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Leave the Music to the Musicians
Read the article / show / issue that provoked me to write a letter and my response below that or go straight to my response
Date Posted on this Site
July 10, 2006
Publication
Hamilton Spectator
Publication Date
July 10, 2006
Published Content
This was a letter sent to the Hamilton Spectator following an erroneous article stating that the Pope had banned electric guitars in church.
By Steve Parton, Dundas
The Hamilton Spectator
(Jul 5, 2006)
Re: 'Pope has valid concerns about rock music in church' (Letters, June 29)
This letter praised Pope Benedict's condemnation of guitars and drums within Catholic Church services. Fortunately, most people have progressed beyond the values imposed until, and during, the 1950s.
I am a professional musician and music educator, and I often perform classical music at my church, St. Paul's United in Dundas. Our minister is well aware of the importance of appealing to the younger generation. As such, I am often invited to also perform Christian rock songs on my electric guitar during the service.
The lyrical content of the songs I sing is no different than that which is found in the hymn books -- thematically speaking -- and indeed, sometimes the songs include drums. The result is that the youth (i.e. those under age 65 or so) have yet another reason to attend church.
The writer described rock and pop music in a way that I have never heard in my 25 years as a musician:
It is apparently "industrially produced ... it assumes a cultic character ... in opposition to Christian worship ...
"There is little chance for the sober inebriation to take place ... empty freedom through pop music ... "
How poetic.
How farcical.
The writer would be wise to leave the music analogies to the musicians.
Please note that Pope Benedict's predecessor was also aware of the importance of appealing to the younger generation.
Pope John Paul welcomed rock music during the 2002 World Youth Day in Toronto.
I know this because I was commissioned to arrange a piece of music to be performed at said festival.
The song? My Sweet Lord by George Harrison.
My Response Letter
Steve Parton misunderstands the role of music in the Catholic Mass.
The Mass is not an outdoor rock concert. It is the participation in the never-ending divine liturgy, where we join the angels and saints in Heaven who are constantly singing the glory and praise of God. As such, it is easy to see that the Mass requires music that elevates the soul and encourages holiness. Sacred polyphony and Gregorian chant fit the bill; wawa pedals and drum solos do not.
That World Youth Days resonate with millions of young Catholics has less to do with Mr. Parton's compositions and much more to do with the real presence of Christ in each person and, most importantly, in the Eucharist.
Musicians would be wise to leave the liturgy to the real liturgists: the bishops and the Pope.
Jason Gennaro
Was my response published?
Yes