A few thoughts (and more) on music:
Necessary preface: there are some people who are genuine polymaths (‘persons of encyclopedic learning’). I will mention one such person below. But I am not one. I am interested in a lot of different things, but I am hardly an expert in any of them. I am in the old ‘jack of all trades but master of none’ category I am afraid. But that does not stop me from writing about a wide range of issues, as regular readers will know.
And like most people, I do enjoy music, even though I am not a talented musician nor an expert in music theory, history and practice. I am very grateful for the gift of music. Sure, like all the good gifts of God, music can be perverted, abused and misused. But I appreciate good music and good musicians – both Christian and non-Christian.
They can help you to chill, and even help uplift you, especially during tough times. I sometimes share some pieces that I have enjoyed on the social media. If folks enjoy them as well, fine. If not, they can go about their day. (Oh, and listening to them with a good sound system helps greatly.)
Here I want to do a few things: look briefly at some of the biblical material; draw your attention to one noted scholar; and finish with a few of my particular likes. So this is a bit of an eclectic piece, and it obviously only scratches the surface about what can be said about music.
Scripture and music
We find much in the Bible about music. I see that in the ESV at least the word – or forms of it – is found 29 times: music, musicians, etc. Music of course can be used in the worship of God, as in 1 Chronicles 15-16. And more passages come up when you search for such terms as lyre or harp or tambourine or castanets or cymbals, etc. Thus we get psalms such as these:
Psalm 71:22 I will also praise you with the harp for your faithfulness, O my God; I will sing praises to you with the lyre, O Holy One of Israel.
Psalm 81:2 Raise a song; sound the tambourine, the sweet lyre with the harp.
Psalm 92:3 to the music of the lute and the harp, to the melody of the lyre.
Psalm 144:9 I will sing a new song to you, O God; upon a ten-stringed harp I will play to you,
Psalm 150:3 Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp!
And another famous passage has to do with how music was used by David (playing the lyre) to deal with evil spirits harassing Saul. As we read in 1 Samuel 16:23: “And whenever the harmful spirit from God was upon Saul, David took the lyre and played it with his hand. So Saul was refreshed and was well, and the harmful spirit departed from him.”
Scruton and music
The late, great conservative Christian philosopher and polymath Roger Scruton has written often about the arts and architecture, in addition to all the other topics he so capably tackled. I recently noted that while I have 22 of his books, I had none of his 4 volumes on music. They are:
–The Aesthetics of Music, 1997
–Understanding Music: Philosophy and Interpretation, 2009
–Music as an Art, 2018
–Wagner’s Parsifal: The Music of Redemption, 2021
So I have begun to remedy that omission. Here I will quote from his 2018 volume. In his chapter on “Music and the Moral Life” he says this:
I begin from the question whether musical idioms can exhibit moral virtues and moral vices. It is obvious that we describe musical idioms in this way, and it is worth reminding ourselves of some familiar examples. The idiom of the Gregorian chant is almost universally acknowledged to be spiritual and uplifting. The style of Bach’s keyboard works is scholarly and dignified. The classical idiom of Haydn and Mozart is courtly, well mannered and correct. The idiom of Beethoven is passionate and defiant. New Orleans Jazz is lively, invigorating, innocent. By contrast Death Metal is oppressive, dark, morbid. Indie music is complacent and easy-going; the American songbook is sentimental and nostalgic.
Hmm, many of you may not even have thought of music in terms of morality. And for many folks, this might be just a bit too much: a philosophy of music? Let alone a philosophy of dancing? All that and more is the sort of thing that Scruton covers in this and his other books on music.
But not everyone will prefer such a hardcore philosophical, academic, and technical discussion of music. Most will just want to listen to it and enjoy it. But there are plenty of other volumes out there on music that can be mentioned of course. Let me speak to just one of them.
In a recent recommended reading list on Christians and the arts, one of the volumes I listed was fully about music. I refer to Christian Music: A Global History, rev. ed., by Tim Dowley (SPCK, 2011, 2018). Christians especially will appreciate this detailed and helpful study of the history and variety of Christian music, going right back to the music of ancient Israel.
That reading list can be found here: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2022/07/21/christianity-and-a-theology-of-the-arts-recommended-reading/
Me and music
For what it is worth, I like many sorts of music, including classical, the blues, early rock, some contemporary Christian music, Dixieland jazz, swing and Big Band, rockabilly, and black gospel. And I have played a few instruments over the years, but never became proficient in any of them.
As I mentioned above, I will sometimes share some music (usually via a link to a music video) with others on the social media. As is well known, the enjoyment of something is often greatly enhanced when you share that experience with others.
Watching a beautiful sunset is so very enjoyable, but it seems even better when you can share it with another person. So that is what I sometimes do with some of the music I enjoy. Here I might offer just a few links to pieces that I will so often go back to, from a wide array of musical genres.
Let me start with two songs I featured at my wife’s recent memorial service. As to classical music, so many pieces could be selected from. One song she loved and all music lovers would appreciate is Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto, 2nd Movement: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUkHf2GskqM
And a complementary Christian worship song I only just discovered a few weeks before her funeral is “Trust In You” by Lauren Daigle, covered by Elenyi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1xlpcu3gsU&list=RDQ1xlpcu3gsU&start_radio=1
As to some of my other tastes, here is a real mixture of musical varieties:
You can’t go wrong with a Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt tune: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CDoJFmdFgA
There are plenty of the old blues champions one can feature, but many newer groups are also of interest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBmVtW5qxGs
I quite enjoy New Orleans, or Dixieland, Jazz. Here is one of many I could offer to your ears: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4YtnTQ8GGY&list=RDEMYDex0bjy5ZVzxnglOrkthg&index=5
And I keep leave out this terrific version of the old classic, “Sweet Georgia Brown”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3c0A6YmIIc
As to a toe-tapping Black Gospel tune, check this out: “Have Thine Own Way Lord” done by Dr Charles Hayes & The Cosmopolitan Church of Prayer Choir: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fF2XFzw6tY
A somewhat older Christian classic from Phil Keaggy is “Your Love Broke Thru”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bWtAP6yb2I
But some folks might prefer the Keith Green version of it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVjHrenMEaM
Or consider a new take on an old wartime classic from the Andrews Sisters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NhyunNsNikE
Maybe some vintage boogie woogie piano is to your liking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBmVtW5qxGs
Some French swing jazz might perk you up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yLy7QTC1PhM
Lastly, this song that went through my head as I headed to my wife’s funeral: Keith & Kristyn Getty, “He Will Hold Me Fast”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsA_UPXnluw
OK, so I am all over the place here, and you may dislike some or all my offerings. And many are clearly of the toe-tapping variety! Hey, it is my website so I can post what I like! But feel free to let us know what some of your fave songs or pieces are, be they Christian or non-Christian.
Well, with all that said, I think I might now listen to some music! And I will do that right here at my desk, with my desktop computer and the nice sound system attached to it that a son had given me.
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