DOCSLIB.ORG

A Critical Engagement with Hymns, Songs, and Congregational Singing Practices Using Postcolonial, Decolonial, and Liberating Perspectives

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
A Critical Engagement with Hymns, Songs, and Congregational Singing Practices Using Postcolonial, Decolonial, and Liberating Perspectives Liberating Congregational Singing: A Critical Engagement with Hymns, Songs, and Congregational Singing Practices Using Postcolonial, Decolonial, and Liberating Perspectives by Becca Whitla A Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Emmanuel College and the Graduate Centre for Theological Studies of the Toronto School of Theology. In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Theology awarded by the University of St. Michael's College. © Copyright by Becca Whitla 2019 i Liberating Congregational Singing: A Critical Engagement with Hymns, Songs, and Congregational Singing Practices using Postcolonial, Decolonial, and Liberating Perspectives Becca Whitla Doctor of Philosophy University of St. Michael’s College 2019 Abstract Drawing upon liberationist, postcolonial, and decolonial scholarship, this thesis interrogates the colonizing forces in Western European and Anglo North Atlantic congregational singing. It is undertaken in the context of recent scholarly discourses on hymnody which have begun to uncover eurocentrism in the study of music and entails an interdisciplinary engagement with the hymnic (congregational song) inheritance of historic mainline Protestant churches in Canada, focusing on the United and Anglican churches of Canada, as well as with congregational singing and song leading practices in those traditions. It also shows how congregational singing can embody a liberating praxis by fostering an opening up to traditions from the Global South and those marginalized in the Global North, along with carefully reclaimed elements of this hymnody. The study’s praxical approach privileges processes of identification and contextualization because they allow us to understand how identities, relationships, and ecclesial (church) and social contexts are conditioned by and implicated in the history of colonialism in Canada. As such, engaging decolonial thinking is a key strategy for interrogating, undoing, and identifying the coloniality lurking in hymnody. By reckoning with the complex histories of mainline denominational contexts and examining hymns from those contexts, the nineteenth century roots of hymnic canons from the peak of the British Empire are exposed and a coloniality in text and music—musicoloniality—is unmasked. ii Colonial hymns can also be reconfigured, or flipped, by the communities that sing them becoming expressions of forbearance, hope, and resistance. At the same time, hymns and ritual practices from the Global South offer liberating possibilities. An examination of marginalized communities has something to teach the mainstream. Through an analysis of the practices in two Toronto community settings, an Anglican congregation and a choir of Jamaican Canadian hotel workers, the possibilities and the limitations of decolonial thinking, particularly border thinking/singing, are illuminated. Inspired by liberationist theologies, especially Latin American Liberation and Latina/o theologies, the dissertation concludes by proposing initial principles for a liberating liturgical theology. Congregational singing can be both embodied and liberating, nourishing fuller expressions of complex cultural identities in present-day churches in Canada. iii Acknowledgements The work in these pages reflects and is undergirded by the many communities in which I have sung and taught over many years. I am particularly grateful to the Church of the Holy Trinity in downtown Toronto, the Echo Women’s Choir, the H.E.R.E. Local 75 Choir, and the Toronto School of Theology Choir. The dissertation project itself is also the result of a rich engagement with many people who have accompanied me in my scholarly journey. To each and every one of you, too numerous to name, thank you! Many thanks to my committee, Pamela Couture, Lim Swee Hong, and William Kervin. They have warmly accompanied me from the beginning, critically engaging with my work and gently and firmly pushing me where I needed to be pushed. My supervisor, William Kervin, has gone above and beyond, guiding me every step along the way and encouraging me with his careful and clear advice which I usually followed. It has been a joy to reflect on some of the principles of this dissertation with him as we together midwifed the worship life of the Emmanuel College community. Thanks for trusting and encouraging my leadership in the role of Director of Chapel at the college and as an emerging scholar and teacher. My research was recognized and supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada through a Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Doctoral Scholarship and through an Ontario Graduate Scholarship. This generous support validated my project by making it possible to dedicate myself to this scholarly work throughout my doctoral programme. I am also grateful to Emmanuel College for four years of funding which included a fellowship with Lim Swee Hong who cheerfully encouraged by offering me opportunities to teach, to travel, to present my ideas in academic and community settings, and by having countless conversations over coffee. iivv I am grateful to the students, staff, and faculty at Emmanuel College. I am particularly grateful to Principal Mark Toulouse for finding funds for me to travel in 2015 to the conference of the International Academy of Practical Theology in Pretoria, South Africa and the Christian Congregational Music Conference in Rippon, UK. In those two instances, I presented earlier versions of the research I developed in this dissertation. Similarly, acting Principal Phyllis Airhart also found funds which, along with a grant from the Oxford Fund of The United Church of Canada, supported my travel to Birmingham, UK in December of 2017 to present at a conference supported by the United Reformed Church. I am also grateful to the Seminario Evangelico de Teología de Matanzas for supporting two study retreats in 2017 and 2018 during which I wrote outlines for two chapters and my conclusion. The scholarship in this dissertation was deeply enriched through my involvement with the Canadian Decolonial Theology Project: my heartfelt thanks go to these colleague-friends— Néstor Medina, Michel Andraos, and Lee Cormie. Our work together deeply challenged me and sharpened my use of post and decolonial theory. In particular, I would like to pay tribute to Néstor Medina who introduced me to Latin American decolonial thinking as my professor before I began my doctoral studies. His scholarship and ongoing mentoring has provided a rich source for critical engagement and reflection throughout these pages. Finally, I would like to thank my family for their patience and support: my parents, Nancy and Bill Whitla and my children’s godfather, Peter Turner; and especially, my children Emma Whitla and David Gasser and their father, Alan Gasser. Thank you for believing in me and in my work. Thank you for loving me. Thank you for being part of my syncopated liberating praxis of life! v Contents Introduction: Flipping the Song Bird ..........................................................................................1 Methodology and Outline .............................................................................................6 Postscript: Flipping the Song Bird .............................................................................13 Chapter 1: Trans-forming Praxis: Initial Rubrics for Liberating Song Leading ..................15 Introduction ................................................................................................................15 Historical Context: Congregational Singing Over the Last Fifty Years ....................16 Liberating Song Leading ............................................................................................20 Context and Accountability .............................................................................20 Decolonizing Song Leading: Epistemic Humility and Kenosis .......................26 Messing Up ......................................................................................................29 Towards Liberating Accompaniment ..............................................................31 Chapter 2: Untangling the Threads of Our Stories ..................................................................35 Introduction ................................................................................................................35 Part One: Singing My Story .......................................................................................37 The Broader Context: Coloniality in Canada .................................................49 Multiculturalism as a Linchpin of Coloniality ................................................53 Part Two: Making Sense of Our Stories .....................................................................56 Unbleaching ....................................................................................................58 Unsuturing .......................................................................................................61 Mestizaje-Intermixture ....................................................................................63 From Being to Becoming ................................................................................66 Part Three: Church and Coloniality ............................................................................68 Part Four: Congregational Singing Is a Risky Liberating Praxis ...............................77 Chapter 3: The Empire Sings .....................................................................................................81
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume I
    The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume I Edited by Theodore Hoelty-Nickel Valparaiso, Indiana The greatest contribution of the Lutheran Church to the culture of Western civilization lies in the field of music. Our Lutheran University is therefore particularly happy over the fact that, under the guidance of Professor Theodore Hoelty-Nickel, head of its Department of Music, it has been able to make a definite contribution to the advancement of musical taste in the Lutheran Church of America. The essays of this volume, originally presented at the Seminar in Church Music during the summer of 1944, are an encouraging evidence of the growing appreciation of our unique musical heritage. O. P. Kretzmann The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume I Table of Contents Foreword Opening Address -Prof. Theo. Hoelty-Nickel, Valparaiso, Ind. Benefits Derived from a More Scholarly Approach to the Rich Musical and Liturgical Heritage of the Lutheran Church -Prof. Walter E. Buszin, Concordia College, Fort Wayne, Ind. The Chorale—Artistic Weapon of the Lutheran Church -Dr. Hans Rosenwald, Chicago, Ill. Problems Connected with Editing Lutheran Church Music -Prof. Walter E. Buszin The Radio and Our Musical Heritage -Mr. Gerhard Schroth, University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill. Is the Musical Training at Our Synodical Institutions Adequate for the Preserving of Our Musical Heritage? -Dr. Theo. G. Stelzer, Concordia Teachers College, Seward, Nebr. Problems of the Church Organist -Mr. Herbert D. Bruening, St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, Chicago, Ill. Members of the Seminar, 1944 From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume I (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1945).
    [Show full text]
  • The Slow Integration of Instruments Into Christian Worship
    Musical Offerings Volume 8 Number 1 Spring 2017 Article 2 3-28-2017 From Silence to Golden: The Slow Integration of Instruments into Christian Worship Jonathan M. Lyons Cedarville University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.cedarville.edu/musicalofferings Part of the Christianity Commons, Fine Arts Commons, Liturgy and Worship Commons, Musicology Commons, and the Music Performance Commons DigitalCommons@Cedarville provides a publication platform for fully open access journals, which means that all articles are available on the Internet to all users immediately upon publication. However, the opinions and sentiments expressed by the authors of articles published in our journals do not necessarily indicate the endorsement or reflect the views of DigitalCommons@Cedarville, the Centennial Library, or Cedarville University and its employees. The authors are solely responsible for the content of their work. Please address questions to [email protected]. Recommended Citation Lyons, Jonathan M. (2017) "From Silence to Golden: The Slow Integration of Instruments into Christian Worship," Musical Offerings: Vol. 8 : No. 1 , Article 2. DOI: 10.15385/jmo.2017.8.1.2 Available at: https://digitalcommons.cedarville.edu/musicalofferings/vol8/iss1/2 From Silence to Golden: The Slow Integration of Instruments into Christian Worship Document Type Article Abstract The Christian church’s stance on the use of instruments in sacred music shifted through influences of church leaders, composers, and secular culture. Synthesizing the writings of early church leaders and church historians reveals a clear progression. The early musical practices of the church were connected to the Jewish synagogues. As recorded in the Old Testament, Jewish worship included instruments as assigned by one’s priestly tribe.
    [Show full text]
  • Music for Contemporary Christians: What, Where, and When?
    Journal of the Adventist Theological Society, 13/1 (Spring 2002): 184Ð209. Article copyright © 2002 by Ed Christian. Music for Contemporary Christians: What, Where, and When? Ed Christian Kutztown University of Pennsylvania What music is appropriate for Christians? What music is appropriate in worship? Is there a difference between music appropriate in church and music appropriate in a youth rally or concert? Is there a difference between lyrics ap- propriate for congregational singing and lyrics appropriate for a person to sing or listen to in private? Are some types of music inherently inappropriate for evangelism?1 These are important questions. Congregations have fought over them and even split over them.2 The answers given have often alienated young people from the church and even driven them to reject God. Some answers have rejuve- nated congregations; others have robbed congregations of vitality and shackled the work of the Holy Spirit. In some churches the great old hymns havenÕt been heard in years. Other churches came late to the Òpraise musicÓ wars, and music is still a controversial topic. Here, where praise music is found in the church service, it is probably accompanied by a single guitar or piano and sung without a trace of the enthusi- asm, joy, emotion, and repetition one hears when it is used in charismatic churches. Many churches prefer to use no praise choruses during the church service, some use nothing but praise choruses, and perhaps the majority use a mixture. What I call (with a grin) Òrock ÔnÕ roll church,Ó where such instruments 1 Those who have recently read my article ÒThe Christian & Rock Music: A Review-Essay,Ó may turn at once to the section headed ÒThe Scriptural Basis.Ó Those who havenÕt read it should read on.
    [Show full text]
  • Southern Black Gospel Music: Qualitative Look at Quartet Sound
    LIBERTY UNIVERSITY SOUTHERN BLACK GOSPEL MUSIC: QUALITATIVE LOOK AT QUARTET SOUND DURING THE GOSPEL ‘BOOM’ PERIOD OF 1940-1960 A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE SCHOOL OF MUSIC IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN ETHNOMUSICOLOGY BY BEATRICE IRENE PATE LYNCHBURG, V.A. April 2014 1 Abstract The purpose of this work is to identify features of southern black gospel music, and to highlight what makes the music unique. One goal is to present information about black gospel music and distinguishing the different definitions of gospel through various ages of gospel music. A historical accounting for the gospel music is necessary, to distinguish how the different definitions of gospel are from other forms of gospel music during different ages of gospel. The distinctions are important for understanding gospel music and the ‘Southern’ gospel music distinction. The quartet sound was the most popular form of music during the Golden Age of Gospel, a period in which there was significant growth of public consumption of Black gospel music, which was an explosion of black gospel culture, hence the term ‘gospel boom.’ The gospel boom period was from 1940 to 1960, right after the Great Depression, a period that also included World War II, and right before the Civil Rights Movement became a nationwide movement. This work will evaluate the quartet sound during the 1940’s, 50’s, and 60’s, which will provide a different definition for gospel music during that era. Using five black southern gospel quartets—The Dixie Hummingbirds, The Fairfield Four, The Golden Gate Quartet, The Soul Stirrers, and The Swan Silvertones—to define what southern black gospel music is, its components, and to identify important cultural elements of the music.
    [Show full text]
  • Contemporary Christian Music & The
    PLAYING THE MARKET: CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN MUSIC & THE THEORY OF RELIGIOUS ECONOMY by Jamie Carrick B.A., The University of Calgary, 2007 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in The Faculty of Graduate Studies (Religious Studies) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Vancouver) October 2012 © Jamie Carrick, 2012 Abstract Contemporary Christian music (CCM) is a fascinating and understudied part of the religious vitality of modern American religion. In this dissertation the theory of religious economy is proposed as a valuable and highly serviceable methodological approach for the scholarly study of CCM. The theory of religious economy, or the marketplace approach, incorporates economic concepts and terminology in order to better explain American religion in its distinctly American context. In this study, I propose three ways in which this method can be applied. Firstly, I propose that CCM artists can be identified as religious firms operating on the “supply-side” of the religio-economic dynamic; it is their music, specifically the diverse brands of Christianity espoused there within, that can allow CCM artists to be interpreted in such a way. Secondly, the diversity within the public religious expressions of CCM artists can be recognized as being comparable to religious pluralism in a free marketplace of religion. Finally, it is suggested that the relationship between supply-side firms is determined, primarily, by the competitive reality of a free market religious economy. ii Table of Contents Abstract . ii Table of Contents . iii List of Figures . iv Acknowledgements . v 1 Introduction . 1 1.1 Introduction . 1 1.2 Religion & Popular Culture .
    [Show full text]
  • Yesterday and Today Records March 2007 Newsletter
    March 2007 Newsletter ----------------------------------- Yesterday & Today Records 255A Church St Parramatta NSW 2150 phone/fax: (02) 96333585 email: [email protected] web: www.yesterdayandtoday.com.au ------------------------------------------------------ Postage: 1 cd $2.00/ 2cd $3/ 3-4 cds $5.80* (*Recent Australia Post price increase.) Guess what? We have just celebrated our 18th anniversary. Those who try things we recommend are rewarded. We have stayed in business for one reason and that is we have never attempted to appeal to the lowest common denominator as mainstream outlets do. At the same time we recognise that people do have different tastes and to some CMT is actually good. We also appeal to those people and offer many mainstream items in our bargain bin. But the legends and true country music are our bread butter and will always be. If you see something you think you may like but are worried let us know. If you pass our inquisition we may be able to send it on a sale or return basis. I say inquisition because if your favourite artists are SheDaisy and Rascal Flatts we certainly aren’t going to risk something as precious as Justin Trevino. By the same token we believe great music is timeless and knows no bounds. People may think chuck steak is good until they try the best rump! Recently I had the pleasure of seeing Dale Watson. Before hand I had the added pleasure of sitting in with my compatriot Eddie White (a.k.a. “The Cosmic Cowboy”) for an interview at the 2RRR Studios. Dale is a humble, engaging and extremely likeable man with a passion for tradition.
    [Show full text]
  • The Relational Ethics of Church Music
    ABSTRACT The Relational Ethics of Church Music Nathan Myrick, Ph.D. Mentor: Monique M. Ingalls, Ph.D. Music is an “indispensable” aspect of Protestant Christian worship, to use Brian Wren’s term (2000, 48). Yet it is also perceived as one of the most divisive aspects of that activity, with scholars, practitioners, and congregants alike contributing to this perspective. As scholars such as Donald Hustad (1993), Harold Best (1993, 2003), J. Nathan Corbitt (1998), Brian Wren (2000), James K. A. Smith (2009), and Jeremy S. Begbie (2011) have similarly noted, music connects people to each other and enlivens our emotional and relational convictions. This reality strongly suggests that music has ethical significance; if music is so emotionally and relationally powerful, and can be a source of unity and division, then it should be examined from within an ethical frame. It is surprising, however, that few scholars of Christian worship have attempted to consider music’s way of being in the world from an ethical perspective. This dissertation argues that a central problem in scholarship on music in Christian worship is that the ethical significance of church music has been sidestepped, ignored, or generally undertheorized. Using a multidisciplinary methodology drawn from ethnomusicological fieldwork at three Waco, Texas, Baptist churches and synthesizing theories of discourse, formation, and care ethics oriented towards restorative justice, I argue that church music is ethical when it preserves people in and restores people to just relationships with each other and, when applied directly to ecclesial settings, relationship with God. The Relational Ethics of Church Music by Nathan Myrick, B.A., M.A.T.
    [Show full text]
  • Contemporary Christian Music and Oklahoma
    - HOL Y ROCK 'N' ROLLERS: CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN MUSIC AND OKLAHOMA COLLEGE STUDENTS By BOBBI KAY HOOPER Bachelor of Science Oklahoma State University Stillwater, Oklahoma 1993 Submitted to the Faculty of the Oklahoma State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE August, 2003 HOLY ROCK 'N' ROLLERS: CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN MUSIC AND OKLAHOMA COLLEGE STUDENTS Thesis Approved: ------'--~~D...e~--e----- 11 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My sincere appreciation goes out to my adviser. Dr. Jami A. Fullerton. for her insight, support and direction. It was a pleasure and privilege to work with her. My thanks go out to my committee members, Dr. Stan Kerterer and Dr. Tom Weir. ""hose knowledge and guidance helped make this publication possible. I want to thank my friend Matt Hamilton who generously gave of his time 10 act as the moderator for all fOUf of the focus groups and worked with me in analyzing the data. ] also want to thank the participants of this investigation - the Christian college students who so willingly shared their beliefs and opinions. They made research fun r My friends Bret and Gina r.uallen musl nlso be recognii'_cd for introducing me !(l tbe depth and vitality ofChrislian music. Finally. l must also give thanks to my parents. Bohby and Helen Hoopc,;r. whose faith ,md encouragement enabled me to see the possibilities and potential in sitting down. 111 - TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page 1. INTRODUCTION Overview ofThesis Research Problem 3 Justification Definition ofTerms 4 [I. LITERATURE REVIEW 5 Theoretical Framework 6 Uses and Gratifications 6 Media Dependency 7 Tuning In: Popular Music Uses and Gratifications 8 Bad Music, Bad Behavior: Effects of Rock Music 11 The Word is Out: Religious Broadcasting 14 Taking Music "Higher": ('eM 17 Uses & Gratifications applied to CCM 22 111.
    [Show full text]
  • Nuevo Flamenco: Re-Imagining Flamenco in Post-Dictatorship Spain
    Nuevo Flamenco: Re-imagining Flamenco in Post-dictatorship Spain Xavier Moreno Peracaula Submitted in fulfilment of the degree of PhD Newcastle University March 2016 ii Contents Abstract iv Acknowledgements v Introduction 1 Chapter One The Gitano Atlantic: the Impact of Flamenco in Modal Jazz and its Reciprocal Influence in the Origins of Nuevo Flamenco 21 Introduction 22 Making Sketches: Flamenco and Modal Jazz 29 Atlantic Crossings: A Signifyin(g) Echo 57 Conclusions 77 Notes 81 Chapter Two ‘Gitano Americano’: Nuevo Flamenco and the Re-imagining of Gitano Identity 89 Introduction 90 Flamenco’s Racial Imagination 94 The Gitano Stereotype and its Ambivalence 114 Hyphenated Identity: the Logic of Splitting and Doubling 123 Conclusions 144 Notes 151 Chapter Three Flamenco Universal: Circulating the Authentic 158 Introduction 159 Authentic Flamenco, that Old Commodity 162 The Advent of Nuevo Flamenco: Within and Without Tradition 184 Mimetic Sounds 205 Conclusions 220 Notes 224 Conclusions 232 List of Tracks on Accompanying CD 254 Bibliography 255 Discography 270 iii Abstract This thesis is concerned with the study of nuevo flamenco (new flamenco) as a genre characterised by the incorporation within flamenco of elements from music genres of the African-American musical traditions. A great deal of emphasis is placed on purity and its loss, relating nuevo flamenco with the whole history of flamenco and its discourses, as well as tracing its relationship to other musical genres, mainly jazz. While centred on the process of fusion and crossover it also explores through music the characteristics and implications that nuevo flamenco and its discourses have impinged on related issues as Gypsy identity and cultural authenticity.
    [Show full text]
  • New Oxford History of Music Volume Ii
    NEW OXFORD HISTORY OF MUSIC VOLUME II EDITORIAL BOARD J. A. WESTRUP (Chairman) GERALD ABRAHAM (Secretary) EDWARD J. DENT DOM ANSELM'HUGHES BOON WELLESZ THE VOLUMES OF THE NEW OXFORD HISTORY OF MUSIC I. Ancient and Oriental Music ii. Early Medieval Music up to 1300 in. Ars Nova and the Renaissance (c. 1300-1540) iv. The Age of Humanism (1540-1630) v. Opera and Church Music (1630-1750) vi. The Growth of Instrumental Music (1630-1750) vn. The Symphonic Outlook (1745-1790) VIIL The Age of Beethoven (1790-1830) ix. Romanticism (1830-1890) x. Modern Music (1890-1950) XL Chronological Tables and General Index ' - - SACRED AND PROFANE MUSIC (St. John's College, MS. B. Cambridge, 18.) Twelfth century EARLY MEDIEVAL MUSIC UP TO BOO EDITED BY DOM ANSELM HUGHES GEOFFREY CUMBERLEGE OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS LONDON NEWYORK TORONTO 1954 Oxford University Press, Amen House, London E.C.4 GLASGOW NEW YORK TORONTO MELBOURNE WELLINGTON BOMBAY CALCUTTA MADRAS KARACHI CAPE TOWN IBADAN Geoffrey Cumberlege, Publisher to the University PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN GENERAL INTRODUCTION THE present work is designed to replace the Oxford History of Music, first published in six volumes under the general editorship of Sir Henry Hadow between 1901 and 1905. Five authors contributed to that ambitious publication the first of its kind to appear in English. The first two volumes, dealing with the Middle Ages and the sixteenth century, were the work of H. E. Wooldridge. In the third Sir Hubert Parry examined the music of the seventeenth century. The fourth, by J. A. Fuller-Maitland, was devoted to the age of Bach and Handel; the fifth, by Hadow himself, to the period bounded by C.
    [Show full text]
  • Luther's Hymn Melodies
    Luther’s Hymn Melodies Style and form for a Royal Priesthood James L. Brauer Concordia Seminary Press Copyright © 2016 James L. Brauer Permission granted for individual and congregational use. Any other distribution, recirculation, or republication requires written permission. CONTENTS Preface 1 Luther and Hymnody 3 Luther’s Compositions 5 Musical Training 10 A Motet 15 Hymn Tunes 17 Models of Hymnody 35 Conclusion 42 Bibliography 47 Tables Table 1 Luther’s Hymns: A List 8 Table 2 Tunes by Luther 11 Table 3 Tune Samples from Luther 16 Table 4 Variety in Luther’s Tunes 37 Luther’s Hymn Melodies Preface This study began in 1983 as an illustrated lecture for the 500th anniversary of Luther’s birth and was presented four times (in Bronxville and Yonkers, New York and in Northhampton and Springfield, Massachusetts). In1987 further research was done on the question of tune authorship and musical style; the material was revised several times in the years that followed. As the 500th anniversary of the Reformation approached, it was brought into its present form. An unexpected insight came from examining the tunes associated with the Luther’s hymn texts: Luther employed several types (styles) of melody. Viewed from later centuries it is easy to lump all his hymn tunes in one category and label them “medieval” hymns. Over the centuries scholars have studied many questions about each melody, especially its origin: did it derive from an existing Gregorian melody or from a preexisting hymn tune or folk song? In studying Luther’s tunes it became clear that he chose melody structures and styles associated with different music-making occasions and groups in society.
    [Show full text]
  • Syllabus for MUS 350—Hymnology 2 Credit Hours Spring 2003
    Syllabus for MUS 350—Hymnology 2 Credit Hours Spring 2003 I. COURSE DESCRIPTION Studies the development of hymnody from the Early Church to contemporary usages. Examines 19th and 20th century Gospel hymns and their effective use in the Christian church of today. Prerequisities: None II. COURSE GOALS The purpose of this course is to enable the student to obtain information concerning the development of hymns in Christianity for those in the ministry of music in making congregational singing more interesting, meaningful, and spiritually informative. III. COURSE OBJECTIVES As a result of successfully completing this course, the student will be able to do the following: A. Name the major hymn text and hymn tune writers. B. Trace important hymnody tends. C. Describe the use of hymnals in terms of format, context, purpose, and design. IV. TEXTBOOKS Required Textbooks Eskew, Harry and Hugh McElrath. Sing with Understanding. Nashville: Church Street Press, 1995. Fettke, Tom. The Celebration Hymnal. Nashville: Word Music, 1997. V. POLICIES AND PROCEDURES C. University Policies and Procedures 1. Attendance at each class or laboratory is mandatory at Oral Roberts University. 2. Double cuts will be assessed for absences immediately preceding or following holidays. 3. Excessive absences can reduce a student’s grade or deny credit for the course. 4. Students taking a late exam because of an unauthorized absence will be charged a late exam fee. 5. Students and faculty at Oral Roberts University adhere to all laws addressing the ethical use of others’ materials, whether it is in the form of print, video, multimedia, or computer software. 6.
    [Show full text]