Music in Church

Wesley Blog: Church Music & Your Soul

Good post about music in church, and the need to move away from lreying entirely on the organ. The simple summary is that younger people respond best to music that matches what they think of as good music.

For a lot of older churches, the organ represents both tradition and a major investment (of both money, and the time needed to gain the skills to play the thing.) As such, its easy to see why it is hard to move the music away from it. Also, it is vital not to let the needs of younger worshippers create an environment that older people don't enjoy.

But getting the music right is a key part of any service, and one that too many churches fail at. We have gained hugely at St. Marks from the arrival of Ben the drummer. He has boosted the whole music group, and freed me on bass to be more inventive as I no longer have to carry the beat (not that I'm sure I ever did that very well.)

It matters a lot to me because the bass is one of the ways I praise God. I don't talk well to crowds, and I'm not very reliable for other church matters. But I can play bass pretty well within my chosen style, and when it all comes together I know that I am praising God on my four strings, as well as helping others to praise him.