Professional musicians often associate “playing for fun” with being a kid, an amateur—being somone who isn’t serious about the music they make. But playing music for fun has huge benefits, besides the obvious: it’s fun. It’s not that playing music for fun has to have other benefits. But its easier to make time for playing around, when you know …
We use our bodies every day to make music—but we usually forget about our physical health until something goes wrong. Certified Alexander Technique instructor Ted Gibboney, D.M.A., shares how the Alexander Technique can help church musicians, as well as other people experiencing tension in their bodies. Ted was working full-time as the music director of …
Do you work as a substitute organist or hire them? This episode is for you! Crawford, Catie Moyer, and I have many (many!) strategies for subbing and hiring subs. Because we have so much to share, we decided to make this post a how-to. If you scroll down, you’ll find detailed strategies, questions to ask …
Ryan P. Harper discusses his new book, The Gaithers and Southern Gospel: Homecoming in the Twenty-First Century. Bill and Gloria Gaither are known for their many hymns like “Because He Lives” “He Touched Me” and “The Family of God.” Between them, they’ve won 6 Grammys. Harper’s book focuses on their Homecomings: in 1991, it seemed …
Let’s Think about Music in the Early Church: What did leaders in the early church have to say about music? Perhaps surprisingly, their general view of music is relatively low. And when they did praise music, they usually qualified their statements.
Last week, I posted a 3 steps to hosting an easy hymn sing and talked about it on the podcast. This week, I have a template for a “Journey to the Cross” with 60 hymns to choose from, so you can have a cohesive hymn sing focused on the Cross. The hymn sing’s theme is “Journey to the …
Interview: We discuss the musical training of ministerial students with Harrison Russin, Lecturer in Liturgical Music and Dean’s Fellow at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary (Yonkers, NY). He also shares his experience directing a choir in non-metrical chants; surveys the (many!) kinds of Orthodox music heard in churches across the U.S.; and explains why some Orthodox churches …
Hymn sings can be grand affairs, with special anthems combining choir with congregation, extra instrumentalists to plan for and rehearse, and scripture readings to coordinate with the hymns’ themes. But a hymn sing can also be very easy to plan and host. Here’s the 3 basic steps:
In this bonus episode of Music and the Church, Dr. Tanya Riches continues discussing The Hillsong Movement Examined: You Call Me Out Upon the Waters, a new collection of essays that she and Dr. Tom Wagner co-edited. Earlier in Episode 8, Tanya talked about Hillsong’s music, how women lead worship in the church, and how she …
The Hillsong Movement Examined, Part 2, a Music and the Church Bonus Episode Read More »