Christian Musicians Who Know Teach More Effectively part 4

Christian Musicians Who Know Teach More Effectively part 4

            At the risk of repeating myself, I must also add the Bible is not silent concerning musical performance in the process of training our young people.  The twenty fifth chapter of I chronicles begins by explaining that,  “Moreover David and the captains of the host separated to the service of the sons of Asaph, and of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who should prophesy with harps, with psalteries, and with cymbals…”  This verse make it very clear that these Levite sons were separated to perform on instruments of music.  They were commissioned and taught how to perform the music of the Temple.

             Verses six and seven of the twenty fifth chapter of I Chronicles give further explanation of this ancient music education process.  “All these were under the hands of their father for song in the house of the LORD, with cymbals, psalteries, and harps, for the service of the house of God, according to the king's order to Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman.  So the number of them, with their brethren that were instructed in the songs of the LORD, even all that were cunning, was two hundred fourscore and eight.”  Notice that the chief Levite musicians instructed (lamad 3925) i.e. taught their sons to be skillful performers of the songs (shiyr 7892) of the LORD (YHVH 3068).  This Scripture leaves no question about the specificity of their performance education—they were not only taught about this music but were also taught to perform the songs of the LORD.  I have no doubt that they studied about the ancient didactic lyric poetry that was a part of their music  ministry in the Temple, but the study and appreciation of this ancient lyric poetry was certainly not the end of the praxis of musically educating these Levite sons—they actually performed this music in the context of Temple worship.