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the role of the church in renaissance music
music critique essay
music critique essay
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While driving in my car after church last week, I was listening to my favorite radio station. Once it started playing those annoying commercials, I decided to give my childhood go-to station -- 88.7 WAY-FM a try (I haven't listened to Christian music in years). The song "We Fall Down (At the Feet of Jesus)" by Chris Tomlin was playing. How long has this one been on the air? Since 1998 -- and that's a problem.
Contemporary Christian music (CCM) is the genre of choice of most worship leaders for youth retreats, Christian camps, Sunday morning worship, and Wednesday night Bible groups. The purpose of the selected arrangements is to draw out the "spirit of worship" and "open the eyes of our hearts". While I have no doubt that worship leaders all over the U.S. have the purest intentions, they have missed the mark on this. Is it just me, or haven't they played "Our God is and Awesome God" a million times already? Yes they have.
Church group worship leaders continue to recycle decades old "contemporary" Christian worship and praise songs that repeat the same lines over and over and over. Yes, many CCM radio hits are considered "classic" CCM songs, but no matter what the song is, if you listen to it enough, you will eventually loath it. Calling these old 90's songs "Christian classics" is an oxymoron simply because they used to be contemporary during the time they were written, but now should be resigned to the past.
How many times have you heard the song "The Heart of Worship" or "I Can Only Imagine" in your lifetime? How old were you when you first heard it? That is my case and point right there. Other popular praise songs of the 90's include: "I Could Sing of Your Love Forever" "Open the Eyes of My Heart" "Shout to the Lord" and "...
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...Well, you can expect something more personal -- encouragement and that sort of thing."
Should the entire Christian music genre be obliterated? I think so. We need fewer Christian bands and more bands of Christians making music that both pleases God and the culture.
Works Cited
Browning, Dave. "Why Switchfoot Won't Sing Christian Songs." Ctkblog. Christ the King Community Church, 5 Dec. 2013. Web. 29 Apr. 2014.
Menzie, Nicola. "Lecrae Talks of Criticism in Refusing Sacred-Secular Divide." Lecrae Talks of Criticism in Refusing Sacred-Secular Divide. CP Entertainment, 29 May 2013. Web. 29 Apr. 2014.
Parks, Michael J. "Michael Card by The Phantom Tollbooth." Michael Card by The Phantom Tollbooth. Phantom Tollbooth, 11 Dec. 1997. Web. 29 Apr. 2014.
Stevenson, Wayne. "Why Is Christian Music Inferior?" Voices.yahoo.com. Yahoo.com, 2 Jan. 2007. Web. 29 Apr. 2014.
Even though there is only one scene in this novel that involves a church, hymn music is one of the most prominent themes in Cold Mountain. Even more surprisingly, Frazier’s usage of hymn music throughout the novel is very accurate. Hymn music during the Civil War was extremely important to the Christian churches as well as to society as a whole. Religious music was a wonderful representation of the values and culture of the times (Squire 237). It is through hymns during the Civil War that values and culture are passed down. The hymns of Monroe’s church caused Ada to grow...
... religion really is. It's the love of thy neighbor and loving the little things in life. It's connecting to one another, and being tolerant of one another. This musical exemplifies the culture of the new millennium.
Tichi, Cecilia. High lonesome: the American culture of country music. University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill. 1994. Print.
"About the Mormon Tabernacle Choir." Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Intellectual Reserve, Inc, 21 Feb. 2012. Web. 23 Mar. 2014. .
Despite being originally rejected for it, a large portion of Cash’s career and fame are attributed to his work with gospel music. The influence of Christianity upon Cash’s life is clearly evident through his music. By 1970, Cash had recorded three gospel albums: Hymns by Johnny Cash, Hymns from the Heart, and The Holy Land. During this era, it was not abnormal for country musicians to also venture into religious productions. Often, however, these religious-type albums were merely quaint recollections of simpler times and family tradition. In this way, Johnny Cash set himself apart from the average country musician. Rather than utilizing gospel music to evoke a sense of nostalgia, Cash desired to use his music to truly exemplify his faith. Cash became a key figure in Neo-Evangelism, often appearing at rallies and
Gospel songs combined religious lyrics with melodies and rhythms inspired by early blues and jazz. Many churches rejected this new integration of religious conviction and popular song as devil's music that had no place in a house of worship.
In the years since I left, Rock springs has added air-conditioning and a sound system and a fellowship hall, but has changed little in one important way: the congregation still sings out of green, dog-eared copies of the 1940 Broadman Hymnal. Though I heard the songs in the Broadman sung well only once a year, on Homecoming, the third Sunday in May, when the church overflowed with visitors and our musical shortcoming were hidden inside a joyful noise, they have always been the songs I love best. I would be hard-pressed to recall even a single sentence from the hundreds of sermons I heard growing up
Many composers and artists have been branded by religious organisations as being in league with the devil, from the banning of songs, performers and even chords and movements by the church to the present day right wing Christian ‘preachers’ of YouTube.
...erself expanded gospel’s exposure when she appeared twice on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.” Meanwhile, television producer Bobby Jones reaches four and a half million viewers each week with his BET program, “Gospel Explosion.” However, the test for Gospel music reflects one that all Christian musicians must wrestle with: Can Gospel continue to increase its fortune in the mainstream marketplace while still maintaining its spiritual base? Despite what you believe the answer to be, African American Religious music will continually evolve. Since Thomas Dorsey first stretched the boundaries to create gospel music, choirs, quartets, and power vocalists have been singing the same song, albeit in different styles and places. As African American religious music continues to grow beyond even Dorsey’s expectations, one can only hope that it will be embraced regardless of how it is labeled by everyone who needs to be reminded of the good news it represents.
Religion has been an important part of man’s life. Man has allowed religion to control and influence his life in many different ways, affecting both his behavior and his actions. So its not surprising that music, one of man’s earliest expressive forms, has also been influenced by religion. Religion has had an effect on man’s music all throughout history, from the early Egyptians to even now. So it is only natural that Western music should also have been affected by religion. Western music, and its development by composers, has been strongly influenced by the Christian religion, especially in the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque periods. The music in these periods laid the foundation for all the different types of music we enjoy today.
Contemporary, as well as older, Gospel music originated from the “Spirituals.” The spirituals, also known as the “Negro Spirituals or African-American folk songs,” were religious songs sung by the African Americans slaves in Southern America. The spirituals spawned from teachings of Christianity from slave owners, the church and even hymns. The songs were usually about love, hope, peace, oppression, freedom and even used as a secret code. The African American slaves would sing while working so much so that slave o...
"What the Artists and Songwriters Have to Say." MusicUnited.org. Music United, n.d. Web. 19 Mar. 2014.
Wolffe, J. (2008). Tradition and dissent in English Christianity. In C. Price (Ed.), The Arts Past and Present: Tradition and Dissent (pp. 71-106). Milton Keynes, England: The Open University.
John Williams Interview for Music Express Magazine. Perf. John Williams. YouTube, 20 Apr. 2012. Web. 21 Nov. 2013.