Aesthetics and the Christian Musician Part 13
It stands
to reason that the only immutable truth about aesthetics may only be found in
God’s perfect understanding, will, and knowledge. Outside of our knowledge of God’s Word,
everything Christian musicians postulate or perform in music comes from
imperfect and partial knowledge. We know
from I Corinthians 13:9, 10 that
.... we know in part and we prophesy in
part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. (NIV)
Paul went on to say in verse 12,
Now we see but a poor reflection in a
mirror, then we shall see face to face.
How I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully
known.” (NIV)
Based on
this truth, no one should act as if he or she is the final answer when it comes
to “knowing” or developing a philosophy of music aesthetics. With this in mind, the Christian musician,
although aware of the inability to be “all knowing”, must not fall into the 21st
century trap of believing that there is no objective “truth” concerning music
aesthetics. Those who believe that music
has great power over the auditor and the performer are not the creators of some
conservative far-fetched notion that only relates to a fight against rock-based
contemporary Christian music. On the
contrary, this argument has existed for centuries. In Donald Grout’s treatise A History of Western Music, he quoted
Aristotle as saying:
...when one listens to music that
imitates a certain passion, one becomes imbued with the same passion, and if
over a long time one habitually listens to the kind of music that rouses
ignoble passions ones whole character will be shaped to an ignoble form.3
What Aristotle was saying was that the continued influence
of “ignoble” music would affect its message so thoroughly on the listener that
it would influence the actual character of the auditor. Plato was famous for his classic
philosophical statement, “Let me make the songs of a nation and I care not who
makes its laws.”4
Ancient Greek philosophers evidently believed that music could communicate not only beauty to the auditor, but also the message of the moral intent of the composer or performer, not merely by words, but also by the music part of music. No one ever quotes Plato or Aristotle as believing that only words communicate. Both of these philosophers mention the effect of modes on the auditor. They mention emotions like anger, gentleness, calmness, anxiety and personal restraint and how the character of the various modes conveys these messages to the hearer.
Ancient Greek philosophers evidently believed that music could communicate not only beauty to the auditor, but also the message of the moral intent of the composer or performer, not merely by words, but also by the music part of music. No one ever quotes Plato or Aristotle as believing that only words communicate. Both of these philosophers mention the effect of modes on the auditor. They mention emotions like anger, gentleness, calmness, anxiety and personal restraint and how the character of the various modes conveys these messages to the hearer.
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