When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-9

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-9

Some questions for consideration by pastors and church board members are:  is the church leadership convinced that a praise band emitting a rock back beat to musical worship and a praise team that has been given the main stage, a more excellent way to present the church’s musical sacrifices unto God?   Do you know of any churches who have accepted CCM and ever been able be able find a reverse button to restore traditional worship after such a musical departure has disillusioned and fractured the fellowship of worshipers?  Does the church leadership agree with the philosophy of highlighting the musicians up front (with clapping and accolades)?  Those who naively claim that clapping is no longer understood as praise for the performers but in in this century the “new Praise” for Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, do not have an understanding of what applause means universally when one claps for a performer.  Trying to reverse the aberration toward CCM and  CWM is as hard to reverse as getting on the roof of the church, opening a feather pillow, scattering the feathers in the wind, and then quickly going about the church yard and the community in an effort to pick them up.

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-8

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-8

Some conservatives seem to believe that the Christian has an iron spiritual exoskeleton that makes us impervious to the dangers of following the ways of the world when it comes to music and musicing?  Do we now believe that the way that the world orders things will not have a negative effect on us because our spiritually impervious exoskeleton will cause the effect of the ways of this world to slide off of us like water off of a duck’s back?  How can conservative pastors and church boards accept Jesuit philosophy that purports that “the end justifies the means” regardless of what their musicing has the propensity to do to the worshiper and what association with these styles of music and musicing says to our children and our young people who attend our worship services? 

As a prelude to the great musical discourse in Ephesians  chapter five, St. Paul, under divine inspiration, gives these admonitions:  1.  Eph 5:10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.  2. “have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them”  3.  “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,”  4. “be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is”,  5.  “be filled with the Spirit”.  As we begin what I believe will be the “Roaring 2020’s” for the church world, we must not go down the slippery slope of ordering our music and our musicing in the same way that the world, who is performance and market oriented, orders it.

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-7

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-7

When a religious music performer incorporates the musical and/or the extra-musical techniques that are an integral part of the performance practice of the above music styles (as well as many other styles not mentioned), it stands to reason that religious intent and adding a few religious words to these performance practices will not cleanse and sanctify a Christian musician’s musicing.  Secular music performers are convinced that the music part of music is a communicator of understandable meaning to an audience and that nonverbal actions also communicate understandable meaning; it is necessary for Christian musicians to avoid these sexual triggers when communicating the gospel message to an audience. 

Remember that how the formal properties of the music are arranged expediates the communication of these triggers that arouse emotions that  are sexual in nature.  Remember that a Bible based faith-based music praxis must include the nature of every musical composition that is to be used in the context of Christian worship.  An understanding of the nature of the music part of the music will  give valuable insight in making the decision as to whether a piece of music is or is not an appropriate vehicle to represent the moral nature of God.

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-6

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-6

It is most often Christian musicians that categorically deny that the music part of music can and often is used to arouse sexual passions.  This is not only accomplished by the words of songs but also by the arrangement of the music’s formal properties; gestures and vocal sounds that are nonverbal, and by the rhythms played.  It is usually Christian musicians  (and some classical musicians) that deny that the music part of music and other nonverbal sounds and actions can be and often are sexy.  I am not aware of any pop or rock musicians (or any musicians that perform any of the myriad of styles that will be mentioned later) that purport that the music part of music or the nonverbal sounds that are used as a concomitant to their musicing are neutral or benign and therefore do not communicate understandable meaning to the audience.  On the contrary, secular musicians of all sorts admit to using all manner of verbal, nonverbal and  musical communicators to arouse (trigger) sexual passions of the listener.  The fact that music videos are so prevalent attests to the belief among pop musicians that sexual appeal and the overt triggering sexual emotions are an integral part of the pop music experience.  This is apparent by how the performers are dressed and their actions during video performances of rock styles and their fusions, mainstream popular country music, ska, rap, rhythm and blues, hally pop, Asian crush, Latino pop, Latido pop, and reggae etc. to name only a few. 

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-5

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-5

The mainstream of the world’s methods of musicing and its purposes for musicing are diametrically opposed to Bible principles of sacred musicing.  It is shortsighted  to not recognize that the way that the world musics greatly influenced religious musicing and is in this century still influencing the way that many churches now music unto God. This should not surprise committed Christians since the world has never been a friend of grace.  Galatians 5:17 explains the conflict between flesh and spirit when it states,  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.”

 Conservatives need to carefully go about the business of preserving quality time-honored ways of musicing unto God.  Although it will never again be politically correct, Christian musicians need to be cautious of accepting  ways of doing that are closely associated with the way that the world orders its doing—such carefulness should include ways that the musical doer does what he or she does.  Committed Christian musicians need to be vocal about their strong beliefs about what is right, wrong, appropriate, inappropriate, effective and ineffective ways to music unto God. Musicians who are truly ministers of music need to simply say “no” to ways of musicing in the context of worship that can and eventually debauch Christian worship.  Church leadership and worship leaders must be constantly cognizant of how big little musical changes can be to the direction of Christian worship in this century.

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-4

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-4 

Those who are even slightly aware of the power of music has over the worshiping body of Christ should be very cautious about new directions in music and ways of musicing that have the propensity to debauch worship.  This is necessary due to the number of once conservative churches that have been fractured, split and splintered by the drastic changes that worship leaders have imposed upon worshipers who have historically held traditional views about sacred music and musicing.  Rather than accept the unsupportable view that music communicates absolutely nothing, Christian should contend that the way that the formal properties of music are arranged gives music its nature, understandable meaning and its value or lack of valuable as being a handmaiden for God’s Word.  

Genesis 3:4 records, “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die…”  Satan’s specious argument seemed to make sense, so Eve disregarded caution and convinced Adam to do the same.  What could possibly be wrong with the fruit offered to them by Satan?  Although the discourse in Genesis chapter three says absolutely nothing about music or how the praise band musics, I see a parallel in the specious logic that convinced Eve and the current logic that causes church leadership to naively  accept the spurious logic of “What could possibly be wrong with a trap set or a little ‘ole beat box drumming out a rock back beat during the time of singing praises to our high and holy triune God?” 

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-3

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part-3

Being reticent to disclose in writing how a church musics because of a fear that people will not visit our church if we publish our music philosophy is deceitful and dishonest.  Although 2Cointhians 4:2 is not referring to how the church at Corinth musiced unto God, I believe that St. Paul’s admonition to the Corinthians should give us cause to examine how we music unto God because when we music in church we are “handling the word of God”.  Paul, inspired letter to the church at Corinth is an historical proof that the church needed to establish some lines that they would not cross when handling God’s word “But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.”  Historically, Christians who were conservative have refused to do some things musically to the message of the gospel when they musiced unto God.

Since I use the term conservative so often, I will define the term as, holding to traditional attitudes and values and being cautious about change or innovation, typically in relationship to religion.  Surely conservative church leaders and worship leaders will agree that musicing in the context of worship has a strong connection to religion.  As a matter of fact, many would consider the music utilized in the context of worship to be musical offerings that they present to God.  It is puzzling that conservative pastors and board members have gone to great length to fill current denominational manuals and web sites with lucidly clear and specific rules about lifestyle, but have almost summarily dismissed any mention, specific or general, of Bible based principles of music and musicing. 

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part 2

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part 2

It is not very much of a mystery that steeples are falling regularly when it comes to the process of staying conservative when one considers the actual choices musicians make when they music in God’s house.  Much has been said in recent years about staying conservative when it comes to matters of lifestyle,  but these churchmen and church musicians have often been stony silent about music and musicing in God’s house.  Churches that do not bother to make any philosophical statements about the types of music  they consider to be appropriate for public worship, are projecting what appears to be silent approval of the belief that when it comes to music and musicing in the context of worship—“all musical roads lead to heaven”.  One thing is apparent, time has proven that “deciding to not decide” where a fellowship of believers stands on what is right, wrong, appropriate, and inappropriate when music unto God in the context of public worship is a definite conscious decision. Such silence is not the answer to the plethora of problems that surround the use of music in the context of worship. 

It appears to me that the seeker and the worshiper who is looking for a church to attend should know from a church’s web site, exactly what to expect, musically speaking, when he or she attends a local church’s worship services.  Those who are looking for a church to attend should not have to “come see what mood we are in musically at this present time.”  It is a pity that they have to come see that we may not use punctuation when we project words on the screen because we desire to seem folksy and familiar or because those in charge of music are just to dilatory to add punctuation; we may have removed the hymnbook; that the daily musical fare could be, country, jazz, rap, CCM etc., or some disjunct amalgamation of traditional hymns, gospel music, traditional praise choruses which are fused with pop music styles, depending which mood we are catering to at the moment.  These styles of music will be performed with a rock backbeat whether such rhythm is appropriate for the style or not.  Why shouldn’t a church be transparent when it comes to matters of how it musics unto God?  Such upfront disclosure would be beneficial to people who are seeking a place to worship because they have been hurt by a church in which music became the war depart.  As a result of the worship war, they became persona non grata because they were offended and spoke out about the music that was being performed by the musicians up front who were “large and in charge” whether they were musically qualified or not. 

When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part 1

 When Conservatives take the Musical Exit Ramps-Part 1

As a matter of curiosity I did a computer search of church’s web sites to find their published music philosophy statements.  Most of the churches that were explicit about being conservative in lifestyle often had no published music philosophies on the web.  Even more surprising, most of these web sites did not even have any statements concerning the use of music in worship let alone a series of systematic statements (beliefs) concerning the nature, value, and meaning of the whole of the music they use in the context of public worship.

 It seemed to me that it would be congruent for churches who had published specifics about lifestyle would also be concerned about Bible principles of musicing.  These church’s almost universally made no difference between the sacred and profane music or made any attempt to identify where they stood on the philosophical, performance or musical issues that surround CCM, CWM  or  the nature, value and meaning of music.  (Let me explain that when I use the terms CCM and CWM, I am always referring to these types of music in the context of the respective philosophical movements that surround them.  I am not referring to a new song or music that has been composed recently.  Using the term “contemporary” categorically in a negative sense maligns the true meaning or the word.) 

Metacommunication, Metalanguage, and Paralanguage’s Connection to Musicing-Part 3

Metacommunication, Metalanguage, and Paralanguage’s Connection to Musicing-Part 3 

Now we should consider the term metalanguage as it relates to understandable meaning that is communicated through musicing.  In the world of gaming, meta is used in two ways. Meta can be used as an acronym for “most effective tactics available,” and calling something meta means that it's an effective way to achieve the goal of musicing.  The term meta is used in two ways.  One way to consider meta-language is to understand it to be the language used to talk about something else.  So, when these two terms are applied to the whole of music and musicing, they form a terminology to explain how music communicates something to the hearer.  I have often stated that a meta-language is a language which is beyond a written language in that it is capable to bypass the constraints of language and speak directly to the hearer or performer’s emotions.

Sacred music should be Word driven but it is also emotive.  Some philosophers believe that emotions are aroused by triggers and that emotions are able to be triggered because of past experiences.  This makes the listener of religious music vulnerable to his or her past experiences with music—including both secular and sacred music.  This causes triggered experiences to be associative.  So, it is not a far-fetched notion that when some styles of music are fused into religious music, they are inappropriate by association.

If one considers a style of music to be “meta” then it must be the “most effective tactic available” to represent the moral nature of God, the communication of the Gospel.  It must also be the highest quality of musical offering that the musicer is capable of presenting to God.  Being a conservative Christian requires a separation from the “rudiments of this world”.  Being separate and coming out from among the way that the world orders things, should also include how we music unto God in his house.

Metacommunication, Metalanguage, and Paralanguage’s Connection to Musicing-Part 2

Metacommunication, Metalanguage, and Paralanguage’s Connection to Musicing-Part 2 

                     The musical nuances that we discussed yesterday are what I call triggers of emotion. It is sometimes defined as relating to nonphonemic (denoting any perceptible distinction between one speech sound and another), irrespective of whether the sounds are phonemes (distinct units of sound) or allophone properties only (speech sounds that represent a single phoneme). Musical paralanguage may be communicated consciously or unconsciously by the musicer.  What this means to worship leaders is that since musical sounds produced by the music part of music and the observable nonverbal communicators of the musicer (i.e. the worship leader, praise team or musical director) trigger emotional states in the hearer.

Professionals who have studied metacommunication since Gregory Bateson coined the term seem to agree that: 1. these nuances do trigger emotional states in the hearer and  2.  The triggers may be communicated either consciously or unconsciously by the performer.  So, the naive worship leader or praise band performer may unconsciously communicate meaning to the worshiper or the un-regenerated person who attends the worship service that is not conducive to the worship experience.  The implications that a particular musical (or non-musical) trigger arouses from the listeners repertoire of former non-religious experiences may bely the very thing that the worship team is attempting to do—give honor, praise, and adoration to a triune God, edify the believer, and create an atmosphere that may be used by the Holy Spirit to draw the un-regenerated to Christ.

Metacommunication, Metalanguage, and Paralanguage’s Connection to Musicing-Part 1

Metacommunication, Metalanguage, and Paralanguage’s Connection to Musicing-Part 1

When one considers how music communicates understandable meaning there are several ways that real-life meaning is conveyed to the listener.  In the early 1970s, Gregory Bateson coined the term metacommunication to describe the underlying messages in what we say and do. Understandable real-life meaning is conveyed partially through metacommunication.  Components of metacommunication include body language, tone of voice, hand gestures, expressions on the musicer’s face, which are all the nonverbal communicators that carry meaning that either enhance or disallow the meaning of the words sung.

When one musics, the music part of music such as pitch, volume, intonation etc. combine to become a paralanguage. This paralanguage is a component of meta-communication that has the propensity to modify the nuance of meaning of what is being musiced by the musicer. Musical paralanguage communication is a very important component of the communication of understandable meaning of the metacommunication of the music that Christian musicians use in the context of worship.

Understand That Music Has a “Tell”

Understand That Music Has a “Tell”

The word “tell” is a term meaning that an action gives clues to something’s meaning.  A tell is not necessarily spoken and may be an unconscious action, it is reliable because it communicates understandable meaning to the observer. Musicing is an action because it is done by a doer.  Since it is done, it has cause and effect. 

           All music when musiced, communicates understandable meaning whether or not the musicer purposely understands its meaning or purposely communicates its meaning since all music and musicing ha a tell.  This tell communicates understandable meaning to those who hear it performed.  The musicer becomes a communicator of the understandable meaning that is embodied in the music.

Thought for the Day

It is a faulty notion that music is only capable of saying absolutely nothing.  It is only the figment of 20th and now 21 century music philosophers minds that music is totally benign and without any ability to communicate understandable meaning.