Music and Religion
Growing up, I was exposed to Christian music at a young age. However, it was not until I reached high school that I learned about the stylistic differences within Christian music and how it dividing element amongst those who identify as Christian. My parents regularly took me to church as a child and I still attend church to this day. It was common for my mother to play Christian music over the radio in the car, for example, His Radio and 106.9 The Light. The non-denominational Christian churches that I attended played music of a similar style which I will get into later. Music was used to invite members of the Church to participate in worship and it was also used for moments of prayer or reflection.
After attending public school for my whole life, I got accepted to go to a Christian private school for academic purposes (I had applied to go to other public schools with a better academic standing than the one I was zoned for but they all used a lottery method and I was not chosen). The school I attended was Southern Baptist which is another denomination of Christianity and they chose to use a particular style of music for their chapel services. Disclaimer-- even amongst churches of the same denomination/division, they are not all the same. I have been to a Southern Baptist church which was very different from this institution.
The music that we sang during chapel was of the same format and instrumentation. When singing, the only instrument that was used was either the piano or the organ, and the congregation was lead by a conductor on the stage. We sang hymns which consisted of approximately four stanzas (often we skipped the third stanza for some reason) and the vocal range was relatively small to allow for all of the congregation to participate. We learned about this style of music during our discussion on how Christian music influenced the Native Americans. I have a few of the hymns we sang listed below.
This was a big contrast from the music that I knew as a "non-denominational" Christian from growing up. I was used to hearing a wide selection of instruments used in the church such as the drums, electric guitar, bass, piano, violin, etc. The songs I grew up singing were also not always of the traditional hymn format and was more adapted to the style of today's modern music. At this time in my life, I witnessed some of the dividing elements within denominations of Christianity over the stylistic elements of music. I have a few examples of "Christian contemporary music" listed below. I used to play in a church on the "Worship Team" and the song "Our God" that I have listed was one of my absolute favorites to play on the viola!
Do you feel that the instrumentation can affect the message of a song? Are the instruments the most distinguishing thing about modern Christian music, the singing style, or the words in the songs?
ReplyDeleteYes, I do feel that instrumentation may be used in a way to affect the message of a song. For example, the instruments may be used to build up and emphasize a particular message within the lyrics. For your second question, I would say its a little bit of everything . There are many modern-day Christian songs which contain they same lyrics as older hymns, but they are performed with a wider variety of instruments and a different singing style. There are also new Christian contemporary songs which are more repetitive in nature and deviate from the traditional hymn format.
DeleteHi Kimberly! It was nice to read about the different instrumentation and how it made a difference within the service. It was also nice to hear you talk about the dividing elements.
ReplyDeleteKimberly, I grew up listening to those same stations and I agree that Christian music and the faith itself is so varied across the board. I have found that being exposed to different styles of music and worship within my faith also helped me with having an open mind about different Christian denominations and different religions all together. What is your take on the diversity within Christianity and how it has the potential to shape your view of humanity?
ReplyDelete-Chelsea
I think the diversity within Christianity with regards to music styles is something that is beautiful. I agree that being exposed to different styles of worship is something that has been beneficial to me. It is also worth mentioning that music labeled as Christian may look totally different within other cultures!
DeleteHey Kimberly! I also grew up listening to the same type of music. It's pretty amazing how christian music varies not just between denominations but also between the churches themselves. The church I go to is more traditional in the style of music is played while another church that's the same denomination as mine and only about 20 minutes away prefers more modern/ contemporary music. I know you grew up with the more modern music, so did hearing more traditional music make it harder to feel connected during the service?
ReplyDeleteIt was an adjustment at first, but eventually I became very familiar with the songs they sang. Now I have a greater appreciation for a variety of Christian music! I was also already familiar with some of the lyrics from singing them in the more contemporary music style.
DeleteI talked about this a bit in my blog, too! It can be a huge culture shock when you're used to one thing and just sort of assume that's how all things are, then BOOM, you realize the world is really big and everyone has their own idea of what's the "right" thing to do. While this can get frustrating, it's also kind of exciting: there's so much to learn and explore!
ReplyDeleteHello Kimberly! Thank you for sharing your experience with Christian music. I grew up in Catholic churches and was heavily involved in the worship teams. Within the same church, the Saturday night service was typically more contemporary because that's the service that all the college students attended. The Sunday morning service was typically more classical, and sometimes choral. Growing up in Detroit, Gospel choirs were/are very prevalent and I had several opportunities to sing with them. It was very interesting to approach music differently than I had grown accustomed to in Catholic churches. Have you had experience with music as it relates to religions other than Christianity?
ReplyDeleteThat is interesting how your church altered the style of music depending on the audience! I have had some experience with music in the Catholic church as I have attended First Communion ceremonies for family members. I have also had the privilege of participating in Jewish praise dances that were sung in Hebrew! That was an experience I will never forget.
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