Religious & Devotional on Music Theory Print

Accentus

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Anglican chant

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Method#

The text is pointed for chanting by assigning each verse or phrase to a simple harmonised melody of 7, 14, 21 or 28 bars (known respectively as a single, double, triple or quadruple chant). An example of a single chant is shown above. Below are the first four verses of the Magnificat, with the text coloured to show which words correspond to which notes in the music (“the chant”). :1. My soul doth ’ magnify the ’ Lord : And my spirit hath re ’ joiced in ’ God my ’ Saviour . :2. For ’ he hath re ’ garded : the ’ lowli ness ’ of his ’ handmaiden . :3. For be ’ hold from ’ henceforth : all gene ’ rations shall ’ call me ’ blessed . :4. For he that is mighty hath ’ magni fied ’ me : and ’ ho ly ’ is his ’ Name . Various psalters have been published over the years, with each one showing how the chant is to be fitted to the words and each having its own variation on the precise rules for doing so. The rules used in the Parish Psalter (one of the more popular psalters, edited by Sydney Nicholson) are as follows: * Each verse is sung to seven bars of music (the whole chant in the example above, though most chants are 14 bars = 2 verses long) * The bar lines in the music correspond to the “pointing marks” which are shown above as inverted commas or apostrophes in the text. * The double bar line in the music corresponds to the colon in the text. * Where there is one note (a semibreve) to a bar, all the words for the corresponding part of the text are sung to that one note. * Where there are two notes (two minims) to a bar, unless indicated otherwise all the words except the last syllable are sung to the first minim. The final syllable is sung to the second minim. Where more than the last syllable is to be sung to the second minim, a dot (·) (between words) or a hyphen (within a word) is used in the text to indicate where the note change should occur. Other psalters use different notation; modern psalters such as the New St Paul’s Cathedral Psalter (John Scott, 1997) have adopted the following convention: * A vertical bar ( ) is used to indicate a barline. * Whenever there are 3 or more syllables in a bar containing two minims, a dot (·) or hyphen is used, even if the change of note is on the final syllable. There are various additional rules which apply occasionally: * Some chants have more complicated rhythms than the example above, generally in the form of a dotted minim and a crotchet (in any bar except the last of a quarter) or of two crotchets taking the place of a minim. * When a minim in an internal bar (i.e. not the first or last bar of a quarter) is replaced by two crotchets, one of two things happens. If there is only one syllable, both notes are sung to it in quick succession. If there are two (or occasionally more) syllables, they are split as appropriate to smoothly match the rhythm of the words to the two notes. * When an internal bar has a dotted rhythm, it is to be sung as above, excepting that the crotchet can be omitted from the music if the natural rhythm of the words and the sentiment of the words indicate that it is appropriate to do so. * When the first bar of a quarter has a dotted minim and a crotchet, all syllables except the last are sung to the note of the dotted minim, with the crotchet being tucked in on the last syllable before the barline. If there is only one syllable, both notes are sung to it in quick succession with the subtle emphasis being on the first note. * Sometimes the last bar of a quarter has two minims instead of the usual semibreve, in which case a dot/hyphen may be required after the last barline in the text: (e.g. even as ’ though they ’ were mine ’ ene-mies.) * Particularly in long psalms, changes of chant may be used to signal thematic shifts in the words. Psalm 119, which is the longest in the psalter, is generally sung with a change of chant after every 8 of its 176 verses, corresponding to the 22 stanzas of the original Hebrew text. However, it is never sung all at once, but spread over successive days.

Anglican church music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Forms#

The chief musical forms in Anglican church music are centred around the forms of worship defined in the liturgy.

Service settings#

Service settings are choral settings of the words of the liturgy. These include: ; The Ordinary of the Eucharist : Sung Eucharist is a musical setting of the service of Holy Communion. Naming conventions may vary according to the churchmanship of the place of worship; in churches that tend towards a low church or broad church style of worship, the terms Eucharist or Communion are common, while in high church worship, the more Catholic term Mass may be used. Musical pieces corresponding to the liturgical pattern of the Ordinary of the Mass (Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus & Benedictus, Agnus Dei) may be sung by the choir or congregation. Many English-language settings of the communion service have been written, such as those by Herbert Howells and Harold Darke; simpler settings suitable for congregational singing are also used, such as the services by John Merbecke or Martin Shaw. In high church worship, Latin Mass settings are often preferred, such as those by William Byrd. ; Morning Service : The Anglican service of morning prayer, known as Mattins, is a peculiarly Anglican service which originated in 1552 as an amalgam of the monastic offices of Matins, Lauds and Prime in Thomas Cranmer’s Second Prayer Book of Edward VI. Choral settings of the Morning Service may include the opening preces and responses (see below), the Venite, and the morning canticles of Te Deum, Benedicite, Benedictus, Jubilate and a Kyrie. ; Evening Service : Evening Prayer, also known as Evensong, consists of preces and responses, Psalms, canticles, hymns and an anthem (see below). The evening canticles are the Magnificat and the Nunc Dimittis, and these texts have been set to music by many composers. Herbert Howells alone composed 20 settings of the canticles, including his Collegium Regale (1944) and St Paul’s (1950) services. Like Mattins, Evensong is a service that is a distinctively Anglican service, originating in the Book of Common Prayer of 1549 as a combination of the offices of Vespers and Compline. Choral Evensong is sung daily in most Church of England cathedrals, as well as in churches and cathedrals throughout the Anglican Communion. It is noted for its particular appeal to worshippers and visitors, attracting both believers and atheists with its meditative quality and cultural value. A service of Choral Evensong is broadcast weekly on BBC Radio 3, a tradition begun in 1926.

Antiphon

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Origins#

The chant of early Christianity through to the end of the 5th century had its root in the synagogue, whence early Christians borrowed the traditions of the chanting of psalms, singing of hymns and cantillation. There is some evidence from Acts of the Apostles that early Christians stayed close to contemporary Jewish traditions. For example, Acts 2:46–47 states that “with one accord in the Temple, and breaking bread from house to house did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God, and having favour with all the people”. Socrates of Constantinople wrote that antiphony was introduced into Christian worship by Ignatius of Antioch (died 107) after he saw a vision of two choirs of angels. Antiphonal singing was an element of Jewish liturgy believed to have entered the monasteries of Syria and Palestine in the 4th century from the Jewish communities such as the one in Antioch. The practice did not become part of the Latin Church until more than two centuries later. Ambrose and Gregory the Great, who are known for their contributions to the formulation of Gregorian chant, are credited with ‘antiphonaries’, collections of works suitable for antiphon, which are still used in the Catholic Church today.

Baqashot

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

The custom of singing baqashot originated in Spain towards the time of the expulsion, but took on increased momentum in the Kabbalistic circle in Safed in the 16th century. Baqashot probably evolved out of the tradition of saying petitionary prayers before dawn and was spread from Safed by the followers of Isaac Luria (16th century). With the spread of Safed Kabbalistic doctrine, and coffee consumption—which allowed devotees to stay awake through the night —the singing of baqashot reached countries all round the Mediterranean and became customary in the communities of Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Rhodes, Greece, Yugoslavia, Egypt, Turkey and Syria. It also influenced the Kabbalistically oriented confraternities in 18th-century Italy, and even became customary for a time in Sephardic communities in western Europe, such as Amsterdam and London. (In Amsterdam the Shabbat service still begins with a small number of baqashot. In London the tunes for one or two of them have been preserved in the literature but the practice no longer exists.) By the turn of the 20th century baqashot had become a widespread religious practice in several communities in Jerusalem as a communal form of prayer. In communities such as those of Aleppo, Turkey and Morocco, the singing of baqashot expanded to vast proportions. In those countries special books were compiled naming the tunes and maqamat together with the text of the hymns, in order to facilitate the singing of baqashot by the congregation. In these communities it was customary to rise from bed in the night on Shabbat in the winter months, when the nights are longer, and assemble in synagogue to sing baqashot for four hours until the time for the morning service. Each country had its own collection of baqashot, and there is often little or no overlap between the collections of different countries. The Moroccan collection is known as “Shir Yedidot” (Marrakesh 1921): unlike in the Aleppo tradition, where the baqashot service is the same every shabbat, the Moroccan tradition has a different set of baqashot for each week. The Amsterdam collection is set out in the first part of Joseph Gallego’s Imre No’am: the contents of this were probably derived from the Salonica tradition.

Buddhist music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

In doctrine and scriptures#

In Buddhism, chanting is a traditional Buddhist devotional practice, as well as a means of enhancing and preparing the mind for silent meditation. It is a common part of formal group practice, in either a lay or monastic context. Some forms of Buddhism also use chanting for ritualistic, apotropaic or other magical purposes. In Mahayana Buddhism, the offering of music is a traditional part of devotional offerings to the Buddhas (others include water, flowers, and light). The offering of music is thus considered to bring good merit. The idea of music as an offering to the Buddhas can be found in various Mahayana sutras. Common instruments included the veena, drums, and flutes (venu). Furthermore, in some Mahayana sources, Buddhist music is considered to be a skillful means (upaya), a way to guide people to the Buddhist path and to teach them the Buddha’s teachings. Some Mahayana sutras also depict the Pure Lands as filled with divine music.

Byzantine music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Imperial age#

The tradition of eastern liturgical chant, encompassing the Greek-speaking world, developed even before the establishment of the new Roman capital, Constantinople, in 330 until its fall in 1453. Byzantine music was influenced by Hellenistic music traditions, classic Greek music as well as religious music traditions of Syriac and Hebrew cultures. The Byzantine system of octoechos, in which melodies were classified into eight modes, is specifically thought to have been exported from Syria, where it was known in the 6th century, before its legendary creation by Arab monk John of Damascus of the Umayyad Caliphate. The term Byzantine music is sometimes associated with the medieval sacred chant of Christian Churches following the Constantinopolitan Rite. There is also an identification of “Byzantine music” with “Eastern Christian liturgical chant”, which is due to certain monastic reforms, such as the Octoechos reform of the Quinisext Council (692) and the later reforms of the Stoudios Monastery under its abbots Sabas and Theodore. The triodion created during the reform of Theodore was also soon translated into Slavonic, which required also the adaption of melodic models to the prosody of the language. Later, after the Patriarchate and Court had returned to Constantinople in 1261, the former cathedral rite was not continued, but replaced by a mixed rite, which used the Byzantine Round notation to integrate the former notations of the former chant books (Papadike). This notation had developed within the book sticherarion created by the Stoudios Monastery, but it was used for the books of the cathedral rites written in a period after the fourth crusade, when the cathedral rite was already abandoned at Constantinople. It is being discussed that in the Narthex of the Hagia Sophia an organ was placed for use in secular processions of the Emperor’s entourage.

Carol (music)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

The word carol is derived from the Old French word carole, a circle dance accompanied by singers (in turn derived from the Latin choraula). Carols were very popular as dance songs from the 1150s to the 1350s, after which their use expanded as processional songs sung during festivals, while others were written to accompany religious mystery plays (such as the “Coventry Carol”, written before 1534). Sacred music was traditionally sung in Latin by clergy or appointed cantors of the Catholic church. Following the Protestant Reformation, reformers aimed to bring music “back to the people”. To enable the common person to sing church music, great efforts were made to translate musical texts from Latin into the native languages that people spoke. Martin Luther, the father of Lutheran Christianity, encouraged congregational singing during the Mass, in addition to spreading the practice of caroling outside the liturgy. Composers such as William Byrd composed motet-like works for Christmas that they termed carols; and folk-carols continued to be sung in rural areas. Nonetheless, some famous carols were written in this period, and they were more strongly revived from the nineteenth century and began to be written and adapted by eminent composers.

Chabad niggunim

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The Chabad style of niggun#

Chabad niggunim are admired across Hasidism for their intellectual content, expressing the aim in Chabad to investigate Hasidic philosophy using the mind as the route to the heart. The second Rebbe, Dovber Schneuri, distinguished between mainstream Hasidic emotional “enthusiasm” in worship, that is fostered outwards, and the Chabad ideal of inwardly created “ecstasy”. His “Tract on Ecstasy”, an unusually personal mystical account in Judaism, guides the follower in the meditative stages of the Chabad approach to Dveikus (fervour). In this ideal, ecstasy is an inner emotional expression, and can remain concealed in the warmth of the heart. In Chabad terminology, the aim of this is to reach “Pnimius” (inward Ohr) over “Hitzonius” (outward light). The fundamental Chabad text, the Tanya, articulates this method in Jewish meditation of “hisbonenus” (contemplative understanding). In classic Chabad thought, externally inspired emotional worship is considered a distracting path from deeper content, though this idealistic aim requires time to contemplate that may not always be available. In the present generation, more emphasis has been given in Chabad to outreach, though the classic ideal is venerated in legendary accounts of Hasidim, told in Farbrengen gatherings. Chabad Rebbes told of two characteristic categories of follower, the “Oveid” who seeks practical Divine “service” from their mystical inspiration, and the “Maskil” whose first aim is deeper understanding of Hasidic thought. The average person can combine both archetypes in their daily life. Some Chabad niggunim are more suited to moments of inward contemplation, and others celebrate and inspire outward fulfillment. One renowned story both cautions against mixing the two necessary aspects, and also playfully recommends not to be overly concerned by their overlap: A well known Hasid was filling out the company accounts at work. In the final tally, he answered the question of total outcome with the Hasidic aphorism that “Ein Od Milvado”! This means, “There is nothing outside of God”, as in Chabad Divine Unity means only God truly exists. His fellow Hasid reprimanded his mixing of Hasidic and secular life. He replied that in prayer, people are not usually upset by their minds being diverted in secular thoughts. So, he concluded, it isn’t so bad for holy thoughts to intrude in Worldly matters! In Hasidic terminology, meditative dveikus niggunim correspond to “Lower Teshuvah” (Lower Return to God), and celebratory joyful niggunim to “Higher Teshuvah” (Higher Return). In Hasidic philosophy, such as explained in the third section of the Tanya, Teshuvah does not only involve repentance and rectification of previous spiritual faults. Rather, as the Baal Shem Tov taught, even perfectly righteous Tzadikim should return to God, in the higher Teshuvah of continual ascent in holiness. According to Kabbalistic exegesis of the Hebrew word “Teshuvah” (תשובה), it means “Returning the letter hei” (תשוב-ה). The Tetragrammaton Divine name has two letters “hei”, the second one corresponding to the lower revealed levels of the Four Worlds, and the first one corresponding to the higher concealed realms. Lower teshuvah returns the second hei in rectification, higher teshuvah redeems the higher hei in holy ascent. The seventh Rebbe of Chabad taught that the main focus of our generation is in the “Higher Teshuvah”. Accordingly, while the main niggunim of the previous Chabad Rebbes were meditative, many of the niggunim of the seventh Rebbe are joyful outward expressions.

Christian adult contemporary

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Demographics#

The target audience of Christian adult contemporary radio, generally females in their thirties or forties, has been nicknamed “Becky” by the Christian music industry. However, artists that are played on Christian adult contemporary radio are predominantly male. Male Christian artists outnumber female Christian artists by at least a 2:1 ratio and, according to Billboard, 43 of the top 50 Christian songs of the 2000s were performed by males. Females held the top spot on the Christian Songs chart for just 11 weeks out of the chart’s 337 weeks of activity during the 2000s. Audience testing has revealed that men test well to audiences, while women test low to audiences. This discrepancy has been associated with an overall shift in 2003 from a mainly pop sound to a more rock-oriented sound. As the genre shifted towards more rock-driven songs, deeper male voices from artists such as Third Day, Jeremy Camp, and Todd Agnew became popular, and established female artists like Amy Grant or bands with females like Point of Grace and Avalon, who tested extremely well among audiences, went out of style, along with their pop-oriented sound. Another reason for this discrepancy is audience concern of sexuality among female artists, especially worship leaders, and possible jealousy towards female artists among the format’s generally female listener base. Opinion is split on whether or not this represents a permanent shift or just a temporary trend.

Christian death metal

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Characteristics#

Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that features fast, distorted, down-tuned, and sometimes palm-muted guitar instrumentation, growled and screamed vocals, and hyper-fast, blast beat drumming. Death metal lyrics typically feature graphic, sometimes pornographic and misogynistic, themes of violence, gore, disease, and death; Satanic, blasphemous, and anti-Christian content; or, to a lesser extent, war, apocalypse, social and philosophical concerns, and esotericism and spiritualism. The growled vocal style has been identified for contributing to death metal’s relative lack of popularity as a music style.

Christian electronic dance music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Popular figures#

During the late 2000s and early 2010s, several Christian electronic artists rose to prominence in Christian music and general popular music, including G-Powered, Owl City, and Kye Kye. Other mainstay artists in the genre include Capital Kings, LZ7 Gawvi, Hillsong Young & Free, and Andy Hunter. CEDM also includes other subgenres included in EDM, such as dubstep, techno, deep house and trance. There also is a perception of genre-blending between CEDM and contemporary Christian music. A significant number of artists from this genre tend not to reference themselves as solely Christian musicians due to the crossover with other genres.

Christian hardcore

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Stance#

The method and extent of the promotion of Christianity varies between bands. Christian hardcore bands have often openly stated their beliefs and employ Christian imagery in their lyrics, and may be considered a part of the Christian music industry.

Community and fans#

Christian hardcore can serve as an unconventional form of religious community for young people who reject mainstream Christian congregations. Fans of Christian hardcore music are not exclusively believers in the Christian religion. Owing to innovation in the hardcore movement such as Extol, Nobody Special, Zao, Living Sacrifice, and the hardcore movement in general, the audience has become less exclusive.

Christian hip-hop

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History and notable examples#

The first commercially released and distributed gospel hip-hop record was MC Pete Harrison of Queens, New York. Under the recording name McSweet, he released The Gospel Beat: Jesus-Christ (1982), written and arranged by Harrison and produced by Mac Sulliver on Lection Records of PolyGram. The first notable full album released was Stephen Wiley’s Bible Break (1985), written by Wiley and produced by Mike Barnes on Brentwood Records. In the same year, David Guzman founded JC & The Boyz. Some of America’s premiere Christian rappers, such as Michael Peace, Soldiers for Christ (S.F.C.), Dynamic Twins, MC Peace and T-Bone came out of this crew. A more commercially successful group known as P.I.D. (Preachers in Disguise) released five recordings. Jon Gibson (or J.G.) is also considered a pioneer of Christian pop rap, with “Nation in Need” (1983) including a quasi-style rap verse and his first rap solo being “Ain’t It Pretty” (1985). CCM’s first rap hit by a blue-eyed soul singer and/or duo, “The Wall” was later released on Gibson’s successful album Change of Heart (1988), and featured MC Hammer (previously as the Holy Ghost Boys). Other tracks included the No. 1 “Love Come Down” and “In Too Deep” from Jesus Loves Ya (1990). Gibson also collaborated with MC Peace on “Enough Is Enough” (1990), “Happy to Know Jesus” (1992) and “You Are the One” (1992). Additionally, he notably collaborated with Soup the Chemist on “How I Cope” (1994) and “As the Sun Rises” (2000). S.F.C. was led by Chris Cooper, originally performing as Super C, later Sup the Chemist, and then Soup the Chemist. Other rap groups emerged in the late 1980s, including dc Talk and E.T.W. (End Time Warriors). ETW was led by producer Mike Hill. Christian emcee Danny “D-Boy” Rodriguez was another well-known early gospel rap artist but was murdered in 1990 in Texas. Prior to his death, he helped launch the career of his sister Genie Rodriguez-Lopez, known as MC GeGee, one of the first female Christian rap artists. The trend of rap artists blending faith and rap continued in the 1990s, with D.O.C. (Disciples of Christ) from Oklahoma, as well as the Gospel Gangstaz from Compton and South Central, Los Angeles. In 1991, JC Crew featured the West Coast beat box champion Maximillian and T-Bone. In the mid-1990s, rapper KJ-52 originated in Tampa, Florida, and Jewish rapper John Reuben from Columbus, Ohio. The Cross Movement group was based in Philadelphia, with The Ambassador and Phanatik as members. More Christian rap artists include Dynamic Twins, Freedom of Soul, IDOL King, Apocalypse, 12th Tribe, and Holy Alliance. 12th Tribe and Holy Alliance were produced by Scott Blackwell of MYX Records, among others. S.F.C.’s (Sup, QP and DJ Dove) 1992 album Phase III was DJ’ed and produced by DJ Dove, whose credits also include the 1993 debut album Gang Affiliated by Gospel Gangstaz. Around the same time as Phase III, Dynamic Twins (Robbie and Noel) released their 1993 album No Room To Breathe. Freedom of Soul (MC Peace and DJ Cartoon) followed with their second album, The Second Coming. Grapetree Records was the first Christian rap label founded by Knolly Williams and Jeff Adams 1994. Gotee Records formed in 1994, co-founded by dc Talk member Toby McKeehan, making it the first record label marketed explicitly for Christian hip-hop and R&B that was backed by a major label. The label was among the first to market the Contemporary Christian music market through distribution at Christian bookstores and playing on Christian radio. Artists associated with Grapetree Records during its early years included Houston-based rapper Lil’ Raskull, who released multiple projects through the label in the 1990s and was later nominated at the 30th GMA Dove Awards in the Rap/Hip Hop/Dance Album category for Glory 2 Glory. The duo GRITS were among the early artists signed to Gotee Records and were active during the formative years of Christian hip-hop. They also won a GMA Dove Award for Rap/Hip-Hop Recorded Song of the Year for “Hittin’ Curves” at the 36th GMA Dove Awards. During the late 1990s and early 2000s, Christian hip-hop also diversified stylistically through regional influences. Florida-based artist Pettidee emerged with a Southern hip-hop sound incorporating crunk-influenced production. Writing for Cross Rhythms, Tony Cummings noted Pettidee’s role in expanding the genre’s musical range during this period through albums such as Still Alive and Thug Love. In 2004, the founding of the label Reach Records by American rapper Lecrae and Ben Washer, also had a considerable influence in the development of Christian hip-hop. In 2015, the label set records with sales and award-winning albums. Following the founding of Reach Records in 2004, Christian hip-hop continued to expand with both independent and regional releases. In 2006, Florida rapper Rawsrvnt released In Rare Form, an album blending elements of hip-hop and worship music. Reviewer Tony Cummings of Cross Rhythms described the project as “the best ever fusion of hip-hop and worship ministry”, calling it a benchmark for future Christian hip-hop artists. Several tracks from the album received radio play on British Christian music stations. The album was also included in lists of Stellar Award nominees for Rap/Hip Hop/Gospel CD of the Year in 2007. Christian hip-hop reached mainstream industry milestones in the early 2010s. Lecrae’s 2012 album Gravity won Best Gospel Album at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards, the first time a hip-hop artist won in that category. The label’s artists continued to influence the genre, with Reach Records helping to expand opportunities for emerging Christian hip-hop performers. In 2019, artist and producer Kanye West released his ninth studio album, Jesus Is King, which marked a shift toward explicitly Christian themes in his music, incorporating gospel influences. West described the project as reflecting his faith and featuring largely religious imagery and lyrics. The album was also accompanied by West’s Sunday Service performances, including an Easter Sunday set at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival that featured gospel arrangements of his songs and appearances by artists such as Chance the Rapper and Kid Cudi.

Christian metal

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Characteristics#

Christian metal is not a solitary style of music but rather an ideological umbrella term that comprises every subgenre of heavy metal music, from hard rock to black metal. What sets the style apart is that Christian metal bands typically base their lyrics on Judeo-Christian traditions. AllMusic writes that Christian metal is “gospel music’s hard rock” - while not as hard as most heavy metal, “it still has many of its trademarks, particularly loud guitars, bombastic riffs, long solos, and pseudo-operatic vocals.” According to the website, most bands fall somewhere between arena rock and pop metal, although occasionally there are bands that are heavier. The lyrical style varies depending on culture, denomination, and country. For example, in Northern Europe, the bands with Lutheran members usually prefer a personal lyrical approach, which is seldom meant to “convert” in an aggressive manner; this is because evangelism has been more typical among American bands. Christian bands never deny their conviction but typically avoid preaching; sometimes, the matter is left unexpressed, leaving religion as a private issue of the listener. Certain bands choose to deal with everyday life experiences from a Christian perspective in order to draw both Christian and non-Christian listeners. In such cases, identifying a “Christian band” can be difficult. Secular bands that occasionally deal with Christian topics are a different matter altogether. Defining a Christian band is a much debated issue on Christian metal forums. A Christian band is expected to have either professed Christian members or a Christian message, preferably both.

Christian punk

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Christian punk originated in the 1980s punk rock scene. The genre has obscure origins. The rise of the Jesus Movement and its cultural institutions, such as Jesus People USA (JPUSA), served as an incubator for various Christian subcultures including punk, in part through JPUSA’s label Grrr Records and their annual music festival Cornerstone also referred to as a type of “Christian Woodstock.” Crashdog is one characteristically punk band that was rooted in JPUSA. In the 1980s, many bands performed at Chuck Smith’s Calvary Chapel in Orange County California. One popular band within that scene was Undercover, who proclaimed that “God Rules”, with a combination of rockabilly and hardcore punk elements. Other notable early Christian punk bands included Nobody Special, the Crucified, Scaterd Few, Lust Control and One Bad Pig. During the 1990s, the underground Christian punk scene grew as bands such as Ghoti Hook, Squad Five-O, the Huntingtons, Slick Shoes, Dogwood, Pocket Change, Officer Negative, Blaster the Rocket Man and Headnoise influenced many of their peers and paved the way for many bands to follow. In the 21st century, developments in Christian punk have paralleled the broader punk scene. Band such as Relient K, Hawk Nelson, FM Static, Flatfoot 56, Stellar Kart, and This Providence gained popularity with more mainstream audiences.

Christian R&B

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Origin and musical style#

Gospel music is one of the roots or influences of R&B music. While it might seem as if Christian R&B should be the subgenre of gospel music, R&B is rooted in several music genres and has developed over the decades, making its musical characteristics audibly different from the musical nuances of gospel music. Yet some modern musicians mix R&B elements with gospel music elements. R&B originated between the 1940s and 1950s, and Christian R&B followed close behind. Christian rhythm and blues have the same musical characteristics heard in regular or secular R&B music, with the only major difference between the two being the lyrics. Some Christians who perform R&B may not explicitly mention God, Jesus Christ, or other overtly religious terms, but their lyrics still fit within the Christian moral standards, or may be ethically neutral. A few early gospel R&B musicians can be found as far back as the 1950s. One R&B vocal group, for example, known as the Orioles, sang “gospel-styled reworkings of songs that had been popular country, blues, or R&B songs.” In 1953, the Orioles recorded a gospel song called “Crying in the Chapel”; yet the band was considered to be R&B. A strong influence on the merging of gospel and R&B came from Sam Cooke. He started out as the lead singer for the gospel group Soul Stirrers, but had always loved blues and jazz. He would incorporate elements from these two musical styles into his gospel recordings. Even though he was making a nice living, he wanted to venture into secular music. In 1956, for fear he would upset his fans, bandmates, and his record label, he released his first R&B single (called “Lovable”) under the assumed name ‘Dale Cooke’. Because his voice is distinctive, people were not fooled by the name Dale Cooke. Soon, other singers followed Cooke’s footsteps, crossing over from gospel to R&B/soul and merging the two. Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and James Brown are other important figures who combined gospel and R&B. In the early age of R&B, the musicality distinguishing gospel from R&B was blurred. There was little or no way to tell whether a person was listening to gospel music or R&B music, unless they paid close attention to the lyrics.

Christian rock

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Christian response to early rock music (1950s–1960s)#

Most traditional and fundamentalist Christians did not view rock music favorably when it became popular with young people from the 1950s, even though country and gospel music often influenced early rock music. In 1952, Archibald Davison, a Harvard professor, summed up the sound of traditional Christian music and why its supporters might not like rock music when he wrote of “… a rhythm that avoids strong pulses; a melody whose physiognomy is neither so characteristic nor so engaging as to make an appeal in its own behalf; counterpoint, which cultivates long-breathed eloquence rather than instant and dramatic effect; a chromaticism which is at all times restricted in amount and lacking in emotionalism; and modality which creates an atmosphere unmistakably ecclesiastical”. In the light of Archibald Davison’s characterisation it is easy to see how different these two genres of music are. Christians in the United States did not want their children exposed to music with unruly, impassioned vocals, loud guitar-riffs and jarring, hypnotic rhythms. Rock and roll differed from the norm, and thus it was seen by them as a threat. Often the music was overtly sexual in nature, as in the case of Elvis Presley, who became controversial and massively popular partly for his suggestive stage antics and dancing. However, “Elvis” was a religious person who released a gospel album: Peace in the Valley in 1957. Individual Christians may have listened to or even performed rock music in many cases, but conservative church establishments - particularly in the American South - regarded it as anathema. He Touched Me, a 1972 gospel-music album by Elvis Presley, sold over 1 million copies in the US alone and earned Presley his second of three Grammy Awards. Not counting compilations, it was his third and final album devoted exclusively to gospel music. The song “He Touched Me” was written in 1963 by Bill Gaither, an American singer and songwriter of southern gospel and Contemporary Christian music. In the 1960s, rock music developed artistically, attained worldwide popularity and became associated with the radical counterculture, firmly alienating many Christians. In 1966 The Beatles, one of the most popular and influential rock-bands of their era, ran into trouble with many of their American fans when John Lennon jokingly offered his opinion that Christianity was dying and that the Beatles were “more popular than Jesus now”. The romantic, melodic rock songs of the band’s early career had formerly been viewed as relatively inoffensive by Christians, but after the remark, churches nationwide organized Beatles-record burnings and Lennon was forced to apologize. Subsequently, the Beatles and most rock musicians experimented with a more complex, psychedelic style of music that frequently used anti-establishment, drug-related, or sexual lyrics, while The Rolling Stones sang “Sympathy for the Devil” (1968), a song openly written from the point of view of Satan. Allegations of Satanic intent also arose from the Beatles and others of the controversial backmasking recording-technique. This further increased Christian opposition to rock music. Later, in the 1960s, the escalating Vietnam War, Civil Rights Movement, Paris student riots of 1968 and other events served as catalysts for youth activism and political withdrawal or protest, which became associated with rock bands, whether or not they were openly political. Moreover, many saw the music as promoting a lifestyle of promiscuous “sex, drugs and rock and roll”, also reflected in the behavior of many rock stars. However, there was growing recognition of the diverse musical and ideological potential of rock. Countless new bands sprang up in the mid-to-late 1960s, as rock displaced older, smoother pop styles to become the dominant form of pop music, a position it would enjoy almost continuously until the end of the 20th century.

Christian ska

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Early years (late 1970s through 1980s)#

While Christian bands have played ska since the days of Jesus music, one of the first well documented Christian bands to play ska was Ishmael United, which operated in the late 1970s and early 1980s from the United Kingdom. Their sound was new wave or two tone, similar to other British bands such as The Specials or Madness. Another early Christian ska band was The Israelites, formed in 1989. similar to the Skatalites or Desmond Dekker. They released two albums before Christian ska matured.

Christmas carol

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

The first known Christmas hymns may be traced to 4th-century Rome. Latin hymns such as Veni redemptor gentium, written by Ambrose, Archbishop of Milan, were austere statements of the theological doctrine of the Incarnation in opposition to Arianism. Corde natus ex Parentis (Of the Father’s heart begotten) by the Spanish poet Prudentius (d. 413) is still sung in some churches today. In the 9th and 10th centuries, the Christmas sequence (or prose) emerged in monasteries of Northern Europe, developing under the influence of Bernard of Clairvaux into a liturgical sequence composed of rhymed stanzas. In the 12th century, the Parisian monk Adam of Saint Victor began incorporating melodic elements derived from popular songs, creating musical forms more closely resembling the traditional Christmas carol. By the 13th century, a strong tradition of popular Christmas songs written in regional vernacular languages had developed in France, Germany, and particularly Italy, under the influence of Francis of Assisi. The earliest English Christmas carols appear in a 1426 manuscript by the Shropshire chaplain John Awdlay, who recorded twenty-five “caroles of Cristemas”, likely sung by groups of wassailers traveling from house to house. The songs now identified as Christmas carols were originally communal festival songs performed during seasonal celebrations such as harvesttide. Only later were they adopted for church use and associated specifically with the Christmas season. Many carols that later gained widespread popularity were printed in Piae Cantiones, a collection of late-medieval Latin songs first published in 1582. Early Latin forms of carols such as “Christ was born on Christmas Day”, “Good Christian Men, Rejoice”, and “Good King Wenceslas” appear in this collection. "" (“O Come, All Ye Faithful”) appears in its present form in the mid-18th century, although its lyrics may date to the 13th century; the origin of its melody remains disputed. Christmas carols increased in popularity following the Protestant Reformation, particularly in regions where Protestant churches became dominant. Reformers such as Martin Luther actively promoted congregational singing and composed carols for worship, reflecting the Lutheran tradition’s strong embrace of sacred music. During the period of the Puritan ban on Christmas in England, semi-clandestine religious services commemorating Christ’s birth continued to be held, and carols were sung privately despite official restrictions. The publication of Christmas music books in the 19th century helped to widen the popular appeal of carols. “God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen”, “The First Noel”, “I Saw Three Ships” and “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” appear in English antiquarian William Sandys’ 1833 collection Christmas Carols, Ancient and Modern. Composers such as Arthur Sullivan helped to repopularise the carol, and it is this period that gave rise to such favourites as “Good King Wenceslas” and “It Came Upon the Midnight Clear”, a New England carol written by Edmund H. Sears and Richard S. Willis. The publication in 1871 of Christmas Carols, New and Old by Henry Ramsden Bramley and Sir John Stainer was a significant contribution to a revival of carols in Victorian Britain. In 1916, Charles Lewis Hutchins published Carols Old and Carols New, a scholarly collection which suffered from a short print run and is consequently rarely available today. The Oxford Book of Carols, first published in 1928 by Oxford University Press (OUP), was a notably successful collection; edited by the British composers Martin Shaw and Ralph Vaughan Williams, along with clergyman and author Percy Dearmer, it became a widely used source of carols in among choirs and church congregations in Britain and remains in print today. The singing of carols was further popularised in the 20th century when OUP published one of the most popular carol books in the English-speaking world, Carols for Choirs. First published in 1961 and edited by David Willcocks and Reginald Jacques, this bestselling series has since expanded to a five-volume set. Along with editor John Rutter, the compilers included many arrangements of carols derived from sources such as Piae Cantiones, as well as pieces by modern composers such as William Walton, Benjamin Britten, Richard Rodney Bennett, William Mathias and John Rutter. Today carols are regularly sung at Christian religious services. Some compositions have words that are clearly not of a religious theme, but are often still referred to as “carols”. For example, the 16th-century song “A Bone, God Wot!” appears to be a wassailing song (which is sung during drinking or while requesting ale), but is described in the British Library’s Cottonian Collection as a Christmas carol. As recently as 1865, Christmas-related lyrics were adopted for the traditional English folk song “Greensleeves”, becoming the internationally popular Christmas carol “What Child is This?”. Little research has been conducted on carol singing, but one of the few sociological studies of caroling in the early 21st century in Finland determined that the sources of songs are often misunderstood, and that it is simplistic to suggest caroling is mostly related to Christian beliefs, for it also reinforces preservation of diverse national customs and local family traditions. A modern form of the practice of caroling can be seen in “Dial-A-Carol”, an annual tradition held by students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, wherein potential audiences call the singers to request a performance over phone call.

Church music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Early Christian music#

The only record of communal song in the Gospels is the last meeting of the disciples before the Crucifixion: Outside the Gospels, there is a reference to St. Paul encouraging the Ephesians and Colossians to use psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Later, there is a reference in Pliny the Younger who writes to the emperor Trajan (53–117) asking for advice about how to persecute the Christians in Bithynia, and describing their practice of gathering before sunrise and repeating antiphonally “a hymn to Christ, as to God”. Antiphonal psalmody is the singing or musical playing of psalms by alternating groups of performers. The peculiar mirror structure of the Hebrew psalms makes it likely that the antiphonal method originated in the services of the ancient Israelites. According to the historian Socrates of Constantinople, its introduction into Christian worship was due to Ignatius of Antioch (died 107), who in a vision had seen the angels singing in alternate choirs. During the first two or three centuries, Christian communities incorporated into their observances features of Greek music and the music of other cultures bordering on the eastern Mediterranean Sea. As the early Church spread from Jerusalem to Asia Minor, North Africa, and Europe, it absorbed other musical influences. For example, the monasteries and churches of Syria were important in the development of psalm singing and the use of strophic devotional song, or hymns. In the late 4th or early 5th century, St. Jerome wrote that a Christian maiden ought not even to know what a lyre or flute is like, or to what use it is put. Evidence of musical roles during the 6th through 7th centuries is particularly sparse because of the cycle of invasions of Germanic tribes in the West and doctrinal and political conflict in the East as well as the consequent instability of Christian institutions in the former Roman empire. The introduction of church organ music is traditionally believed to date from the time of the papacy of Pope Vitalian in the 7th century.

Contemporary Christian music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Beginnings (1950s–1960s)#

The growing popularity of rock and roll music in the 1950s and 1960s was initially dismissed among Protestant churches and denominations, as it was believed to encourage sinfulness. However, as Baptist, Evangelical, and Pentecostal churches in the United States adapted to appeal to more people, the musical styles used in worship changed as well by adopting the sounds of this popular style. The genre became known as “contemporary Christian music” as a result of the Jesus movement revival in response to the American counterculture during the latter 1960s and early 1970s, and was originally called “Jesus music”. “About that time, many young people from the sixties’ counterculture professed to believe in Jesus. Convinced of the “bareness” of a lifestyle based on drugs, free sex, and “radical politics”, some of the Jesus ‘hippies’ became known as ‘Jesus people’”. It was during the 1970s that Christian music started to become an industry within itself, led by the Jesus movement. “Jesus music” started by playing instruments and singing songs about love and peace, which then translated into love of God. Paul Wohlegemuth, who wrote the book Rethinking Church Music, said " the 1970s will see a marked acceptance of rock-influenced music in all levels of church music. The rock style will become more familiar to all people, its rhythmic excesses will become refined, and its earlier secular associations will be less remembered." Evangelical, Pentecostal, and Charismatic artists made significant contributions to CCM in the 1960s and 1970s, Larry Norman is often remembered as the “father of Christian rock”, because of his early contributions (before the Jesus movement) to the developing new genre that mixed rock rhythms with the Christian messages. Though his style was not initially well received by some in the Christian community of the time, he continued throughout his career to create controversial hard-rock songs such as “Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music?” and Mylon – We Believe by Mylon LeFevre, released by Cotillion, which was LeFevre’s attempt at blending gospel music with southern rock. Unlike traditional or southern gospel music, this new Jesus music was birthed out of rock and folk music. Pioneers of this movement also included Andraé Crouch and the Disciples, the Imperials, Michael Omartian, 2nd Chapter of Acts, Phil Keaggy, Love Song, Barry McGuire, Evie, Paul Clark, Randy Matthews, Randy Stonehill, and Keith Green, among others. The small Jesus music culture had expanded into a multimillion-dollar industry by the 1980s. A number of CCM artists such as Benny Hester, Amy Grant, DC Talk, Michael W. Smith, Stryper, and Jars of Clay found crossover success with Top 40 mainstream radio play.

Contemporary Jewish religious music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Hasidic influence#

Within the traditional Jewish community, cantoral and chasidic melodies were the musical standard. In the 1950s and early 1960s recordings began to be made of non-cantorial Jewish music, beginning with Ben Zion Shenker’s recording of the music of the Modzitz chassidic sect and Cantor David Werdyger’s Gerrer recordings. The annual Israeli Hasidic Song Festival, first held in 1969, became a stage which saw the premières of pieces like Nurit Hirsh’s Oseh Shalom; Tzvika Pik’s Sh’ma Yisrael; and Shlomo Carlebach’s Od Yishama and V’ha’eir Eineinu.

Contemporary worship music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History and development#

In the early 1950s, the Taizé Community in France began attracting youths from various religious denominations with worship hymns based on modern melodies. In the mid-20th century, Christian unions in university settings hosted evangelistic talks. The Universalists and Unitarians—two youth groups—took final steps toward a merger at a convention, and in 1953, the groups formed the Liberal Religious Youth. Amateur musicians from these groups began playing Christian music in a popular idiom. Some Christians felt that the church needed to break from its stereotype as structured, formal, and dull to appeal to the younger generation. By adopting the conventions of popular music—the antithesis of this stereotype—the church rearticulated the message of the Bible through Christian lyrics, thereby conveying that Christianity was neither outdated nor irrelevant. In 1964, the U.K. gospel pop group The Joystrings became one of the first Christian pop groups to appear on television, performing in Salvation Army uniforms and playing Christian beat music. Churches began to adopt some of these songs and styles for corporate worship. The early songs for communal singing were characteristically simple. Youth Praise, published in 1966, was one of the first and most well-known collections of these songs. It was compiled and edited by Michael Baughen and published by the Jubilate Group. By the early 1990s, songs such as “Lord, I Lift Your Name on High”, “Shine, Jesus, Shine”, and “Shout to the Lord” had been accepted in many churches. Integrity Media, Maranatha! Music, and the Vineyard were already publishing newer styles of music. Supporters of traditional worship hoped the newer styles would prove to be a passing fad, while younger people cited , “Sing to the Lord a new song.” Prior to the late 1990s, many believed that Sunday morning was reserved for hymns, with younger people free to enjoy their preferred music during the rest of the week. A “modern worship renaissance” helped establish that any musical style was acceptable if used by true believers to praise God. This shift was influenced by the Cutting Edge recordings by the band Delirious?, the Passion Conferences and their music, the Exodus project by Michael W. Smith, and the band Sonicflood. Contemporary worship music became an integral part of contemporary Christian music.

Coptic music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Contemporary personalities contributing to Coptic music#

Mikhail Girgis El Batanouny
Adel Kamel
Ragheb Moftah
Ernest Newlandsmith
Nabila Erian
Emmanuel Saad
Abanob Ghobrial

External links#

“The Transmission of Coptic Orthodox Liturgical Music: Historical and Contemporary Forms of Theorization, Translation, and Identity Construction” A PhD dissertation exploring the history and current practice and theory of Coptic music.
“Coptic youth blog” Contains digital music and videos of Coptic liturgies, hymns, songs, and Coptic hymn lessons.
“Coptic Music,” Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia
Complete collection of Cantor Mikhail Girgis El Batanouny’s recordings of Coptic chant from coptichymns.net
DeaconTube - A video learning website for Coptic Orthodox hymns
coptichymns.net coptichymns.net - Sharing the Joy of Coptic Hymns Around the World
copticheritage.org The Official Website of the Heritage of the Coptic Orthodox Church.
Coptic Music, Hymns, and Rites Articles from coptichymns.net
Coptic Music Articles
Coptic Multimedia Archive at Saint TeklaHimanot Church of Egypt Articles
Coptic Orthodox Liturgical Chant & Hymnody and the Ragheb Moftah Collection at the Library of Congress

Degenerate music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Racial emphasis#

Jewish composers such as Felix Mendelssohn and Gustav Mahler were disparaged and condemned by the Nazis. In Leipzig, a bronze statue of Mendelssohn was removed. The regime commissioned music to replace his incidental music to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The Nazis also regulated jazz, including the banning of solos and drum breaks, scat, “Negroid excesses in tempo” and “Jewishly gloomy lyrics”.

Discrimination#

From the Nazi seizure of power onward, these composers found it increasingly difficult, and often impossible, to get work or have their music performed. Many went into exile (e.g., Arnold Schoenberg, Kurt Weill, Paul Hindemith, Berthold Goldschmidt); or retreated into “internal exile” (e.g., Karl Amadeus Hartmann, Boris Blacher); or ended up in the concentration camps (e.g., Viktor Ullmann, or Erwin Schulhoff). Like degenerate art, examples of degenerate music were displayed in public exhibits in Germany beginning in 1938. One of the first of these was organized in Düsseldorf by Hans Severus Ziegler, at the time superintendent of the Deutsches Nationaltheater Weimar, who explained in an opening speech that the decay of music was “due to the influence of Judaism and capitalism”. Ziegler’s exhibit was organized into seven sections, devoted to: # The influence of Judaism # Arnold Schoenberg # Kurt Weill and Ernst Krenek # Minor Bolsheviks (Franz Schreker, Alban Berg, Ernst Toch, etc.) # Leo Kestenberg, director of musical education before 1933 # Hindemith’s operas and oratorios # Igor Stravinsky From the mid-1990s the Decca Record Company released a series of recordings under the title “Entartete Musik: Music Suppressed by the Third Reich”, covering lesser-known works by several of the above-named composers.

Dirge

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

In the late Medieval period, it was common for Western Christian laity–both men and women–to attend the celebration of the Divine Office (canonical hours) according to various editions of the breviary alongside members of monastic communities. Formal liturgical saying of the Dirige–then legally required to be in Latin –persisted through the first half of the 16th century, with occasional requirements that certain proportions of a parish church’s congregation be present for such events. as the members’ anthem of the Lyke Wake Club, a society whose members are those who have completed the walk within 24 hours. This dirge saw a resurgence in popularity in the 1960s following performances by English folk bands such The Young Tradition and Pentangle. The Dirige was retained within the Elizabethan primer over Protestant objections to prayers for the dead and there remained resistance to the public liturgical performance of the devotion. In 1560 and 1561, episcopal visitors of the Church of England observed with disapproval the continued practice of clerks singing psalms in “dirge-like” fashion. Since their evolution away from Christian usage, some dirges have intentionally been written to be set to music, while others have been set or reset at later dates. Among the latter cases is the “Dirge for Fidele”, a portion of William Shakespeare’s play Cymbeline that was later set to music by multiple composers.

Dithyramb

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Dithyrambs were sung by choirs at Delos, but the literary fragments that have survived are largely Athenian. In Athens, dithyrambs were sung by a Greek chorus of up to fifty men or boys dancing in circular formation, who may or may not have been dressed as Satyrs, probably accompanied by the aulos. They would normally relate some incident in the life of Dionysus or just celebrate wine and fertility. The ancient Greeks laid out the criteria of the dithyramb as follows: * special rhythm * aulos accompaniment in Phrygian mode * enriching text * considerable narrative content * originally antistrophic character Competitions between groups, singing and dancing dithyrambs were an important part of the festivals of Dionysus, such as the Dionysia and Lenaia. Each tribe would enter two choirs, one of men and one of boys, each under the leadership of a coryphaeus. The names of the winning teams of dithyrambic contests in Athens were recorded. The successful choregos would receive a statue that would be erected—at his expense—as a public monument to commemorate the victory. However, most of the poets remain unknown. The earliest mention of dithyramb, found by Sir Arthur Wallace Pickard-Cambridge, is in a fragment of Archilochus, who flourished in the first half of the seventh century BCE: “I know how to lead the fair song of the Lord Dionysus, the dithyramb, when my wits are fused with wine.” As a literary composition for chorus, their inspiration is unknown, although it was likely Greek, as Herodotus explicitly speaks of Arion of Lesbos as “the first of men we know to have composed the dithyramb and named it and produced it in Corinth.” The word dithyramb has no known origin, but is frequently assumed not to be derived from Greek. An old hypothesis is that the word is borrowed from Phrygian or Pelasgian, and literally means “Vierschritt”, i. e., “four-step”, compare iamb and thriambus, but H. S. Versnel rejects this etymology and suggests instead a derivation from a cultic exclamation. Dithyrambs were composed by the poets Simonides and Bacchylides, as well as Pindar (the only one whose works have survived in anything like their original form). Later examples were dedicated to other gods, but the dithyramb subsequently was developed (traditionally by Arion) into a literary form. According to Aristotle, Athenian tragedy developed from the dithyramb; the two forms developed alongside one another for some time. The clearest sense of dithyramb as proto-tragedy comes from a surviving dithyramb by Bacchylides, though it was composed after tragedy had already developed fully. Bacchylides’ dithyramb is a dialogue between a solitary singer and a choir. It is suggestive of what tragedy may have resembled before Aeschylus added a second actor instead of the choir. In the later 5th century BCE, the dithyramb “became a favorite vehicle for the musical experiments of the poets of the ’new music’.” This movement included the poets Timotheus of Miletus, Cinesias, Melanippides, and Philoxenus of Cythera. By the 4th century BCE the genre was in decline, although the dithyrambic competitions did not come to an end until well after the Roman takeover of Greece.

Fuguing tune

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Description#

Fuguing tunes are sacred music, specifically, Protestant hymns. They are written for a four-part chorus singing a cappella. George Pullen Jackson has described the fuguing tune as follows: A well-known fuguing tune that is typical of the form is “Northfield”, composed in 1804 by Jeremiah Ingalls. The text is by Isaac Watts.

Variety in fuguing tunes#

George Pullen Jackson’s description above gives a common form for a fuguing tune, but there are variations. Jackson describes the entrance order of the four parts as “bottom to top” (Bass-Tenor-Alto-Treble), but this is not the only possible order. Indeed, in the fuguing tunes printed in The Sacred Harp, 1991 edition, it is not even the most common one; the most common order is Bass-Tenor-Treble-Alto. There are many other orders possible, particularly if one includes the many cases in which composers bring in two parts at once (so that there are just three instead of four entrances). However, it does seem to be a widely valid rule that the basses must at least be included in the first group to enter. This may reflect a wish to support the entrances with a solid bass line, or perhaps just a practical consideration: thanks to the weight of existing tradition, the bass singers have considerable practice in coming in alone at the beginning of a musical phrase, practice which the other sections lack. Thus a fuguing tune with a bass-first structure is likely to be more stable in performance.

Gaelic psalm singing

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Structure and style#

The psalms are sung unaccompanied, in a style known as “lining out” or “precenting the line,” in which the leader of the performance, or “precentor,” sings a line, after which the rest of the congregation follows, with each member allowed to embellish the melody as they wish, in a free heterophonic fashion. The style of Gaelic psalm singing is influenced by piobaireachd music native to the Scottish Highlands, with frequent and distinctive use of ornamentation and grace notes.

Gamelan Sekaten

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Gelineau psalmody

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Text#

Gelineau was himself part of the working group of the French La Bible de Jérusalem and he developed a revised version of that psalter which respected the rhythms of the Hebrew original. This was later translated into English as the Grail Psalms translation of the Psalter.

Verse#

The psalm verse uses a “pulsed tone” technique, with a variable number of syllables between the main pulses (barlines). Each line has a prescribed number of accented syllables, even though the total number of syllables varies from line to line. In that sense, it may be regarded as similar to the song Three Blind Mice: each line contains the same number of bars (pulses), but the number of syllables varies from three (“Three blind mice”) to eleven “Did ever you see such a thing in your life”. It is thus a form of sprung rhythm.

Gospel music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

According to Yale University music professor Willie Ruff, the singing of psalms in Scottish Gaelic by Presbyterians of the Scottish Hebrides evolved from “lining out”—where one person sang a solo and others followed—into the call and response of gospel music of the American South.

18th century#

Perhaps the most famous gospel-based hymns were composed in the 1760s and 1770s by English writers John Newton (“Amazing Grace”) and Augustus Toplady (“Rock of Ages”), members of the Anglican Church. Starting out as lyrics only, decades were needed for standardized tunes to be added to them. Although not directly connected with African-American gospel music, they were adopted by African Americans as well as white Americans, and Newton’s connection with the abolition movement provided cross-fertilization.

Hamd

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

In the five pillars of Islam#

In the five pillars of Islam, the concept of Hamd is in each pillar to emphasize the importance of this word. In the first pillar Shahada, Muslims praise Allah for the blessings of being born Muslim and the belief in one god and his prophet. They also praise Him for giving them better health and wealth than those who suffer. The second pillar is Salat which is performing prayer, Muslims pray five times a day in order to keep remembering Allah and this allows a direct link between the worshipper and God. In each prayer Muslims recite Surah (passage), Al-Fatiha and choose the next surah they would like to recite, but Al-Fatiha must always be recited in order for prayers to be accepted. The third pillar is giving Zakat which is the act of giving a percentage of a Muslim’s income to certain classes of needy people; this allows Muslims to remember the poor and to never forget that everything belongs to Allah. Therefore they should be thankful for what they have at all times. Fasting is the fourth pillar, and this emphasizes the depth meaning of Hamd in the holy month of Ramadan. Muslims fast every year for a month from sunrise to sunset. This helps purify the worshiper’s soul and helps them gain true sympathy with the hungry in addition to remind them of their blessings and amounts of food they have. The fifth pillar is Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca, the concept of Hamd is implemented in the action of Muslims visiting the Kaabah or House of God. In all five pillars in Islam, Hamd is used either by action or words. In all aspects of Islam, Hamd is used and can only be used for Allah alone. Hamd is the root word for AlHamdulillah which means praise to Allah. When a Muslim thanks or praises Allah for his favours and bounties it can be done by reciting the word or by act of prayer.

Hanukkah music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Hanukkah blessings#

There are three Hanukkah blessings (Modern Hebrew: בְּרָכוֹת לֵחֲנֻכָּה Berakhot Laḥanukka, Lit: Hanukkah blessings) that are sung for lighting the candles of the menorah. The third blessing (shehecheyanu) is only sung on the first night. After the two or three blessings are sung, Hanerot Halalu is chanted. The following blessings are transliterated according to proper Modern Hebrew. The popular tune for these blessings was composed by Samuel E. Goldfarb and his brother Israel Golfarb in the early 20th century.

Hebrew cantillation

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Three systems of Hebrew punctuation (including vowels and cantillation symbols) have been used: the Babylonian, the Jerusalem, and the Tiberian, only the last of which is used today.

Babylonian system#

Babylonian Biblical manuscripts from the Geonic period contain no cantillation marks in the current sense, but small Hebrew letters are used to mark significant divisions within a verse. Up to eight different letters are found, depending on the importance of the break and where it occurs in the verse: these correspond roughly to the disjunctives of the Tiberian system. For example, in some manuscripts the letter tav, for tevir (break), does duty for both Tiberian tevir and zaqef. In general there are no symbols for the conjunctives, though some late manuscripts use the Tiberian symbols for these. There is also no equivalent for low-grade disjunctives such as telisha gedolah: these are generally replaced by the equivalent of zaqef or revia. Nothing is known of the musical realization of these marks, but it seems likely that they represent breaks or variations in a set melody applied to each verse. (A somewhat similar system is used in manuscripts of the Qur’an to guide the reader in fitting the chant to the verse: see Qur’an reading.) This system is reflected in the cantillation practices of the Yemenite Jews, who now use the Tiberian symbols, but tend to have musical motifs only for the disjunctives and render the conjunctives in a monotone. It is notable that the Yemenite Jews have only eight disjunctive motifs, thus clearly reflecting the Babylonian notation. The same is true of the Karaite mode for the haftarah; while in the Sephardi haftarah modes different disjunctives often have the same or closely similar motifs, reducing the total number of effective motifs to something like the same number.

Hindu spiritual music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Bhajan#

A bhajan is a Hindu devotional song, often of ancient origin. Bhajans are often simple songs in lyrical language expressing emotions of love for the Divine, whether for a single God and Goddess, or any number of divinities. Many bhajans feature several names and aspects of the chosen deity, especially in the case of Hindu sahasranamas, which list a divinity’s 1008 names. Great importance is attributed to the singing of bhajans with Bhakti, i.e. loving devotion. “Rasanam Lakshanam Bhajanam” means the act by which we feel more closer to our inner self or God, is a bhajan. Acts which are done for the God is called bhajan. Traditionally, the music has been Indian classical music, which is based on ragas and tala (rhythmic beat patterns) played on the Veena (or Been), Sarangi Venu (flute), Mridanga(or Tabla) (traditional Indian instruments). The Sikh Scripture contains 31 ragas and 17 talas which form the basis for kirtan music compositions. Hindus are even said to have achieved Moksha through devoting music to God. For example, in the Rig Veda Gargi, the wife of Yajnavalkya, through her excellence in veena playing, an incident that caused Sage Yagnavalkya to write the famous verse: ::“Veena Vadama Tatvagnaha ::Sruthi Jathi Visharada ::Talagnanacha Aprayasena ::Mokshamargam Gachachathi” (“Yagnavalkya Siksha”) There have also been several music-saints (e.g. Sant Tyagaraja) and poet-saints (e.g. Sant Ravidas).

Hymn

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Origins#

Ancient Eastern hymns include the Sumerian Kesh temple hymn (oldest surviving literary text in the world); Egyptian Great Hymn to the Aten, composed by Pharaoh Akhenaten; the Hurrian Hymn to Nikkal; the Rigveda, an Indian collection of Vedic hymns; hymns from the Classic of Poetry (Shijing), a collection of Chinese poems from 11th to 7th centuries BC; the Gathas—Avestan hymns believed to have been composed by Zoroaster; and the Biblical Book of Psalms. The Western tradition of hymnody begins with the Homeric Hymns, a collection of ancient Greek hymns, the oldest of which were written in the 7th century BC, praising deities of the ancient Greek religions. Surviving from the 3rd century BC is a collection of six literary hymns () by the Alexandrian poet Callimachus. The Orphic Hymns are a collection of 87 short poems in Greek religion. Patristic writers began applying the term , or hymnus in Latin, to Christian songs of praise, and frequently used the word as a synonym for “psalm”.

Hymn tune

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Hymnal editors#

Editors bring extensive knowledge of theology, poetry, and music to the process of compiling a new hymnal. They seek texts that are capable of communicating complex theological concepts to lay people, and they strive to partner those texts to tunes which are singable by the non-professional musicians of a congregation. When editors choose a text for the planned collection, it may already be paired to a tune that supports its meaning, catches its spirit, and allows for congregational participation. This pairing may be used elsewhere, even ecumenically recognized, appearing in many other hymnals. However, if a hymn has been linked to a tune the editors think is not the best partner for it, they can arrange a new pairing. Partnerships of texts and tunes can give special attention to the interpretive opportunities in a text by providing artistic support of the message through its musical setting. Editors must consider whether the important words in the text fall on stressed notes, whether climax points in the ideas correspond with musical climaxes, and whether the tempo for the music matches the style of the text.

Igbo Christian music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

The History of Igbo Christian music can be traced to the 19th century when Christian missionaries would translate Christian hymnals into the Igbo language. Some Igbo converts also composed their hymns in Igbo, using local tunes and rhythms.

Indigenous music of North America

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Characteristics#

Singing and percussion are the most important aspects of traditional Native American music. Vocalization takes many forms, ranging from solo and choral song to responsorial, unison and multipart singing. Percussion, especially drums and rattles, are common accompaniment to keep the rhythm steady for the singers, who generally use their native language or non-lexical vocables (syllable sounds outside of language). Traditional music usually begins with slow and steady beats that grow gradually faster and more emphatic, while various flourishes like drum and rattle tremolos, shouts and accented patterns add variety and signal changes in performance for singers and dancers. Although each Native American group can be characterized by their own distinct genres and styles, certain aspects of style can be found with similarities among native groups who would have been neighboring tribes. These similarities are even further expanded upon when music and instruments are shared between each tribe, making it easy to find certain characteristics in frequent use. Melodies usually consist of a different scale than the classical eight-pitch scale of eastern culture, often finding itself in the pentatonic or tritonic scale. The voice can range from a tense, nasal, or relaxed sound, and consist of higher timbres specifically for male vocalists where falsetto is common. Vocal vibrato, when it occurs, is a rapid pulsating of different pitches as a more ornamental effect. Rhythmic patterns often can be found in meters of two or three and account for the vocal rhythms and syncopation in order to incorporate it into the pattern. Call and response patterns are common in vocal parts and ostinato may be included in the percussion part as well. Drums consist of types ranging from single headed, double headed, and kettle drums. Other percussive instrumentation consist of rattles and shakers, and made out of things like turtle shells. In addition to percussive instruments and vocals, a common sound in Native American music is instrumentation like flutes, whistles, and other instruments that produce sound from the player’s breath (horns, pipes, etc.). Instruments with strings that may be struck, plucked, or bowed include that like the musical bow which originated to the Americas, but does not appear often in contemporary indigenous music. Other stringed instruments include native guitars and fiddles whose structure and composition vary from tribe to tribe. A study made in 2016 analyzed the musical features of indigenous music in relation to social contexts and lyrical subject. Upon analyzing over 2,000 songs from Frances Densmore’s collection of native music, the study was able to find even the relation between subjects like love in songs, and pitch variety and tessitura. Love songs could be characterized with high tessituras and spacious melodies, with larger intervals and ranges. They are also, in many cases, perceived as “sad”: pertaining to departure, loss or longing. This explains the relationship between the lyrical subject and relatively slow melodic movement and low dynamics. Hiding-game songs, such as those associated with “moccasin, hand and hiding-stick or hiding-bones games,” were found with a significantly low average duration and small pitch range and variety. They also found that “healing songs,” and their characteristic of a narrow range and comparatively increased repetition of low notes, was likely intended to create a soothing sound that would ease discomfort in the event when a healing song would be sung. Regarding the music of specific people, they found that Yuman nature songs often have a small range, a descending melodic movement, and frequent repeated musical motifs. The Densmore collection also characterizes war songs as having a wider range, higher register, and greater diversity in duration and pitch. In comparison, dance songs also have these distinctions, although they can be found in the opposite sense, as dance songs are often found with lower registers. Dance songs are also similar to animal songs in range, pitch variety, and primary register. This study also maintains a significant view that many of these characteristics (“pitch height, tempo, dynamics, and variability”) have a direct relationship with emotional response, bringing out such response regardless of culture, meaning that similar characteristics of one culture’s music and its function will often be found in another culture’s for the same function. This is how Shanahan, Neubarth, and Conklin were able to use Densmore’s collection of over 2,000 songs to create an analysis of comparison between subject and musical characteristic.

Jai Radha Madhab

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Lyrics#

Text in brackets is alternate transliteration. The standard transliteration used here is IAST. Below is English translation.

jaya rādhā-mādhava (jaya) kuñja-bihārī#

Victory to Radha-Madhava! Victory to Kunj Bihari! (jai radha madhava jai kunja bihari (jay radha madhab jay kunj viharee))

(jaya) gopī-jana-vallabha (jaya) giri-vara-dhārī#

Victory to Gopi Vallabha! Victory to Giri-vara-dhari! (jai gopi jana vallabha jai girivaradhari (jay gopee jana vallabh jai girivaradhari))

yaśodā-nandana braja-jana-rañjana#

He is the beloved son of mother Yashoda, the delighter of the inhabitants of Vraja! (yashoda nandana vraja jana ranjana (yashoda nandan vraj jana ranjan))

Jarigan

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Jesus music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Jesus music primarily began in population centers of the United States where the Jesus movement was gaining momentum—Southern California (especially Costa Mesa and Hollywood), San Francisco, Seattle, and Chicago—around 1969–70. Large numbers of hippies and street musicians began converting to born-again Christianity. A number of these conversions, especially in southern California, were due largely to the outreach of Lonnie Frisbee and Pastor Chuck Smith of Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa. was a blend of folk music and folk rock (Children of the Day, Paul Clark, Nancy Honeytree, Mark Heard, Noel Paul Stookey, Karen Lafferty, Debby Kerner & Ernie Rettino), soft rock (Chuck Girard, Tom Howard, Phil Keaggy, Scott Wesley Brown, Kelly Willard), R&B (Andraé Crouch (and the Disciples)), soul music/jazz fusion (Sweet Comfort Band), country rock (Bethlehem, Daniel Amos, Gentle Faith, The Talbot Brothers: John Michael and Terry Talbot, The Way), Ron Salsbury and JC Power Outlet and hard rock (Agape, All Saved Freak Band, Petra, Resurrection Band, Servant). Initially, the music tended to be relatively simple, as it drew largely on guitar-based folk and folk-rock influences. The message also seemed to be relatively simple, as the songwriters attempted to present the value of a Christ-centered spiritual experience without evoking the vocabulary or other trappings of ecclesiastical religion. Rather than quoting religious cliches or King James Bible verses, they used storytelling, allegory, imagery, and complex metaphors, often with a colloquial language that flustered conservatives. In addition to the basic message of salvation, the lyrics often reflected the expectation of the imminent Second Coming of Christ prominent in evangelical circles at the time, reflected and heightened by the publication of The Late, Great Planet Earth. Despite the message, the music was described by many as worldly at best or as “the Devil’s music” in the worst case. This latter position was held by conservatives such as Bill Gothard as taught in his Basic Youth Conflicts Seminars. These were some of the main factors that caused many U.S. churches to largely reject the movement and these artists at the time. This suited many artists as they wanted to bring Jesus to non-Christians, not only to church youth. Larry Norman addressed this culture clash in his 1972 song, “Why Should The Devil Have All the Good Music?” On the West Coast of the United States, Jesus music festivals began to emerge in the summer months of the early 1970s, featuring many of the artists listed above. While the music was often loud and the venue similar to the Monterey Pop Festival and Woodstock, the atmosphere was decidedly different and attracted large crowds of camping families as well as teenagers and young adults. By 1973, Jesus music was receiving enough attention inside the mainstream media that an industry began to emerge. By the mid-1970s, the phrase “contemporary Christian music” (CCM) had been coined by Ron Moore and the first edition of CCM Magazine was published in July 1977. CCM now was a combination of traditional gospel music, Southern gospel music, Jesus music artists, and in some cases a style of big-band music with Christian lyrics. By 1976, it was apparent that a new generation of performers who had grown up in the church wanted to play non-secular pop and rock music for other Christians. By the end of the 1970s the term “Jesus music” fell out of use as the movement was replaced by the industry.

Jewish hip-hop

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Characteristics#

Jewish hip hop artists have come from a wide variety of countries and cultures. Elements of reggae, klezmer, and other world music are often incorporated alongside traditional hip hop production techniques like cutting, scratching, sampling, looping, and beatboxing. Many Jewish rappers are also multilingual, rapping in English, Hebrew, Yiddish, Aramaic, Ladino, and other languages, depending on their background.

1980s through 1990s#

From its commercial golden age in the 1980s and early 1990s, Jewish artists, producers, and executives played a significant role in the hip hop industry. In Israel, Jewish rappers like Shabak Samech’s Mook E, Hadag Nahash, Sagol 59, Subliminal, The Shadow, and SHI 360 helped pioneer the country’s hip hop scene in the late ’90s and early 2000s. Despite this, few of these acts acknowledged their Jewish heritage in their music, with some exceptions being Hip Hop Hoodíos, the parody group 2 Live Jews, and Ruthless Records signees Blood of Abraham. During this time, Jewish religious music occasionally incorporated hip hop, although largely for parody and children’s music, such as Craig Taubman’s “Chanukah Rap” and Shlock Rock’s songs with rapper Etan G.

Jewish music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Religious Jewish music in the biblical period#

The history of religious Jewish music spans the evolution of cantorial, synagogal, and Temple melodies since Biblical times. The earliest synagogal music of which we have any account was based on the system used in the Temple in Jerusalem. The Mishnah gives several accounts of Temple music. According to the Mishnah, the regular Temple orchestra consisted of twelve instruments, and a choir of twelve male singers. The instruments included the kinnor (lyre), nevel (harp), tof (tambourine), shofar (ram’s horn), ḥatzotzᵊrot (trumpet) and three varieties of pipe, the chalil, alamoth and the uggav. The Temple orchestra also included a cymbal (tziltzal) made of copper. The Talmud also mentions use in the Temple of a pipe organ (magrepha), and states that the water organ was not used in the Temple as its sounds were too distracting. No provable examples of the music played at the Temple have survived. However, there is an oral tradition that the tune used for Kol Nidrei was sung in the temple. After the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD and the subsequent dispersion of the Jews to Babylon and Persia, versions of the public singing of the Temple were continued in the new institution of the synagogue. Three musical forms were identified by scholars of the period, involving different modes of antiphonal response between cantor and congregation: the cantor singing a half-verse at a time, with the congregation making a constant refrain; the cantor singing a half-verse, with the congregation repeating exactly what he had sung; and the cantor and congregation singing alternate verses. All of these forms can be discerned in parts of the modern synagogue service.

Jewish rock

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Origins in America and Israel: 1960s to 1980s#

As early as the 1960s, established Jewish composers like Gershon Kingsley and Cantor Ray Smolover began using contemporary rock and jazz styles in their work. Simultaneously, Shlomo Carlebach, a German-born Hasidic rabbi and songwriter, began his career mixing traditional Jewish songs with the folk music and hippie subculture of the day for kiruv purposes, which would directly influence many Jewish artists over the course of his career. One of the first full-fledged rock acts in Orthodox music was the Diaspora Yeshiva Band, founded in 1975 by American-born students at the Diaspora Yeshiva in Jerusalem, which had been founded by a colleague of Carlebach’s. The founding lineup featured Avraham Rosenblum on guitar, Ben Zion Solomon on fiddle and banjo, Simcha Abramson on saxophone and clarinet, Ruby Harris on violin, mandolin, guitar, and harmonica, Adam Wexler on bass, and Gedalia Goldstein on drums. They played rock and bluegrass music with Jewish-themed lyrics, with the group self-describing its style as “Hasidic rock” and “Country and Eastern”. The Israeli group Tofa’ah emerged in 1981 as the first all-female Orthodox Jewish rock band, playing a mix of blues, jazz, and rock and roll. Around the same time, singer-songwriter Yosi Piamenta, a baal teshuva who had previously played with jazz legend Stan Getz, broke into Jewish music, where he pioneered the use of electric guitar. In the United States, Shlock Rock, formed in New York City in 1985, performed Jewish parody versions of many popular American songs, including rock music.

Jewish western art music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Jewish music composition according to the western artistic theory of the period was initially documented in western musical notes. Evidence of 12th century’s musical notes was found in the Cairo Genizah and was written by the Normandyian Obadiah the Proselyte. These musical notes are the earliest (most ancient) musical written document owned by a synagogue.
During the 16th and 17th centuries the renaissance culture was greatly widespread, and consequently, it influenced the Jewish community. One of the effects of it was on the performance of art music in synagogues. The Jewish people, who didn’t feel comfortable to be part of a less developed culture, have started building big synagogues, beautifully structured, and gorgeously magnificently decorated with fine art, not less than the next door churches in Casale Monferrato, Florence, Venice and in Rome. the outstanding composer of that period was the Italian composer Salamone Rossi. He was well known thanks to his great contribution to the art music played in synagogues. First signs of art music in the synagogues were revealed in Padua (Between the years of 1555 till 1565), in Ferrara (1605), Mantuna (from 1610 till 1612) and in Venice (in about 1628). During this period, due to the Counter-Reformation, the Jews were pushed to ghettos in Italy. Apparently, the Jewish communities being transformed to ghettos and the rise of art music synagogue not only overlap in time, but also have a causality relation.
In the middle of the 17th century, the beginning of the middle Baroque period, performing art music was common in many synagogues in Italy. We know that thanks to the writings of Yehudah Mi-modena who quoted the words of Nethanel Trabot from 1645 about the music which is played and sung in synagogues while Jews worship god. Researchers found evidence of art music being a common component and institutionalized in the cultural life of the Jewish ghettos in Italy
The descendants of Anusim (crypto-Jews) from Spain and Portugal who had settled in Amsterdam in the late 16th century have become one of the most prosperous communities in Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries. These crypto-Jews who returned to the Judaism, assimilated Christian culture in the years that they were living as a Christian. The admixture of Jewish people who hide their true identity, living as Christian, belonging to high society, and having the need to create art resulted in many art works in various fields.
The only Jewish community left in France after the 1394 Expulsion from France were the Provence Jewish community. Since they weren’t expelled, they had an opportunity to develop a rich community culture. One of the remaining of this community is of great worth – The Kantata for a Brith

Musical background#

Combining music in religious ceremonies is a common costume in the human culture. The influence music has on its listeners is mentioned in the Byble on different occasions. Three examples of that are: * In the book of Psalms- the Tribe of Levi singing at the Temple in Jerusalem. (Psalms, chapter 92, 4th verse) * In the story of king Saul who invited David to play music for him. * in the story of the battle between the three kings: the King of Judah, the king of Israel, Jehoram and the king of Edom who fought against Moab, the son of Lot. The water was running out, and so before they went to the fight, Jehoram pleaded Elisha the Prophet to prophesy and create water. Elish in return, demanded to use the power of music with which he managed to provide water. The Masoretes who strived to create uniformity to the Jewish prayer invented the nikkud (Hebrew vocalization) and Cantillation, which later became a significant layer for the Jewish prayer standardization. However, the Cantillation versions differ, therefore it is not possible to know the tune that it was sung in the period it was written. Similar phenomena have occurred in the Christian Church. During Charlemagne’s period in the 9th century, Due to the requirement of the Church to unify all versions of the Christian prayer early musical notes have been invented, which revolutionized the world of western music: it created a unified language understandable to anyone who acquired the knowledge of music notation. Music notation is the system used to visually represent aurally perceived music through the use of written symbols. Since its creation, the western music has developed and become a significant language for western music documentation. The voices and harmony arrangement elements as well as the various components it has, are an important element in the justification given for performing a western-style music in the synagogue.

Klezmer

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Etymology and usage#

The term , as used in the Yiddish language, has a Hebrew etymology: klei, meaning “tools, utensils or instruments of” and zemer, “melody”; leading to k’lei zemer , meaning “musical instruments”. Previously the musician may have been referred to as a () or other terms. After the term became the preferred term for these professional musicians in Yiddish-speaking Eastern Europe, other types of musicians were more commonly known as or . Twentieth-century Russian scholars sometimes used the term “klezmer”; Ivan Lipaev did not use it, but Moisei Beregovsky did when publishing in Yiddish or Ukrainian. During that time, through metonymy it came to refer not only to the musician but to the musical genre they played, a meaning which it had not had in Yiddish. Early 20th century recording industry materials and other writings had referred to it as Hebrew, Jewish, or Yiddish dance music, or sometimes using the Yiddish term Freilech music (“Cheerful music”). The term ‘klezmer’ to refer to a genre of music was popularized as a marketing term in the late 1970s by Revival bands; Walter Zev Feldman, whose 1979 LP with Andy Statman used the term, claims credit for this shift in usage.

Latin Christian music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Latin American artists#

Notable artists include Brazilian singers Ana Paula Valadão and Aline Barros http://www.billboard.com/artist/278612/aline-barros/chart , Panamanian musician Santiago Stevenson (d. 2007), Jaime Murrell, Luis “Funky” Marrero, Puerto Rican rapper in the genre of hip-hop, reggaeton, and Christian contemporary music, Willy Redimi2 González Dominican rapper in Latin hip-hop, trap, and Christian contemporary music, Venezuelan pop singer José Luis Rodríguez, Daniel Calveti and Christian Sebastia, Mexican singers/pastors Jesús Adrián Romero, Marcos Witt, and Armando Flores, and singers Alejandro Alonso (musician), Marco Barrientos, Ecuador’s Paulina Aguirre, Salvadorian Álvaro Torres, Colombia’s Alex Campos and Ericson Molano, and Mexican band Rojo. Other artists include Samuel Hernández, Roberto Orellana, Annette Moreno, and Christian singers like Daniela G Mangrum.

Lining out

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Lining out first appears in 17th-century Britain when literacy rates were low and books were expensive. Precenting the line was characterised by a slow, drawn-out heterophonic and often profusely ornamented melody, while a clerk or precentor (song leader) chanted the text line by line before it was sung by the congregation. It was outlined for use by the Westminster Assembly for English churches in 1644, and it has persisted longest in Britain in the Scottish Hebrides. The tide turned against lining out in England and New England in the first quarter of the 18th century, with greater literacy, improved availability of texts such as New Version of the Psalms of David (1696) by Nahum Tate and Nicholas Brady, and more widely available and better-printed tune collections. Influential clerics in England and America disliked the ragged nature of the singing that resulted as the congregation struggled to remember both the tune and the words from the lining out, but it continued to be practiced in most rural churches and still survives today in a form that likely would have been familiar to the original English and Ulster-Scots colonists in isolated communities in the Appalachian Mountains. Lining out was in most places replaced by “regular singing”, in which either the congregation knew a small number of tunes like Old 100th that could be fitted to many different texts in standard meters such as long meter, or a tunebook was used along with a word book. There began to be “singing societies” of young men who met one evening a week to rehearse. As time went on, a section of the church was allocated for these trained voices to sit together as a choir, and churches voted to end the lining out system (although there was often a transitional phase that had the entire congregation singing from tunebooks like the still-popular The Sacred Harp and others, before this was taken over by using trained choirs; this gave birth to the still vibrant tradition of “Sacred harp singing” ). A vivid picture of the transition comes from Worcester, Massachusetts:

Liturgical music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Roman Catholic church music#

The interest taken by the Catholic Church in music is shown not only by practitioners, but also by numerous enactments and regulations calculated to foster music worthy of Divine service. Contemporary Catholic official church policy is expressed in the documents of the Second Vatican Council Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy promulgated by Pope Paul VI on December 4, 1963 (items 112–121); and most particularly Musicam sacram, the Instruction on Music In The Liturgy from the Sacred Congregation for Rites, on March 5, 1967. While there have been historic disputes within the church where elaborate music has been under criticism, there are many period works by Orlandus de Lassus, Allegri, Vittoria, where the most elaborate means of expression are employed in liturgical music, but which, nevertheless, are spontaneous outpourings of adoring hearts (cf. contrapuntal or polyphonic music). Besides plain chant and the polyphonic style, the Catholic Church also permits homophonic or figured compositions with or without instrumental accompaniment, written either in ecclesiastical modes, or the modern major or minor keys. Gregorian chant is warmly recommended by the Catholic Church, as both polyphonic music and modern unison music for the assembly. In 1963, the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium) of the Second Vatican Council directed that “bishops and other pastors of souls must be at pains to ensure that, whenever the sacred action is to be celebrated with song, the whole body of the faithful may be able to contribute that active participation which is rightly theirs, as laid down in Art. 28 and 30”, which articles say: “To promote active participation, the people should be encouraged to take part by means of acclamations, responses, psalmody, antiphons, and songs”. Full and active participation of the people is a recurring theme in the Vatican II document. To achieve this fulsome congregational participation, great restraint in introducing new hymns has proven most helpful.

Lutheran chorale

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Lutheran hymns#

Starting in 1523, Martin Luther began translating worship texts into German from the Latin. He composed melodies for some hymns himself, such as “Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott” (“A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”), and even a few harmonized settings. For other hymns he adapted Gregorian chant melodies used in Catholic worship to fit new German texts, sometimes using the same melody more than once. For example, he fitted the melody of the hymn “Veni redemptor gentium” to three different texts, “Verleih uns Frieden gnädiglich”, “Erhalt uns, Herr, bei deinem Wort”, and “Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland”. The first Lutheran hymns were published in 1524. These included the (known as the first Lutheran hymnal) and the Erfurt Enchiridion (both with unaccompanied melodic settings), as well as Johann Walter’s , the first to contain part song settings of Lutheran hymns. Luther and his contemporaries referred to these vernacular hymns as geistliche Lieder (spiritual songs), Psalmen (psalms), christliche Lieder (Christian songs), and geistliche (or christliche) Gesänge or Kirchengesänge. The German word Choral, which was originally used to describe Latin plainchant melodies, was first applied to the Lutheran hymn only in the later sixteenth century. In the modern era, many Lutheran hymns are used in Protestant worship, sometimes sung in four-part harmony. A four-part harmony is the traditional method of organizing chords for 4 different voice ranges: soprano, alto, tenor and bass (known together as ‘SATB’). The term ‘voice’ or ‘part’ refers to any musical line whether it is a melody sung by singers, a long note played on an instrument or anything in between.

Madih nabawi

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Description and subgenres#

A typical performance includes a solo singer, accompanied by a chorus of men with frame drums, the chorus singing a refrain which the soloist improvisationally answers through variation, paraphrasing, or transformation of the refrain, emphasising the characteristics of the respective maqam row or scale.. The chorus sings in unison and a new verse of poetry and prayers or blessings for the audience are added at certain places during the chorus. In North Africa, it resembles ma’luf or andalusi nubah, in Egypt the dur, in Syria the muwashshah, and in Iraq the maqam al-iraqi. According to the article about Islamic religious music in the New Grove Dictionary of Music, “Northern Sudan has a famous madih tradition, going back to Hajj El-Mahi of Kassinger (c 1780–1870), who composed about 330 religious poems of which handwritten copies survive. They are performed by pairs of male singers with the accompaniment of two frame drums (ṭār), at religious festivities, at markets or outside mosques.” Musical genres or subgenres in the madih repertoire include tanzilah (“revelation”), ibtihal (“supplication”), tawassul (“beseechment”), tawshih, and muwashshah.

Mappila songs

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Mappila songs have been in circulation for over seven centuries, with the first dated work Muhyidheen Mala attributed to Qadi Muhammad in 1607 AD. Thereafter a large number of literary materials were produced in this medium; one authority has calculated that of these more than 1600 items, complete or fragmentary, were known by 1976. Over the centuries, various types of Mappila Pattu were composed, in accordance with the religious and political surroundings in the lives of the Mappilas of Malabar. The early centuries were primarily based on devotional works, while the colonial era was marked by the battle song genre called Padappattu. Various other categories also grew during the centuries with subjects ranging from romantic ballads and marriage songs to philosophical ideas, sea journeys and even flood ordeals.

Meditation music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Modern meditation music in the 20th century began when composers such as John Cage, Stuart Dempster, Pauline Oliveros, Terry Riley, La Monte Young and Lawrence Ball began to combine meditation techniques and concepts, and music. Specific works include Karlheinz Stockhausen’s Hymnen (1966–67), Stimmung (1968), Aus den sieben Tagen (1968), Mantra (1970) and Inori (1974). Ben Johnston’s Visions and Spells, a realization of Vigil (1976), requires a meditation period prior to performance. R. Murray Schafer’s concepts of “clairaudience” (clean hearing) as well as those found in his The Tuning of the World (1977) are meditative. John Cage was influenced by Zen, and pieces such as Imaginary Landscape No. 4 (1951) for twelve radios are “meditations that measure the passing of time”. Stockhausen describes Aus den sieben Tagen as “intuitive music”, and in the piece Es from this cycle the performers are instructed to play only when not thinking or in a state of non-thinking (Von Gunden asserts that this is contradictory and should be “while not thinking about your playing”). In the 21st century, Georges Lentz’ vast and immersive composition String Quartet(s) (2000-2023), permanently projected in the Cobar Sound Chapel in the Australian desert and influenced by the starry night sky, also contains many meditative aspects .

Mizrahi music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Background#

Mizrahi Jews who immigrated from the Arab countries have, over the last 50 years, created a unique musical style that combines elements of Arabic, Turkish, and Greek music. This is not to be confused with the New Hebrew Style, as the Mizrahi style is more spontaneous. After World War II, many Jewish families made Aliyah to the new state of Israel, founded in 1948. The Muzika Mizrahit movement started in the 1950s with homegrown performers in neighborhoods with a high concentration of Jews from Arab countries who would play at weddings and other events. They performed songs in Hebrew, but in an Arabic style, on traditional Arabic instruments—the oud, kanun, and the darbuka. In the 1960s, they added acoustic and electric guitar to their sound and so their sound became more eclectic. Vocalists usually decorated their singing with trills, and delivery was often nasal or guttural in sound. Intonation was typically Western, however; singers did not use the quartertone scales typical of Arabic music. Into the 1980s synthesizers and electronic instruments made their debut in Mizrahi music. The first Mizrahi artist of this era was the Moroccan-born Jo Amar, who through the 1950s and 1960s made several albums and songs contributing to the genre, mostly influenced by Moroccan music. Another notable if foreign artist that helped contribute to the young genre was Aris San, who helped popularise Greek music in Israel in the 1960s and 1970s with his distinct rock style on traditional Greek songs. Lyrics were originally texts taken from classic Hebrew literature, including poems by medieval Hebrew poets. Later they added texts by Israeli poets, and began writing original lyrics as well. An example is the song “Hanale Hitbalbela” (Hannale was confused), sung by Yizhar Cohen. The lyrics are by the modern Israeli poet and lyricist Natan Alterman, to a traditional tune. Singers also translated childhood favorites from Arabic to Hebrew and added electronics and a faster tempo.

Modern pagan music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Interwar period#

The Latvian neopagan movement Dievturība developed a musical life in the 1930s, focused on the instruments kokles and trīdeksnis, choir music and Latvian folk music. In a 1937 article, the movement’s chief ideologue Ernests Brastiņš wrote about the religion’s sermons, which included music that “should create solemn and harmonious feelings”. This was initially handled by the organist, composer and conductor Valdemārs Ozoliņš (1896–1973). The other main contributors were Jānis Norvilis (1906–1994) and Artūrs Salaks (1891–1984). Norvilis created choral arrangements of folk songs for calendar celebrations. Salaks, a composer and folklorist, became the movement’s musical leader in 1936. His own music was characterized by diatonic scale and drones, and combined archaic and new elements in what he dubbed “the Latvian style”. In 1938, Salaks released a collection of choral songs titled Latviešu dievestīgās dziesmas (“Latvian songs of adoration”). Also in the 1930s, the Norwegian composer Geirr Tveitt (1908–1981) became affiliated with the Germanic neopaganism of the National Socialist journal Ragnarok and its publisher Hans S. Jacobsen. Jacobsen drew heavily from Jakob Wilhelm Hauer’s theories and promoted the adoration of the Norse gods. This influenced Tveitt’s musical compositions, notably the ballet Baldurs draumar (1938). Tveitt maintains a high status as a composer in Norway, but his affiliation with this milieu is controversial.

Neues Geistliches Lied

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

The idea to reach young people by new songs for church services began in the 1950s. The first song in the genre was in 1955 Seigneur, mon ami by Père Duval who performed his religious chansons at the Protestant church assembly Kirchentag in 1962. Christians looked for an expression for reformation of thoughts and liturgy in the churches. The Protestant Evangelische Akademie Tutzing organised competitions, initiated by the minister for students (Studentenpfarrer) in Munich, Günther Hegele. The first competition in 1962 received 996 entries, the first prize went to “Danke” with text and music by Martin Gotthard Schneider. “Stern über Bethlehem” was written by Alfred Hans Zoller for the third competition in 1964, and became a common song of the star singers. Musicals by Andrew Lloyd Webber, in 1968 Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and in 1970 Jesus Christ Superstar, nourished tendencies to write more new music for young people. In 1972, Peter Janssens introduced the term Sacropop to Germany, for a fusion of sacred texts and musical styles derived from pop and rock. A 2001 study, presented at the Überdiözesane Fachtagung Neues Geistliches Lied reported more than 1895 choirs and bands active in the field of NGL. The songs became an established medium in services. Christoph Kießig of a Berlin band noted: “Das NGL ist eine der wenigen Stellen, an denen Jugendliche und Erwachsene nicht nur konsumieren.” (The NGL is one of the few fields where adults and young people don’t only consume.) wrote in 2003 that only songs that congregations like to sing in services are truly NGL (“Denn nur was sich bewährt, bleibt in den Gemeinden lebenden und wird als Neues Geistliches Lied praktiziert.”). New elements compared to traditional hymns are rhythms with syncopes and stresses on the offbeat, contemporary lyrics, and melodies that can be easily learned.

Nigun

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Musar Movement Nigunim#

The Musar movement has also used nigunim, based on the realization of how music affects the inner (i.e., spiritual) life. In the 19th century, the Musar movement developed its own distinctive nigun chanting traditions. In the 21st century, nigunim may be used at the start and end of Musar study sessions, potentially fostering an emotional Musar experience.

General and cited references#

Pinson, DovBer, Inner Rhythms: The Kabbalah of Music, Jason Aronson, Inc. 2000. Excellent chapters on the history of Jewish music, the various types and uses of Hasidic nigunim, etc.
Stern, Shmuel, Shirat HaLev (Trans The Song of the Heart) Translated by Gita Levi.

External links#

CMusic - Lyrics & Reviews for Chasidus Music

Njuup

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Njuup songs are religious in nature. Modern Senegambian artists who sing the purest form of Njuup in the Serer language include Rémi Jegaan Dioh and Yandé Codou Sène.

Influence#

Njuup is the progenitor of Mbalax music. Mbalax music originated when prominent Senegalese artists, such Youssou N’Dour, began to incorporate Njuup into their works Unlike Njuup, which is religious, Mbalax is party music. All Mbalax artists are strongly influenced by the Njuup tradition. Senegalese artists who specialize in Mbalax include Mbaye Dieye Faye, Youssou N’Dour, and Thione Seck.

Nusach (Jewish music)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Description#

The whole musical style or tradition of a community is sometimes referred to as its nusach, but this term is most often used in connection with the chants used for recitative passages, in particular the Amidah. Many of the passages in the prayer book, such as the Amidah and the Psalms, are chanted in a recitative rather than either read in normal speech or sung to a rhythmical tune. The recitatives follow a system of musical modes, somewhat like the maqamat of Arabic music. For example, Ashkenazi cantorial practice distinguishes a number of steiger (scales) named after the prayers in which they are most frequently used, such as the Adonoi malach steiger and the Ahavoh rabboh steiger. Mizrahi communities such as the Syrian Jews use the full maqam system. The scales used may vary both with the particular prayer and with the season. For examples, there are often special modes for the High Holy Days, and in Syrian practice the scale used depends on the Torah reading for the week (see The Weekly Maqam). In some cases the actual melodies are fixed, while in others the reader has freedom of improvisation.

Orthodox pop

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Origins#

Orthodox pop has its roots in the 1950s and early 1960s, when traditional Hasidic nigunim began to be recorded for the first time, such as Ben Zion Shenker’s recordings of Modzitz melodies and cantor David Werdyger’s recordings of Ger and other Hasidic melodies. Werdyger also founded the label Aderet Records in 1950, which was later inherited by his son Mendy Werdyger and which, along with its retail outlet Mostly Music, would become a major distributor of Orthodox music. Another influential figure around that time was Shlomo Carlebach, who pioneered the use of secular styles in Jewish religious music by combining Hasidic nigunim with a contemporary folk rock sound; artists like The Rabbis’ Sons, Mark III, Ruach, Simchatone, and Abie Rotenberg’s D’veykus followed in his style soon after, and many of Carlebach’s compositions became standards and would be covered by countless Orthodox and non-Orthodox artists. Another development was the Hassidic Song Festival, begun in 1969 in Israel; winners included Nurit Hirsh’s “Ose Shalom”, Svika Pick’s “Shema Yisrael”, Carlebach’s “Od Yishama” and “V’haer Enenu”, and David Weinkranz’s “Y’varech’cha”, and these compositions were popularized in America via annual recordings and touring performances. In the post-World War II generation of the 1960s, many Orthodox Jews were caught between the desire to maintain a traditional Orthodox way of life while also being “modern” and not living in the past, and from a musical standpoint this left a vacuum between the existing liturgical and cantorial music and more contemporary and secular styles. This led to the development of a new type of Jewish music that was not intended for the synagogue but instead for professional recording. According to historian Haym Soloveitchik: Rock music sung with “kosher” lyrics was heard at the weddings of the most religious. There had been no “kosher” jazz or “kosher” swing, for music is evocative, and what was elicited by the contemporary beat was felt by the previous generation to be alien to a “Jewish rejoicing” (yiddishe simche). This was no longer the case. The body syncopated to the beat of rock, and the emotional receptivities that the contemporary rhythm engendered were now felt to be consonant with the spirit of “Jewish rejoicing.” Indeed, “Hassidic” rock concerts, though decried, were not unheard of.

Pizmonim

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Geographical background#

Pizmonim are traditionally associated with Sephardi Jews, although they are related to Ashkenazi Jews’ zemirot. The best known tradition is associated with Jews descended from Aleppo, though similar traditions exist among Iraqi Jews (where the songs are known as shbaḥoth, praises) and in North African countries. Jews of Greek, Turkish and Balkan origin have songs of the same kind in Ladino, associated with the festivals: these are known as coplas.

Plainsong

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Plainsong developed during the earliest centuries of Christianity, influenced possibly by the music of the Jewish synagogue and certainly by the Greek modal system. It has its own system of notation. Their collection consists of 170 volumes of plainsong chants for the procession, Mass, and Office. It is probable that even in the early period the two methods caused the differentiation in the style of musical composition which is observed throughout the later history of plain chant, the choral compositions being of a simple kind, the solo compositions more elaborate, using a more extended compass of melodies and longer groups of notes on single syllables. The last type of plainsong performance is the solo performed by the choir or the individual performer. The Plainsong and Medieval Music Society was founded in 1888 to promote the performance and study of liturgical chant and medieval polyphony. Interest in plainsong picked up in 1950s Britain, particularly in the left-wing religious and musical groups associated with Gustav Holst and the writer George B. Chambers. In the late 1980s, plainchant achieved a certain vogue as music for relaxation, and several recordings of plainchant became “classical-chart hits”.

Qawwali

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Terminology#

Qawl (Arabic: قَوْل) means ‘utterance (of the Muhammad)’. A Qawwāl is someone who often repeats or sings a Qawl. Qawwali is the music that a Qawwāl sings. Origins The Delhi Sultanate’s Sufi saint Amir Khusrow of the Chisti order of Sufis is credited with fusing the Persian, Arabic, Turkic, and Indian traditions in the late 13th century in India to create Qawwali as we know it today. The word sama is often still used in Central Asia and Turkey to refer to forms very similar to Qawwali, and in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, the formal name used for a session of Qawwali is Mehfil-e-Sama. The gradual development of Qawwali was significantly influenced by the Hindu Krishna Bhakti movement, which popularized devotional music in Medieval India. Historically, Sufi Qawwalis and Bhakti songs shared themes of longing and the personal journey towards God, with the Sufi concept of ishq (love) mirroring the Bhakti idea of viraha. Sufi poet Amir Khusrau composed Krishna-inspired poetry which influenced Sufi music. Originally, musical instrument use in Qawwali was prohibited. The following conditions were initially placed on Qawwali: Sufi Saints such as Nizamuddin Auliya, the teacher of the famous Sufi singer Amir Khusrow, were quite blunt about the prohibition: Eventually, however, musical instrument use found its way into Qawwali. Instruments such as the harmonium, tabla and dholak are now common in many Qawwali parties.

Quaker music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

19th and 20th centuries#

During the 19th century there was a split within Quakerism, with one branch wanting to return to some of the ways of Protestant churches, with a programmed service including hymns, and the other wishing to retain the traditional service of silent worship punctuated by spontaneous ministry. Although non-programmed Quaker Meetings for Worship remained silent, for the most part, with music rarely used, the attitudes towards music began to shift towards a more relaxed view in the mid-nineteenth century. In particular, many of the poems of John Greenleaf Whittier were set to music and well received. The hymn “How Can I Keep from Singing?,” first published in 1868 by Robert Lowry, was adopted by twentieth century Quakers. The lyrics to the first verse are as follows: My life flows on in endless song; Above earth’s lamentation, I hear the sweet, tho’ far-off hymn That hails a new creation; Thro’ all the tumult and the strife I hear the music ringing; It finds an echo in my soul— How can I keep from singing? One of the most notable versions was created and performed by Peter Seeger, who was told it was a Quaker song. The song was, and continues to be, such a favorite of the Quaker community that is often wrongly attributed to Quaker or Shaker origins. 20th century English Quaker songwriters include Donald Swann of Flanders & Swann, and Sydney Carter, whose best-known song is “Lord of the Dance”.

Religious Jewish music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History of religious Jewish music#

The history of religious Jewish music is that of the Jerusalem Temples, synagogal, and cantoral music composed for Jewish worship contexts since the period of the First Temple. The earliest synagogal music was based on that used during Jewish rituals performed in the Temple in Jerusalem. According to the Mishnah, the regular Temple orchestra consisted of twelve instruments and a choir of twelve male singers. A number of additional instruments were known to the ancient Hebrews but were not included in the Temple’s regular orchestra: the uggav (a small flute) and the abbuv (a reed flute or oboe-like instrument). After the destruction of the Second Temple and subsequent Jewish diasporization, music in religious contexts was initially banned. Later, these restrictions were relaxed—save for Yemenite Jews, who maintained strict adherence to Talmudic and Maimonidean Halakha, and, “instead of developing the playing of musical instruments, they perfected singing and rhythm.” It was with the development of the genre of piyyut (pl. piyyutim, ’liturgical poems’) that Jewish religious music began to crystallize into definite form. In the Jewish congregational setting, the hazzan chanted piyyutim to melodies selected by their composers or composed by himself, thus introducing fixed melodies into synagogal music. The music likely retained some phrases from Temple songs, including scripture, but mainly reflected the tones familiar to Jews of various ages and places, influencing both borrowed tunes and local musical tonality.

Sacred Harp

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The music and its notation#

The name of the tradition comes from the title of the shape-note book from which the music is sung, The Sacred Harp. This book exists today in various editions, discussed below. In shape-note music, notes are printed in special shapes that help the reader identify them on the musical scale. There are two prevalent systems, one using four shapes, and one using seven. In the four-shape system used in The Sacred Harp, each of the four shapes is connected to a particular syllable, fa, sol, la, or mi, and these syllables are employed in singing the notes, just as in the more familiar system that uses do, re, mi, etc. (see solfege). The four-shape system is able to cover the full musical scale because each syllable-shape combination other than mi is assigned to two distinct notes of the scale. For example, the C major scale would be notated and sung as follows: The shape for fa is a triangle, sol an oval, la a rectangle, and mi a diamond. In Sacred Harp singing, pitch is not absolute. The shapes and notes designate degrees of the scale, not particular pitches. Thus for a song in the key of C, fa designates C and F; for a song in G, fa designates G and C, and so on; hence it is called a moveable “do” system. When Sacred Harp singers begin a song, they normally start by singing it with the appropriate syllable for each pitch, using the shapes to guide them. For those in the group not yet familiar with the song, the shapes help with the task of sight reading. The process of reading through the song with the shapes also helps fix the notes in memory. Once the shapes have been sung, the group then sings the verses of the song with their printed words.

Sacred jazz

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Jazz has always incorporated aspects of African American sacred music including spirituals and hymns, which jazz musicians often performed renditions of as part of their repertoire. Many other jazz artists also borrowed from black gospel music. Before World War II, American churches, black and white, regarded jazz and blues with suspicion or outright hostility as “the devil’s music”. It was only after World War II that a few jazz musicians began to compose and perform extended works intended for religious settings or expression. Since the 1950s, sacred and liturgical music has been performed and recorded by many jazz composers and musicians,

Sacred Steel (musical tradition)

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Notable performers#

Maurice “Ted” Beard
The Campbell Brothers
Roosevelt Collier
Calvin Cooke
Aubrey Ghent
A. J. Ghent son of Aubrey Ghent
Bishop Lorenzo Harrison
The Lee Boys
Robert Randolph and the Family Band
Sonny Treadway

External links#

A Brief History of the House of God Steel Guitar Tradition by Robert L. Stone
Sacred Steel and The Empire State by Robert L. Stone
. By Robert L. Stone.
Aubrey Ghent Music and biography
“Sacred Steel”: Traditional Sacred African-American Steel Guitar Music in Florida Various Artists (links to samples from the CD)

Santo Daime hymns

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Calendar of hinarios#

The Santo Daime tradition does not have a unified, formal organizational structure so there is no single official calendar. In the Mapia tradition, the hinario Mestre Irineu on the Virgin of Conception (Dec. 7), Christmas, Day of Kings (January 6), St. John (June 23). The hinario of Padrinho Sebastiao is sung on Mestre Irineu’s birthday (Dec. 15), Saint Sebastian (January 19), Madrinha Rita’s birthday (June 25), as well as Brazilian Father’s Day. Padrinho Alfredo’s hinario is sung on Padrinho Alfredo’s birthday (January 7), St. Joseph (March 18), and Saint Peter (June 28), as well as New Year’s Eve (December 31). In some Alto Santo traditions, the hinario of Mestre Irineu is sung on the Virgin of the Conception, the anniversary of Mestre Irineu’s birth (Dec. 25), Christmas, Epiphany (Three King’s Day), St. Joseph, Saint Joseph, and on the anniversary of his death.

Secular Jewish music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Israeli music#

Modern Israeli music is heavily influenced by its constituents, which include Jewish immigrants from more than 120 countries around the world, which have brought their own musical traditions, making Israel a global melting pot. The Israeli music is very versatile and combines elements of both western and eastern music. It tends to be very eclectic and contains a wide variety of influences from the Diaspora and more modern cultural importation. Hassidic songs, Asian and Arab pop, especially Yemenite singers, and hip hop or heavy metal (including a generally Israeli subgenre of folk metal called oriental metal). From the earliest days of Zionist settlement, Jewish immigrants wrote popular folk music. At first, songs were based on borrowed melodies from German, Russian, or traditional Jewish folk music with new lyrics written in Hebrew. Starting in the early 1920s, however, Jewish settlers made a conscious effort to create a new Hebrew style of music, a style that would tie them to their earliest Hebrew origins and that would differentiate them from the style of the Jewish diaspora of Eastern Europe, which they viewed as weak. This new style borrowed elements from Arabic and, to a lesser extent, traditional Yemenite and eastern Jewish styles: the songs were often homophonic (that is, without clear harmonic character), modal, and limited in range. “The huge change in our lives demands new modes of expression,” wrote composer and music critic Menashe Ravina in 1943. “… and, just as in our language we returned to our historical past, so has our ear turned to the music of the east … as an expression of our innermost feelings.” The youth, labor and kibbutz movements played a major role in musical development before and after the establishment of Israeli statehood in 1948, and in the popularization of many of these songs. The Zionist establishment saw music as a way of establishing a new national identity, and, on a purely pragmatic level, of teaching Hebrew to new immigrants. The national labor organization, the Histadrut, set up a music publishing house that disseminated songbooks and encouraged public sing-alongs (שירה בציבור). This tradition of public sing-alongs continues to the present day, and is a characteristic of modern Israeli culture.

Sephardic music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Sephardic music has its roots in the musical traditions of the Jewish communities in medieval Spain and medieval Portugal. Since then, it has picked up influences from Morocco, Greece, Bulgaria, and the other places that Spanish and Portuguese Jews settled after their expulsion from Spain in 1492 and from Portugal in 1496. Lyrics were preserved by communities formed by the Jews expelled from the Iberian Peninsula. These Sephardic communities share many of the same lyrics and poems, but the melodies vary considerably. Because so many centuries have passed since the expulsion, a lot of the original melodies have been lost. Instead, Sephardic music has adopted the melodies and rhythms of the various countries where the Sephardim settled in. The Greek and Turkish traditions are fairly close. The Moroccan or “western” Sephardic traditions are not that close to the eastern/Greek/Turkish traditions. These song traditions spread from Spain to Morocco (the Western Tradition) and several parts of the Ottoman Empire (the Eastern Tradition) including Greece, Jerusalem, Armenia, the Balkans and Egypt. Sephardic music adapted to each of these locales, assimilating North African high-pitched, extended ululations; Balkan rhythms, (for instance in time); and the Arabic maqam mode. The song traditions were studied and transcribed in the early twentieth century by a number of ethnomusicologists and scholars of medieval Hispanic literature. From around 1957 until quite recently, Samuel Armistead (UC Davis) with colleagues Joseph Silverman and Israel Katz collected Judeo-Spanish songs from informants in North America, Turkey, the Balkans, Greece, North Africa, and Israel. The digitized recordings, with transcriptions and information about song type, are available on the website Folk Literature of the Sephardic Jews, now permanently hosted by the University of Illinois Library. The early 20th century saw some popular commercial recordings of Sephardic music come out of Greece and Turkey, followed by recordings from Jerusalem and other parts of the Eastern Tradition. The first performers were mostly men, including the “Turks” Jack Mayesh, Haim Efendi and Yitzhak Algazi. Later, a new generation of singers arose, many of whom were not themselves Sephardic. Gloria Levy, Pasharos Sefardíes, Flory Jagoda the Parvarim, and Janet & Jak Esim Ensemble are popular Eastern Tradition performers of this period. Gerard Edery, Savina Yannatou, Stefani Valadez, Françoise Atlan, Marlene Samoun Yasmin Levy and Mara Aranda are among the new generation of singers bringing a new interpretation to the Ladino/Judeo-Spanish heritage and, in the large case of Levy and Edery, mixing it with Andalusian Flamenco. Opera singer and actor David Serero sings Ladino and Sephardic songs which he often includes in theater classics such as Merchant of Venice and Othello. The Jewish Community of Thessaloniki Choir was founded in 1995 by members of the community. The choir was founded in the hope that the musical tradition that their ancestors took with them when they were expelled from the Iberian Peninsula 500 years ago would be preserved and revived. The research of its conductor Kostis Papazoglou on Sepharadic music from the medieval tradition (songs like “Tres Ermanikas”) and later as the music evolved resulted to a CD, produced by Minos EMI, with the participation of the Codex Ensemble, under the title " En la mar ay una torre." Today, this choir has 25-30 members of different ages. Its conductor Kostis Papazoglou, is an experienced and distinguished music teacher, soloist, and orchestras conductor, who has given concerts all over Greece as well as in Israel (Tel Aviv), Skopia, Vienna, Salzburg, Bulgaria (Sofia), Russia (St. Petersburg), Egypt (Cairo at the inauguration of the rebuilt Ben Ezra Synagogue),Turkey (Istanbul in the Ashkenaz Synagogue on the occasion of Jewish Culture Week), and Hungary (in the Great Budapest Synagogue).

Shamanic music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Shamanic and musical performance#

Since a Shamanic ritual includes a spiritual purpose and motive, it cannot be regarded as a musical performance, even though shamans use music (singing, drumming, and other instruments) in their rituals. Several things follow the ritual. First, a shamanic ritual performance is, above all, a series of actions and not a series of musical sounds. Second, the shaman’s attention is directed inwards towards her or his visualization of the spirit world and communication with the spirits, and not outwards to any listeners who might be present. Third, it is important for the success of the ritual that it be given its own clearly defined context that is quite different from any kind of entertainment. Fourth, any theatrical elements that are added to impress an audience are of a type to make the contact with the spirits seem more real and not to suggest the performer’s musical virtuosity. From a musical perspective, shamanic ritual performances have the distinctive feature of . Breaks may happen because a spirit is proving difficult to communicate with, or the shaman needs to call a different spirit. Typically, phases of the performance are broken off abruptly, perhaps to be restarted after a gap, perhaps not. The rhythmic dimension of the music of shamans’ rituals has been connected to the idea of both incorporating the rhythms of nature and magically re-articulating them.

Taoist music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Music in Taoist ceremony#

Music has long played an integral part in religious ceremonies. In Taoist ceremonies, music has several different functions. Taoists believe that music is a way to speak to the gods, to inspire religious followers and to achieve inner harmony, bringing the listener or participant closer to Tao. To follow Tao is to recognise the inner harmony and balance in all living things. Music is patterned off of “the music of nature”, which was the divine “natural notes of the respiration of the earth and the cosmic breath that inspires everything” that adept Taoists can get in touch with. In the ceremony witnessed at the Evergreen Taoist Church of Australia in Deagon, the birth of Guan Yin, the goddess of mercy was celebrated. Music and instrumentation played a central role in this ritual. The priests sung each chant and prayer to their gods, and accompanied these on musical instruments. The musical expression of a Taoist ceremony supports the core beliefs of the religion. Firstly, the role of music in the ceremony will be described, showing its religious importance to Taoism. Secondly, this relates the structure of the birth of Guan Yin ceremony to the achievement of Tao. The principal doctrines of Taoism and the roles of the various participants in the ceremony will also be described. Following this, the demeanour of participants and the physical setting of the ceremony will be illustrated. Studying the role of music in Taoist ceremony will demonstrate the importance of music in religion as a means to inspire followers, improve and deepen faith, and enable communication with gods. Describing how the music in the ceremony witnessed communicates and confirms the belief systems of Taoism will reveal music is as intrinsic to the Taoist as the path of Tao itself.

Taqwacore

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

Muslim punk music dates at least to the 1979 founding of British band Alien Kulture. In the 1990s, Nation Records act Fun-Da-Mental and Asian Dub Foundation emerged, solidifying the first examples of UK Muslim generated punk. In an interview, Aki Nawaz, founder of Nation Records, stated that “Islam for me was more punk than punk” Knight’s novel was instrumental in encouraging the growth of a contemporary North American Muslim punk movement, and many bands who used the term taqwacore were ones that traveled with Knight on the ISNA tour featured in the documentary. Thus, the taqwacore community is almost inseparable with Knight and his literature. The first bands to use the term taqwacore are The Kominas, Vote Hezbollah and the Sagg Taqwacore Syndicate. Other bands on the scene include, Secret Trial Five, Fedayeen, Sarmust, KB and other bands under SG-Records. When Kourosh Poursalehi first read The Taqwacores, he took it to be a true account of real Muslims in the United States. He composed a song to Michael Muhammad Knight’s poem “Muhammad was a Punk Rocker”, and sent it to Knight in New York. Knight was extremely happy with what he heard, knowing that his book had reached real Muslims similar to himself, and he played the song over and over. They ended up meeting in Boston, where with Basim Usmani, the Kominas were formed, and the seeds of their tour were planted. Pourlaselhi was heavily influenced by the Fearless Iranians from Hell, as he was from the San Antonio area, and the band was also from Texas. He later went on to form the band Vote Hezbollah. A group of self-identified taqwacore bands traveled in a caravan style tour around the United States as a sort of recreation of Michael Muhammad Knight’s original novel in 2007. This was the basis of the documentary on the movement. Bands that appeared in the film are as follows: :*The Kominas members. The Kominas is a Pakistani punk band from the suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts. The members include Basim Usmani (bass and vocals), Shahjehan Khan (guitar and vocals), Arjun Ray (guitar and vocals), and Karna Ray (drums). :*Al-Thawra, a heavy metal Arab band from Chicago featuring Marwan :*Diacritical, a DC post hardcore, DIY punk group fronted by Omar Pitras Waqar :*Vote Hezbollah, fronted by Kourosh, an Iranian from San Antonio :*Secret Trial Five, an all-female Canadian punk rock band fronted by Sena, a Pakistani lesbian from Vancouver Secret Trial Five, however, have stated that they do not associate themselves with taqwacore: There is not a definitive “taqwacore sound”, and the scene is much more diverse now (2011) than the fictional one portrayed in Knight’s novel, with artists incorporating various styles, ranging from punk to hip-hop, and musical traditions from the Muslim world; the Kominas describe their sound as “Bollywood punk”, Sagg Taqwacore Syndicate are rap and techno inspired music while Al-Thawra uses the term “raicore”, based on North African Arabic Raï music. The genre of music is much more specific to topics of consideration, self-labeling, political framework, and ideology.

Unblack metal

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Characteristics#

Unblack metal is a genre derived from black metal that focuses on Christian lyrical themes. Unblack metal incorporates black metal’s fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars, tremolo picking, double-kick drumming, repetition and often unconventional song structure. Garry Sharpe-Young’s 2001 encyclopedia A-Z of Black Metal states that " t opping the lot are Christian ‘Unblack’ acts who for all intents and purposes look like, sound like and employ the imagery of Black Metal whilst hidden in the unpenetrable vocal growls and distortions are the proclamations of Jesus Christ". Some unblack metal artists, such as Horde, write lyrics that explicitly attack Satanism. This remained a dominant theme throughout most of the 1990s. In the late 1990s, groups began to write more philosophical and ideological lyrics. These often include stories of conversion, doubt, salvation, struggles with faith, and the darker side of living a Christian life. Unblack metal bands may justify their use of the black metal style with reasons ranging from genuine appreciation of the musical genre, to evangelization towards the largely anti-Christian black metal scene, i.e. “bringing light into darkness”.

Urban contemporary gospel

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Origins and development#

Protestant hymns and African-American spirituals make up the basic source material for traditional black gospel music, which in turn is the most significant source of urban/contemporary gospel. Urban/contemporary gospel has kept the spiritual focus of the traditional black gospel music, but uses modern musical forms. Urban/contemporary gospel derives primarily from traditional black gospel music, with strong influence from, and strong influence on, many forms of secular pop music. Due to strong racial divisions in 20th century American culture, urban/contemporary gospel developed specifically out of the African-American musical traditions. The equivalent music from white American culture is contemporary Christian music. The color line divides artists with extremely similar musical styles on the basis of their race, and unites artists with divergent styles (such as rap and pop) on the same basis in industry reporting, marketing choices, and awards like the Grammy and Dove awards.

West gallery music

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

History#

By the 1700s, many church goers were unsatisfied by the state of congregational singing, which resulted in the formation of amateur choirs, which were initially male. In rural English churches, congregations often lacked an organ, but still needed support in order to maintain pitch in complex music. Some of these works have remained in use in shape note traditions, for example in the Sacred Harp repertoire. The 4-part, tenor-led harmony, fuguing tunes and anthems and other aspects strongly helped influence the shape note musical tradition, and in many ways the American music style is directly evolved from the older one. Use of west gallery music in the Church dwindled in part due to the rise of urbanization and also due to the desire for a more polite, more formal style of worship. Another possible reason for this is that when the Methodists split from the Anglican church, many of these bands would have been split apart, or even leaving en masse. In 1893, the Reverend Francis William Galpin described the church band at Winterbourne Abbas, which he believed was the last surviving example in England; however, two years later, a survey of parishes in Cornwall found that 18 out of 219 churches still had a band.

Yiddish song

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

The Yiddish language and song#

From the fourteenth century secular songs were sung in Yiddish, though rabbis of the period directed that sacred songs were only to be sung in Hebrew.

Yiddish folk songs#

One of the main genres of Yiddish folk song in Central and Eastern Europe is Klezmer, which was also exported to America and Israel, though Henry Sapoznik (2005) writes “Historically, Yiddish song and theater have had a higher visibility than klezmer music in Israel.” Generally 17th and 18th century songs and lullabies are anonymous, but the composers of others such as are known; such as “On The Hearth” by Mark Warshawsky.

Zemirot

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Words and lyrics#

Many derive from a corpus of poems written by various rabbis and sages during the early Middle Ages, which were then set to music at a later point, with some appropriated for paraliturgical purposes, such as the zemirot, and others for liturgical use, as with the piyyutim. The extra-liturgical domestic tradition of singing the zemirot increasingly gained a foothold in Jewish praxis by the 11th to 12th centuries. In the 16th century, especially, certain kabbalists of Safed and Italy such as Isaac Luria and Israel Najara, specifically authored texts with the intention of utilization as Sabbath song texts, helping to promote a mystical renaissance in Jewish thought they were pioneering at the time. Using the tunes or styles of surrounding gentile musical selections from the Levant and Turkey, and at times deploying their metaphorical strategies as well, these zemirot have diffused throughout the Jewish world similarly to the influential mystical ideologies on which they depend. Others of the zemirot were likely conceived as anonymous folk songs that have been passed down from generation to generation. Lyrically, zemirot tend to focus on the themes of the Sabbath or the specific holiday being celebrated while employing intertextual references to the extended Jewish canon from sources as diverse as the Bible, mystical works like Sefer Yetzirah, Midrash, or Talmudical or legal literature for either artistic or expressive reasons. Certain songs are primarily didactic, listing Sabbath prohibitions and issuing recommendations for pious conduct, while underscoring the ideas of Shabbat as a treasure and covenant. Often the lyrical tie-in to Shabbat is merely implicit. Over time, various songs have acquired an association with the Sabbath or holidays based on their incorporation of metaphors for Shabbat such as redemption and Jewish chosenness, even when mention of Shabbat is absent. These heightened themes reinforce the spiritual goals of Shabbat observance.

Religious & Devotional on Music Theory Print

Accentus

Anglican chant

Method#

Anglican church music

Forms#

Service settings#

Antiphon

Origins#

Baqashot

History#

Buddhist music

In doctrine and scriptures#

Byzantine music

Imperial age#

Carol (music)

History#

Chabad niggunim

The Chabad style of niggun#

Christian adult contemporary

Demographics#

Christian death metal

Characteristics#

Christian electronic dance music

Popular figures#

Christian hardcore

Stance#

Community and fans#

Christian hip-hop

History and notable examples#

Christian metal

Characteristics#

Christian punk

History#

Christian R&B

Origin and musical style#

Christian rock

Christian response to early rock music (1950s–1960s)#

Christian ska

Early years (late 1970s through 1980s)#

Christmas carol

History#

Church music

Early Christian music#

Contemporary Christian music

Beginnings (1950s–1960s)#

Contemporary Jewish religious music

Hasidic influence#

Contemporary worship music

History and development#

Coptic music

Contemporary personalities contributing to Coptic music#

See also#

External links#

Degenerate music

Racial emphasis#

Discrimination#

Dirge

History#

Dithyramb

History#

Fuguing tune

Description#

Variety in fuguing tunes#

Gaelic psalm singing

Structure and style#

Gamelan Sekaten

See also#

Further reading#

Gelineau psalmody

Text#

Verse#

Gospel music

History#

18th century#

Hamd

In the five pillars of Islam#

Hanukkah music

Hanukkah blessings#

Hebrew cantillation