn, was undergoing treatment for stage-three colon cancer. She has now been cancer free for over eight years, but the expressions of faith embodied in these hymns helped sustain them both during the difficult months of chemotherapy treatment.

He holds undergraduate and masters degrees from Louisiana State University, where he served as graduate assistant conductor of the LSU A Capella Choir, and the Doctor of Music Degree from Florida State University. He retired as Professor of Music and Director of Opera at the University of West Georgia, Carrollton, after almost a quarter-century of service from 1988-2012, when he built the UWG Opera into one of the most active undergraduate programs in the region. His voice students have achieved success as professionals in opera and concert singing and in higher education.

A life-long church musician, Dr. Frazier is currently a member of First Baptist Church, Carrollton, Georgia, where he is a choir member and soloist. He also serves as a deacon and adult Sunday School teacher. He and his wife Mary Lynn have two sons and two grandchildren.

Mary Lynn & Larry Frazier - Faith Music Connection

Mary Lynn & Larry Frazier

Read in Paperback or on any device - A Story Behind Every Hymn by Larry Frazier

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How A Story Behind Every Hymn was Born:

Just over ten years ago, I began to write the scripts for what would become a thirty-minute radio program entitled “The Hymn of the Week.” About this same time, my wife, Mary Lynn, was diagnosed with colon cancer. After surgery, she began an arduous series of chemotherapy treatments which continued for the next eight months.

From my earliest memories, when I have sensed the presence of God, it is often particularly through music. Hymns have special meaning to me. 

Read in Paperback or on any device - A Story Behind Every Hymn by Larry Frazier
Every week of Mary Lynn’s treatments, I would spend an average of fifteen hours researching and writing about a great traditional hymn for the radio program, including a variety of musical performances.

We were inspired and encouraged by these hymns and the often-challenging circumstances leading to their creation. We found that the faith expressed by the hymn writers sustained us as we faced the uncertain outcome of her chemotherapy. By the end of these ultimately successful treatments, I had completed about 36 of a total of 52 episodes. “The Hymn of the Week” continues to inspire listeners over local radio.

Early in 2018, Mary Lynn and I experienced another life-changing event. While touring the desert terrain of Wadi Rum, Jordan, she fell and fractured her femur into the hip socket, requiring hip-replacement surgery. God’s love and protection through the kindness and hospitality and medical expertise of Jordanian citizens together with angel wings surrounding us got us through this emergency to a full recovery.

The keen sense of God’s presence and protection was underscored as several hymns came to mind during Mary Lynn’s treatment. “God Moves in a Mysterious Way, His Wonders to Perform” and “Crown Him with Many Crowns,” among others, kindled a deep feeling of awe and appreciation of God’s love and a new-found connection to the hymn writers.

These dramatic faith experiences led me to write many hymn-inspired entries on my FaithMusicConnection.com blog. But my book, “A Story Behind Every Hymn,” is the culmination of these events. What a joy for me to show the connection of God’s love and grace experienced and shared by authors of hymns spanning over a thousand years of history!

A Story Behind Every Hymn” includes key verses of each hymn, related passages of Scripture and a devotional and prayer to inspire, encourage and strengthen. When you pick up your copy, you will encounter the presence of God as you discover that the stories of the hymns are also your stories. You can read the book in a single sitting or use each story as a daily or weekly devotional. You can also use it as a reference. And, if you purchase the paperback version, you have my permission to write in it! 

Contact Dr. Larry:

I sincerely hope that you receive many blessings from the works we have prepared for you at Faith Music Connection. To contact me to share your feedback on our site or for media inquiries:

e:   Larry@FaithMusicConnection.com

t:    (770) 596 - 1451

Read in Paperback or on any device - A Story Behind Every Hymn by Larry Frazier

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