The Musical Heritage of the Church Volume III
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The Musical Heritage of the Church Volume III Edited by Theodore Hoelty-Nickel Valparaiso, Indiana The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume III Table of Contents Foreword Opening Address Theo. Hoelty-Nickel The Principles of Proper Church Music (Sermon) The Rev. A. W. Mennicke The Chorale in the Life of the Child O. C. Rupprecht Johann Walther, Composer, Pioneer, and Luther’s Musical Consultant Walter E. Buszin Problems in Church Organ Construction Paul Bunjes The Organ in Worship with Emphasis on the Chorale Prelude Paul Rosel The Program From The Musical Heritage of the Church, Volume III (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1946). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Page 2 The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume III Foreword The essays presented in this volume were read at the Third Valparaiso University Seminar on Church Music, which met in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, August 25–29, 1946. This meeting was unique inasmuch as it presented an opportunity for practical demonstrations in the field of church music. During the two past seminars, held at Valparaiso University, the needs for a revival of our musical heritage were stressed. In Sheboygan our theories were put into practice. The mornings were devoted to essays and practical demonstrations, while the evenings were set aside for various types of programs* [*see last item in this volume] featuring the music of our Church. At the close of the conference the following resolution was adopted: 1. For the building up of the faith of our fathers in us and in our children it is necessary not only that we become increasingly aware of the existence of the musical heritage of our Church, but also that this rich legacy be used and become an essential part of our spiritual experience. To that end the Third Church Music Conference, of August 25–29, 1946, at Sheboygan, Wisconsin, under the sponsorship of Valparaiso University and the Synodical Conference Lutheran Churches of Sheboygan, advocates that systematic theoretical and practical instruction in the chorale and related spiritual songs become general in our elementary schools and Sunday schools; that this instruction be continued and expanded to include the larger art forms, both vocal and instrumental, in our general high schools and Valparaiso University, and especially in the synodical academies, junior colleges, teachers’ colleges, and theological seminaries, where pastors and teachers are being trained. Therefore, be it resolved that this conference urge all synodical Boards of Education, particularly the Board for Higher Education of the Missouri Synod, to recommend to the Missouri Synod at its next triennial convention, following the example of the Wisconsin Synod, to create in both the junior colleges and the theological seminaries music professorships and fill them with men properly prepared for training pastors who not only know, but also appreciate our great heritage and cause it to be fully used in their parishes. Be it further resolved that copies of the resolution above be sent to President J. W. Behnken, President John Brenner, President O. P. Kretzmann, the Board for Higher Education of the Missouri Synod, the Board for Parish Education, the presidents of all the high schools and synodical institutions of the Synodical Conference. 2. We wholeheartedly encourage original musical compositions, including musical arrangements and settings, for Lutheran worship, made in the Lutheran spirit. Above all, we anticipate hearing, in future sessions of the Conference, such new, original music by talented composers of the Lutheran Church. We wholeheartedly encourage musical scholarship and study, with special reference to the chorale and the liturgies of the Lutheran Church. From The Musical Heritage of the Church, Volume III (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1946). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Page 3 The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume III We furthermore wholeheartedly encourage the editors of the series Anthologia Lutherana and Laudamus Dominum to continue to augment the repertory of our Lutheran heritage. 3. We again extend our thanks to the Music Department of Valparaiso University for arranging this Third Church Music Conference, particularly for implementing the practical plan of bringing our Lutheran heritage in music to our congregations. To all who participated in the performances (the limits of time and space prohibit mentioning names)—instrumentalists, choirs, soloists, and conductors—as well as to all who contributed essays and demonstrations we express our gratitude for their efforts and our appreciation of their accomplishments. We sincerely thank the kind people of Sheboygan for the liberal generosity extended to us these days. From The Musical Heritage of the Church, Volume III (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1946). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Page 4 The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume III Opening Address Theo. Hoelty-Nickel We have this year invited you to meet with us in the city of Sheboygan. Why did we choose Sheboygan—a comparatively small city—located at some considerable distance from Valparaiso? Why not some prominent musical center like Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, or New York? Why not at Eastman, at Westminister, or some other well-known and famous establishment? Before answering this question permit me to review briefly the history of our Conference, which is now meeting for the third time and which has become known as the Valparaiso Church Music Seminar. What did we have in mind when three years ago we called together a number of our organists and choirmasters for a Seminar on Church Music? Why did we hold our first meeting at Valparaiso University? Our Valparaiso University is still in the pioneer stage in its endeavor to perpetuate a great heritage pronounced by its founders twenty years ago. It was, however, the ideal spot for the founding of an institution that would have for its prime objective the preservation of the Church’s musical heritage—and this in spite of the fact that after twenty years of its existence as a Lutheran University it enjoyed not even the most primitive musical equipment as to organs, church music library, and so forth. It is remarkable that upon a mere announcement of the objective, forty-two men, chosen more or less at random, accepted our invitation and gathered on our campus. These men, already over- worked in the service of the Church, yet found it worth while to face the challenge of our program. This first Seminar proceeded along the lines of any orthodox Seminar. It presented— perhaps for the first time in the history of our Church—a recognized authority in the field of musical history and philosophy, Dr. Hans Rosenwald, a graduate of Heidelberg University, for many years prominent in the musical life on the European continent and, at present, Dean of the Chicago Musical College and Editor of the Music News. In his scholarly discourse Dr. Rosenwald indicated that the Lutheran Church had a heritage which is not only an expression of the Lutheran confession of faith, and its handmaiden, but also from a musical standpoint represents the highest standard in the field of music. Dr. Rosenwald, who came from the Evangelical Lutheran State Church in Germany and knew very little about our Synod, its history, and its mission, recognized the reason for our Church Music Seminar and in his lecture pointed out to us our special duty to recover a lost treasure and make it available to the church at large. But this ideal had already been recognized by a few men in our camp who had devoted themselves in true service—aside from their specific tasks as teachers—to the presentation of much useful and practical information toward clarifying the picture envisioned by Dr. Rosenwald and countless other authorities in the field of sacred music. Our own Professor Buszin, after many years of research and practical experience, made a worth- From The Musical Heritage of the Church, Volume III (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1946). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Page 5 The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume III while contribution to this first Seminar. Mr. Bruening made an exhaustive study of the organ literature. Dr. Wente forcefully drew our attention to some hundreds of organists and choirmasters, faithfully serving the cause of the Gospel in isolated spots throughout our country, and he pleaded with us to aid them towards a greater knowledge and efficiency to preserve a peculiarly Lutheran handmaiden of the Gospel. All present in their manner gave support to this first groping venture. A man who never associated otherwise with organized movements, but carried on alone, here and in Europe, a pioneer attempt towards this idea, saw in this first Seminar a tremendous turn in the right direction for the Church and its peculiar treasure. After his unique experience in the pursuit of this idea and the opportunity to study it in large European and small local settings, he felt that our attempt was of historic significance. I refer to Dr. Edward Rechlin—whose paths I must have crossed countless times in my travels in Europe, but whom I met for the first time six years ago—with whom I have fought in heated discussions as with no one else, but whom I have learned to know as a wise counselor and a true friend. He warned us never to depart from Bach’s great motivation, but to put all our efforts in the service of the Son of God, who came to die for us and save us—whom Bach so intimately calls: "Mein Jesulein!" With the world in chaos and the atom bomb promising destruction, the second Seminar gathered last summer. Fifty men—in spirit [spite] of increased diversions, impressions, and anxieties— fifty men realized the validity of the movement and again came to Valparaiso University for another discussion of the problems of church music.