Quote:

… "In the Bleak Midwinter", when the melody expects i-ron:
"earth stood hard as i-ron, water like a stone."



I think this is probably more de Cormier's expectation than the melody's. I don't hear any difference in stress or rhythm between i-ern and i-ron in this context. When I run the tune in my head I can't get past "In the bleak midwinter" at which point my version digresses to "pocket full of rye," but I'm sure if we had sung it i-ron I would remember our director making a big point about the pronunciation.