3 posts tagged “music”
I'm spending Christmas this year with Karina's aunt and uncle in Pennsylvania. It's been real nice to just sit around a relax quite a bit. I get up later than everyone else and am fairly unapologetic about it. I make jokes that few people, if any, get. The things that I do get laughs about are the quirky, random "Metts" things that I do.
There's something about being a Metts that makes you enjoy destroying cultural norms. When I heard a song by Jamiroquai in Macy's I broke out spontaneously in dancing - this was received by stares. When one of aunt Julie's four Pomeranians licked my face I licked his right back, much to the horror and disgust of my audience. Last night, when we attended a candlelit Christmas Eve service, I kept my candle lit for an extra fifteen minutes after the service even though all the others had extinguished theirs.
It was at this service that I found myself exercising another familiar Metts habit - constructive criticism. I found myself always looking to understand why things were happening and gauging their effectiveness. The service consisted of carols sung by the congregation, scripture readings, solos, a short message and a chorale.
It was interesting to sing the carols of old that have survived the ages and contrast them to the solos of contemporary songs like 'Breath of Heaven.' I had a conversation with Karina both before and after the service about why the older carols last so long and why the contemporary songs feel clichéd and cheesy.
Is it the language? Are these songs inferior because of their modern phrases and focus? 'Breath of Heaven' paints an incredibly dramatic picture of Mary's story - and the composer takes a lot of theological liberty. It's also written as if an angel hadn't appeared to her and as if Joseph wanted nothing to do with her. "Me," "I" and "My" appear in the song twenty-four times. That's an awfully self-centered view for someone who definitely wasn't focused on herself in the biblical account.
Not to say that some of the older carols aren't riddled with theological liberty. 'We Three Kings' doesn't take into account that we don't know how many Magi there were and that they probably weren't kings - but there's something songs llike this do have - a perspective of praise and glory to God. One thing that you will find in the ancience carols is a reverence and attitude of worship.
The reason could also be musical. The composers of older times took much more care in the fabrication of their music. The sound is so much more rich and full than the three-chord pop songs of today's contemporary scene.
Today's young Christian musicians need to recognise these factors and incorporate them. I've already seen some convincing signs that they are. As artists, we've got to work toward a Christmas, and a faith, that isn't clichéd. That's what's going to last. Our own faith, our own espression of good theology. Using the creativity that God has given us.
In the tower above the earth,
There is a view that reaches far
Where we see the universe,
I see the fire, I see the end.
Seven miles above the earth,
There is Emmanuel of mothers.
With his sword, with his robe,
He comes dividing man from brothers.
In the tower above the earth, we built it for Emmanuel.
In the powers of the earth, we wait until it rips and rips.
In the tower above the earth, we built it for Emmanuel.
Oh my mother, she betrayed us, but my father loved and bathed us.
Still I go to the deepest grave,
Where I go to sleep alone
- Sufjan Stevens: The Seer's Tower
Come on feel the Illinoise is my first Sufjan experience and the first thing that hit me about him was the sound. The variety of sounds and instrumentation is astounding, but everything I controlled so well. He is a lover of intimacy, and the dynamics and sensitivity clearly show this.
There are hints of many types of woodwinds, brass, percussion, bells, and other instruments, but the sound centers around Sufjan’s voice. By the time Sufjan was in college he was proficient with a great variety of instruments, but he waited some time before exploring his vocal talent. While his voice isn’t especially powerful, his control is amazing. It gives the feeling of fragility, but it’s strong at the same time.
If Sufjan is a good musician, he’s an incredible lyricist. The imagery that he uses clear in and of itself. Casimir Pulaski Day is a song about falling in love with the girl who has cancer. It so clearly expresses the emotions that would be present, but it could also be reduced to a simple love story. I was also aware of an incredible honesty in his lyrics. He’s not afraid of what assumptions people will make about him.
Again in Casimir Pulaski Day, Sufjan reveals what may be his own beliefs or the beliefs of someone who affected him he says:
Oh the glory that the lord has made
And the complications when I see his face
In the morning in the windowOh the glory when he took our place
But he took my shoulders and he shook my face
And he takes and he takes and he takes
This is something that is rarely written by an observer to Christianity, and rarely with such sincerity. Now it's not certain that he is referring to the Judea-Christian "God" here, but this type of language is rarely used elsewhere. In any case, he has a strong sense of spiritual awareness.
I need a reason not to be in love with this album. If anyone is out there who hates this album, or is even apathetic, I’d love to hear from you. In the meantime I’ll be drifting off into a dream like state as I enjoy this album one more time. I just hope I’m not driving when that happens.
