Old and new
20/09/13 03:53
Johann Sebastian Bach composed the tenth and final movement of the cantata Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben (BWV 147) sometime between 1716 and 1723. He was between the ages of 31 and 38. By that point in his life, he was recognized as a highly-respected organist and a sought-after performer at the console of the great Baroque organs of Europe.
That was nearly 300 years ago. It, of course, is considered to be ancient history by many in today’s church. And there are more than a few critics of church music who are quick to point out that the organ is a part of the church’s ancient past and that in order to keep up with modern times churches need synthesizers and digital instruments and lots of amplification.
Sometimes, when I feel like arguing I point out that the main circuit board of a computer is considered obsolete in 5 years and dysfunctional in 10 years, whereas an organ pipe can be expected to produce accurate pitches for at least 500 years. There are plenty of organs in Europe that are still making music by blowing air through the same pipes that Bach played. Such statistics don’t impress the critics of classical church music. On the other hand there have been faithful Christians who have predicted the end of the organ as an instrument for church music since the first Roman connected a bellows to a set of panpipes in the first century AD.
Yesterday afternoon, as I worked in my office, I could hear the organ in our sanctuary as it was being practiced. Music from Bach, Clarke and other composers rose from the room. The only persons to hear the music were the organist and I. And, well, of course, his mother, who drove him to the church. The organist is 15 years old and doesn’t have a driver’s license yet.
Something tells me that the predictions of the death of classical music are, once again, a bit premature.
Now don’t get me wrong. I am not opposed to many different types of music in the church. The church of Jesus Christ is far too big and far too complex for a “one size fits all” approach to music. There is room in the church for rap and rock jazz and blues, hip-hop and other forms of music as well as the sound we call “classical.” When we declare, “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof,” we mean everything. All music belongs to God. But I do cringe a little bit when someone tells me they are looking for a congregation that exclusively plays “contemporary” music.
I want to ask them what they think the 15 year old playing our organ is. If he isn’t contemporary, what is he: dead? You don’t get much more contemporary than a 15-year-old pouring his passion into an instrument that he loves.
I wonder how many weddings I have officiated at in which brides and grooms who are young from my perspective have chosen Trumpet Voluntary (The Prince of Denmark’s March) or Mendelssohn’s Wedding March or Richard Wagnere’s The "Bridal Chorus" "Treulich geführt", from the 1850 opera Lohengrin? When the time comes in their lives to make everlasting commitments, a little classical music seems to be in order.
I am well aware that the sounds that emanate from our congregation are different than what you will hear at other churches. I am only halfway joking when I say that if people pick churches like they pick radio stations, then we are definitely NPR: classical most of the time with a little jazz in the evenings. I don’t feel bad about that because in a saturated market, we have found our niche. There are nearly 200 churches and para-church organizations in Rapid City. At least three quarters of them have some kind of praise band. There are only a half dozen pipe organs with competent organists on the bench in our city. We are easy to distinguish from other congregations.
Without meaning to dismiss any of the music that is offered in praise of God, it does seem to me that it is entirely appropriate for us to use music that has survived the test of time and ben around for a while when offering our faith in a God of all time. Some of the latest music composed and arranged in our generation will survive the test of time. Some of it will be played and enjoyed hundreds of years from now. Some of it, just like some of the music played in churches 300 or 500 years ago, will fade from popularity and be forgotten.
The church is a multi-generational enterprise and what could be more multi-generational than a 15-year-old pouring his heart and soul into 300-year-old music? He and those of us who are fortunate enough to hear his playing are aware that we belong to something that is much bigger than us – much more expansive than our time on this earth.
The relationship of the church and music is complex.
Speaking of complex, so is the plotline of the opera Lohengrin. Fortunately for the couples who choose Wagner’s march, very few people know the story line. Suffice it to say that Elsa’s marriage to the knight in shining armor is short-lived and we never know for sure who is guilty and who is innocent, but a lot of people, including the bride die in the course of the drama. Whenever a couple chooses that particular piece of music, I silently pray that their marriage will bring them more happiness than is found in the strange story of Lohengrin.
We retain only part of the past. We remember our stories imperfectly. And the music we choose is neither the music of the spheres nor the sounds of heaven. It is a human endeavor undertaken in worship and praise and deep understanding that God is greater than we can imagine.
The greatness of God is immediately evident to me when I hear a 15-year-old practice the organ in our sanctuary.
That was nearly 300 years ago. It, of course, is considered to be ancient history by many in today’s church. And there are more than a few critics of church music who are quick to point out that the organ is a part of the church’s ancient past and that in order to keep up with modern times churches need synthesizers and digital instruments and lots of amplification.
Sometimes, when I feel like arguing I point out that the main circuit board of a computer is considered obsolete in 5 years and dysfunctional in 10 years, whereas an organ pipe can be expected to produce accurate pitches for at least 500 years. There are plenty of organs in Europe that are still making music by blowing air through the same pipes that Bach played. Such statistics don’t impress the critics of classical church music. On the other hand there have been faithful Christians who have predicted the end of the organ as an instrument for church music since the first Roman connected a bellows to a set of panpipes in the first century AD.
Yesterday afternoon, as I worked in my office, I could hear the organ in our sanctuary as it was being practiced. Music from Bach, Clarke and other composers rose from the room. The only persons to hear the music were the organist and I. And, well, of course, his mother, who drove him to the church. The organist is 15 years old and doesn’t have a driver’s license yet.
Something tells me that the predictions of the death of classical music are, once again, a bit premature.
Now don’t get me wrong. I am not opposed to many different types of music in the church. The church of Jesus Christ is far too big and far too complex for a “one size fits all” approach to music. There is room in the church for rap and rock jazz and blues, hip-hop and other forms of music as well as the sound we call “classical.” When we declare, “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof,” we mean everything. All music belongs to God. But I do cringe a little bit when someone tells me they are looking for a congregation that exclusively plays “contemporary” music.
I want to ask them what they think the 15 year old playing our organ is. If he isn’t contemporary, what is he: dead? You don’t get much more contemporary than a 15-year-old pouring his passion into an instrument that he loves.
I wonder how many weddings I have officiated at in which brides and grooms who are young from my perspective have chosen Trumpet Voluntary (The Prince of Denmark’s March) or Mendelssohn’s Wedding March or Richard Wagnere’s The "Bridal Chorus" "Treulich geführt", from the 1850 opera Lohengrin? When the time comes in their lives to make everlasting commitments, a little classical music seems to be in order.
I am well aware that the sounds that emanate from our congregation are different than what you will hear at other churches. I am only halfway joking when I say that if people pick churches like they pick radio stations, then we are definitely NPR: classical most of the time with a little jazz in the evenings. I don’t feel bad about that because in a saturated market, we have found our niche. There are nearly 200 churches and para-church organizations in Rapid City. At least three quarters of them have some kind of praise band. There are only a half dozen pipe organs with competent organists on the bench in our city. We are easy to distinguish from other congregations.
Without meaning to dismiss any of the music that is offered in praise of God, it does seem to me that it is entirely appropriate for us to use music that has survived the test of time and ben around for a while when offering our faith in a God of all time. Some of the latest music composed and arranged in our generation will survive the test of time. Some of it will be played and enjoyed hundreds of years from now. Some of it, just like some of the music played in churches 300 or 500 years ago, will fade from popularity and be forgotten.
The church is a multi-generational enterprise and what could be more multi-generational than a 15-year-old pouring his heart and soul into 300-year-old music? He and those of us who are fortunate enough to hear his playing are aware that we belong to something that is much bigger than us – much more expansive than our time on this earth.
The relationship of the church and music is complex.
Speaking of complex, so is the plotline of the opera Lohengrin. Fortunately for the couples who choose Wagner’s march, very few people know the story line. Suffice it to say that Elsa’s marriage to the knight in shining armor is short-lived and we never know for sure who is guilty and who is innocent, but a lot of people, including the bride die in the course of the drama. Whenever a couple chooses that particular piece of music, I silently pray that their marriage will bring them more happiness than is found in the strange story of Lohengrin.
We retain only part of the past. We remember our stories imperfectly. And the music we choose is neither the music of the spheres nor the sounds of heaven. It is a human endeavor undertaken in worship and praise and deep understanding that God is greater than we can imagine.
The greatness of God is immediately evident to me when I hear a 15-year-old practice the organ in our sanctuary.