The Musical Heritage of the Church Volume VII Edited by Theodore Hoelty-Nickel Valparaiso, Indiana The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Table of Contents Wµo]Z [ &} Á} O. A. Dorn ]}[ W ( Theo. Hoelty-Nickel Foreword Elmer E. Foelber The Authors Church Music and Theology Theo. Hoelty-Nickel, Valparaiso University Worship from Luther to Lutheranism Helge Nyman, Abo, Finland The Hymnody of the Reformation, Then and Now Mandus Egge, Minneapolis, Minnesota Church Music and the Ecumenical Scene Charles Anders, Northfield, Minnesota Luther and the Composers of His Time Charles Anders, Northfield, Minnesota New Concepts of Hymnody and Polyphony Heinz Werner Zimmermann, Berlin, Germany ^ t}_ v ^ d}v _ ]v dZ ](( v Dµ] E}À M. Geerink Bakker, Hilversum, Holland The Place of Religious Music in Broadcasting M. Geerink Bakker, Hilversum, Holland Christian Culture and the Cultured Christian Leader Walter E. Buszin, Omaha, Nebraska Has the Lutheran Hymn Run Its Course? Friedrich Hofmann, Neumarkt/Obf., Germany Luther and the New Song Martin J. Naumann, Springfield, Illinois What Makes It Lutheran? E. Theo. DeLaney, St. Louis, Missouri The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Aesthetics of Music Joachim Widman, Munich, Germany International Cooperation in Church Music Willem Mudde, Den Haag, Holland The Problem of Expression in Music Donald Ferguson, Minneapolis, Minnesota Heinrich Schütz and Johann Sebastian Bach in the Protestant Liturgy > } ^Z U hv]À ]Ç }( oU ^Á]Ì ov The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Wµo]Z [ &} Á} Once again Concordia Publishing House is pleased to make available a volume in The Musical Heritage of the Church series, containing essays delivered at the Valparaiso University Church Music Seminars. The present volume is the seventh in the series. Since 1944 these seminars, under the able leadership of Dr. Theodore Hoelty-Nickel, have been held regularly to discuss church music, Christian worshipvespecially in its Lutheran understandingvand related problems. The papers presented at the meetings have had wide influence in church music circles both within the Lutheran church and also in other denominations. Previous volumes in the series have been eagerly sought after both by church music scholars and also by practical church musicians in this country and abroad. The present volume contains essays on a variety of topics. Several strike at the very heart of church music and its relation to Christian worship. Others are of a technical, practical, or historical nature. All will be of value to the conscientious church musician. O. A. Dorn ]}[ W ( The essays contained in this volume were for the most part presented at the Valparaiso University Church Music Seminars. They are being published as Volume VII of The Musical Heritage of the Church series. It has been our policy to publish this material as it was presented at our conferences. The opinions expressed are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect our point of view. The editor wishes to express his appreciation to Dr. O. A. Dorn of Concordia Publishing House for making possible the publication of this volume. He would also like to thank Professor Elmer Foelber and the Editorial Department of Concordia Publishing House for many editorial suggestions. The editor also wishes to express his heartfelt appreciation to the Aid Association for Lutherans, Appleton, Wis., for their continuous interest in our program of studies in the field of church music and their generous financial support of our Church Music Seminars. Theo. Hoelty-Nickel August 31, 1969 Foreword No other group, I am certain, has contributed more to the welfare of the Lutheran Church for the past 25 years than the Valparaiso University Church Music Seminar. Founded by Dr. Theodore Hoelty-Nickel and led by him, it has quietly but effectively roused the Lutherans of the U.S.A. to serious study of their marvelous musical heritage. In addition, this group has successfully urged that the Lutheran Church become more creative and strive to increase the treasure that it has. Evidence of the work carried on by this group is before you in the anthology of 16 essays prepared for and read at the annual conferences. As the table of contents indicates, we find here breadth and depth dwelling together under one roof. This collection will, no doubt, be the finest and most lasting offering for the anniversary celebration to take place 2t5 April 1970 at Valparaiso University. The tone for The Musical Heritage of the Church is set by editor Hoelty-Nickel in his introductory essay. He points out that truly Lutheran music is consistently anchored to the three great solas: sola gratia, The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. sola Scriptura, sola fide. Or, to put it another way: neither the Scriptures nor the Lutheran Confessions (Book of Concord) have become museum pieces but proclaim authentically and authoritatively the Word of God (Law and Gospel) to every age and every condition of man. For maximum profit, the essays should be read, if possible, at one sitting to get hold of the sweep of the presentations as a whole. They should then be read again one at a time. Whereupon the reader will engage in constructive criticism, self-evaluation, and creative reflections of his own. Both he and the church will be the better for it. Hearty congratulations are in order to Hoelty-Nickel and his fellow protagonists. Blessings from on High on these servants of the Lord Jesus Christ! Elmer E. Foelber House Editor Concordia Publishing House St. Louis, Mo. The Authors Professor Helge Nyman is professor of theology at the University of Abo, Finland. He is chairman of the International Conference on Church Music. The Reverend Mandus A. Egge is executive director of the Commission on Worship and Church Music of the American Lutheran Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Professor Charles Anders is professor of church music at St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minnesota. Doctor Heinz Werner Zimmermann is director of the Kirchenmusik Hochschule in Berlin-Spandau, Germany. Drs. M. Geerink Bakker is a director at the Nederlandes Christeluke Radio-Vereniging, Hilversum, Holland. Doctor Walter E. Buszin is professor emeritus of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri. He is now residing in Omaha, Nebraska. Dekan Friedrich Hofmann, Neumarkt, Germany, is chairman of the Association of Evangelical Church Choirs in Germany. The Reverend Dr. Martin J. Naumann is professor of Old Testament at Concordia Seminary, Springfield, Illinois. The Reverend E. Theodore DeLaney is executive secretary of the Commission on Worship, The Lutheran ChurchtMissouri Synod. Doctor Joachim Widman is Landeskirchenmusikdirektor in Munich. Doctor Willem Mudde is Kantor at the Evangelical Lutheran Church, The Hague, Netherlands, and director of the Utrecht Motet Society. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Doctor Donald Ferguson is professor emeritus at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is the author of The History of Musical Thought. Doctor Leo SchradeU hv]À ]Ç }( oU oU ^Á]Ì ovX The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Church Music and Theology Theo. Hoelty-Nickel '}[ Po}]}µ ]}v Á v ]oo ] (} uvU µuµ}µ Z uÇ }µv } }v ÁZ} ] accustomed t} Z µv]]À À] Á }( uv } Ào v }ÇX '}[ }u} Á o Z ]}o }( uv }v Z Ç '}[ ]}v Á }uo v ( X dZ] o]}v }( uv } Z Á}oU yes, to the whole universe, would have resulted in a development of the powers and a use of the orders of God reaching a perfection that man, now fallen man, cannot even begin to estimate. The glorious God, being the gracious God, still left eyes for man to see the world and ears to hear the praise of God in nature, still lef uv Z] v v Z] }vU ]oo o ( Z }u} uv[ }u]vU µ Á]Z }v P ](( v v ]]v]}v ]v u vU u v}µ o v]À W } ] Z }( uv[ u]}v ]v the Seed of the woman or forever to see it as a testimony t} uv[ (oo v uv]}vX ^}U t v Elert points out, Matthias Claudius and Goethe see the same moon and have similar sentiments for its magic presence, but while one feels it lead his thoughts to God, the other thinks of death and hopeless longing. Because Goethe and every man with him is essentially an egoist, he makes the whole cosmos an P} v] }v U ]µ]vP Z Ç À Ç o]}v } Z } }( '}[ ]}vX dZ uv }( '}U Z P v uv ]v Z]U lv}Á }( Z }u} '}[ }u}U '}[ µv]À U v lv}Á Z '} loved the world and sent His Son into the world to restore to man lost sonship and a lost heritage. And as man is renewed by the Spirit, he sees with enlightened eyes and receives with new gratitude the immeasurably r]Z µ }( '}[ P]( v } X ^} u v}µ ] Z µ }(( } }µ senses and powers that even the believer is overwhelmed by the wealth and number of opportunities to serve God and his fellowmen in this creation. The true theology, which is the true praise of God, is the measure and means of making of this creation of God a testimony to God. The talents given to man demand as orders and gifts of God the dedicated application of reason and all senses to the task at hand. The talent of music, too, has its value in the praise of God, whether it be directly in public worship or in everyday life and living in this world. It will be a constant problem for man to learn that in the talent of music, as in all creatures, there is nothing that in any way could or should be foreign to the true theology. Everything can join in the doxology of the heavens that declare the glory of God. It was one of the blessings of the Reformation that the appreciation of the beauties of the world and the enjoyment of its manifold treasures was no longer considered the sign and character of men walking the broad road to destruction. After the Reformer saw the heaven of grace opened to him in the sola gratia of Scripture, he had his eyes opened to the beauties of things great and small in this world. Thus he could sing his simple song with a heart free and great as the world. In the ups and downs of the Z]}Ç }( Z ZµZU Z Á ]} ]v ÁZ]Z '}[ ]}v Á v} }v] Á}ZÇ }( µ ]v the service of God. Man sought to flee the world for fear the lusts of the flesh would trap him. The u}v]]}v ^ >}À v} Z Á}o_ Á o] } Z }u} ÁZ}o U v Ç ] Á u v }voÇ (} that side of the cosmos which turned down the loving Gospel of the Redeemer. This cosmos of man goes hand in hand with lusts of the flesh and the pride of life, but the cosmos as the place where God has established His kingdom among men cannot serve any other purpose but to sing praises to God. God, who created the rhythm of night and day; God, who established mathematics in the hexaemeron }( ' v ] v ]v Z }À }( uv[ Á lV '}U ÁZ} o]Z Z }vP }( Z Z }vP }( the sons of GodvHe is not and cannot be dishonored by any other creature of this world except by man. Music and song are gifts and talents that lend themselves naturally and beautifully to the praise of God, but it is in this area, too, that the believer must learn and experience over and over the application of giving glory to God. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Music is a creation and order of God that Satan can and does pervert. Indeed, even in the very act of applying this gift in sacrifice to God, we may turn its beauty into evil. Calvin was not entirely wrong when he said that music might be the tool of the devil. All the good orders of God can be misused, all the gifts }( '} v }u µ } Z uv ÁZ} µ Z u Á}vPoÇX µ '}[ ]v v]}v ] Z Á o]À }µ o]( }v Z] Z Á]Z]v '}[ } U v Z u v o} Z Á o]À Ç v Á]Z '}[ P]( } u n. Luther, therefore, was more right than Calvin was wrong when he considered music a means to glorify God and to drive Satan away. It all depends on whether we live in the kingdom of grace or are still under the Law and under condemnation. To him who is under the Law, everything is a testimony of death. The most beautiful things cause all men a pain as of a Heimweh for the world that once was perfect, but this ^Z}u ]lv _ ]v Z Z]]v Z ] }u] ]v Z '} o }( Z]U ÁZ} ul oo Z]vP v Á, whereas in the heart of the man who does not know Christ this Heimweh and Weltschmerz must be µo]u Ç ^Á}o-oµ_ ~Weltlust) or resignation. A poet can sing of the last rose of summer with no answer to the question of hope, a Christian can see in the lilies of the field the glory that is not matched by Solomon in all his glory. The church has turned to music in its work of glorifying God and has thereby claimed for God another of His gifts of creation. This ought not to be taken from her. Believers of all times have applied this art to the praise of God and have used the rules and methods of the arts as tools in the service of the Creator. There is, however, the same danger in such an activity of man as in other works of manvthey tend to glorify the worship or the worshiper rather than Him who is to be worshiped. The greater the effort of man, the more beautiful the result of this effort, the higher the appreciation of the beauty in the eyes of other men, the closer the moment when man is ready to hear in his own work the oldest music of hell, the theme of temptation: eritis sicut dei! Before man knows it, he is playing and singing to his own glory, to his own little god, to his ego. That is basically the danger to be calculated and guarded against, the À v u]}v } o À }v o( Á]Z Z Á}l }( }v [ ZvX dZ P}U } ^P}o U_ /]Z oo Z uU ]u}vÇ } uv[ o(-esteem. So easily can worship of the true God be given a character of a symphony of self. So easily can the offering of music before the throne of God become a presentation of a gift extolling the human giver. For such reasons the character of church music at times has been held to an ascetic type of chant, as if man were afraid, and rightly so, that his ego might tempt Z]u } Æo Z]u o(X µ Á } v} } iµ] } '}[ ]}v µvo Á µ oo Z } }( ]}v[ manuals in His service, daily guarding against our own weakness and judging ourselves constantly by the Word of God. The theology of Scr]µ P]À }Z Z u}]À v ] ]}v }( oo Á}Z]X dZ ^]] v µZ_ }( worship must fill our musical presentations. Only if it is done in spirit and truth, does it become true worship, otherwise it is only embellishment, frosting, frills, gilding. The purpose of music for worship is v} } o uv } } ul Á}Z] u} oo } ^À]]}_ Z À] X Dµ]U Ç U the }uo o]µPÇU ] Z Æ ]}v }( (]ZU Z À] v }( Z ^]][ u]o ]v Z Z }( uvX Kµ worship in song must radiate the glory of Christ in this dark world. The light we let shine can be seen by the world, but it must so shine that our Father in heaven is glorified, and not the choir in the balcony or the professional soloist. At the same time we can watch and pray that we fall not into the temptation of trying to spotlight God and His Word. Even though this seems like the best of intentions, it is only doing the impossible of adding human brilliance to the light of the glory in the face of Jesus ChriX ^ t Z o His glory, the glory as of the Only- P} v }( Z &Z U (µoo }( P v µZ_ ] v} }voÇ :}Zv[ ]]}v }( Z v(]Pµ]}v }v Z u}µv µ :}Zv[ ]u}vÇ } Z o]PZ ÁZ]Z Z}Áv ]v Z heart of the believers that were with Him. Whoever has seen His glory in faith knows of no addition to it, v µ ]v }( '}[ P Á}µo }v] ] oZ uÇ } Ç } v Æ Ç }( Z] }Áv ul]vPX The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The Light of Life shines in and through all that we call living in Christ, and above all it should radiate in }µ Á}Z]X tZ Z }o }( '} PZ µZU ÁZ Z Ç i}]v ^vP o v ZvP o v oo Z }uvÇ }( Z À v_ ]v Z ] }]}vU Z uµ }voÇ }v ]u v }v ]v]o U } P]À whatever we have in the spirit of soli Deo gloria! In whatever difficulties and problems men may be involved, in whatever dilemma one might find himself when he is moved to speak for or against style, type, mode, character, etc., of worship music, the important criterion must always be: God be praised! So let us open our gifts, terrestrial and perishable as they may bevlet us open them and present the best, the gold, the frankincense, and the myrrh, as homage to the One who gave Himself wholly for us and our salvation. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Worship from Luther to Lutheranism Helge Nyman The celebration of the 450th anniversary of the Reformation naturally prompted us to ask the question how Lutheranism has administered the heritage of the Reformation and how this heritage has been made use of and developed in the course of more than four centuries. Lutheranism has not remained unchanged for 400 years. Nor is it absolutely consistent, but it presents rather great variations in different parts of the Lutheran world. This applies above all to the external conditions of Lutheranism. dZ ] v} ^ >µZ v ZµZ_ ]v Z u v Z ] µv](}u Z}uv Z}o] ZµZU µ Z are a fairly large number of Lutheran churches, or rather, churches with a Lutheran confession. Not all of them want the officio vu }( Z ] ZµZ } ]voµ Z Á} ^ >µZ vX_ It is obvious that the splitting of Lutheranism into national churches and Landeskirchenhas brought about a noticeably motley variety. This fact is connected with political and historical conditions and cannot be said to be founded on a principle or to be constitutive in Lutheranism, even if it goes very deep. The internal unity of Lutheranism is, however, greater than the variety in organization indicates. If we ask what the strongest tie between the Lutheran churches is, the ready answer seems to be the common confession, principally the special confession of the Lutherans, the Augsburg Confession. This Confession can, however, only with a definite qualification be said to be a Lutheran characteristic. Like many, perhaps most, other corresponding articles of faith, the Confessio Augustana is not a spontaneous expression of Lutheran faith, but it was necessitated by external pressure in a time of crisis. For a genuine expression of the individuality of a Christian denomination, we should rather look where this is allowed to develop freelyvin its worship. With this in mind, I will therefore try to trace the path from Luther to Lutheranism, studying >µZ v]u[ Á}Z] ]v ]v]o v ]v ] X There is no contradiction between Lutheran confession and Lutheran worship. When the Augsburg Confession wants to give the characteristics of the true church, it points, in fact, to the worship: the church is where the Word is preached in its purity and the sacraments are rightly administered. That is why it can be said that the church lives in the worship of its congregations. This is no specifically Lutheran doctrine, but something that is true of the Christian church in general, indeed even far beyond its boundaries. The heart of every religion beats in its worship, its cult. We are therefore justified in looking at the history of the Lutheran Church in an effort to determine some decisive features in the development of Lutheran worship. What is the path of worship from Luther to Lutheranism? >µZ [ v (}u P]v Á]Z v Æ u oÇ Z ]]]u }( Z }v u}Ç ZµZ on fundamental points. This criticism is also aimed at Roman Catholic worship; it aims at what is most vital: the functi}v }( Á}Z] ]v uv[ o]P]}µ ]µ X tZ } uv Æ (}u Z Á}Z] service he arranges or takes part in? Here Luther attacks in a way that could not be more severe what he sees to be the function of the Roman Mass. He finds it to be an expres]}v }( uv[ v À} } P]v merit before God. A service understood as a sacrifice he considered a fundamental distortion of the idea Z]v Z][ ]v]µ]}v }( Z >}[ ^µ U Z ]U v Æ ]}v }( '}[ o}À }Á ]vv X dZ The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. doctrine of the Mass as a sacrifice, on the other hand, expresses the desire of man to justify himself before God. Against worship understood as sacrificium Luther places worship as beneficium. >µZ [ ]]]u ] P]v Z Z}uv D }( Z] ]u (}u Z }logical point of view could hardly have been more radical. And yet this criticism did not lead Luther to reject the traditional Mass. What he disapproved of was not the Mass itself but the use made of it in the contemporary Roman Church. This use Luther regarded as an abuse. The reform of worship that was inevitable as soon as conditions were more settled proceeded therefore without any discussion from the Roman Mass. In spite of all later distortions, according to Luther, it goes back to the Last Supper of Jesus with His ]]o ]v Z h Z}}u ]v : µo uX dZ o} }v v P } Z] (] o ]}v }( Z >}[ Supper, the better the service will be. tZ }}l o Z >}[ ^µ Z] (] ]u Á Z Z] ]v Á} v U Z}µPZ meal of the simplest kind, took His disciples into His fellowship and told them that they were to experience this communion with Him through the same simple act of worship also in the future, when He had departed. Luther interprets the account of the inst]µ]}v }( Z >}[ ^µ ]v uvv Z o}}l µ}v Z ]o }( ]]o Z][ }vP P]}vU ,] ZµZU v} v Æoµ]À P}µ }( } ]À administrators of the sacraments. When Jesus hands both bread and wine to the disciples, this form of administering the Sacrament is therefore binding for every Communion celebration; the administering of the Sacrament sub utraque specie is the only correct form. Z][ ]uo ^ D_ Á]Z Z Á} }( ]v]µ]}v v Z ]]µ]vP }( v Á]v had in the }µ }( Z vµ] ZvP ]ooÇU µ ] Z v} } Z >}[ ^µ U v ] }µo again be celebrated in accordance with the institution by Jesus. This was decisive for Luther in his liturgical reform. That is why the essen]o Á} v }( Z (] >}[ ^µ U Z Á} }( institution and the administering of bread and wine, had to be the same in every true celebration of the Eucharist; on the other hand, the ceremony and adornment which in the course of history had been added to the Mass could be treated freely. To Luther it seemed natural to preserve the structure of the Communion service that was characteristic of the traditional Mass. As the service was no longer an act of sacrifice performed by the priest but a matter concerning the congregation, it had to be held in a language that the people understood. / Z }( v v Z}µPZ Z >µZ [ uv Z u}v Z}µo oÁÇ }( Z À] Á the core of his reform of worship. This is, however, not v µ Z ]Ì]}v }( >µZ [ attitude. In the first place, the sermon was not anything new as compared with the late Middle Ages, and for Luther the question was not only one of the need for more preaching but above all a question concerning what was preached and how the purpose of the sermon was to be determined. These questions we must here pass over. When Luther calls for a sermon in every service, it is a matter of course to him that the service in which one is to preach when the congregation gathers for worship on Sunday is simply the Mass. It is never a question of pitting the sermon and the Eucharist against each other, as there is no competitive relation between them. The main service on Sundays and festival days is, as before, the Mass, and it must also include a sermon. Thus Christ meets His congregation through the means to which He Himself has bound His presence: the Word and the Sacrament. oo >µZ [ }}o (} Z Z]vP }( Z À] Zµ }v Z ]]}v }( Z Ds. If there Á }vP P]}v }( uµ Z]]v }voÇU ] Á}µo }]o } o Z >}[ ^µ ]v simple form as in the first congregation; Luther hints at this dream in his preface to the Deutsche Messe, The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. but he admits that he did not have the people for such a congregation. So it was better to follow the historical Mass. As is well known, Luther outlined two forms of the Evangelical Mass, the richer Latin Formula Missae of 1523 and the simpler, popular Deutsche Messe of 1526. The earliest Lutheran tradition of worship followed one or the other of these Evangelical types of the Mass. A diverging tradition arose within Lutheranism only in southern Germany, where the preaching service, Pronaus, which had developed in the Middle Ages, separated from the Mass and became the pattern for the ordinary Sunday service, while a special Communion service independent of the Mass tradition was arranged for the days when Communion was celebrated. Here Lutheranism developed a type of service that otherwise became common in Reformed churches. The starting point of the Lutheran liturgical development was thus predominantly a Communion service based on the traditional elements of the Mass, where the sermon had an established and emphasized position. This service was intended to be the regular form of main service every Sunday and festival day. dZ Z (}u >µZ } >µZ v]uU } ( Á}Z] ] }v v U Z}Á µ (}u >µZ [ own intentions and a development which in fact implies a peculiar novelty. But this development is so well concealed behind preserved liturgical forms that it has been surprisingly little observed not only in general knowledge but also in the scholarly expositions of the history of Lutheran worship. Roman Catholic worship in the Middle Ages was characterized by a tremendous increase in the number of Masses. They were celebrated on workdays and Sundays, in large churches at many altars simultaneously. For this a numerous clergy was needed, but a congregation was not necessarily present. In the new practice of Lutheran worship, it was the congregation that determined the frequency of services. Without the presence of a congregation, no service could be held, as the congregation was considered the proper subject of the service, the minister serving the congregation. The workday Masses were in most cases dropped. But as every service was intended to be a Communion service, not only a congregation was required but also a communing congregation. Now the Sacrament was liberated from ] ^ Ço}v]v ]À]ÇU_ v}Á ] Á } } Z }vP P]}vU v}Á Z] Á ooÇ to be with His congregation and to meet each member precisely in the means to which He had given His v U ]v Z t} v ]v Z >}[ ^µ X It must, however, be admitted that reality did not especially well correspond to Lutheran intentions. There could be no question of an entire congregation communing at the new services. Instead one had to be content if some of those present at all times received the Sacrament. On principle one did not think it possible to hold Mass without communicants; the Communion of the minister alone was not }v] µ((]] vU Z >}[ ^µ Á µv }} } }v v }( Z }vP P]}vX Getting communicants to every service proved a difficult problem. People were of old used to going to Communion at the great festivals, above all at Easter, and it was not easy to break this custom and to distribute the communicants more evenly over the whole year. In the interest of the Evangelical faith, the full liberty in the use of the Communion had to be stressed. No one could be forced to commune, nor must the Communion be understood as a meritorious performance. An obstacle was also the shyness of people to the administering of the chalice. When no one wished to take part in the Communion, it was not possible to hold Mass. So there arose the need for a quite new type of service that was not a Mass. Thus Lutheranism was forced out of necessity into a situation that the Reformed Church had voluntarily chosen: they arranged the normal À] Z]vP À] v À Z o ]}v }( Z >}[ ^µ (} ( Á ]o vvµo The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. À] X v o]Ç Zµ À v Z o]Ì]}v }( >µZ [ ] o Z v ÀvP o]o Dss with the Communion of the congregation should be the regular Form of service on all Sundays and festival days. Here we are in fact faced with a most interesting problem of liturgical history: the development of a specifically Lutheran form of service, determined by the traditional Mass but without that which made the Mass a Mass, the celebration of the Sacrament. The most common way to solve the liturgical problem of the service when Communion could not be held was simply to omit the Eucharistic act itself, but keep the other parts of the liturgy of the Mass. In this way Lutheranism created its own type of preaching service, where the sermon was framed in the traditional elements of the MassvIntroit, Kyrie, Gloria, Collect, Lessons, Creed, and a short fino o]µPÇ Á]Z WÇ }( Z ZµZU >}[ WÇ U Benedicamus, and Benediction. We recognize this liturgical form as that which is commonly used in >µZ v ZµZ }ÇX / } À Ç oÇV Á ZÀ ] (} ]vv ]v µP vZP v[ íñîô ZµZ } for Brunswick, where also parts of the proper Communion liturgy are included (Preface, Sanctus, Agnus Dei). In the church order for Hamburg, Bugenhagen one year later abandoned the latter parts and prescribed some psalms after the sermon. In Denmark, Bugenhagen introduced the Mass-like liturgy for the service without Communion through the Kirkeordinansen of 1539. This liturgy for the service without Communion prevailed, even if at first it was not the only form; the church order of 1528 for the German town of Seida was an exception. The most energetic champion of another solution of the problem of the service when Communion cannot be celebrated owing to the lack of communicants we find in the first Evangelical archbishop of Sweden, Laurentius Petri. His church order of 1571, which was completed in manuscript as early as 1561, says that if no one wants to partake of the Sacrament, no Mass is to be held. Instead the minister ] } Z}o ]uo Z]vP À] Á]Z ^}u P}oÇ ZÇuv_ v Z >]vÇX dZ] ] finitely an emergency solution; to abandon the Mass on a Sunday is to choose the lesser of two evils. That is why the minister is to admonish the people to go more frequently to Communion and to spread their Communions more evenly over the church year. In another connection, Laurentius Petri expressed his opinion that the elements of the Mass, its prayers and thanksgiving, are mostly so intimately connected with the Sacrament itself that the whole liturgy has a meaning only if Communion is actually celebrated and if the gift offered there is received. This strict attitude concerning the integrity of the liturgy of the Mass thus leads to a marked asceticism in the shaping of such a preaching service. This asceticism has at the same time the pedagogical aim to make people aware of their lack of appreciation of the Communion. Laurentius Petri made a temporary exception to his rule of not borrowing portions of the Mass for the preaching service and in special cases recommended such borrowing. A war between Sweden and Denmark in the middle of the 1560s led to a crisis in trade relations causing among other things a serious shortage of wine. If Mass could not be held owing to the lack of wine, one was not, according to the genuinely Lutheran conception, allowed to use any other beverage, but one had to abstain from celebrating Communion. This was a severe trial, and here the people could not be blamed. So the archbishop advised his clergy in a pastoral letter of 1564 above all to preach in such cases but, in addition, to read or sing to the people those parts of the Mass which usually precede the sermon, that is, Introit, Kyrie, Gloria, Collect, Epistle, Gradual, Gospel; after the sermon there were to follow Litany, Creed, and Benediction. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. This was therefore an emergency solution in an exceptional situation, not, as has often been believed, a proposed reform of the liturgy of the Swedish Church. This is also proved by the later development in Sweden and Finland. The Church Law of 1686 has on the whole the same simple order for the service without Communion. It was only the Service Book of 1811 that adopted the order with liturgical excerpts from the Mass, which was commonly used by the other Lutheran churches. We may easily be led to consider the position of Laurentius Petri to be a curiosity in the history of the liturgy. But seen in a wider connection, it is the other way around. The victorious Lutheran pseudo-Mass without Communion is the really radical novelty. It is most interesting to listen to an observer representing Roman Catholic reaction when he is faced Á]Z Z v Á (}u }( >µZ v À] X >µZ [ Á oo-known adversary, Dr. Johann Eck, has expressed his opinion on this point very clearly, and his reaction is violent. The Lutherans have, according to him, invented a novelty that he calls ein Greuel und Gotteslästerung, ^ Z}]o oZ uÇU_ Z o]l }( ÁZ]Z Z v} v ]v Z ZµZ ]v Z] suffered death. For they hold ein trockene Messe, ^Ç DU_ ÁZ v v} }uuµv]v v Z service on Sunday. Then the priest performs everything that is part of the Mass, with Introit, Collects, Epistle, Gospel, etc., but as there are no communicants, the priest does not want to communicate either, and he holds a dry Mass, without Eucharist, without the body and blood of Christ. Is this not ridiculing God, to blindfold Christ, as the Jews once did, and to spit on Him, to invent a spectacle that has no truth in it? Here Johann Eck made a significant comparison that has otherwise been completely overlooked. Eck knew the dry mass (missa sicca) from Roman worship, which implied that the priest read the liturgy of the Mass with the exception of the Eucharistic portion, the passage beginning with offertorium and ending with communio. This was a peculiar liturgical form which the late medieval church knew as an emergency solution. Missa siccacould be used, for instance, at sea, where Mass was not allowed owing to the risk involved in handling the Eucharistic elements if the sea was rough. This liturgy could also be used on days when a special festival displaced the proper formula of the Sunday Mass. By the end of the Middle Ages, missa sicca was a well-known and fairly common form of devotion. Owing to certain tendencies of abuse, it was, however, opposed and went out of use. What Eck criticized so violently was that the Lutherans made such a missa sicca their ordinary congregational service. He could not understand the Lutheran principle that the minister does not consecrate bread and wine to commune alone when there are no other communicants. The Lutheran theologians cannot have failed to notice the obvious similarity between missa sicca and the Lutheran main service without Communion. They knew missa sicca, but they did not point out its similarity to the new Lutheran form of service. It cannot here be a question of a liturgical loan from Catholicism. There is no need for missa sicca in order to explain the analogous Lutheran service. The Mass that was the pattern was the full Eucharistic Mass, now in its theologically purged form. But just as missa sicca P} ] u v]vP ]v u P vÇ v ]v Æ ]}vo ]µ]}vU >µZ v ^ u P vÇ D_ was also enforced when the condition to have communicants for every service could not be fulfilled. But while missa sicca remained av Æ ]}v v }}v Á v }µ }( µ U Z >µZ v ^ u P vÇ D_ became a permanent form of service, which asserted its position as fully equal with the Communion service and which even became the most common form of Lutheran public service. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The path from Luther to Lutheranism has thus passed a decisive stage. We shall stop a moment and try to determine somewhat closer the significance of the development we have so far pursued. Formally the new Lutheran service means a reinterpretation of the traditional elements of the Mass, or at least a new use of the liturgical parts of the Mass. Abandoned is the interpretation which was a matter of course to Luther and which we have heard Laurentius Petri express: the whole liturgy of the Mass has its center in the L}[ ^µ v ]À ] o u v]vP (}u ]X dZ Z }( Z ]v P]Ç of the liturgy of the Mass drives Johann Eck into a violent reaction on behalf of the Roman Church: such a service is conceivable as an exception, alongside of the normal Mass, in every church every day, but it is madness to allow the proper Mass to be replaced by eine kastrierte Messe, as another Catholic judges this Lutheran service. This is a breach of the sacrosanct character which the Mass had according to the Roman conception. This latter argument must, however, have failed to impress the Lutheran reformers. They advocated full liberty as to the forms of worship. Also the adherence to the traditional Mass was altogether voluntary. But this attitude in favor of tradition had a strong motivation: for pedagogical reasons all breaches of an older tradition should be carried out with caution and based on well-founded theological reasons. Now the liturgical reform that the Mass-like service without Communion implied does not in fact appear to have been understood as a liturgical novelty. So far as is known, Laurentius Petri in Sweden was the only one to react consciously against it. Luther must have known this order and accepted it without any misgivings as an inevitable emergency solution. The fact that this service then became a more or less regular matter gave it the authority of habit. The stress laid on the sermon also led to its being more understood to be in the center of the liturgy; the sermon was never allowed to be missing in the service, but the Communion sometimes had to be left out. It was thus quite easy to look upon the former part of Z o]µPÇ Z]vP o]µPÇU ^ À] }( Z t}U_ ]]vPµ]Z (}u Z } u vo liturgy. This way of looking at the matter has now been generally accepted by Lutheranism, nor is it in fact unfamiliar to Roman liturgists. In some Lutheran churches the preaching liturgy and the Communion liturgy have been completely isolated from each otherv(} ]vv ]v vul[s Order for Service, authorized in 1912, the Communion ritual is found among church offices, while den danske højmesse ~^Z v]Z ,]PZ D_ ]voµ }voÇ Z o]µPÇ }( Z Z]vP À] X KZ ZµZ U (} instance, in Sweden and Finland, have continuously since the Reformation preserved the whole Mass order in one sequence as the theoretically complete order of the service. In practice, however, this complete Communion service has often been an exception. The Lutheran missa sicca has thus not only been accepted and legitimized but has long been victorious over the original Evangelical Mass created by Luther. The explanation is of course that this order has been a practical liturgical form for the service that from necessity was created within Lutheranism. With this we arrive at the question of the theological structure of the Lutheran service, the content which the liturgical form was to serve. On the path from Luther to Lutheranism a change has here taken place, the significance of which has not been sufficiently established by research. At the starting point of the Lutheran line of development, it is unquestionably clear that the service means the meeting of the congregation with its Lord, Christ, in the forms that He Himself has instituted, in th t} v ]v Z >}[ ^µ X dZ }]P]vo (}u v Z ] o (}u }( Z À] ] Z][ ]v]µ]}v }( Z >}[ ^µ X dZ D Á Z ]]}vo (}u (} Z >}[ ^µ U v ] }µo still be used, if it were restored to its correct significance and became the Communion of the congregation and if there were guarantees that everybody used it in the right way. The sermon and The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. teaching in various forms were to give these guarantees. Luther knew that to begin with one had to reckon with eyn wild, rho, tobend Volk ~^ Á]oU µ U µµo v }o _ Z Z } (} Á]Z patience. The extremely important and magnificent popular education that Lutheran Orthodoxy actually ] }µ ] v}U Z}Á À U o } Z o]Ì]}v }( >µZ [ ] o of the worship service, a regular service every Sunday around the Word and Sacrament. Instead, Lutheranism voluntarily abandoned this ideal and arranged its worship essentially in the same manner as the Reformed churches, with a preaching service as the normal type every Sunday and festival day and Communion services on certain days at regular intervals. With the exception of some isolated annual services, for instance Maundy Thursday, Lutheranism did not even achieve the advantage that the order of the Reformed churches ]uo] U Z ]U ZÀ]vP Z v] }vP P]}v }uuµv ÁZ v Z >}[ ^µ ] o X This is fundamentally a radical change of the structure of the Lutheran service, and it is remarkable that it could take place for so long without attracting the attention of Lutheran theology. This must be explained by the fact that the transformation of worship has gone hand in hand with other, perhaps more urgent developments in the life of the church. I will here confine myself to some suggestions of the most important stages on this path from Luther to Lutheranism. We have already hinted at the difficulties to get a sufficient number of communicants in order to guarantee a regular Mass all the year round. Lutheranism could not overcome these difficulties. The ulo Z]vP ] Z >µZ [ ] }µo o]Ì } µZ uoo Æ v Z }v À Ç }}v drifted into a practice that has great similarities with the use that the Reformation wanted to overcome, the late medieval Roman order. Luther maintained full liberty in the use of the Communion but still felt that the gift of the Communion would be accepted readily and often. Like the Catholic Church, Lutheranism contented itself to demand that every Christian should go to Communion once a year; thus the liberty in the use of the Communion was abandoned and the Gospe1 of the Sacrament made into law. At the same time the strong emphasis on preparation for Communion adopted a form that was bound to develop a restrictive character. While Luther thought it important that people should be ]vÀ] } Z ^u v v ^}u _ } (]ZU Z u]v ]v o Á } À v Z unworthy from going to Communion. At the same time everybody was under the obligation to receive the Sacrament in a worthy way once a year. The Communion was understood quite individualistically. Strictly speaking, it was not essential that the Eucharist be celebrated; the man thing was that the individual under control fulfill a church obligation. Consequently, private Communion outside the public service was commonly practiced, especially by the privileged higher classes. Gradually and rather imperceptibly a very important change took place in the fundamental conception of what a Lutheran service should be. So far there was adherence, at least in theory, to the idea that the service was a Communion service and a mere preaching service was held only when the lack of communicants enforced this. Theoretically this viewpoint was held very long, even in spite of a quite diffe v ] X ^Á v[ ZµZ >Á }( íòôòU ÁZ]Z ] ]oo ]v (} U Z }uuµv]}v ] } administered as often as the members of the congregation desire it, but this is no longer interpreted as it was at the time of the Reformation, namely, that the minister before each service should make sure whether there are any persons wanting to commune and only for lack of communicants should cancel the Communion. Swedish church law gives the interpretation that in large congregations Communion has to be celebrated at least every other, or every third, Sunday. When in this wayvin theory or in practicevone has begun to decide in advance that certain services are to be only preaching services without asking whether there would be communicants or not, then The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Lutheranism has in principle accepted the same practice of worship as the Reformed churches have had all the time. The fact that Lutheranism preserves a liturgical frame round the sermon borrowed from the Mass does not alter this. When through the influence of the Age of Enlightenment compulsory church attendance and Communion were somewhat less strictly observed, the natural consequence was a disastrous decline with regard to Communion life and the number of communicants. Thus the need for Communion services was decreasing, and Lutheranism went into a period of marked decline with regard to its Communion life; in many places, for instance, in Sweden, the Communion of those who were confirmed was their only Communion of the year. The establishment of the liturgical preaching service, the Lutheran missa sicca, was nearly complete. Today the situation has again changed. After the revivalist movements with their individualistic stamp, dominated by pietism, which had little interest in the congregational service, we have experienced a marked change in the interest in the worship service and the Eucharist. Liturgical renewal is a slogan that is alive in all denominations. This interest is expressed in a comprehensive effort to restore the forms of worship. To some extent this interest leads to a reconsideration of the solutions of the problems of liturgical forms from the time of the Reformation. But with regard to the content of the Lutheran main service, its character as Evangelical Mass, where the Word is preached v Z >}[ Supper is always celebrated, the Reformation as hardly been seen as a binding ideal. The influence of the intervening centuries cannot be so easily obliterated. The liturgical interest is, for instance, in Scandinavia expressed in the care bestowed on the so-oo ^ ,]PZ D_ Á]Z}µ }uuµv]}v v ] adornment, while the Communion is often banished to secondary services. One has to ask the serious question if this even benefits that which should be the center of this service without Communion, that is, the sermon. The sermon easily becomes insignificant, a detail among the other elements of the liturgy. If the Lutheran Mass liturgy is not allowed to serve its real purpose, to interpret and to frame the meeting of the congregation with its Lord at His table, it should by no means compete with the preaching. Lutheranism of today should of course assert its right in every situation to make use of the most suitable of the liturgical forms it has inherited. But it must then also be ready to ask whether these forms, as found in the complete Lutheran Mass, could not be used as originally intended, in a complete Communion service. Experience from many quarters, especially Denmark, points in the direction that Communion service every Sunday can be a quite natural observance. In the light of the history of Lutheran worship, it is necessary to ask the question with what right one withholds from the congregation the opportunity to experience the wealth of the Gospel in Word and Sacrament, which Martin Luther wanted to liberate from all human bonds. When this question becomes a real, burning issue, then Lutheranism will begin to find the way to Luther and thus, on a very important point, to its own full realization. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The Hymnody of the ReformationvThen Mandus A. Egge (} } ]vPU o u (]v uÇ }]X t [ ]]}vÇ P]À Á} (]v]]}v (} Z Á} ^ZÇuv}ÇX_ dZ (] ] ^Z } }( ]vP]vP ZÇuvX_ / ] ]v Z] v Z / µ Z Á}X /v Z] essay I want to speak of the act or art of singing hymns at the time of the Reformation. In another essay I want to discuss our present situation in the light of some of the suggestions from the Reformation. In the preface to the Wittenberg Hymnal, 1524, Martin Luther wrote: That it is good and God pleasing to sing hymns is, I think, known to every Christian; for everyone is aware not only of the example of the prophets and kings in the Old Testament who praised God with song and sound, with poetry and psaltery, but also of the common and ancient custom of the Christian church to sing Psalms. St. Paul himself instituted this in 1 Cor. 14[:15] and exhorted the Colossians [3:16] } ]vP ]]µo }vP v ou Z ]oÇ µv} Z >} } Z '}[ t} v Z]]v Z]vP might be instilled and implanted in many ways. Therefore I, too, in order to make a start and to give an incentive to those who can do better, have with the help of others compiled several hymns, so that the holy Gospel which now by the grace of God has risen anew may be noised and spread abroad. Like Moses in his song [Ex. 15:2], we may now boast that Christ is our praise and song and say with St. Paul, 1 Cor. 2[:2], that we should know nothing to sing or say, save Jesus Christ our Savior.[1] dZ ^]µ]}v (} >µZ [ dime µ ÁZ >µZ ] Á v} o]Ç ]v >µZ [ ÇX ,Çuv ]vP]vP Á v} }uu}v u}vP Z people, neither at home nor in their churches. In the fourth century, the Council of Laodicea had ruled: ^ ] Z ou ]vP }]v Z }U ÁZ} u}µnt the ambo and sing out of the book, no others Zoo ]vP ]v Z ZµZX_ As a result the music in the church had been taken over by the clergy and the choir, and hymn singing in the congregation had become almost nonexistent. Though there might have been reason for this decree by the council, namely, that the writing of hymns had fallen into disrepute because the Arians and the Gnostics had made extensive use of hymns, our judgment would certainly be that the decree was most unfortunate. The singing of hyuv Á >µZ [ ]u u] }voÇ }v ]o }]}v v ]v }u of the minor services. Erik Routley comments on the situation at that time: During the Middle Ages the church in western Europe was the center of culture and, for long periods, the arbiter of the political destinies of nations. The power and security which it achieved in those thousand years may be measured by the great weight of corruption which it was able to sustain in its later centuries without being overturned altogether. For the Z}µv Ç Z µv] }( Z ZµZ[ life was substantially a monastery, and the system of public devotion was based on the monastery. The great act of public worship was the Mass, in the celebration of which the people took only a passive part. But µ]]Ç } Z DU v (}u }voÇ Ç Z ^ o]P]}µU_ Z ]U Z u u }( Z u}v] } U Á Z ^}((] _ }( Z ZµZU Z} }( Á}Z] µ]vP ÁZ]Z Z ^]µ were read and the Psalms recited and prayers offered. The offices were the machinery by which the The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. religious performed intercession on behalf of the world and it was considered proper for the peasant and the landlord of the feudal society to look to the local monastic community at Office time and recall that on their behalf the prayers were being offered by those who were set aside to do so. The layman was not expected to do more than participate passively in the Mass and receive instruction and absolution from his parish priest. Hymn singing, therefore, was not the laymv[ µ]v ooX[2] Though the clergy and the choirs had monopolized the singing in the services since before the 13th century, and though as early as 574 women had been forbidden to sing in the church, wherever the spirit of the Lord had been permitt } Á}l ]v u v[ Z U }o Z Pµv } ]vPU } Z Á ought rather to say, had continued to sing the songs of salvation. For instance, among the followers of John Hus in Bohemia hymn singing as a spontaneous song had developed to a rather remarkable degree. John Hus himself died singing as he was burned at the stake in 1415. The Hussites, or Bohemian Brethren, sang in their native tongue. When the last survivors of this group were driven into exile in Moravia and Saxony, their songs were translated into German and became an integral part of the P v o u }( ' uv ZÇuv}ÇU } À v (} >µZ [ v v Z P]vv]vP }( Z Lutheran Reformation, there was some singing of hymns. >µZ [ }v v }µ Z ^]vP]vP }( ,Çuv It remain (} D]v >µZ U Z}Á À U } U }u ZÀ oo Z]uU ^Z ]vÀ v} }( }vP P]}vo ]vP]vP_ v ^Z (Z }( ÀvP o]o ZÇuv}ÇX_ ( Á µ} (}u >µZ [ Á]]vP Á]oo ]v] Z µ]loÇ >µZ [ }v v (} uµ] ]v Z ZµZ and particularly for congregational singing. In a foreword to a collection of compositions published in 1538 by Georg Rhau, Luther wrote: I, Dr. Martin Luther, wish all lovers of the unshackled art of music grace and peace from God the Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ! I truly desire that all Christians would love and regard as worthy the lovely gift of music, which is a precious, worthy, and costly treasure given mankind by God. The riches of music are so excellent and so precious that words fail me whenever I attempt to discuss and describe them. . . . In summa, next to the word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in this world. It controls our thoughts, minds, hearts, and spirits. . . . Our dear fathers and prophets did not desire without reason that music be always used in the churches. Hence we have so many songs and psalms. This precious gift has been given to man alone that he might thereby remind himself of the fact that God has created man for the express purpose of praising and eÆ}oo]vP '}X ,}Á À U ÁZ v uv[ natural musical ability is whetted and polished to the extent that it becomes an art, then do we note with great surprise the great and perfect wisdom of God in music, which is, after all, His product and His gift; we marvel when we hear music in which one voice sings a simple melody, while three, four, or five other voices play and trip lustily around the voice that sings its simple melody and adorn this simple melody wonderfully with artistic musical effects, thus reminding us of a heavenly dance, where all meet in a spirit of friendliness, caress and embrace. . . . A person who gives this some thought and yet does not regard it [music] as a marvelous creation of God must be a clodhopper indeed and does not deserve to be called a human being; he should be permitted to hear nothing but the braying of asses and the grunting of hogs.[3] In a foreword prepared for the Valentin Babst Gesangbuch of 1544, Luther wrote in part: The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. . . . The worship in the New Testament church is on a higher plane than that of the Old; the psalmist ( } Z] ( ÁZ v Z ÇW ^ ^]vP µv} Z >} v Á }vPU ]vP µv} Z >} oo Z ZX_ &} God has made our hearts and spirits happy through His dear Son, whom He has delivered up that we might be redeemed from sin, death, and the devil. He who believes this sincerely and earnestly cannot help but be happy: he must cheerfully sing and talk about this, that others might hear it and come to Christ. If any would not sing and talk of what Christ has wrought for us, he shows thereby that he does not really believe and that he belongs not into the New Testament, which is an era of joy, but into the Old, which produces not the spirit of joy but of unhappiness and discontent.[4] This brief statement might also be added. It is from a comment which Luther made about the works of Ludwig Senfl. I would not be able to compose such a motet, even if I would tear myself to pieces in the attempt, just as he [Senfl] would not be able to preach as I can. Hence the gifts of God are of many kinds and sorts, just as there are many different members in one body. But men are not content with their own gifts; they are not satisfied with what God has given them. All want to be the whole body, not merely members of it. I have always loved music. Those who have mastered this art are made of good stuff, they are fit for any task. It is necessary indeed that music be taught in the schools. A teacher must be able to sing; otherwise I will not as much as look at him. Also, we should not ordain young men into the ministry unless they have become well acquainted with music in the schools. Music is a beautiful and glorious gift of God and close to theology. I would not give up what little I know about music for something else which I might have in greater abundance. We should always make it a point to habituate youth to enjoy the art of music, for it produces fine and skillful people.[5] µ >µZ [ }v v Á v} }voÇ (} P}} uµ] ]v Z ZµZ V }v }µo Z Ç v} ]u]oy for good music. His principal concern was for the people in his congregation and in other congregations. In a letter to Spalatinus, secretary to Frederick the Wise, Luther wrote in 1523: Following the example of the prophets and fathers of the church, we intend to collect German psalms for the people so that through the medium of song the Word of God may remain among the people.[6] In the preface to the Geistliches Gesangbüchlein Luther said: Every Christian knows that the practice of singing spiritual songs is wholesome and well pleasing unto God, for everybody knows that not only the prophets and kings of Israel (who praised God with vocal and instrumental music, with songs and stringed instruments) but also the early Christians, who sang especially psaluU µ uµ] o Ç ]v Z oÇ P }( Z ZµZ[ Z]}ÇX /v U ^X Wµo encouraged the use of music (1 Cor. 14), and in his Epistle to the Colossians he insists that Christians appear before God with psalms and spiritual songs which emanate from the heart, in order that through these the Word of God and Christian doctrine may be preached, taught, and put into practice. Bearing all this in mind, I, together with several others, have collected a number of spiritual songs in order that a beginning might be made to prepare and gather such material and also that others, whose ability is greater than ours, be induced to do such work. This should be done that the Gospel of Jesus Z]U ÁZ]Z Z}µPZ '}[ P ] v}Á P]v ]vP }o]u U u]PZ set going and spread among The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. men. Thus shall we, as did Moses in his famous song (Ex. 15), derive satisfaction from the fact that Christ is the theme of our songs of praise, and thus shall we indicate that we desire to sing and to tell that Christ alone is our Savior, as St. Paul says (1 Cor. 2). The music is arranged in four parts. I desire this particularly in the interest of the young people, who should and must receive an education in music as well as in the other arts if we are to wean them away from carnal and lascivious songs and interest them in what is good and wholesome. Only thus will they learn, as they should, to love and appreciate what is intrinsically good. I am not of the opinion that because of the Gospel all arts should be rejected violently and vanish, as is desired by the heterodox, but I desire that all arts, particularly music, be employed in the service of Him who has given and created them. I pray, therefore, that every pious Christian would approve of what I have said and, if God has endowed him with the necessary talents and ability, help further the cause. Unfortunately the world has become lax towards the real needs of its youth and has forgotten to train and educate its sons and daughters along proper lines. The welfare of our youth should be our chief concern. God grant us His grace. Amen.[7] The singing of hymns was a rather new experience for the people. In order that everyone might learn to sing hymns, rehearsals were held weekly in the congregations, and the families of the church were encouraged to sing hymns when they held their daily instruction hours in the catechism. Hymns were o} µPZ ]v Z Z}}o µv >µZ [ ] ]}vU v Z ÁZ} À o (}u o } o helped to spread the hymns throughout the entire land. Hymn singing became quite popular, in fact, so uµZ } Z >µZ [ v u] ul Z Z Á Á]vv]vP u} }o Z}µPZ Z] ]vP]vP Zv through his sermons and his writings. The Sources of Reformation Hymns As has been indicated previously, there were not many hymns in existence. The hymns which developed µ]vP >µZ [ ]u u ]u]oÇ (}u (}µ }µ X First, there were the Latin hymns which were in use in the church. The hymns of the Reformation drew their substance and vitality in great measure from the chants of the ordinary. Luther translated these texts into German and in some instances made changes in the texts to fit the doctrines of the Z (}u]}vX dZ u ]v v ^v Á_ ZÇuv v u ] }( Z ZÇuv o] µ of the Lutheran Church. Secondly, there were the popular hymns of that time. These were the folksongs which the people sang. Luther in some instances used the music and gave new texts to the hymns; in other instances, he used both text and music but with certain changes. Thirdly, there were the secular folksong melodies for which new texts were written. A large number of the chorales, as well as hymns from other countries, have come from secular folksongs. It must be said that among the hymns which are known today, the most singable are often the folksongs that have grown up among the people. Fourthly, there were the original chorales which were written for the church. Here at least two names must be mentioned, Johann Walther and Martin Luther. In many of these chorales the melodic characteristics are quite similar to the German folksongs. From these sources there developed a rather The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. substantial body of hymnody which, as indicated previously, became quite well known among the people of Germany. The Results The results of all this are with us today and will undoubtedly be with us as long as the church remains militant, perhaps even into eternity. In his book The Gospel in HymnsAlbert Edward Bailey says: The great accomplishments of Luther may be thus summarized: He established the Protestant church in ' uvÇ lv}Áv >µZ vV Z ^PÀ Z }o ]v Z ] }Áv ovPµP Z ]o U Z Z]uU v the hymnbook so that God might speak directly to them in His Word, and that they might directly answer Him in their }vPX_[8] Then Mr. Bailey adds this comment: All these were important, but it was the hymnbook that generated the power. Luther took the hymn out of a foreign tongue, away from the choir, away from an inelastic niche in a standardized liturgy; he gave it spontaneity and, while requiring that the hymn be evangelical, he did not otherwise restrict the free imagination of any poet who was inspired to write. The result was a copious stream of hymnody that preached a Gospel of joy; spiritual folk songs which flooded the home and the school as well as the church and became a never-(]o]vP ]vP }( ]]µo]Ç ]v }o [ Z v o]À X[9] Kv µo }( >µZ [ Á}lU }P Z Á]Z Z }( }Z uµ]]v ÁZ} Á}l Á]Z Z]u v ÁZ} sensed the importance of hymn singing, was that the services became meaningful and real for the people. No longer were they spectators but participants in the dialog between God and His people. For instance, a chorale was substituted between the Epistle and the Gospel for the Gradual psalms sung in Latin. The hymn sung in the language of the people was meaningful to them. From this there developed a very rich heritage of hymns which fit the church year and which included good tunes and good texts. Another result was the development of the hymn for the day, or what we now sometimes call the hymn of the week. Each Sunday acquired its own special hymn which reflected the theme in the propers for Z ÇX ]vv U Z ZÇuv ^ Z]]vU Kv v ooU Z i}] _ u Z ZÇuv (}r Cantate ^µvÇU Z &}µZ ^µvÇ ( U v Z ZÇuv ^ Kµ &Z U dZ}µ ]v , À v }À _ u Z hymn for Rogate, the Fifth Sunday After Easter. Both fit very well with the propers for the day. Not only did the hymn of the week become familiar in the service for that Sunday, but the hymn of the week was as a result sung in the homes and in the schools. This established a basic core of hymns for use throughout the entire year and gave the people a limited number of hymns which they could sing without the leadership of the music directors in the churches and without the benefit of an instrument. It is unfortunate that this custom was largely abandoned in the 18th century and virtually forgotten until recent years. Another result of the hymn singing of the Reformation was that the chorale became a veritable foundation for German music. The chorales have had an unusual influence on the style of later composers from Bach to Brahms to Wagner and composers even in a later day. It must be said that it was Martin Luther who laid the foundation for this musical heritage in the church. Albert Schweitzer says that if Luther had not been the musician he was, Bach would never have been able to make the contribution to sacred music he made. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. If there were time, it would be interesting to compare the Reformation in Germany, as far as the hymnody is concerned, with the Reformation in other countries. Let one illustration suffice. Dr. Bailey, in The Gospel in Hymns remarks: When Henry VIII of England used his divorce from Catherine of Aragon as a lever to pry the English church loose from the grip of Rome, he too threw away Latin hymns, but unlike Luther he put nothing in their place. Under the influence of John Calvin, the theologian, the newly founded Anglican and Scottish ZµZ i oo ZÇuv }( ^Zµuv }u}µ _ µ oo}Á Z }o } ]vP ]o]o ou u metrical. This set back for nearly two hundred years the creation of genuine hymns in the vernacular.[10] Though I may not have said anything new in this paper, I hope I have pulled together through quotations and comments some thoughts which will help us in our thinking about the place of music and hymns in the church today. In our second lecture, on the background of the thoughts we have set forth here, we shall try to look at ourselves and to suggest ways in which we might improve our hymn singing. Cited References 1. >µZ [ t}lU Liturgy & Hymns, LIII (Philadelphia, 1965), 315t316. 2. Erik Routley, Hymns & Human Life (London, 1952), pp. 24t25. 3. Walter X µÌ]vU ^ >µZ }v Dµ]U_ Musical Quarterly, XXXII, 1 (Jan. 1946), reprint by Lutheran Society for Worship, Music and the Arts, 1958, pp. 5t6. 4. Ibid., p. 6. 5. Ibid., pp. 7t8. 6. Ibid., p. 9. 7. Ibid., p. 10. 8. Albert Edward Bailey, The Gospel in Hymns (New York, 1952), p. 313. 9. Ibid. 10. Ibid., p.309. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The Hymnody of the ReformationvNow Mandus A. Egge A couple of years ago there appeared an article in the magazine Teen Ways v]o ^ /( D]v >µZ u } z}µ ZµZX_ /[ v ]v ]vP Z}µPZU ]v[ ]M dZ Á] lU ^ /( Z ÁZ o }( ]u }µo ]vP D]v >µZ l } Z v Z À]] Ç}µ ZµZU Á}µo Z µ] M Æ] M Z]oo M_ dZ Á] vÁ Z] µ ]}v Ç Ç]vP ^ oo Z J_ Frankly, I cannot become quite as excited as this writer about the situation in our churches today. Of course, there are many factors concerning which one can become very excited. But there are also some u} ]vP Z]vP ]v Z ZµZ }ÇX > [ l í]o ]u } o}}l Z X The Situation in Our Churches Today There are certainly many factors concerning which we can become excited. For one thing, we have Æ oo v ZÇuvX dZ] Á v} µ ]v >µZ [ ÇX Kµ ZÇuvoU µµooÇ }v]v]vP ]v Z v ]PZ}Z}} of 600 hymns, are gleaned from the thousands of hymns written in the last four centuries. Of course, we v (]v (µo Á]Z vÇ ZÇuvoX dZ ZÇuv ]v }µ ZÇuvo ÁZ]Z }u }( µ }v[ o]l X t uÇ even find some which we consider poor selections. It goes without saying that no one can prepare a collection of hymns that will be suitable for anyone else. The best we can do is to entrust this work to a representative group of people and ask them to gather what they consider the best hymns available. It must also be remembered that hymnals are not prepared solely for use in church services. They are also books of devotion for private use, for family use and for use in informal settings such as retreats, Bible camps, and organizational meetings. It is true, nevertheless, that the hymnals currently in use contain a fabulous number of excellent hymns. The fact that committees preparing hymnals for use in other sections of the Christian church, as for instance the Methodist Church or the Roman Catholic Church, are including large numbers of what we calo ^ >µZ v_ ZÇuv ] }}( Z Á ZÀ Z ZÇuv ]v }µ hymnals. This is basic for good hymn singing. One cannot develop a good singing congregation without good hymns. We have a tradition of good hymn singing. We could argue the point today, but the fact remains that the >µZ v ZµZ Z (} o}vP ]u v ^Z ]vP]vP ZµZX_ / ] }µ(µo Z Z] Z}v} v given to the Lutheran Church today, but this is something else. We do have a tradition of good hymn singing. If we have failed to continue the tradition, this is our fault. We have a sophisticated membership as far as music is concerned in the Lutheran Church. Here, too, we u]PZ Pµ Z }]vX µ ] ]U v À Z o U µ }u Á]Z >µZ [ ÇX Kµ }o uµ]ooÇ knowledgeable. Most of the people who worship in our Lutheran churches are able to read notes. We teach music in our public schools, and though we might wish the teaching were better in many instances, and though we might wish that more work were done on sight singing instead of rote singing, it is true that most of the people who belong to Lutheran congregations have learned to read notes. The simple fact that most of us have played in high school bands and have learned to read notes is evidence that we are far u} }Z]] Zv Á Z u u }( Z ZµZ ]v >µZ [ ÇX /( Á ZÀ failed to capitalize on this, this is also our fault. We have good leaders in our churches. For a half century, and particularly during the last 25 years, we have been training leaders in music, especially in our Christian colleges. Almost every congregation has The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. members who have sung in college choirs. These people have at least some knowledge of good music, and many of them have training in conducting and playing. All of tZ (} }v Z ] ] X E}Á o [ o}}l Z }Z ] }( Z }]vX dZ ]µ ] v} quite as rosy as it might be. In most congregations, at least those I have visited, and that means approximately 125 congregations of the American Lutheran Church during the past three years, there is much to be desired in our hymn singing. There is a deadness in our hymn singing. People in the congregation seem to take no real interest in singing a hymn. One misses the sense of joy and enthusiasm that there ought to be in singing hymns. Sometimes one gets the impression that the people in a congregation sing hymns simply because it is the thing to do. Sometimes one also gets the impression this is something that should be gotten over just as soon as possibl X À]]} o]l u l Z µ ]}v P]v v P]vU ^ tZÇ } Z] }vP P]}v ]vP ZÇuvM_ / u]PZ ]v }u }vP P]}v ]( Z] Æ ] Á }u] completely. In most congregations hymn singing is monotonous. No one does anything to make hymn singing interesting. Let me illustrate this point. Last summer I visited a small congregation and worshiped with that congregation on Sunday morning. It was during the summer, and the choir was on vacation, so there was no leadership from that part of the church. The congregation sang four hymns. It so happened, and I am sure it was an accident, that two of the hymns had the same melody. In the one hymn there were 5 stanzas and in the other there were 6. This means that we sang the same melody 11 tiu X dZ }Pv] ] v}Z]vP } ul Z ZÇuv ]v ]vPX u] oÇ Z ]v[ ZÀ uµZ } Á}l Á]ZU (} Z Z }voÇ ^iµl }Æ_ v } Z ooÇ }voÇ }v }v µo]ÇX dZ Á ]oo Z]vP Z could have done. By the time we had sung the 11 stanzas to the same melody, I was quite disgusted and certainly sick of that tune. Hymn singing can be made interesting but we do so little to make it interesting. In most churches nothing is done to create interest in the singing of hymns. How long is it since you heard someone make a comment concerning one or more of the hymns sung in the service? There are so many things that can be said about our hymns, and all of them help to create interest. Of course, we have problems. One is that our Lutheran people are today a mixed crowd. We are continually receiving members from other Christian denominations or who have previously been members of no church. In some congregations the number of adults coming into the congregation is equal to or greater than the number of young people being confirmed. The adults who come from other churches or from no church are not acquainted with our Lutheran hymns and do not understand the place of the hymn in a Lutheran service. They have not grown up in the tradition of good hymns and good hymn singing. In other words, education is necessary to help these people understand and appreciate our tradition of good hymn singing. Another problem is the mobility of our American people. We are nomads. We move from place to place. More than 22 percent of the American people change their addresses every year. In addition to this, there are the people who are away for a month or more on vacation. There is the traveling public and the student population. These people are on the move. We are, as sou }v Z ]U ^ ÀvP o]Ì]vP } ]}vU_ v Z] (( }µ ZÇuv ]vP]vP Á oo À ÇZ]vP o ]v }µ ZµZ X /v }v congregation they sing one group of 50 to 100 hymns. In another congregation they sing another 50 to The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. 100 hymns, and they are not the same hymns. So visitors find themselves confronted with unfamiliar hymns. This contributes to poor hymn singing. Summarizing the situation in our churches today, that is, putting side by side the positive and negative aspects, we would have to say tZ ZÇuv ]vP]vP }µPZ } P}} ]v }µ }vP P]}vU µ ] ]v[ good. We have the wherewithal, that is, the hymns, the good tradition, musically an intelligent membership, and good leaders. But even with these positive factors, our hymn singing is dead and monotonous. What Can Be Done Remembering what Luther and his co-workers did in their day, let us look more carefully at our situation v µPP Z]vP ÁZ]Z Á u]PZ } } ul ZÇuv ]vP]vP ^}u o]À _ (} }µ }o X Hymn singing, first of all, cannot be taken for granted. We will never have good participation in our hymn singing as long as hymns are announced on a hymn board or on a church bulletin and left at that. If one of the hymns announced is unfamiliar, people will go away from church sayivPU ^ tv[ Z v Á(µo ZÇuv Á vP Z] u}v]vPM E} }v lv Á ]J_ ^}u Z]vP uµ }v } ]v ]v Z hymn and a desire to learn an unfamiliar hymn. And this is true not only of unfamiliar hymns, it is true of all hymns. For too long we have assumed that people like to sing hymns. We must again teach them to love the hymns of the church. Secondly, the leaders must be trained to lead. One of the most discouraging things I have observed is choirs who do not lead the hymns. The principal function of a church choir is not to sing an anthem. This is the number-three function of a church choir. The primary function of a choir is to lead the congregation in its worship, and this includes the singing of hymns. Richard Nixon said in one of his campaiPv Z }u Ç P}U ^] ] Z }v]]o]Ç }( o } o X_ µ } }( v Z o in our congregations do not lead. They must be trained to lead the congregation in singing hymns. In one way or another we must find opportunity for every congregation to rehearse hymns. At this point I am somewhat at a loss. Some people feel that the Sunday morning service ought not to be interrupted with rehearsals. Certainly there is something to be said for this attitude, but not at the expense of good hymn singing. Perhaps our brethren in the Roman churches can teach us a lesson. In most of the Roman churches, at least in this country, rehearsals are held preceding the Sunday morning service. Perhaps we need to inaugurate rehearsal periods preceding every Sunday morning service. The fact is that a five-minute rehearsal preceding the service would do wonders for our hymn singing. In every congregation there ought to be a program for introducing new hymns. This ought not to be overdone, but in every congregation at least one new hymn ought to be introduced each month. This would mean 12 new hymns learned in a year and 60 new hymns in five years. If this were done, a }vP P]}v[ }] }( ZÇuv Á}µo }µo ]v (]À Ç ]v }u ]vv X dZ] l]v of a program requires work on the part of the entire leadership in the congregation, but it is well worthwhile. People like to learn new hymns, but they must be taught to like the experience of new things just as the advertising industry has taught people to like new models of automobiles or new styles in fashion. One important item in the singing of hymns is that of rhythm. Some have the mistaken notion that hymns should not be sung rhythmically. We need to correct this notion. Hymns should be sung The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. rhythmically. In fact, it would be well at times to make use of drums and cymbals and other percussion instruments to emphasize the rhythm of the hymn. Organists and choir directors should do everything possible to make singing interesting. There is the old tradition of alternation in hymn singing. This needs to be recaptured. The instance I mentioned of 11 stanzas sung without any variation is an example of the kind of thing done in most churches. Organists need to learn that the stops on the organ should be chavP (}u }v vÌ } Z v ÆX dZ[ ooÇ why there is more than one rank of pipes in the organ. Organists also must learn to use alternate harmonizations for some stanzas of the hymns. We hope someday to have a hymnal in which there are alternate harmonizations, including contemporary harmonizations of traditional hymns. Many are published, and these should be used. Then, too, we ought to make more use of alternation as far as the singing is concerned. One stanza in a hymn can very easily be sung by a choir or by a solo voice. This creates interest. There can be alternation in the congregation with the Epistle side of the congregation singing one stanza and the Gospel side singing the next stanza and then perhaps, if the hymn has an uneven number of stanzas, the entire congregation singing the last stanza. We ought also to make use of instruments in hymn singing more than we have done. Every congregation has many members who play instruments. These ought to be used. Not just the trumpets but the reeds and strings and even the percussion instruments ought to be used regularly in our hymn singing. This not only gives those who play instruments opportunity to use their talents for the honor and glory of our Lord, but it puts life into the hymn singing. We have been much too slow in using the talents we have in our congregations for hymn singing. Every congregation should have at least an annual hymn festival, and three or four times during the year there ought to be informal hymn sings. These occasions, if well planned and prepared, can be extremely interesting and popular in a congregation. They provide opportunities both for education and training in hymn singing. They are also an inspiration to all who participate. One of the developments during the Reformation was the hymn of the week. As we mentioned in the previous essay, the hymn of the week is the hymn related specifically to the propers for that day. This very important item has been virtually forgotten during the past century or more. During the last couple of years, our churches have rediscovered this important use of hymns. In the American Lutheran Church Á ZÀ Z] Ç µo]Z }}lo oo Z ^ ,Çuv }( Z t l ^}vP }}lX_ dZ] }}l }v]v òî hymns, one for each week plus hymns for the festivals designed to be sung at home in the family. With Á} } Z Æ ]}vU Z ZÇuv (] (} Z ]µo ^µvÇX dZ Æ ]}v ZÇuv o]l ^ >} : µ Z]U W v E}ÁU_ ÁZ]Z ] v } v]vP ZÇuvX dZ] v ( Á u} Á ]voµ use they are hymns our people ought to know well. To supplement the song book, we have prepared an album of three records in compatible stereo which contains all 62 hymns sung in such a manner that the } v µ ]v Z Z}u ^]vP o}vP_ }d. The hymns are not unfamiliar, but some hymns are unfamiliar in some congregations, therefore they need to be learned. If in our congregations we can make a core of good hymns well known to our people, this would be similar to our use of the catechism. The catechism is the basis of Christian doctrine and is well known. Paralleling the catechism ought to be a core of good hymns that can be used both in family and congregational worship. Lastly, congregations must be encouraged to secure good instruments. For a number of years too many congregations have been purchasing inadequate instruments. These instruments may be pleasant for listening, but they are not adequate for congregational singing. If an instrument is to be good for The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. congregational singing, the t}v uµ ZÀ ^}Ç_ v v} iµ À}oµu X t } v} ZÀ ]u } P} ]v} the details at this point, but a real program of education must be undertaken to make certain that every congregation has an adequate instrument. Only then will hymn singing be revitalized. There is perhaps no other medium through which Christian people can honor and worship their Lord as effectively as through the singing of hymns. Everyone can participate in this activity. Everyone can give full voice to the love which is in his heart. Everyone can express his feelings through the singing of hymns. It is up to us to give leadership and to use our God-given imaginations to the fullest to recapture the singing of hymns as a means of worship. Let us never take hymn singing for granted. Let us give our best to it that our Lord and Savior may be honored. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Church Music and the Ecumenical Scene Charles R. Anders The church of the 20th century has felt the energizing power of three great movements which have arisen from within the life of the church itself and have had a pervasive effect upon its structure and proclamation. Even in a time when many proclaim the uselessness and irrelevancy of the church and the death of God, the Holy Spirit has given new life and vigor to the church! This new life may be seen in the movement of modern Biblical study and Biblical theology, the movement for liturgical renewal, and (most dramatically) the ecumenical movement. Though each of these forces of new life has addressed itself to a particular aspect of th ZµZ[ o]( and ministry, they are in fact inseparable. Each has contributed to the others. À Ç ( }( Z ZµZ[ µµ v u]v]Ç Z v ]v }u ÁÇ (( v ZvP Ç Z movements of modern Biblical study, liturgical renewal, and ecumenicity. The arts, always most sensitive to the tenor of the times, have given dramatic testimony to the pervasive power of these (} ]v }Ç[ ZµZX dZ uµ] }( Z ZµZU }( ]µo }v v } µ Z U ] o] ooÇ ^ v Á }vP_ µo of the influence of these forces of new concern. The relationship of contemporary developments in church music to the movement for liturgical renewal ] }À]}µW Z Ç ]v ( Z }µ }( Z }v v }( Z ZµZ }Ç } ul Á}Z] ^ o]À]vP reao]ÇX_ Z v Áo ]v ZµZ uµ] ] µ }v }( o]µP]o v ÁoX dZ ]v o]}vZ] }( contemporary church music developments and the movement of modern Biblical theology is likewise apparent. Just as Biblical theology seeks to comprehend and communicate the meaning of Scriptural À o]}v Á]Z uÆ]uµu o] ov v o]ÇU Z v]]À }u} }( }Ç[ ZµZ uµ] ZÀ eschewed the tonal pleasantries of the 19th century to provide settings which will proclaim the Biblical text with truth and power. The relationship of the ecumenical movement to contemporary church music is less evident, but church uµ] Z v (( Ç Z µu v]o ]] v Z }v]µ ul oÇ } ]X dZ ^uµ] ] µv]À o ovPµP _ ] ]u -worn cliché. Yet it contains the grain of truth if one properly understands Z µ }( Z u ^ovPµP X_ dZ ovPµP }( uµ] ] v} Z ovPµP }( o] ov U }( }v] meaning; but it is a language of suggestibility, of spirit and human emotion. This very ambiguity is the greatest strength of music and of all art. Thus the language of music is a language of infinite potential, transcending the barriers of precise languages and divergent cultures. Music has been the favored art of the church throughout the centuries not only because it is the perfect expressive medium of celebration but also because of its ability to create a bond of unity. The corporeity of corporate worship is expressed best in the singing of the congregational hymns and liturgy. Likewise the great music of the church can be experienced and appreciated by all Christians everywhere. The music of Bach is not solely the heritage of German culture and the German church but is universal in its appeal. The spirit of Luther and of the Reformation church toward music in the church was unquestionably an ecumenical one. While concentrating upon the production of liturgy and hymnody which would be most accessible to the laity, Luther continued to hold both plainsong and the art music of Josquin and his contemporaries in highest regard, and commended the continuance of their use within the Evangelical ZµZX 'µÀ Z Z Z ^µ]vP Z Ç }( >µZ [ À}oµ]}vÇ ]À]ÇU v (} The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. whole generation after his death, his radical alterations in the liturgy and the kind of music used in it produced little that may be regarded as constituting a specifically Protestant musical style. That was still } }u X_í dZ ZµZ }u} }( Z íòZ vµÇU }Z W} v v Z}o]U }v]vµ o reflect this spirit of ecumenicity toward their art by composing music of all types for church use: Protestants continuing to compose masses and Latin motets, and Catholics arranging the new chorale melodies. Because of the decrees of the Council of Trent (1545tòï v Z o}}Ç Æ }( Z dZ]Ç z [ War (1618tðôU vÇ u]v]vP À ]P }( v µu v]o ]] ]v vÇ }( Z ZµZ[ o]( Á thoroughly annihilated. Church music then became sectarian and remained so until the 20th century and the aggiornamento of John XXIII. Even so, a yearning for a truly ecumenical spirit in church music Á Æ Ç uvÇ }u} ]v Z vµ] (}oo}Á]vPX Z[ P Mass in B-Minor is a supreme expression of such a spirit. Now, within our present generation, we have witnessed the dramatic revival of the spirit of ecumenicity. The una sancta catholica et apostolica ecclesia is indeed struggling to throw off the shackles of separateness and sectarianism. Evidences of the power and vigor of the ecumenical movement may be seen most clearly in the worship ~v uµ] }( }Ç[ ZµZX KÀ]}µoÇ Z µu v]o ]] Z Æ ] o( u} u]ooÇ within the Roman Catholic Church. The Introduction to the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, adopted Ç Z ^ }v s]v }µv]oU Z ]uÇ P}o }( o]µP]o v Áo v À]]}v Zoo ^} (} ÁZ À v }u} µv]}v u}vP oo ÁZ} o] À ]v Z]X_î dZ] ]v]o Z v P]À v practical implementation in a rich variety of ways, but chiefly in the effort to strengthen and cultivate }vP P]}vo ]]]}v ]v Á}Z]W ]v]o }uu}voÇ Z o Ç oo }] }( Z][ ZµZX Roman Catholic congregations are now encouraged to unite in singing the Ordinary and congregational hymns, the majority of the latter being freely appropriated from Evangelical origins, and all sung in the vernacular. In seeking to foster meaningful congregational participation in worship, Roman Catholic liturgical leaders and musicians have not been at all reluctant to incorporate practices and materials developed by the Protestant churches. A Manual for Church Musicians, prepared by The Liturgical Conference, (vloÇ ((]u Z ^ dZ }uuµv]}v }( Z Z (}u]}v o]u Z }]}v }( Z D to the people and have offered possible solutions in their liturgies to the problem of how the present-day uµ]]v v Á}l } Z] À µ](µo v }µo o]µPÇX_ï dZ Manual also commends The Hymnal 1940 and the Service Book and Hymnal as representative examples of worthy collections for congregational use. Likewise a spirit of friendly interchange among Catholic and Protestant liturgists and musicians has developed within the past decade and continues to grow. It must be frankly said that Lutherans have not been notably ecumenical-minded, at least in the wider sphere, although there are numerous evidences that the traditional aloofness implanted by l6th-century Orthodoxy (not by Luther!) is decidedly on the wane. The first task, ecumenically, among Lutherans throughout the world has been that of binding up the divisions within their own ranks. This undertaking has been dramatically advanced by the ecumenical spirit within the contemporary church. The movement of intra-Lutheran ecumenicity has expressed itself notably in recent developments in liturgy and church music, all of which have striven for a greater unity in worship forms and practices among the Lutheran bodies. A development of signal importance among the German Lutheran churches The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. was the preparation of theEvangelisches Kirchengesangbuch, completed in the mid-fifties, which is now used by 26 Lutheran church bodies. This is the first effort among German Lutherans to produce a common liturgy and hymnal. Free societies of Lutheran church choirs and church musicians have also been developed to facilitate the interchange of new materials and concepts. The achievements of American intra-Lutheran ecumenical efforts in liturgy and church music need little rehearsal here. But for the sake of the record, these have brought forthThe Common Service of 1888 (the first attempt to create a common liturgy in English for use by Lutherans in America), the Common Service Book of 1918, The Lutheran Hymnal of 1942 [sic] (the first uniform liturgy and hymnal produced by the churches of the Synodical Conference), and the Service Book and Hymnal of 1958. The formation of the new Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship, initiated by the invitation of The Lutheran ChurchtMissouri Synod, has brought together representatives of nearly all Lutheran bodies in North America to seek to produce liturgical and hymnological materials which may be used in common by all Lutherans in the United States and Canada. While it is premature to predict what may be accomplished by this commission, the fact that such a major project has been undertaken represents a new milestone in intra-Lutheran endeavors. The work of the ILCW may well have vast consequences for the future of Lutheran church music in America. It is also notable that the ILCW (both officially and unofficially) has established liaison with Roman Catholic and other Protestant groups (e.g., COCU) who are also engaged in the production of contemporary worship forms and materials. One can only hope that this aspect of Z }uu]]}v[ work will be strengthened and broadened! Of equal importance ecumenically is the establishment of the Lutheran Society for Worship, Music and the Arts. As a free society bringing together liturgical leaders, musicians, artists, authors, pastors, and laymen ]v ]v Á}Z] ]v oo ] ]v }Ç[ ZµZU Z > ^ t D Z u }]o ( interchange of ideas and information which has naturally resulted in a greater creative unity among Lutherans in America. It may even be said that the LSWMA and its work has done much to pave the way for the establishment of the ILCW. Many non-Lutherans also participate freely in the membership and activities of the LSWMA: a factor of considerable ecumenical potential. The time is indeed ripe for a closer liaison with other Protestant bodies in America in the concerns of worship and church music. Other denominations have developed societies similar in nature to the LSWMA. Musicians of the Methodist Church have organized the National Fellowship of Methodist Musicians (NaFOMM)va strong organization which is making a valuable contribution toward the raising of standards in music and worship within the Methodist Church. The Disciples of Christ have established an annual conference at Butler University of high caliber dealing with the concerns of church music. There have been similar efforts in other Protestant circles. In virtually all of these, Lutheran musicians and liturgical experts have frequently been invited to deliver papers and share information. A joint meeting of the LSWMA with similar societies of non-Lutheran churches (including The Liturgical Conference of the Roman Catholic Church) would make possible a significant ecumenical dialog. This would be an invaluable contribution which the free societies of the various churches could make. I will not comment on the current ecumenical situation in church music on the international scene since this topic will be treated with far greater competence by Dr. Mudde, who has himself been a leading participant and prime mover for more expanded international dialog. Yet I would be remiss to fail to mention the invaluable contribution which has been made for more than 20 years by the Valparaiso Church Music Seminar to the cause of greater knowledge and better understanding of church music developments in America, Germany, and Scandinavia. All of us owe a profound debt of gratitude to Dr. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Theodore Hoelty-Nickel for his vision and tireless efforts in bringing the Valparaiso Church Music Seminar into being and in assuring its high caliber and great value. May the example of all that has been accomplished here motivate other schools, societies, and church bodies to establish more opportunities for significant exchange among church musicians internationally! Kµ ^µµo v Z (}u]}v Z ]P _ ]v ZµZ uµ]U ]PZoÇ µv }}U Z}µo µ µ }v } P and greater ecumenical endeavor. It is a heritage which we as Lutherans may offer as a unique contribution to the current ecumenical dialog in church music. It is a heritage which insists on music of highest quality. Luther had little patience for the hack composers of his time, but rightly recognized the artistic stature of such a musical titan as Josquin. Artistic integrity, therefore, is not to be sacrificed for any other consideration. Herein lies a subtle danger for church music (and all art within the church) in an era of fervid ecumenicity. Well-meaning but misguided church leaders have on occasion willingly sacrificed standards of artistic merit in the effort to achieve the lowest levels of maximum mass appreciation. We are painfully familiar with this principle as it has been ruthlessly applied in the world of TV! If such a spirit were permitted to run unchecked, the church and its worship would soon become a cultural wasteland via the route of reductio ad absurdum. We have likewise known of denominational hymnals which have been formulated first as vehicles to hasten church union and secondly as worthy collections of congregational hymnody. Compromises of quality have frequently been made to placate dissenting groups who inevitably are culturally least sophisticated. It is by this devious process, I am certain, that ]v ] v µv ÀvP o]o ^P} o ~] }vP_ ZÀ v µ ]v }Z Á] }uu vo hymnals. A modern threat stems from those who advocate a so-oo ^]}o ZÇuv}Ç_ (} }µ ]u X / ] argued that such a casual-type hymnody is needed to reach and appeal to certain social groups who would be unmoved by hymns of genuine artistic merit and profundity. While the pastoral concern involved is commendable, it does not justify the complete exclusion of artistic integrity. Such a hymnody would inevitably be dishonest and patronizing. We see much of this casual-type hymnody in the paperback collections being produced for use in Roman Catholic parishes. In commenting on it, Archbishop Paul J. Hallinan, a foremost leader in liturgical renewal in the American Catholic Church, Z ^ Z v}À]}v }( Z ÁÇ }( Z]]v Á}Z] uv uµ] Á}ZÇ of the praying, ]]]vP }o }( '}_ ]v }v } ^Z uµ] }( vo]ÇX_ð This is the same principle for which Luther stood. The Reformation heritage in church music is a heritage of catholicity. The musical culture of the Reformation church did not hold itself in sectarian isolation. Rather, it was characterized by a receptivity to the contemporary spirit in secular art. Luther was culturally no traditionalist. He was well aware that the church is indeed in the world and must be attentive to the world and to the ongoing process of cultural change. This is in direct contrast to the restrictive spirit of the Council of Trent, which sanctified the Renaissance polyphony of Kerle as representing the standard for Roman church music. The moral here is clear to us. In an ecumenical age we must shun the myopic infatuation and narrow ]]}v }( }µ }Áv ^ >µZ v_ uµ]o Z ]P ÁZ]Z Á}µo Æoµ P Z}o]]Ç }( musical interest, which was the Reformation stance. As church musicians in an ecumenical age, we are required to partake fully in the renewal in church music which is occurring in varied ways throughout all }( Z][ ZµZU v Z u ]u } ]v(}u v ]vµ ]v }µ ZµZoÇ Ç Z The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. contemporary spirit in secular art. In so doing, we will realize in our own generation the dynamic heritage of the Reformation in church music. Cited References 1. 1 Gustave Reese, Music in the Renaissance (New York: W. W. Norton Co., rev. ed., 1959), p. 673. 2. 2 The Liturgical Conference, A Manual for Church Musicians (Washington: The Liturgical Conference, 1964), p. 21. 3. 3 Ibid., pp. 21f. 4. 4 Ibid., p. 7. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Luther and the Composers of His Time Charles R. Anders dZ Z u ^ dZ Z (}u]}v v Kµ Dµ]o , ]P _ Z ]u}v ]uo]tions for church music today. Just as the faith of the Evangelical church was hammered out in the Reformation era in the writings and preaching of Luther and defined in the Lutheran Confessions, so (but less formally) the principles undergirding Evangelical worship and the role of music in worship were forged in Reformation ]u X dZ ]v]o }( ^ Z] v hP _ ]v Z ZµZ ]oo }]v ]v Z îìZ vµÇ v regulative for our worship practices and for the usage of music and the arts in worship. The principles or ideals of practice for the music in the church of the Reformation stemmed directly from the attitudes of Luther himself and his immediate compatriots. They were never set down formally as were the confessional writings, but they nevertheless existed and were tacitly understood within the Reformation church. These same principles or ideals have been determinant factors in shaping the musical heritage which is ours as Evangelical Christians in the 20th century. What, then, were the principles or ideals of the Reformation which have undergirded the development of the Lutheran musical heritage? To discover them, it is necessary to consider the musical culture of Reformation times and particularly the cultural outlook of Luther himself, for his own attitudes toward music and its use in the church were of decisive significance. The music of the Lutheran Church was formed within the musical culture, or milieu, of the early 16th century. We are mistaken if we think that the music of the Reformation church was something completely new and uniquevthat it suddenly sprang into being, like Athene springing from the head of Zeus. The music of the Reformation was nothing new, but rather, Luther and his colleagues took the musical culture as it existed in their time and applied it, oriented it, to serve the needs of Evangelical faith. Every musical type which was utilized in Lutheran worshipvthe chorale, the motet, the settings of the Massvwas already in existence before 1517. The new factor was that of emphasis and cultivation. oo Á u } }( ÀvP o]o µZX Z Z ]U ^X X X µ]vP Z Ç }( >µZ [ revolutionary activity, and for a whole generation after his death, his radical alterations in the liturgy and in the kind of music used in it produced little that may be regarded as constituting a specifically W} v uµ]o Ço X dZ Á ]oo } }u X_í } µv v]vP }( Z uµ]o ]À of the Lutheran Reformation and of the subsequent development of the Lutheran musical heritage must P]v Á]Z Z }v] ]}v }( >µZ [ ]]}v }( Z uµ]o µoµ }( Z] ]u U v }( Z] µ }( the fruits of that culture for the worship of the Evangelical church. >µZ [ }u Z v]}v v ]]}v }( Ze musical culture in which he lived is expressed most clearly in his comments and attitudes toward the composers of his day and the merits of their music. These evaluative judgments express his ideal of church music; they also tell us much about the Reformer himself. Luther and Josquin des Prés Luther spoke admiringly in his writings, and especially in his Table Talk, of a number of composers of the time. Among these were Josquin des Prés, Ludwig Senfl, Pierre de la Rue, and Heinrich Rinck. His close associ]}v Á]Z :}Zvv toZ v }v ZµZ ] Á oo lv}ÁvX µ u}vP Z U >µZ [ (À}] were Josquin and Senfl. That he would have expressed a preference for these two composers is indeed remarkable! The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. In his book Patterns of Protestant Music, Robert DX ^ À v}v }uu v (}oo}ÁW ^ µ >µZ [ knowledge of music composition exceeded that of a mere dilettante, he was able to make his own musical judgments with remarkable prescience . . . He showed admirable discrimination in his own evaluation of contemporary composers and thus set a standard of correct musical judgment . . . He was an ardent advocate of the music of Josquin des Prés, whom he correctly evaluated as the greatest }u} }( Z }ZX_î It is clear that Luther understood the techniques of polyphony and was able to render intelligent and discriminant judgments as to the value of the work of contemporary composers. An evidence of this uÇ v ]v Z }µv }( >µZ [ Àoµ]}v }( }u}]]}v Ç >µl u P W When, on one occasion, the composer Lukas Edemberger had brought along some songs written largely in canonic style (plenas fugarum), Luther remarked that these were not pleasing and enjoyable because the composer was more interested in writing counterpoint than in writing interesting music. His words were: Artis sat habet, sed caret suavitate~^ , Z v}µPZ v l]ooU µ Z ol ÁuZ_Xï >µZ [ ]]}v }( Z P v]µ }( :}µ]v ] }µu v ]v Á} (u}µ Æ (}u Z Table Talk: Josquin is a master of the notes, which must express what he desires; on the other hand, other . . . composers must do what the notes demand.[4] God has his Gospel preached also through the language of music; this may be seen from the compositions of Josquin, all of whose works are cheerful, gentle, mild, and lovely; they flow and move along and are neither forced nor coerced and bound by rigid and stringent rules but, on the contrary, are like the song of the finch.[5] Moser and others have commented on the depth of musical understanding revealed in these simple statements.[6] Josquin was indeed the imaginative, expressive genius of Renaissance music. Only within the present century has his greatness been fully realized. We now recognize that much of the glory formerly asc] } Wo ]v Z}µo u} } oÇ } } :}µ]vX u} U ^ /v :}µ]v Á ZÀ Z (] uµ]]v ÁZ} ]u µ ZÀ]vP P v]µX_ó t]oo] o ( } :}µ]v ^Z ZZ o }( Z v]v uµ]_van apt and descriptive analogy. >µZ } À Z ^ :}µ]v ] u }( Z v} X X X Z Ç (o}Á v u}À o}vP v v ]Z (} v} } v }µv Ç ]P] v ]vP v µo X_ dZ Zvo]vP }( ZÇZu] u vµ]}v }( contrapuntal parts was very much a problem in musical }u}]]}v ]v :}µ]v[ ]u X , uÇ Á oo regarded as the first composer to achieve artfulness in the use of rhythm. Likewise the music of many of Z Z v]v }u} ~ XPXU :}µ]v[ &o u]Z }U Kl PZ u v K Z À o v almost mechanical obsession with contrapuntal devices, resulting in a pedestrian quality in the music. But Josquin employed counterpoint with cleverness and brilliance to achieve expressive ends. /v ]]vP Z µo]Ç }( :}µ]v[ uµ]U >µZ µ µZ i ]À ^Z (µoU P vo U u]oU v o}À oÇX_ >µZ ] Z expressive quality in Josquin. The craftsmanship of the Netherlanders was wedded to the melody of sunny Italy in the music of Josquin. He anticipated by a hundred years the techniques of Figurenlehre andAffektenlehre, which were to become the specialty of the Baroque The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. musical ideal. His celebrated motet-Zv}vU Z ^ o}]}v }( Z Z }( : v Kl PZ uU_ ] poignant and expressive a lament as any ever written. The music of Josquin was courtly music. It was known and appreciated only in the refined circles of the v}]o]Ç v ]v oo]P v]X >µZ [ ]À ]]}v v À] v (u]o]]Ç Á]Z Z }( Josquin reveals him to have been a man of culture and refinement, in marked contrast to the image of the earthly peasant which is so naively accepted as the true Luther in the popular imagination. Where and how did Luther become familiar with the music of Josquin? Perhaps he heard it in Rome in 1510 during his sojourn there as an Augustinian monk; however, he could not have met the composer personally while in Rome, as Moser suggests, for in 1510 Josquin was serving at the court of Louis XII in France.[8] It is possible that Luther passed through Innsbruck on his journey to Rome, where the music of Josquin was the rage of the court of Emperor Maximilian. Perhaps it was at Augsburg in 1518 or at Torgau or even at Erfurt as a student in the university that Luther came to know and admire the music of Josquin. He obviously knew it well and had undoubtedly sung the works of Josquin. :}µ]v W ~o] ooÇU ^ :} Ç (}u Z D }Á_ Á }v X íðñì ]v v}Z v &v U v }v X He was probably schooled as a choir boy at St. Quentin and may have been a pupil of Ockeghem. Like many of the Netherlanders, he migrated in his youth to Italy. From 1459 to 1472 he served in Milan, first as a singer in the cathedral choir, then as a member of the chapel of the Sforza family. From 1486 to 1494 he was attached to the papal choir in Rome, then to the courts of the wealthy nobility in Florence and Ferrara. After a period of service to the court of Louis XII, he returned to his native Burgundy. He died at Condé in 1521. Josquin was regarded by his contemporaries as the greatest composer of the time. He was eagerly sought after by princes and noble families. He was independent by nature and frequently changed employers. A rarity among composers, he died a wealthy man! Most of his works were published during his lifetime, although the printing of music in that day was costly and difficult. He was the first composer to be so honored. Josquin was a prolific composer. His 20 masses are all masterpieces of contrapuntal technique. Perhaps the most famous is the Missa Pange lingua, which Reese descri ^ (vÇ }v Z o]v}vP_ rather than the usual cantus firmus setting.[9] All of the works of Josquin are filled with ingenious musical devices, such as in the Missa Hercules Dux Ferrariae, in which the melody is derived from the vowels of the syooo }( Z µl [ vu ~ ] lv}Áv sogetto cavato). dZ Z] ( Z ]] }( :}µ]v[ Ço Á Z }( À] ÇU Z (µo µ }( ](( ]vP }u}]]}vo techniques within a constantly changing musical fabric: paired imitation of voice parts, male voices singing in antiphony with treble voices, sections of homophonic writing interspersed amidst polyphony, etc. Josquin had a preference for the Phrygian mode, which gives much of his music a plaintive, mystical quality. He was the first compo } (µooÇ ]vµoP ]v ÁZ Á o u ^Á} ]v]vPU_ ]v ÁZ]Z Z u}} } u}]}vo ]u }( Z Æ u]v Z ^}µv_ }( Z uµ]X Like many of the artists of the Renaissance, Josquin also belonged to the literati. He is as celebrated a figure in French Renaissance poetry as in Renaissance music. Such was the composer whom Luther named as first and foremost. In his preference for Josquin, Luther revealed his knowledge and appreciation of the best in the musical art of his time. It was music of this The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. stature which Luther commended to the use of the Evangelical church. In contrast to the puritanical reformers of the 16th century, Luther championed the place of elaborate polyphonic music in the worship of the church, while at the same time advocating a simpler style for congregational singing (the chorale). He (Luther) overrode the scruples of those who, following ^X µPµ]v [ Æuo U ( o} ZµZ uµ] }v u}o P}µv X X X , }l }( v v ardently in behalf of excellence in church music . . . While exalting the role of the congregation, he never minimized the role of the organist or of the choir in church music . . . (Luther) lifted the art (of music) to a loftier level than it has attained anywhere else in Evangelical thinking. Both theoretically and practically he placed it on a pedestal. No advance we can make in church music will exceed his ideal of what it should be. A practical implementation of his ideals would be }Ç ^ }vµuu]}v À}µoÇ } Á]Z Xíì Luther and Ludwig Senfl The second of the two composers whom Luther held in highest esteem was the Swiss Ludwig Senfl. Like :}µ]vU ^ v(o Á Z}o] v ]v Z À] }( Z}o] ]v X }v v]vP >µZ [ ]]}v }( Senfl, Hans Preuss comments as follows: But for none of his musical contemporaries did Luther have greater admiration than for Ludwig Senfl. Kv U ( ]vP]vP }v }( ^ v(o[ }u}]]}vU >µZ ] }µ ]v Á}v u vW ^ / }µo v À Á] such a motet, even if I tore myself to piecesJ_íí In his famous letter to Senfl of October 1530, Luther extols the composer as ornatum et donatum a Deo ~^Z }vu v v P]( }( '}_X It is not known if Luther knew Senfl personally, but he was quite familiar with his music from having heard and sung it. Senfl was the most popular composer of the sophisticated German humanists: the Cole Porter or Richard Rodgers of his day! Unlike Bach, whose fame was bestowed posthumously, Senfl enjoyed the greatest popularity in German society during his lifetime. Early in life he was appointed to one of the highest positions to which a musician could then attain, that of Hofkomponist to the court of the Holy Roman emperor, Maximilian I. He was the foremost student of the great Flemish master, Heinrich Isaac, who was himself second in greatness only to Josquin. Like Josquin, Senfl saw most of his compositions published during his lifetime. He was highly acclaimed by the leading figures in German culture of the 16th century. In 1537, the humanist Sebaldus Heyden wro }( ^ v(o ^Z o ]vP uµ]]v v}Á ]v oo }( ' uvÇ_ ~in musica totius Germaniae nunc principem).[12] This opinion was reiterated by the theorists Glareanus (1547) and Zacconi (1596). In spite of such adulation from his contemporaries, the name of Senfl fell into near oblivion after the o} }( Z íòZ vµÇX Zo v(] o }Áv ul Z ^v}Á Z u} }( Z] uµ] Z v made available in scholarly editions, Senfl is seen as a composer of truly imposing stature who over the centuries ha µ(( µvµ v Po X_íï The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Senfl was born c. 1490 at Zürich, although a few authorities say Basel. Gerstenberg states that he was probably the son of one Bernhard Senfl (or Senfli), a singer in the court chapel of Maximilian I who migrated to Zürich from Freiburg im Breisgau, in south Germany.[14] According to court records, Senfl was admitted to the court chapel in 1496 as an altist. It was in 1496 that Maximilian enticed Heinrich Isaac away from the court of Lorenzo the Magnificent in Florence to become Kapellmeister of the ]u ]o Z oX dZ }Ç ^ v(oU ÁZ} uµ ZÀ v }u Z]vP }( }]PÇU u µ v }( /[ v µv Z P u [ ]vµ]}v u Z}}µPZoÇ ]uµ Á]Z Z (o}Á]vP Ço }( &o u]Z counterpoint. Indeed, his masses and motets are practically identical in style to those of Isaac. After the death of Isaac in 1517, Senfl received the appointment of Hofkomponist. At the time he must have been about 27 years old. Emperor Maximilian maintained three or four residences, at Augsburg, Vienna, Constance, and especially Innsbruck, the court traveling with him from place to place. Senfl lived and worked mainly at /vvµlU ÁZ]Z Á Z u }[ (À}] } X Maximilian was one of the most picturesque of the Habsburgs. A high liver, he was always short of cash. Politically he was a flop, in spite of his fortuitous marriage to Mary of Burgundy. At one time he actually entertained the notion of becoming pope when Julius II fell ill, uniting the empire and the papacy in one p} v V µU oU :µo]µ }À X /v ] }( Z] ]v ]µ U ^ '}} <] DÆ_ Á oÇ o}À Ç the masses and was at least a benevolent monarch. dZ u } Á o}u Z v Á µoµ }( ,µuv]uX ^ , Á Z o]vP }( Z Z}o v Z } X_15] Among the artists supported by the imperial largesse were such notables as Albrecht Dürer, Hans Burgkmair, and Leonhard Beck. By imperial authority the upholders of medieval Scholasticism were removed from the faculty of the University of Vienna, and the school was restructured under the leadership of the most celebrated German humanist, Conrad Celtes. In his perennial opposition to France, Italy, and Rome, the emperor identified himself completely with the struggling ideals of the new German nationalism, as did Luther and Senfl also. In his biography of Maximilian, Seton- t}v Z ^Z u }[ ]}v o}À }( uµ] o } ]]v À]Ào ]v Z v}o ] v X_íò /v ]]}v } / v ^ v(oU Z ]u ]o }µ o} included among its musical luminaries the composer Heinrich Finck and the celebrated organist Paul Hofhaimer. Maximilian died in 1519, and the court chapel was disbanded the year following. Following its dissolution, Senfl removed to Augsburg, where he was the recipient of a gift of 50 gulden from the new u }U Zo sU µ Z Á v} l v ]v} Z u }[ À] X tZ]o µPµPU ^ v(o ]v íñîì edited the first publication of German motets by the Franco-Flemish masters (the Lieber selectarum cantionum), including works by Obrecht, Josquin, and Isaac and his own compositions. About the same ]u Z }uo v ] /[ u}vµu vo Choralis Constantinus. ^ v(o[ v Æ }]vu v Á } Z }µ }( µl v WµX µ]vP Z] ] ( ] v WµU he married the daughter of the wealthy salt merchant, A. Neuberger. In 1523 Senfl received an appointment to the court of Duke Wilhelm IV of Bavaria at Munich, where he apparently remained for the rest of his life. At Munich he was given the titles of Musicus intonator and Musicus primarius. dZ ] }u µv ]vÇ } Z v ]µuv }( ^ v(o[ ZX ' v P (]Æ íñðï Z Ç }( Z] ZXíó dZ] ] }v Z ] }( Z ( Z Z }u} [ vu ] ]v] ]v Z The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. household records of the court at Munich in the entry of Dec. 2, 1542, but it does not appear in the next vÇ }( µPX îU íñðïX KZ µZ}]] ]v] X íñññ Z }( ^ v(o[ ZX /v &} [ collection of Liedlein, published in 1556, there appears the ]]}v ^ >µÁ]P ^ v(o seliger_ ~^ _X Kov} ] >} µu Z o Z] }( Z Dµv]Z Z o ]v íññóX While Senfl spent his entire life in the service of Catholic princes, there is good reason to believe that he Á ^]o v W} vX_ He was an ardent humanist and a German nationalistvboth of which attitudes would incline him favorably toward the ideals of the Protestant Reformation. In commenting }v ^ v(o[ o Ç U E o Z ^~ ^ v(o Á µo]u oÇ µ }( Z Ç µse of his correspondence with Luther. He probably lost his position (at Munich), for after 1540 nothing more is Z }( Z]uX >]l } uvÇ }Z U ^ v(o Z }oÇ }u uÇ } Z] }vÀ]]}vX_íô / ] entirely possible that Senfl became persona non grata at Munich because of his apparently Lutheran ÇuZ] U µ E o ((]u Z] oo P ^uÇ}u_ }} }vPoÇX µ]vP Z Ç íñïòt38, Senfl corresponded with the Protestant Duke Albert of Prussia in Königsberg, perhaps seeking a position at Z µl [ }µ µ }( ](À} Dµv]ZX On Oct. 4, 1530, Luther wrote his celebrated letter to Senfl. Luther was at the Coburg at the time, impatiently waiting out the proceedings of the Diet of Augsburg. In melancholy mood, Luther requested Senfl to compose for him a polyphonic setting of the antiphon text In pace in id ipsum ~^ /v / Á]oo }Z o] }Áv v o _vPs. 4:8). Senfl complied by sending Luther a setting of a text from Ps. 118: Non moriar sect vivam ~^ / Zoo v} ] U µ o]À U v o Z Á}l }( Z >}_Xíõ dZ] motet, edited by J. Müler-Blattau, was published in complete form in Vol. VI of the Zeitschrift für Musikwissenschaft (1923tîðX hv(}µv oÇ ] ] Z ]o v }u}µ ^Z}uP u} _ v v} representative of Senfl at his creative best. Senfl composed seven masses, all practically identical in style to the masses of Isaac. Perhaps the best known is the Missa Paschalis (} (]À À}] X }Áv } À Z ^]( / ]oÇ u} ( }u v fantasy in the u}À]vP U ^ v(o[ Ƶ Z]l v ]PZ U v Z Z µ]o Á]Z P Æ ]À ]v v]ÇX_îì , }u} ]v oo Z uµ]o (}u Æ]]vP Z ]u W uPv](] }v Z eight tones, motets and motet-style works, Trauer-Motetten, liturgical motets (polyphonic settings of hymns and sequences), compositions with German texts (both Geistliche Lieder and Weltliche Lieder), polyphonic settings of the Odes of Horace (a humanist exercise), canons, theoretical works, instrumental pieces, etc. Senfl was the musical child, through Isaac, of the Flemish school; but he is not to be narrowly identified with the Netherlanders. He was, rather, a shining representative of the first generation of new, German national composers who were the pupils of the wandering Flemish masters. Taking the best from the &o u]Z U ^ v(o ]vi v}Z ]] ÁZ]Z Á }uo oÇ ' uvX '}µ ] Z] ^v ZÇU ]}µ µo]ÇX_îí The uniquely Senflian spirit is most evident in his devotion to the new musical type, the German polyphonic Lied. Senfl devoted by far the greater part of his creativity to the composition of polyphonic Lieder. According to Moser, Senfl composed about 240weltliche deutsche Liedersätze, about 166 Hofweisen, and about 54 VolksweisenX D} (µZ Z ^]v À ]o]ÇU ]vÀ v]À v U v experimentation . . . (Senfl) is above all the masters of the German polyphonic LiedX_îî The spirit of the polyphonic Lied stems from the Minnesingers: a warm, flowing melody; great breadth and regularity of phrasing; a preference for strong, unadorned melodic lines; skipwise (diatonic) rather The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Zv Á] u o}] o]v V ^ -(}u_ ~ U X dZ (]v Æuo }( Z }oÇZ}v] Liedvand also the most famousv] /[ Innsbruck, ich muss dich lassen. Luther delighted in the polyphonic Lieder and regarded them as truly German in style and spirit. The polyphonic Lied, as typified by the compositions of Senfl, established the style of the Lutheran chorale and (especially) the Lutheran chorale motet. Luther saw in the polyphonic Lieder of Senflvwhich were Z}}µPZoÇ ' uv v ^}µo_ ]v vµ U Ç Z ]] ]v P]Çvthe model for the new music of the Evangelical church. This was a type of music which had already been taken to the heart of the German people. Luther welcomed it as a convenient medium for the communication of the Gospel to the masses. µ }( ^ v(o[ µ Z o ]vP }u} }( Z }oÇZ}v] Lied, Luther regarded him with high esteem. dZ Dµ]o ^ / o_ }( the Reformation We have maintained that the acceptability and usage of music in the church of the Reformation era was ] Ç ]v }uu}voÇ µv }}U Z}µPZ µvÁ] v ]v]o ÁZ]Z o]Z Z ^] o_ }( Evangelical church music and that tZ] ] o ] u} À] v ]v >µZ [ }vo Àoµ]}v }( Z musical culture of the time and in his preference for the music of Josquin des Prés and Ludwig Senfl. In µuuÇU Á Á}µo ] Z] ^] o_ ]v u }( Z (}oo}Á]vP ]v]o W 1. Insistence on the highest quality in the music of the church. Luther established a tradition for the insistence on the best of musical art for use in the church. It was with intelligent purpose that he chose Josquin and rejected Lukas Edemberger. In his preference for the art of Josquin and Senfl, he wisely distinguished between that which was great in the music of his day and that which was trivial. The µv(}o]vP Ç ZÀ À]v] >µZ [ uµ]o iµPu vX dZ uµ]o ] o }( Z Z (}u]}v established the criterion of artistic excellence and integrity. 2. Desirability of fullness and expressive freedom in the music of the church. Luther defended the place of elaborate polyphonic music in the church. He found himself in opposition to those who feared such music on moral or other grounds. He insisted that artistic freedom be allowed so that the music of the church might be interesting and expressive. Above all, the music of both Josquin and Senfl was expressive. In commenting on the purpose and value of providing musical settings for Biblical texts (recorded in theTable Talk), Luther said, Die Noten machen den Text lebendig! ~^ dZ v} ul Z Á} }u o]À J_Xîï &} >µZ Ç }( uµ] ÁZ]Z Á µv Æ ]À U ÁZ]Z (]o } ^ul Z words come ao]À U_ Á}µo ZÀ v µvZ]vlo X dZ uµ] }( Z ZµZ uµ (µoo v ( J 3. Z ]À]Ç } Z }v u}Ç ]] v o} }v Á]Z À o}u v ]v ^ µo_ . In his time Josquin was regarded as an avant-P]X ^ v(o[ }oÇZ}v]Lieder were the songs of the day. Luther could have adopted a principle of traditionalism, rejecting all that was contemporary and admitting only plainsong as the ideal musical type. This was the principle adopted by the Council of Trent, with the music of Pale]v ~} Á ] < o M Z ^ _ Z Ç X dZ µo Á Z }](]]}v }( musical development in Roman Catholicism. But (Deo gratia!) Luther was no traditionalist. He openly embraced that which was best in contemporary musical art. Regrettably it is at this point that we have parted company with Luther and the Reformation musical ideal. Contemporary art in all forms finds rough going in the Evangelical church today. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. >µZ À] v ul ]v ]v Z ^ µo_ uµ]o µoµ }( Z] Ç. Likewise, the Reformation church was receptive to that which was good in contemporary secular music. This had a oµÇ (( }v Z uµ]o À o}u v }( Z ZµZX dZ Á} }( :X ZX D]ov }}W ^ ZµZ music, apt to become dryly conventional, has always benefited from some influence from the better secular music of the day, and as in the earlier part of the 16th century there was the influence of the simple grace of the French chanson, so later on, the influence of the higher refinement of the Italian u]PoX_îð dZ] ]v]o ] Pvv Á]Z ]uo]]}v (} Z ZµZ }Ç ] À] Á ~}u ÁZ Á]o ]vPoÇ Z À o}u v }( ^ZµZ }_ uµ] ~ XPXU Z }u}]]}v }( Do}ou t]oo]u}vU et al.). Even in their outlook on musical art, the Reformation fathers understood that the church was in the world and must be attentive to the worldva truth which we are only now discovering! 4. CatholicityX E ]Z :}µ]v v} ^ v(o ^}((]]ooÇ_ }µ Z >µZ v µ U Ç Z ] Æ great influence on Luther personally and on the development of music in the Reformation church. This is v} µv]u}vX ]l]v}v Z ^Z}µPZ}µ Z íòZ vµÇ u]v v uµ]]v }( }Z confessions (Catholic and Protestant) contributed to the musical services of their opponents. Protestants composed masses and motets for the Catholic churches, and Catholics arranged chorale melodies for the Protestants. This friendly interchange of good offices was heartily encouraged by >µZ X_îñ dZ uµ]l culture of the Reformation church did not hold itself in sectarian isolation. This principle is of greatest significance to Lutherans today. There is the danger of a myopic concern and narrow appreciation for our own Lutheran musical heritage, which may be viewed as largely Germanic, to the exclusion of a greater catholicity of musical interest which was the Reformation ideal. The musical ideal of the Reformation church, as represented particularly by Luther in his own stance on matters musical, laid the foundation and provided the guiding principles for a great musical tradition of which we are now the inheritors. It is an ideal which still obtains and which will direct the church into fruitful paths of musical development in the future. May we keep that ideal firmly before us! Cited References and Note 1. Gustave Reese, Music in the Renaissance (New York: W. W. Norton & Co., Inc., 1959), p.673. 2. Robert M. Stevenson, Patterns of Protestant Music (Durham: Duke University Press, 1953), p. 5. 3. to X µÌ]vU ^ >µZ }v Dµ]_ ~ ^X WµoW Z ]v (}u Musical Quarterly, Jan. 1946, by Lutheran Society for Worship, Music and the Arts, 1958), p. 12. 4. Buszin, p. 13. 5. Ibid. 6. Hans Joachim Moser, Die evangelische Kirchenmusik in Deutschland (Berlin: Merseburger, 1953), p. 16. 7. '}À [ ]]}vÇ }( Dµ] v Dµ]]v, 3d ed., ed. H. C. Colles (New York: The Macmillan Co., 1945), II, 794. 8. Moser, p. 16. 9. Reese, p. 244. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. 10. Stevenson, pp. 9, 12. 11. Hans Preuss, Martin Luther der Künstler (Gütersloh: C. Bertelsmann, 1931), p. 94. 12. Riemann Musik Lexikon, Willibald Gurlitt, ed. (Mainz: B. Schotts Söhne, 1961), II, 671t72. Article by Walter Gerstenberg. 13. Ludwig SenflvComposer to the Court and Chapel of Emperor Maximilian I. Decca Record DL 9420. Jacket commentary by Charles Canfield Brown. 14. Riemann Musik Lexikon, ibid. 15. R. W. Seton-Watson, Maximilian IvHoly Roman Emperor (Westminster: Archibald Constable & Co., Ltd., 1902). 16. Ibid. 17. Riemann Musik Lexikon, ibid. 18. Paul Nettl, Luther and Music (Philadelphia: Muhlenberg Press, 1948), p. 23. 19. For a detailed account, cf. Ulrich S. Leupold, ed., >µZ [ t}l, Vol. 53,Liturgy and Hymns (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1965), pp. 337ff. 20. Charles Canfield Brown, Decca record DL 9420. 21. Donald Jay Grout, A History of Western Music (New York: W. W. Norton Co., 1960), p. 192. 22. ,v :}Z]u D} U ^ /vµu vo]u v ] >µÁ]P ^ v(oU_ ]v Festchrift J. Wolf. (Berlin, 1929). 23. Preuss, p. 126. 24. '}À [ ]]}vÇ }( Dµ] v Dµ]]v, ibid. 25. Edward Dickinson, Music in the History of the Western Church (New York: Charles Scr]v [ Sons, 1950), p. 264. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. New Concepts of Hymnody and Polyphony Heinz Werner Zimmermann New Concepts of Hymnody / ] v} ooÇ }]o } l }µ ^v Á }v }( ZÇuv}Ç_ (} }v Z Æo]v ÁZ ] u v Ç ^}o_ ]]}vo }v X / would, therefore, ask your indulgence to begin with a hymnological excursion and a few analyses before giving my own concept of what constitutes a modern church hymn. As a musician I must at the same time ask for understanding if I consider the melodies primarily. The texts are, of course, just as important as the melodies, but since I am limited in space here, I can consider them only insofar as they influence the structure of the melodies. Finally, as a Protestant, I would principally like to concern myself with the strophic church hymn. This does not mean that I do not recognize the importance of the nonstrophic service hymns, but again because of limited space I cannot consider them in detail here. I begin with the hymnological excursion. The majority of church melodies used in Protestant hymnbooks in Germany until 1950 and in the USA up to the present time originated in the 18th and 19th centuries. For many people in Germany until recently and in the USA even today, these hymn melodies represented and still represent the essence of the Protestant church hymn. As a matter of fact, they represent a rather uniform type, with which I would first like to concern myself. For examples I have chosen the well-known melody Seelenbräutigam ~^ : µU > dZ}µ Kv_U which must be considered one of the oldest melodies }( Z] Ç ~] }]P]v (} íóììU v ^ tZ &] v t ,À ]v : µU_ Á oo-known example from the 19th century. Let us study the two melodies in order to recall them. Both melodies are based on a single rhythmic motif, two measures long and repeated. Both melodies v ]À] ]v} ]}v }( (}µ u µ ZW ^ : µU > dZ}µ Kv_ Z Z µZ ]}v ~íî u µ V ^ tZ &] v_ }v] }( (}µ ]}v ~íò u µ X dZ o (}µ measures correspond } Z (] (}µ u µ X /v ^ : µU > dZ}µ Kv_ Z ZÇZu] u}]À ] Z} v ]v Z u]o section, using only the first half and making a sequence of the half motive; this makes possible an enlargement in the harmonic development: besides the three main triads, tonic, dominant, and subdominant, the tonic parallel with its intermediary dominant (measures 7 and 8) appear. Nevertheless, the motivic poverty and the poverty of harmony is evident. It is still more apparent in ^ tZ &] vX_ , ]vPo ZÇZu] u}]À }v}o Z }o u o}ÇW ] ]PZ ]u U practically unchanged. The harmony needs only the three main triads, tonic, dominant, and subdominant. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Both melodies are dependent on a period structure and harmonic scheme. This applies also to nearly all melodies of the 18th and 19th centuries. Their schematic arrangement and their motivic poverty is often concealed through the use of suspension tones or suspension chords (6/4 chord). Thus many such melodies take on a somewhat sentimental character. Let us study a third example by which we may o]Z ( Z u]Ì]}v }( Z u o}ÇU ^ K ,Ç ,}u X_ The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The single rhythmic motive here begins on the upbeat of two measures, and it appears four times. The first part makes a cadence to the dominant, the second to the tonic, the third leads from the tonic to the subdominant, the fourth via the dominant back to the tonic. The harmonic scheme corresponds exactly to the period scheme. The harmonic accents as well as the strong accents of the period are, however, concealed by means of suspensions. In spite of their poor motive structure and harmony, such melodies are very popular in many congregations. They are readily absorbed and remembered, since after the first two measures one usually knows what follows. Such melodies are certainly sung with much vigor and assurance. They often have a further advantage: their schematic form represents in a somewhat neutral manner the verse scheme of many different hymn texts. For this reason, many hymn texts can be sung to such melodies. The young Johann Sebastian Bach, for instance, found 110 different hymn texts for the u o}Ç ^ KZU Z / , dZ}µv s}] _ ]v Z] >ºv µP ZÇuv}}l }µv íóììX I might mention another reference for this type of melody: its stylistic, that is, compositional, relationship with the folk song of the 18th and 19th centuries and with the commercial dance music of the 20th century. These folk melodies and dance melodies also are usually based on a single rhythmic motive and are dependent on a very simple periodic scheme and the three cadence harmonies. Let us l Z v u o}Ç ^ µ( t] Zv_ v voÇÌ ]W The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. This stylistic relationship between sacred and secular song melodies coincides with one of the oldest ]]}v }( Z W} v ZµZ ZÇuvX dZ}µPZ ] ZÇuv o]Z ] ^}]]}v ]v o]( _V ] ] not only sung in the church but also in the family and in public. However, today this presents a big problem. While the folk songs o( >µZ [ Ç ]voÇ } v ]] Àoµ U Z v µv }( the so-oo ^Z] _ Z ]u } }µ]}vX ( ( Á Ç } À v o] Z Ç used up; they come and they disappear in more or less short intervals of time. On the other hand, a church hymn should serve many generations and should have value for hundreds of years. We are, therefore, not very happy if in our day a church hymn is composed along the same lines as a popular song. We ask ourselves if the same styl ÁZ]Z ] v Ç (} ^uµ]o_ ] o} µ]o (} Z À] of God. An ever growing number of people will answer this question with a decisive no. The musical vessel in which the worshiping congregation offers praises and thanks to God must of necessity be altogether different from the musical vessel in which cheap amusement is presented commercially. Serious musicians have known this all along: it is significant that Johann Sebastian Bach never used the melody ^ KZU Z / , dZ}µv s}] U_ which in Lüneburg was used for 110 different texts. In like manner D v o}ZvU ZuU v Z P v À Á ]vo]v } µ µv o]l ^ : µU > dZ}µ Kv_ } vÇ other schematizing melodies. Following the composers, the musicologistsvand soon also those theologians who had musical talent and today even a large number of congregationsvcame to recognize that the 16th and 17th centuries produced better chorale melodies than the 18th and 19th centuries. This was also recognized above all by the liturgical movement of our century, since there is no bridge from psalmody and nonstrophic hymns to the schematic hymns of the 18th and 19th centuries. And thus we come to a consideration of the melodies of the 16th century. As examples I have chosen >µZ [ u o}Ç } his hymn Aus tiefer Not ~^ &}u Z }( t} _U }u} íñîðU v }v }( Z Á} À Ç (u}µ ZÇuv }( WZ]o] E]}o]X > µ (] voÇÌ >µZ [ u o}ÇW The analysis shows that this melody has no period-measure scheme. The repeated part has 4 1/2 measures and the second part 6 1/2 measures, altogether 11 measures. The scheme of the harmonic cadence with three main triads cannot be a basis because the melody belongs to the Phrygian mode. The construction of the melody is also independent of any preconceived scheme. A rhythmically uniform motive is also not apparent. Instead, there is an altogether different, very interesting principle of melodic construction. The construction of the melody closely follows the text of the first stanza. The tiefe Not~^ Z }( Á} _ ] Z}Áv Ç u v }( ]µ W Z }ÁvÁ }P ]}v }( (](Z }v the syllable tief ~^ _X /v ] (µZ À o}u v Z u o}Ç (}oo}Á Z ]v}v]}v v Z v }( the spoken language: important syllables like Not, dir, Gott, etc. are sung on higher pitches. According to The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. >µZ [ ]vµ]}vU Z v} Z}µo ^ vo]À v Z ÆX_ dZ v} Z}µo Z ]u}v Çooo of the first stanza. It is really remarkable that through this method not only the text but also the melody becomes alive. Almost no line is similar to the previous one, and thus we have a large number of melodic motives. This richness in melodic motives makes a melody of this character valuable and worthy of being treated by the greatest composers in various compositions. But we find this type of melody not }voÇ Á]Z >µZ X t (]v Z u } µ ]v WZ]o] E]}o][ ^ tl U Ál U (} E]PZ / &oÇ]vPX_ This melody is also not schematized. The part that is repeated has five measures, the other six measures. The harmonic progression is simple but not schematic. The melodic structure, which shows no unit motive, remains independent. It uses its freedom to make the first strophe alive. The use of the triad at the beginning presents an image of the fanfare }( Z ^ÁZ _ }v Z Z ]PZ Æ uo](] Ç Z Z]PZ v} ]v Z u o}ÇX ] Z] ]µ U Á (]v ]v E]}o][ u o}Ç o} Z ]v}v]}v }( spoken language: important syllables appear on higher notes. Thus we encounter an abundance of melodic motives here too. We now see that with Luther and Nicolai not the form but the content of the text forms the melody. Word and tone have an intimate connection. The hymn texts are thus set to music as if they were prose. This is a stylistic bridge to the nonstrophic church hymns and to psalmody. There can be little doubt that this melody type has much more value than the melody type of the 18th and 19th centuries. Fairness demands, however, that we do not only see the advantages of the hymns of the Reformation period. These Reformation hymns are much more difficult to learn and to remember than the later schematized song melodies. Almost exclusively they can be sung only to their own text, and they have no stylistic reference to the world of music in which we live. During the past 10 years in Germany, this want of a stylistic reference to our musical world, which one must concede to be true of the Reformation hymn melodies, brought about a discussion concerning the actualization of the church hymn, concerning new concepts for hymnody. Young theologians demanded that not only churches and the sermon should in outward structure adapt themselves to 20th-century À o}u v µ o} Z }vP P]}v[ }v U Z ZµZ ZÇuvX u }( (U Z }Z ]v our history has sought and found its own peculiar hymnodic expression; therefore, also our period must seek and find its own expression. Please do not misunderstand me: the new hymns which we are seeking are not to replace our heritage of hymns; the new hymns should take their place alongside the older hymns, and they should continue the great tradition of Christian hymnody. It is correct that the new hymns should assist the congregation towards contemporary expression, but it is no less correct to maintain that the hymns of our heritage establish a tradition which unites our present generation in its The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. church song with earlier generations. We need both. The task that confronts us today is simply this: As we study our hymnological heritage or tradition, how can we realize what we learn from this tradition in our contemporary stylistic situation in terms of music and lyrics? What we must learn is the importance of the close connection between word and tone. We have seen that this close connection gave the melodies of the Reformation period such rich values. This close word-tone relationship we find not only in the hymnody of the 16th century but also in the Gregorian melodies of the early Middle Ages. And in more recent times, we find this close connection of music and language, music and prose, in the Negro spirituals. Many of the spirituals have become world famous, and rightly so. As we analyze them, we find that much of what we have said about the melodies of Luther and Nicolai also applies to the spirituals. K v]oÇ Z u o}Ç (}oo}Á Z Æ (]Pµ]À oÇ ]v Z P]vv]vP }v ^ ^Á]vP o}Á_ ] u}À }ÁvÁ v Z v P]v µÁ }v ^} Ç u Z}u X_ /u]]}v }( Z vµo Z u o}ÇU Z v v ZÇZu }( }l v ovPµP U Á (]v ]v ^ ]v[ DÇ >} o]À v] oX_ Nothing would be more incorrect than the supposition that the relationship of word and tone were a historically conditioned quality and had no actuality in our day. This relationship of word and tone is essential to the function of our worship hymns: the singing in our worship service constitutes the ideal possibility for collective speech. The congregation does not sing in order to make music but in order to proclaim the word collectively. In the spirituals, too, the rich and flexible melody, and above all the original syncopated rhythm, results from the close connection of word and tone. This new rhythm of the spirituals is not so new. It was discussed by Theodore F. Seward in the introduction to the collection Fisk Jubilee Songs as early as 1875: A technical analysis of these melodies shows some interesting facts. The first peculiarity that strikes the attention is the rhythm. This is often complicated and strikingly original. But although so new and strange, it is most remarkable that these effects are so extremely satisfactory. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Another noticeable feature of the songs is the rare occurrence of triple time or three-part measure among them. The reason for this is doubtless to be found in the beating of the foot and the swaying of the body which are such frequent accompaniments of the singing. These motions are in even measure and in perfect time; and so it will be found that, however broken and seemingly irregular the movement of the music, it is always capable of the most exact measurement. o Ç ]v íôóñ Z E P} ]]µo Á ] ]v Z ] ]À]]}v ]v} ^u o}] ]}v_ v ^ZÇZu ]}v_vand this is today the distinguishing mark of jazz. It is true, there are great differences between Negro spirituals and jazz; nevertheless, this divisionv^u o}] ]}vU_ ^ZÇZu] ]}v_vclearly established jazz as having its origin in the Negro spiritual. Within jazz this style has completely blended in the European musical development and today has in fact become an integral part of our musical µoµ X dZ ^ZÇZu] ]}v_ Z } (µv]}vo v Zu}vÇ v u ]o ]}]Ì]vP ~]v ðU ôU íîU } íò u µ (}u u ][ µ} v uµ] ]]}vX dZ] Z u]u ] v P Ç u o}] improvisation, which expresses itself totally without scheme, is very irregular, and goes far beyond the spiritual melodies in its irregularity and richness in motives. / ZÀ o] Æ v }]v]}v Z ]v Z ]À]]}v }( Z uµ]o ]vP ]v} ^u o}] ]}v_ v ^ZÇZu ]}v_ }µ human existence in the 20th century is reflected. In fact, the musical juxtaposition of subjective freedom-experience (in the jazz improvisation) and objective order (in the jazz rhythm group) corresponds very nearly to the experience of 20th-century man in his problems of maintaining himself and his ideas of human freedom in the machinery of our modern, rationalized style of living. For this reason I consider jazz as representing the music of our century, and in my work I am endeavoring to make its stimulation fruitful for church music. So much for the stylistic situation of our music today. tZ ] Z Ço]] ]µ]}v ]v }Ç[ oÇ]M / uµ }v(]v uÇ o( } ( Á À Ç ]u}v international developments. While the lyric of the 18th century was almost always bound to metrical speech, the modern lyric of our century is almost always prose. However, it retains the order of verse o]v X > µ oo Z (}u }( Z] oÇ] ^À ]v } X_ dZ] À o}u v ] ]v v]}voW t Z]vl }( Trakl, Brecht, or Bennvof Ezra Pound, W. H. Auden, or Dylan Thomas. Is it possible to combine these developments of modern lyric with the function of the church hymn? Not eo ipso. The church hymn is bound to a strophic melody which can be repeated. A strophic tie-up to prose is very difficult, and we find it quite seldom in modern lyric. That it is not completely left out can be seen from the texts of the American blues. These texts are almost always strophic prose. The main problem of the modern church hymn based on a close connection between word and tone is that the author should be both poet and composer. Remember Luther and Nicolai, who ideally solved this problem. Since I am a composer, I had to take refuge in the prose of the Bible to invent a church hymn according to my new concept. Many verses of the Bible possess the intensity of great poetry. Thus for the first verses of Psalm 46 I invented a melody which totally coincided with the content, the speech melody, and above all the rhythm of these verses. To this melodÇ ~^u o}] ]}v_ / ]vÀ v (µvu vo ZÇZu }u} }( Z} ÁZ]Z ]v Pµo ]}] }P ]}v ~^ZÇZu ]}v_X t Zoo Z Z u o}Ç[ u} ]u}v }v }]v] Á]Z Z u} ]u}v Çooo }( Z ou Æ (Gott, Zuversicht, Hilfe, etc.). The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. For this psalm melody, the Protestant student pastor at Heidelberg University wrote two additional stanzas in cooperation with me. In doing so, he had to follow most closely the melody already completed. These two additional stanzas, enlarging the psalm verse in a trinitarian manner, are metrically freevin other words, they are prose. However, once in a while there appear rhymes to make a stronger impression on the memory. It is important that also in the added two lines the important u o}Ç v} }v Z u} ]u}v Çooo X dZ] }vP ] Z ^ ,Çuvµ_ }( uÇ Vesper, for choir and three instruments, which was recently recorded on the CANTATE label by the Spandauer Kantorei under the direction of Martin Behrmann. On the same recording another song of the same type is to be foundvUns ist ein Kind geboren, a Christmas song. Here also a verse from the Bible is the basis for the first stanza. Three additional stanzas The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. were written to the melody by the Munich poetess Ilse Schnell. Out of this I have made a short hymn cantata for choir, vibraphone, harpsichord, and double bass (Bärenreiter Ausgabe 4348). &} Z] ZÇuvU ÁZ]Z / }u} }v Z (u}µ Æ (}u Z '} o }]vP } ^X :}ZvU ^ dZ Word became flesh and dwelt u}vP µU_ / Á} u} vÌ ]v }} ]}v Á]Z Z o]v } Kurt Ihlenfeld. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. I would not wish to close without pointing out that this church hymn type, although primarily text-bound, secondarily must observe the rules of musical form. By the way: the rhythm confines itself to only two different note values, in order to remain simple. Since I have so often quoted Luther, I do not The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. wish to neglect to point out that limiting the note values to only two different note-value patterns also corresponds } oÀ]v[ ]vµ]}v }v v]vP Z Geneva Psalter. This still holds true for today. There is no doubt that this new hymn type is more difficult to learn and to sing than the traditional 19th-century type. It is at least as difficult as the Reformation hymns. In Germany we have good results with Gemeinde-Singstunden. Half an hour before or after the Sunday church service the church musician teaches the congregation the more difficult Reformation or contemporary hymn melodies. These melodies should be taught also to the confirmation classes. If the church wants to have and keep a rich and valuable hymnody, it must take care of it and, if necessary, do something for it. New Concepts of Polyphony The position of polyphony in 20th-century music is controversial and therefore extremely changeable. Certainly no one would be ready to maintain that polyphony had ever been the sole master over any uµ]o }ZU v} À v ]v Wo ]v[ } Z[ ]u V Z Á oÁÇ Z}u}Z}v] v u}v}] music alongside of polyphony. On occasion even such an eminent contrapuntalist as Mozart (when he wanted to be) could, in a moment of good-natured mockery, liken a melodist to the thoroughbred racehorse but compare the contrapuntist to the plodding cart horse. In the 19th century, too, the greatest composers were outstanding contrapuntists. And we do not have to confine our thinking to Brahms, Bruckner, and Reger, where this is obvious; the music of the later Chopin, the later Wagner, and that of Richard Strauss is polyphonic and unthinkable without independent secondary parts. Even Verdi, whose opera music succeeds with a minimum of polyphony, did write great polyphonic music in his Requiem. Perhaps the first composer to succeed in writing great music that can be called neither polyphonic nor homophonic, music that dispenses with the idea of principal and secondary parts, was oµ µÇX / µ} }v u]PZ Ç Z u }µ /P} ^À]vlÇ[ Le Sacre du Printemps ~^ Z] }( ^]vPU_ íõíïX µ o Ç ( íõîì v Á µP of contrapuntal writing is evidentvneoclassicism arrives, a style destined to reach its climax in the thirties and forties. Stravinsky and Hindemith wrote fugues; Bartók, too, used the contrapuntal technique more and more frequently. The twelve-tone school of Schönberg had always thought of itself as polyphonic. But since the early fifties, polyphony is again on the decline. The followers of Webern, above all, the protagonists of the Darmstadt (Germany) Vacation Courses for New Music, look upon the contrapuntal technique as a typical characteristic of neoclassicism and oppose both. Electronic music has little use for independent voice leading. Graphic notation, the latest development of the experimental avant-garde, does allow for certain possibilities in polyphonic music, but actually it departs from composition in the direction of improvisation. The low estimate of polyphony held by the experimental avant-garde is, however, not only the result of the decline of neoclassicism. It is, above all, the result also of certain contradictions in twelve-tone counterpoint to which Theodore W. Adorno called attention already in the forties. Adorno pointed out that twelve-}v }µv }]v ^}} oo ]u]]À v v}v] À] X dZ µ }( µZ u vX X X Z the effect of a double disposition, of tautology. They organize for a second time a context that has already been organized by means of the twelve-}v Zv]µ _ ~Philosophie der neuen Musik, p. 89). It is equally disastrous for twelve-tone counterpoint that the individual parts can no longer be contrasted: each part always consists of the same 12 tones in the same sequence. Furthermore, the repetitious omnipresence of all 12 tones keeps individual parts from having harmonic experiences worth mentioning in the course of the composition. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. It is not my intention to discuss the various applications of 20th-century contrapuntal polyphony in this paper. But let us emphasize what might be considered beyond challenge: the polyphonic technique is dependent on the intended compositional style. But not only the question whether a composer composes polyphonically is a question about his style; also the question how he handles the technique of polyphony is dependent on it. Let us first try to elucidate what we understand polyphony to be. The Harvard Dictionary of Music provides the following excellent definition: Music written as a combination of several simultaneous voices (parts) of a more or less pronounced individuality. Hence, the term polyphony is practically synonymous with counterpoint. In studying the works of Johann Sebastian Bach, the greatest polyphonist in the history of music, we v}] Z }oÇZ}vÇ u] ]Z Z ^}u]v]}v_ }( Z ]v]À]µo À}] } }u]v } Z ] ^]v]À]µo]ÇX_ > µ Z (} istinguish two different types of polyphony: imitative polyphony and cantus-(]uµ }oÇZ}vÇX /v Z[ (µPµ v}uooÇ oo ]]]vP À o} (}u Z u theme and the same motives; this is imitative counterpoint, which leads to a polyphony that we shall oo ^Z}u}P v }µX_ µ ]v Z}o oµ }( Z[ µZ Z Z -part Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme~^ tl U Ál U (} E]PZ / &oÇ]vP_U Z ]v]À]µo]Ç }( Z U Z ] uµµo ]v v v U ] emphasized. This is the cantus-firmus technique, which leads to a polyphony that we shall call ^Z }P v }µX_ In looking over the available heritage of polyphonic music unbiasedly, we come to the conclusion that not only in Bach but also in Schütz and in Palestrina and also after Bach the homogeneous type of polyphony is the more frequent one. This tendency must be assigned to three reasons that lie outside the individual part. First, the vocal polyphony of the motet was inclined to assign the same text to all voices for the purpose of making the text more easily understood; and the common text had a way of imposing a homogeneous use of motives on the individual voices. Secondly, the discovery of the musical dynamics as a means of intensification of expression led to the technique of letting the parts enter not simultaneously but one after another; a continuous growth in intensity, quasi a crescendo in polyphony, was possible only in imitative part entrances and homogeneous use of motives. Thirdly, the development of harmony, as an autov}u}µ uµ]o ]u v]}v ]v Z ]u }( Z[ (µPµ U u Z µ}v}uÇ }( Z ]v]À]µo u o}] o]v u} v u} ]ooµ}ÇX D} } Zv ^Z }P v }µ_ }µv }]vU ^Z}u}P v }µ_ }µv }]v Z ÁÇ }( }uu}]vP ] o( } Z µ}] Z of chord progression and modulation. This development culminated in the chromatically modulating fugue technique of Max Reger, in which the individual part often becomes amorphous. Homogeneous polyphony becomes pseudopolyphony here, veiled homophony. A new preference for variously individualized parts developed the string quartet polyphony of Viennese classicism and the symphonic polyphony that took its beginning from it and extended into the 20th century. This kaleidoscopic polyphony, consisting of a countless variety of individual motives, we can o](Ç ^Z }P v }µ_ }µv }]vX K( }µ U À v ]v Z ]vP µ }oÇZ}vÇ v o u v }( pseudopolyphony is discernable: the inner unity of the individual part falls prey to demands of the autonomy of harmonic progression and form. The individual part itself is now composed of heterogeneous motives. Even the unchanging number of the parts is sacrificed. After this orientation in the most important forms of polyphony, I should like to return to the stylistic situation of our own day and discuss the question whether the polyphonic technique can be developed The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. (µZ ]v ] v Z}Á Z] v }v X tZ v / }v v uÇ o( Á]Z Z µ ]}v }( Z ^v Á }v }( ZÇuv}ÇU_ / o Ç l Z Z Ço]ic situation of 20th-century music as I see it. I should like to repeat that I consider as representative not the dodecaphonic, or serial, music but the division of Z uµ]o ]vP ]v} ^u o}] ]}v_ v ^ZÇZu ]}vU_ ] Z l v o ]v iazz (pp. 57 f.). Please do not misunderstand me: jazz is improvised music and can therefore not be compared with the accomplishments of the great composers of our century. Nevertheless, the division of jazz improvisation ]v} ^u o}] ]}v_ v ^ZÇZu ]}v_ ] v µZ v] Æ ]}v }( }µ ]u v Z (} constant challenge to the composer to cast in compositional form what the jazz musician has already realized in improvisation. There is no need to prove further that already in this division, in this splitting of the musical setting, an element of contrapuntal polyphony is present. The rhythm section usually proceeds according to the oÁ }( Z Zu}v] v U Z ^oµ Z u U_ v µv](}u ^ U_ ÁZ]Z v}uooÇ uZ]Ì the second rhythmic beat in every case. A melodic expression of the rhythm section is achieved in the ]ÌÌ]} }vX dZ }µv }]v (} Z] ] Z ]u}À]]vP U Z ^Z}µU_ (}u Ç }v }( Z ]vµu v }( Z u o}] ]}vX dZ ^Z}µ_ Z v} uotivic communion with the rhythm ]}vV ]v (U ] À v ]À Á]Z À Ç u v }( ]u}À]]}v } o }( ] v } ^}Áv }µ_ ] Z u]uX / }µv }]v ] ]ooÇ ^Z }P v }µX_ As a compositional device, this intentional irregularity cannot easily be made meaningful. Here, too, the use of a prose text is of help; prose is rhythmically irregular and yet full of meaning. In a vocal realization }( Z ^u o}] ]}v_ Á Z (} }v }o] P}µv Á }u} X ^ZÇZu ]}v_ Á employ a plucked double bass; its uniform pizzicato furnishes the background to which the regular ZÇZu }( Z u o}Ç v }v X dZ] ] ^Z }P v }µ }µv }]vU_ } ÁZ]Z (µZ heterogeneous part is added: a cantus firmus in broad note values. Example: Mache dich auf, werde licht, motet for choir and double bass (up to measure 22) (From: Heinz Werner Zimmermann, Weihnacht, 4 Christmas motets; Verlag Merseburger, Berlin; published in an English translation by Richard T. Gore: Four Christmas Motets, Chantry Music Press, Springfield, Ohio, 1967). (Recorded by the Spandauer Kantorei under M. Behrmann. CANTATE 658217) A fugue, too, may be composed in the same technique. The voice parts in such a composition on a prose text are given an irregular syncopated rhythm; a uniform double bass pizzicato forms a counterpoint to their homogeneous fugal polyphony. The double bass part remains heterogeneous apart from the vocal fugal polyphony. Example: Barmherzig und gnädig ist der Herr, fugue for choir and double bass (up to measure 23) (From: Heinz Werner Zimmermann, Psalmkonzert, for baritone solo, 5- Z}]U Z]o v[ Z}]U ï trumpets, vibraphone, and double bars; Verlag Merseburger, Berlin; published in an English edition by Audrey Davidson and Marian Johns, eds., Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, Mo., 1967) (Recorded by the Karlsruher Kantorei under K. M. Ziegler. CANTATE 640229 This polyphony is at one and the same time homogeneous and heterogeneous. The five parts of the vocal fugue are homogeneous; taken together, they stand over against the contrasting instrumental part, and thus, in a manner of speaking, a two-part heterogeneous counterpoint results. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. This mixed form is not as yet a new form of polyphony. Incomparably great examples of such polyphony are found already in Johann Sebastian Bach. We have but to think of the opening chorus of the St. Matthew Passion, ÁZ Z Z }P v }µ }µv }]v }( Z }Ç[ Z}][ vµ (]uµ ] } the homogeneous texture of the imitativ À}] X K Á u]PZ }v] Z ^ }v(] }_ }( Z Mass in B Minor, where the heterogeneous Gregorian canon forms a counterpoint to the fugal polyphony. Also Z (] ]}v }( Z ^ }_ ]v Z Mass in B Minor should be mentioned in this connection; there, too, we find a heterogeneous double bass part in counterpoint to a fugue. The contrapuntal considerations of the jazz improvisation, however, go beyond the idea of heterogeneous counterpoint. With Bach even in the heterogeneous counterpoint the participating parts oo ZÀ Z Z }( ^o]v _ Z l v ]u u]Ì]}v v ]v v](]]}vV µ Á v the almost arbitrary liberty of the jazz improvisation and the almost mechanical schematization of the ^oµ Z u _ v µv]P o vd an intentional stylistic gulf is fixed. This is especially noticeable in Z µ }( Z oµl }µo X o}vP Z }µo o}vP } Z ^ZÇZu ]}v_ ~v this is its normal function), it not only expresses itself almost exclusively in equal note values but also Z}o ]oÇ } o v ]v}v]}v }( Z Zu}v] Z u V }}v ] P]v ] ^Z}µU_ Z}Á À U and its improvisation, its style changesvit takes on the character of the melody instruments, the rhythmical organization becomes discontinuous, and the pitches are occasionally played expressively imprecise. The time and pitch elements that were objective before have now become subjective. The division into melodic section and rhythm section is at the same time a stylistic division. Therefore Z iÌÌ }µv }]v ] v} }voÇ ^Z }P v }µ_ µ À v ^}oÇÇo]]X_ In the opening and closing movements of my Vesper (for chorus and three instruments), I tried to distinguish the vocal parts stylistically from the instrumental parts. The instrumental parts are based on Z ^oµ Z u _ v }Pv]Ì Z u]ooÇ ]v} P}µ }( (}µ u µ X dZ À}o }v the other hand consist of imitative line polyphony; metrically it is free even where near the close it shrinks together to chordal homophony. Here, too, the irregularity is a result of setting a prose text. Æuo W ^ /vP µW Eile, Gott, mich zu erretten_ (From: Heinz Werner Zimmermann, Vesper, for chorus, vibraphone, harpsichord, and double bass; Bärenreiter Verlag, Kassel, BA 4351) (Recorded by the Spandauer Kantorei under M. Behrmann. CANTATE 658217) This, too, could be called two-part heterogeneous counterpoint. It goes without saying that the instrumental blues structure in its schematization carries a message concerning our rationalized everyday existence, whereas the line polyphony of the vocal parts engaged in addressing God, though surrounded outwardly by this experience, is nevertheless inwardly independent of it and free. But a new element must be discussed at this point. The traditional counterpoint normally consists of ]v v v ]v]À]µo U µ ]v Z ^ /vP µ_ }( uÇ Vesper two entirely different types of writing are heard in counterpoint to each other. Such polyphony, consisting no longer of different individual µ }( ](( v Ç }( Á]]vPU / Z}µo o]l } oo ^oµo]] }oÇZ}vÇX_ Of course, music history records an exceptional case in which even three different types of writing stand in counterpoint to each other. I am refe]vP } D}Ì[ } Don Giovanni, where in the finale of Act I three dances of different time signature and tempo are heard simultaneously. Up to a point this, too, uÇ oo ^oµo]] }oÇZ}vÇX_ µ Z u]]vP o u v ] Z Ço]] ](( nce of the types of The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Á]]vPX dZ] Ço]] ](( v Á v} Ç À]oo ]v D}Ì[ ]u V Z µv]Ç }( }u}]]}vo technique, which knew of no difference between church music, concert music, and operatic music, u µoÇ ^oµo]]_ }oÇZ}vÇ ]uossible and at the same time unnecessary. But today we are living in a world of musical pluralism, in a multiplicity of contemporary idioms, and µ}µv Ç Z ]Z Z ]P }( uµ]o Z]}Ç v Ç Z P]( }( Æ}] (}olo} X d}Ç ^oµo]] polyZ}vÇ_ }u }]]o]Ç (} Z (] ]u V v Z u ]u ] }u v ]ÇX / opens up the possibility of giving back to the contrapuntal manner of writing the control over the totality of the available expressive means open to the compositional craft. For polyphony is essentially not a special technique for the display of exceptional musical erudition; it is rather an arena where the totality of the compositional technique may be brought together for the creation of a musical microcosm, for the creation of a world in miniature. No single style among the many is competent to create this microcosm with its own materials. We need only to examine from this viewpoint the two most important schools of the 20th centuryvthe neoclassical and the dodecaphonic. To the neoclassical school, represented especially by Stravinsky and ,]v u]ZU Á ]v (} Z v Áo }( o]v o }oÇZ}vÇV ] vo Á}l ] ,]v u]Z[ Ludus tonalis. In the world of this polyphony, however, modern musical consciousness finds a place only when it can be expressed with the materials of one or more individual parts. This was, incidentally, not ](( v ]Z ]v Z }oÇZ}vÇ }( ZX µ ]v Z[ ]u u} v uµ]o }v]}µv }µo actually still be expressed almost completely in a single musical part. Hence the enormous }u}]]}vo }P (}u ]vPo }( Wo ]v[ }oÇZ}vÇ } ]vPo }( Z[ }oÇZ}vÇX In this difference almost all the progress in compositional means of expression from the16th to the 18th century is visible. But in spite of all the excellence of the Ludus tonalis, certainly no one would want to maintain that one may read the state of the total musical consciousness of the 20th century from a single individual part of Hindemith. It is not Hindemith that fails; it is the individual part. In the 20th century the individual part can no longer reproduce the wealth of the actual musical consciousness. The situation is different in the case of the dodecaphonic school. We are indebted to Schönberg, Berg, and Webern for an unheard-of distillation and refinement of the musical consciousness. There is hardly a single musical dimension that would not be distilled and refined by them. And yet this style is exclusive; what is not distilled, is cut off. Cut off, therefore, are all the compositional means of expression that belong to the past, and they may at best serve only as quoted material; cut off likewise is the elementary and naturally also the trivial, which in modern musical consciousness is important as v À (} X v } Z] Ço U }}U vv} v }o ]µ }( }Ç[ uµ]o }v]}µv µ only a partial view, though it be ever so characteristic. And it intends to do no more. ^ Woµo]] }oÇZ}vÇU_ o } }vile in a work of art the multitude of conflicting styles that are components of our modern musical consciousness, is today still Zukunftsmusik,^uµ] }( Z (µµ X_ We have seen that it is necessary; we have not yet seen whether it is possible. Let us recoo ÁZ Á µv v ^oµo]] }oÇZ}vÇ_ } X t µv v ] } v} combination of different individual parts but a combination of stylistically heterogeneous types of writing. How did the traditional polyphony, the polyphony of Palestrina and that of Bach, become possible? It became a possibility through the development of a contrapuntal technique of composition. The goal of a ^oµo]] }oÇZ}vÇ_ v Z (} Z }voÇ Z}µPZ (µZ À o}u v }( Z }vµvo The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. technique. Let us therefore in closing establish some orientation as to whether and how the contrapuntal technique of the new conception may be adjusted to a pluralistic polyphony. In the Harvard Dictionary of Music we read the following words of gold: In music where there are present more than a single unaccompanied melody, a musical texture exists which can be regarded from two points of view, the horizontal and the vertical; such a musical fabric is not dissimilar to a textile material with its warp and woof. . . . Music which is made up of individual melodic strands woven together is contrapuntal or polyphonic. Counterpoint has had a history of about a thousand years. A study of this history shows that at no time has there been a complete disregard of the vertical aspect of view. There has been, however, a good deal of change in this aspect; so much indeed, that the consideration of this point serves as a convenient means of evolutionary classification in the history of counterpoint. This does not mean to imply that other points of viewvevolution of the melodic lines and of their rhythmic coordinationvare less important, but only that, owing to their more complex nature, they do not lend themselves to the purpose of short description and survey. The vertical aspect of the counterpoint of Palestrina was established on the basis of a distinction between intervals that produce consonances and intervals that produce dissonances, between chords that produce consonances and melody tones that produce dissonances. The consonant chords were ]ooÇ o]u] } Z ] v Z Z} }( Z ]ÆZX Z[ o Á o Ç ]Z X ]}vv chords, too, could be used in the contrapuntal setting (for instance, the seventh chords). Less strict than the Palestrina setting, the Bach setting in its figured bass, distinguishes only the so-oo ^Zu}v]_ v ^v}vZu}v]_ v} X Our harmonic palette of today has been expanded especially by the use of combined harmonies. Thus, for instance, Olivier Messiaen is fond of the following chord combinations in s]]}v o[ u vU p. 34: We can see that these sounds can, in part, have a pluralistic structure too; they may be divided into two or even three different triads. For this reason they are especially well suited for pluralistic polyphony. Our first problem is to investigate whether all chords may be combined with equal facility or whether we can discover a law governing greater or lesser consonances. It is relatively simple to expand a seventh chord or a ninth chord to form a twin harmony. Thus the dominant ninth G B D F A-flat may be expanded by the addition of D-flat, and it will then consist of the G-major chord plus a D-flat-major chord: The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. It is worth noting that D-flat stands in tritone relation to the root G and yet produces an excellent tonal result. If we add a B-flat-minor triad to the G-major triad, we get a somewhat more dissonant harmony (Example 11 b). Together with the major-third B we simultaneously have the minor-third B-flat. We lv}Á Z] ]}vv ^v µo Z]_ especially from the works of Bartók. This interval, too, always provides satisfying harmonic results. But it is a different matter when we add an A-minor triad to the G-major triad (Example 11 c). In this twin harmony the interval of a fourth G-C results, which is present neither in the G-major triad nor in the A-u]v} ]X > µ oo ] ^v}vZu}v] (}µZX_ / ou} always leads to poor harmonic results. Also the number of minor or major seconds produced in twin harmonies determine greater or lesser consonance. From these considerations the first chapter of a methodology for pluralistic counterpoint evolves: ^ }v v]vP Woµo]] }v}vv X_ Á lv}ÁU Z u Z}}o}PÇ }( }µv }]v }v] }( providing a countermelody for a given cantus firmus in various ways. We are familiar with Fux P}] W ^ E} P]v v} U_ ^Á} P]v }v U_ ^(}µ P]v }v U_ ^µ v]}vU_ v ^(o}] }µv }]vX_ dZ (] Æ ] ]v oµo]] }µv }]v Z (} ] oo ^Z} P]v Z}_ v permits chord combinations producing satisfying consonances. Chord combinations involving nonharmonic fourths or an excessive number of intervals of a second are ruled out. The harmonic major cadence may, for example, serve as cantus firmus. The second species ] oo ^Á} Z} P]v }v _ v u] ]}vv ]vP Z}X Ç vo}PÇ Á uÇ Z v Àv } Z ] oo ^(}µ Z} P]v }v U_ ^Z} µ v]}vU_ v } }vX Kv }( Z ] ] P}À v]vP Z µo]Ç }( Z counterpoint chords is whether the wealth of the 12 half steps now available has been exhausted (Example 12). Of course, we must point out that pluralistic polyphony has just as little to do with dodecaphony as with polytonality. A Netherlands school crab canon of the late Middle Ages carries the enigmatic superscription In fine initium ~^ Z v Ç}µ Á]oo (]v Z P]vv]vP_X dZ] ] Z v }( uÇ }v v]vP New concepts of polyphony. But this is only the beginning of the long road that leads from theoretical concept to The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. artistic realization. The goal of this pathway is not an eclectic potpourri of styles without connection but a musical incarnation of everything that is alive in our musical consciousness today, its expression in clear styles of writing, and its formal presentation in a new polyphony. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. ^ t}_ v ^ d}v _ ]v dZ ](( v ^ Dµ] E}À _ M. Geerink Bakker There is a story about a composer who meets a friend. After the exchange of greetings, the friend asks, ^ ] Ç}µ }u} vÇZ]vP v Á }( o M_ v Z }u} vÁ U ^ KZU Á ooU }u}]vP ] µ]v Z ÇX tZ v /[u Áol]vP ]v Z v / P v ] U / ZÀ v} uµ] ZvÇ } write it down. Having written it down at home at last, I cannot find a publisher for it. When I find a publisher after all, he does not pay me. When the composition has been published, no one will buy it. If }u }v µÇ ] ( ooU Z vv} oÇ ]V v ]( Z v oÇ ]U Z Z]vl ][ Á(µoX_ Be this as it may, we obviously find ourselves in a new phase of music development. The exact date is a matter of opinion. Was this period introduced by Schönberg and his school (the Second Vienna School)? Or was it in 1953, when the first academy for electronic music was inaugurated in Cologne? I shall deal with that matter later on. The crucial moments of renovation in the past are easier to locate, even if there is no absolute unanimity about them either. We shall try to examine the significance of those times of renovation for the relation between words and musicvpossibly also for church music. And can they teach us anything useful for our days? We are concerned with three periods in the history of music: the early parts of the 14th, the 17th, and the 20th centuries, called successively Ars Nova, Nuove Musiche, andNeue Musik. Ars Nova is the title of a pamphlet, written by Philippe de Vitry (first half of the 14th century). The designation recurs in several documents of that time. The theoretician of Ars Nova, Johannes de Muris, mathematician and astronomer in Paris, wrote a pamphlet entitled Ars novae musicae. Pope John XXII, in his papal bull of 1324, mentions thenovellae scholae discipuli, and Jacobus van Luik, in his Speculum musicae, attacks the renovators, whom he calls moderni cantores and aliqui nunc novi. So it is reasonably certain that we find ourselves in the vicinity of a turning point in the history of music. Now, that renovation was about the technique of composition and about notation in the first place. They are the subjects discussed by De Vitry in his pamphlet. He tells us about the place of the tempus imperfectum as against the tempus perfectum; about the instruction of the new smallest note value (the minima), about the use of notes put down in red, about the isorhythmic principle, and the prohibition of parallel fifths and octaves. As to the practice of performing, the traditional mixed sound of vocal and instrumental voices remained, but the triplum (upper voice) was moved from the range of male voices to the range of boy singers. Also the instrumental voices were multiplied; although this resulted in a richer sound, the new art was not propagated. While the Ars Antiqua already had produced a free combination of word and tone, particularlyvas the word indicatesvin the motet, this relation was kept up, or rather, secured, by the fact that there were poet-composers, such as Adam de la Halle in an earlier stage and after him Philippe de Vitry and Guillaume de Machaut. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The subjects of the art of word and tone in Ars Nova were different, however, from those in Ars Antiqua. Whereas Ars Antiqua had not only liturgical ties but also social ones (the circle of professionals and laymen in the music collegiums), Ars Nova presented different subjects: political or moral ones, topical controversies, or subjects related to festive occasions and famous persons. A composer like De Vitry served neither the church nor social life, but he created a free art of word and tone, on a high level and aesthetically autonomous with a new pretension; this art steps out of the circle of collegiums and into public life. Church music was abandoned to such an extent that the few works composed in this vein can be found in any textbook, such as the Mass of Doornik and theCoronation Mass for Charles the Fifth by De Machaut. It is not my intention to examine the Ars Nova thoroughly now. I should only like to point out the remarkable fate of the prototype of the art of word and tone, the motet. Originally a liturgical form, it became a bizarre mixture of Latin liturgical and French secular texts. At first, the heterogeneous ingredients were kept together more or less by modal rhythms, but when the latter were abandoned completely in Ars Nova, it became a free-for-all. Prosody was threatened by complete arbitrariness. Ars Nova presents a new structural principle: the isorhythm. In it, the long tenor notes (in a free rhythmical arrangement) returned after a number of bars, but in two different schemata: a series of pitches and a series of note lengths. As a rule the two did not coincide. They are called color and talea respectively. The same principle was applied, more or less strictly, to the other voices. In this way the text was subordinated to the structural plan of the musical composition. The poetical meaning of the texts was doubly neglected because the Ars Nova rhythms were highly complicated and began to present obstacles through strict application of the isorhythm. So the fall of the isorhythmical motetvlong after Ars Novavshould not be attributed to that other form of the art of word and sound originating in the 14th century, the ballad, but to the artificial, mechanical construction of musical form. For that matter, the French ballad style remained the principal form of secular polyphonic music until the days of Dufay. Before concluding this first section, I should like to say two things. First, one used to speak of French and Italian Ars Nova. There is no point in that, as there was no Ars Antiqua in Italy. So in our days that Italian period is called Trecento. Comparing Ars Nova with Trecento, we see that Trecento produces the real renovation. The Florentines, without the burden of a Gothic past, created a music that seemed to be far ahead of its time. Riemann even spoke of die begleitete Monodie im 14. Jahrhudert~^Z }uv] d monody of the 14th vµÇ_ v µPP Z }v u]PZ À o} Z o}Á À}] }( u]Po v ] Z}}µPZ-bass accompaniment. Perhaps the fact that the stile recitativo was created in the same town (Florence) three hundred years later induced him to launch this doubtful thesis. But there is no point right now in going into the differences in style between De Vitry and De Machaut on the one hand and Jacopo da Bologna and Francesco Landini on the other. Let me just point out that Landini, too, was a poet-composer and that his was the art of the polyphonic Lied. Both Ars Nova andTrecento show countless examples of an unmistakably secular art of word and tone. And in the second place, Ars Nova, on entering the Renaissance, showed a tendency to use texts, the words of which could be set to music in a significant, grammatically and syntactically correct way. Without a doubt, the effort was successful in the long run, isorhythm having been abandoned. So if we proceed now to the second period we want to discuss, the period of Nuove Musiche, it is not because The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. the combination of words and music in itself arises here, but because it presents an overall revaluation of the relation between the two. Nuove Musiche was the title of a volume of airs and madrigals (1602) by Giulio Caccini. The airs were written as strophic songs, whereas the madrigals (including the well-knownAmarilli mia bella) were composed in a single movement. The style of Caccini and his contemporaries shows a definite shifting to the detriment of the balance between words and music that had been established during the Renaissance. Among the characteristics of Nuove Musiche was the resistance to that balance. This phenomenon is Æ À Ç }vÀ]v]vPoÇ ]v D}v À ][ L'orazione sia padron oo[ u}v] v}v À ~^ dZ Á} Z}µo Z u }( uµ]U v} ] Àv_X Kv Z}µPZ Z Z } Á} v ]v music had been badly neglected, and one also rejected as unintelligible the polyphonic method of notation, in which the same syllable did not sound in the various voices at the same time. In a pamphlet, Vincenzo Gallilei (father of the famous physicist and astronomer) speaks of theimpertinenze ed abusi ~^Z ]u ]v v v µ _ }( Z }µv }]v]X }µv }]v was regarded as an invention of barbarians, which was proved by putting forward the names of Obrecht and Ockeghem. t Zoo v} Á oo }v Z Z }] }( Z ^ u _ P}µU ÁZ]Z }µ ]v]U v} }v Z unsavory row about who really invented the new stylevmonody (accompanied solo song). DµZ }( ]v][ ]u ] Æo]v ]v Z ]v}µ]}v } Nuove Musiche. Referring to Plato, he states Z Z v }( uµ] ] iµ Á} v ZÇZuU Á]Z }µv ]v Z À Ç o o X ^ ^]v }v vv} move the }µo µ Ç ]v oo]P]]o]Ç }( Á}U_ Z ÇU ^ / v À} } (]v ÁÇ }( l]vP ]v uµ]U ] Á X d} Z ]vP v Z }u} ]v Z v Á Ço U µv v]vP Z } [ Á} ] u} ]u}v Zv }µv }]vX_ As solo singing was increasingly popular in those days, Caccini (a singer himself) warns against injudicious use of the coloratura. He did not use coloraturas because the style required them (it did not), but to please the ear of those who did not understand the nature of expressive singing. He also gives the advice not to bother too much about measures. One can, without fear, halve the value of certain notes. By this he obviously means the free rendering of the recitativo, no doubt as a result of the study of speech. In time, the rules of rhetoric in all their details were transferred to music. I think of a theoretician like Joachim Burmeister who, in his Musica poetica, gave a detailed exposition of the so-called rhetorical figures, and who, with this doctrine of figures, exerted a great influencevon Heinrich Schütz, for one. The monodic style of Caccini and his contemporaries was the origin of many musical forms cultivated in the Baroque period: opera, oratorio, and cantata. But as the inventors of the air and the recitative, Caccini and the others were, first of all, milestones in the history of opera. However different the aesthetic ideals of the Nuove Musiche may have been from those of Ars Nova, the common characteristic of both trends was their preoccupation, far from the church, with a secular art of word and tone, by which church music let itself be influenced only much later. It is good to point this out expressly: in the history of music, the church has never pioneered; it always could afford to wait for the new forms to crystalize. In popular words: the church quietly waits for the cat to jump. Do you want two striking examples? The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Guillaume Dufay, the great master from the Burgundian school, after having been strongly influenced by Ars Nova and the English school (John Dunstable), did not reach his summit until he said good-bye to isorhythm and wrote (among other works) the brilliant festive music for 4 voices, for the inauguration of the Florence cathedral (1436): the motet Nuper rosarum flores. And my second example: Heinrich Schütz, who studied the stile concertante as well as the monodic style at their source, in Italy, but whose work cannot be explained by that alone. We must also see Schütz in the light of the northern German Kantorei and organ practices. I already mentioned Joachim µu ] [ Musica poetica v ]v] vo }µ (} Z lv}Áo P }( ^ZºÌ[ }( }u}]vPX After Ars Nova it took time for Dufay to set to work. After Nuove Musiche it took time for Heinrich Schütz to take his place in the history of church music. Now we take another step of three centuries and find ourselves in our own time. And again we are facing words like Neue Musik, ^ E Á Dµ]X_ It is not so easy to say exactly what that new music is. In the past, new ideas resulted in new musical forms. When about the year 1300 a new musical expression takes shape inArs Nova against the background of Ars Antiqua, the isorhythmic motet, the French ballad and virelai develop, and the conductus and organum of the Notre Dame school disappear. When about the year 1600 polyphony is abandoned, the new forms of opera, oratorio, and cantata are created, followed by the instrumental forms of the sonata, the concerto grosso, and the solo concerto. The artistic ideal of the day is reflected not only in a different use of the sound material but also in the forms. In our day, there is a syndrome of all kinds of principles, ideas, and traditions. To begin with: the trend Á v]}uv]X /v ]]}vU ]]}vo }vo]Ç Á }o]Z U À v ]( Z vu ^}vo uµ]_ ] a contradictio in adjecto (Blume). But, twelve-tone technique and serial techniques presented new }o u o } Z (}uU oZ}µPZ }v Z}µo v} l Z Á} ^v Á_ }} ]vP voÇX /v Z ]}ZÇZu]o uµ] }( Z íðZ vµÇU ^ ] _ were known alreadyvseries of pitches and note lengths, as we indicated. So, might the advent of electronic music be the turning point? I do not think so. As a matter of fact, ]oo]vP v Á ^Á oo }( }µv_ Ç v} u v ]uo] Z Z }µv ] (] (} ]uu diate musical use. When technicians in Cologne took over this new source of sound, we had every reason to keep our fingers crossed. There had been musical anarchy before (between 1918 and 1925), but then at least the strings were pulled by composers. After this short period of disintegration, there followed a time of integration, for example in German church music, but it did not seem to be the prelude to another era as great as the Gothic and Baroque periods. It wasvand still isva time of transition. By the way, every period boasting a new art is a time of transition: Ars Nova ended in the Renaissance; 300 years later, the Nuove Musiche principles ended in Baroque. But let us not worry about a problem, the full significance of which we cannot yet comprehend. We are concerned in the first place with the combination of word and tone in our days. The process is in full swing; last month (September) it was the main theme of a conference of European broadcasting stationsvthat is, of those of their staff members engaged in experimental radio-phonics. In the circle of Z v}À} ~} U o] Ç u vU }u} U v ]} vP]v ^Zv P[ Pierrot Lunaire is The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. regarded as the beginning of a trend, in which a new balance between words and music is studied and put down in experimental forms. In Melos (a periodical for new music) one of the German delegates to the conference I just mentioned, Hans Helm, wrote: ^ W] } >µv] is rightly regarded as a turning point in the musical treatment of speech, although WaPv v DZo À Z ÁÇX ^Zv P[ Zv]o v}À]}v ]v}µ process that might result in a way of composing, in which language spoken and sung, words and music, would be one. InPierrot, spoken language and music function as the extremities of a scale, with theSprechgesang as a mediator in between. The idea is that the Sprechgesang steals as many musical values as possible from the linguistic creations, without their being transformed completely into music. The Sprechgesang permits weaving the text into the musical structure without giving up its grammatical- uv] vµ X_ Pierre Boulez used this techniquevconsiderably modifiedvsuperbly in his Marteau sans Maitre. Luciano Berio, too, experimentally investigated the possibility of combining the rendering of a poetical text with the music, without favoring any of the two systems of expression. He aims neither at a confrontation between words and music nor at a mixture of the two but at a relation of continuity as in his Omaggo a Joyce. At fir ]PZU ] uÇ v} u } ]((]µo } ]À ^}v] Á}l]vP u Z}_ ~Z Zv]o uU meaning the creation of structures at which poets and composers cooperate as equal partners), but in reality there are plenty of problems. Luigi Nono presents interesting efforts to build up a new relationship between words and music, such as in his Il canto sospeso. In it he uses the serial technique but also a remarkable splitting of syllables, which are divided among the various voices, to be absorbed in an extreme rhythmical and dynamical differentiation. There are more examples, but I just want to point out another development, that of auditive poetry. This poetry refuses any setting to music, but it is designed by means of musical outlines. It wants to sound, but only through the human voice, in every possible style. Henri Chopin discusses this matter more thoroughly. François Dufrêne goes even further; he envisages a poetry au-delà de toute écriture, directement au magnétophone. An estrangement between poetry and music is apparent here like never before. Yet there is a way out, if the composer is prepared to do without the score. But then an important question arisesvthe question about a common basic system for the acoustic scene. And that is not all: a closed circuit, working by a code which is only understood by the poet and the composer, leads to the excommunication of the listener. So it is important to use signs and signals insuring the communication with the listener. By using, for instance, different languages, and by changing the phonetic structure of the words, one may compose complex combinations of words, which may cause the meaning of the separate words to merge with a new meaning of combined words. In trying to keep track of this development, we find it completely irrelevant to find out when exactly this contemporary Musica Nova began. We only realize that we are right in the middle of it. And comparing the present events with the former periods of renovation, we are surprised by the similarities. Not only is it surprising that once again it took three times three generations to produce real renovations (I only The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. allude to that rule, without going into it) but also that the experiments involve both a new use of the sound materialand the form, and that the relation between words and music is a lively topic again. There is yet another resemblance: the development proceeds outside the church, outside the liturgy. We already saw that this is quite natural and in itself by no means disquieting. Once again: it is wise for the church to wait and see what will come of the present synchronism of integration and disintegration. One might fear that these considerations of mine would lead to a certain apathy within the church, to a passive resignation to fate. I do not think there is any reason for such an attitude. It is wrong, however, to judge contemporary church music by all sorts of experiments; nor are we justified in propping }µ oÀ µ }v ( Á v]}vo Á}lU µZ W v l][ Passion of St. Luke, and >]P ][ Requiem. They are not church music, and therefore there is no place for them in our discourse. It was my intention to point out that the great style periods in the history of music were preceded, every time, by times of transition, in which fierce movements arose. Time and again those movements produced the renovators, and time and again the renovators themselves did not live to make their ideals come true in a grand style. That, of course, does not detract from their merits. My last remark is about the fact that two kinds of music developed in the history of the church: the higher forms, such as motet and cantata, and the simpler forms, like hymn tunes, the development of which in the churches of the Reformation was started by Luther. Luther cov] Z ^ Z}o _ }v }( Z u} ]u}v ]oo }( Z] (}u u}À u v v oÇ very active part in the building of a repertory of text and melodies for his purpose. The principle of congregational participation was of extreme importance in those efforts. Now the strange thing is that the development of the Protestant choralevjust like folk music and all sorts of utility musicvfollowed quite different lines from those of the music of the great masters which we have been discussing. It may be a u} v v ]Ç (} Z ZµZ } Ç ]o v]}v } Z uµ] }( Z ^ }v oU_ uµ] for congregational participation. In an article on Die Explosion des Materials ~^ dZ Æo}]}v }( D _U ,v-Wilhelm Kulenkampff presents a picture of the music lover of the future, which gives me (and you, perhaps) the shivers. The social element of music, which makes many people get together in many kinds of relationships to play it or to listen to it, will be superseded by a completely different function. Music will be more like a plastic art; thought up on tape and put down on tape, it will be available for private use whenever desired. It will not be necessary any longer to get together with other people, to listen to recordings that one already has at home. Such music, totally estranged from its social function, is completely opposed to the art-mindedness of Luther and his contemporaries. To them, music was not a thing to be indulged in passively but a thing people themselves could make, to be entertained, influenced, taught, and inspired by. May the church of today watch the avant-garde experiments with some detachment and some reservation, and may it honor, above all things, the human voice, of which Luther said that, compared with it, alle anderen Gesänge, Klang und Laute gar nicht zu rechnen sind ~^oo }Z ZvU }µvU v }v v Po]P]o _X I should like you to listen to a number of musical illustrations now. To begin with, two works by Guillaume de Machaut (of the Ars Nova): the secular motet Pour quoy me bat mes maris? followed by an The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. excerpt from the Coronation Mass (better known to us asMesse de Nostre Dame), namely, the beginning of the Sanctus. It is part of a long motet, and it follows the isorhythmic principle. But you cannot hear that; at best, you can see it in the score. 1. Guillaume de Machaut Motet Pour quoi me bat mes maris? The Collegium Musicum of the University of Illinois Conductor: George Hunter 2. Guillaume de Machaut Messe de Nostre Dame, Sanctus Deller Consort, London (Harmonia Mundi) After Ars Nova, there was the developmentvthrough some intermediate linksvof the Burgundian school. This is an excerpt from a Mass by Dufay, the Gloria ad modum tubae. 3. Gillaume Dufay Gloria ad modum tubae Capella antiqua München Conductor: Konrad Ruhland (Das alte Werk) Three hundred years after Ars Nova, Nuove Musiche Á }v ]v /oÇX >] v } ]v][ ] O che felice giorno. 4. Giulio Caccini O che felice giorno Hugues Cuenod, tenor Herman Leeb, luit (Westminster) I already pointed out that Heinrich Schütz discovered the monodic style in Italy. You are now going to hear a movement from his Symphoniae Sacrae, part one, Venite ad me(Matt. 11:28t30). 5. Heinrich Schütz Venite ad me (Symphoniae Sacrae, I, 2) Solisten en instrumentaal ensemble o. 1. v. Helmuth Rilling (Musicaphon) Another three hundred years later, Arnold Schönberg composes his Pierrot Lunaire, on texts by Albert Giraud (translated into German by Otto Hartleben). You will hear a performance of the first part of these ^u o}u_ Ç , oP W]oÌÇlU ÁZ} ] v} vv}µv ]vP U µ ] X t]Z W] }µo Ì as conductor, she probably gives the correct interpretation of the form between Gesangton and Sprechton, as Schönberg indicates it. 6. Arnold Schönberg Pierrot Lunaire, text by Albert Giraud (German by Otto Erich Hartleben) 1.Mondestrunken Helga Pilarczzyk, reciting with flute, viola, cello, and piano Conductor: Pierre Boulez (Adès) The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Your attention is now directed to Omaggio a Joyce by Luciano Berio. It is not surprising that the name of James Joyce crops up repeatedly in the latest musical products. In literature, his Ulysses has become as much of a catchword as Pierrot Lunaire in music. 7. Luciano Berio Omaggio a Joyce Production: Pierre Henty (Philips: Panorama of experimental music) Now a short intermezzo. The strange ways of musical development are strikingly evident in a recent work, which suddenly leans towards church music, being, as a matter of fact, a kind of retroaction towards the Oriental-orthodox choir style. Listen to Pater noster. / Zoo oo Ç}µ Z }u} [ vu afterwards. 8. Igor Stravinsky Pater noster Ned. Kamerkoor Conductor: Felix de Nobel (Philips) Now you will finally hear five very new examples. 9. A text of John Cage (the composer, who is also a poet) with music of the Dutch composer Joep Straesser. íìX µ]}µ ((} } oÇ Á]Z Z ovPµP X , Z ovPµP ]v[ µ (} ]v(}u]}v ]v Z v}uo v X /[ oÇ Á]Z À}Á o }( Z µZ } :v ,nlo. 11. Now the Belgian poet Gust Gils. Here also the verbal pretension of language has been abandoned. You will hear a play with consonants in a strong rhythm. 12. A masterpiece of sound-poetry or voice-acting (as it is named): a French poem by the Englishman Peter Greenham, performed by his wife, Lily Greenham. 13. One of the prominent poet-composers in Germany is Hans Helms. He wrote a poem &W u[ Ahmiesgow. Here you will listen to the art of complex combinations of separate words in different languages, which may cause the meaning of the separate words to merge with a new meaning of combined words. And here we are in the midst of the experiments of today: word and tone in our own Musica nova. Will the church use the possibilities of this Musica Nova? I v[ oo Ç}µX d]u Á]oo ooX K Z o Ç this church music seminar will give the answer. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The Place of Religious Music in Broadcasting M. Geerink Bakker Speaking of religion and fine arts, one is immediately confronted with two kinds of people: first, Christians in many varieties; secondly, the art lovers. Both kinds are rather tough to handle. The late professor Van der Leeuw (professor of theology and, after World War II, Dutch minister of education, arts, and sciences for a few years) pointed this out in the introduction to his essay on the relation Á v o]P]}v v U ^ tÇ v }µv] X_ He writes in this vein: There are those Christians who decide rather smugly that a painting by Rembrandt may be very beautiful but that it is as perishable as the rest of the world. Their assessment of the arts is dictated by their resentment, aroused by half-religious regrets of their own transitoriness. There are art lovers who, with just as much smugness, indulge in the wonderful assurance one may feel when enjoying beauty. They boast of their exclusive artistic expertness. To them, cultivating the arts means devotion, civilization, science, and all the other good things. They are the inspectors-general of beauty, who are not willing to be doomed with the rest but who are lifted up in and with their glorification of art. Their attitude, too, is dictated by resentment. There are those Christians who appreciate or even love the arts, subjecting them immediately, however, } Z ] ^ _V Z Ç Á]oo v} Z Z Ç U µ Z Ç ZÀ } ^v](Ç_ Z u (]X dZ Ç so used to kneeling that they pull everything down to its knees with them. But they forgot how to get up again. dZ o}À ÁZ} }v] Z ^v](]]}v_ Z Á} idolatry; to them, there is nothing more sublime than beauty, in fact, there is nothing at all outside beauty. They are standing up, proudly and with high spirits, but they cannot kneel down anymore, in fact, they cannot even sit down. But there are Christians and art lovers with other views. To them the problems are not so simple as to the former kinds; modern scientific approach to arts and religion taught them to reflect in modesty. Among those, perhaps, are some broadminded, humane Christians, who learned to love, in the phenomenon of their Lord, the entire world of phenomena; servants of beauty, who realize that their love is for Him who is beauty and more than beauty. Perhaps there are those, on one side and on the other, who did not kneel down before Baal, this Baal of homespun Christianity or homespun art. But who know how to kneel before God, everywhere and at all times. We hope to approach the latter group in dealing more specifically with our subject now. Let me tell you at the very outset that the problems of religious music are gefundenes Fressen (as the Germans express it inelegantly) to a Christian broadcasting corporation. A general radio music program presents many more headaches than those inherent in the so-called religious music only. Moreover, those who are dealing with religious music should bear in mind that religious music is not better than nonreligious music, just as praying is not more devout than working. The only real teaser to them is the question: what is religious music? Has sacred music a character of its own? So, although religious music is not better than nonreligious music, Christian broadcasters have a very special task in this respect. Please allow me to tell you about some experiences we gathered in this field with the N. C. R. V. [Nederlandes Christeluke Radio-Vereniging] in Hilversum, Holland. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. First of all, a few figures to give you a general idea. The Netherlands have about 12 million inhabitants. There are more than 2 1/2 million radio receivers, and half a million subscribers to the so-oo ^]} ]]µ]}v_ ~ Ç u }( }µv } }( Z Pµo ]}vU ]]µ o}ooÇ Ç o Z}v cable, to which the public is free to subscribe). There are four main broadcasting corporations: a Roman Catholic one, a Protestant one, a Socialist one, and a neutral one; together, they have nearly two million members. The N. C. R. V., one of these four, has over 450,000 members; with the other organizations, it has two stations at its disposal (both AM and FM), so that each of them, after deducting the broadcasting time of several minor broadcasting clubs, has an average of three broadcasting days a week. I shall deal with the further subdivision of the programs later. As to the N. C. R. V., the instructions for the head of the music department include a section directingvand rightly sovhis special attention to the interest of religious music. In fact, preaching the Gospel is hardly imaginable without the assistance of music. By the way, I am not so sure that the word ^]v _ ] ]PZ ]v Z] }v ÆX dZ ] } uµZ ol }µ uµ] Z ]]vP Àv ~ À]vP the church, serving the liturgy, serving the ministry) that one is apt to believe in this subservient role. Music, however, often appears to rise from the same source as the prophecies. Let me remind you of the Psalms: powerful pieces of prophecy in the shape of songs to string music. This music is not the servant but an element of the prophecy. In later times, this intimate relation between word and music, Á]Z ] }} ]v ]vPo oÇ }( uv[ o]P]}µ o]( U Z oo µ ] X DvÇ }( >µZ [ congregation hymns still show this poet-composer oneness; Philipp Nicolai had it too; but in the days of Paul Gerhardt (1607t1676) the change had come to stay: the melodies were composed by other men than the poetsvin fact, by many others: Johann Crüger, Nikolaus Selnecker, Matthias Greitter, Hans Leo Hassler, Johann Georg Ebeling, Johann Schopp, Bartholomäus Gesius, Jakob Hintze, Nikolaus Herman, Hans Kugelmann, and so forth. Dµ] ] v} v o u v vÇ o}vP µ ^( U_ v ](]]ooÇ }o]Z ( }( Z u V ] accentuates, decorates, comments on the text; at best, it adds its luster, allowing the congregation to lift their voices audibly in praise and prayer. The musical treasury that may be called religious par excellence is that of the congregational hymn. In Z] Z Á} ^ o]P]}v_ ] o } Á} Z u v ^} ]vP }P Z P]vU_ µ ]v Z v }( Z '} o ~ :}Zv íìWíòW ^v Z Zoo }v (}o v }v Z Z X_ ] U o]P]}µ music includes all the music that has been generated by the congregational hymn, directly or indirectly: the organ chorale, the chorale prelude, the chorale partita, the chorale fugue, the chorale motet, and the chorale cantata. And then there are all those other forms, such as the Epistle and the Gospel motet, liturgical pieces like Kyrie, Gloria, and Credo, the figurative choral music for all sorts of liturgical purposes, the larger forms such as complete masses, Passion music, birth and resurrection stories, oratorios, smaller forms such as the spiritual concerto, andvto mention something completely differentvthe repertory of spiritual wind music. There may be differences of opinion, apparently, as to the question if all this is also church music. I attended Festgottesdienste ~^( ]À o]P]}µ À] _ ]v ' uvÇU Z uµ]o }]}v }( ÁZ]Z blatantly outdid the sermon, which, for that matter, does not necessarily belittle the sermon or advocate church music. But when broadcasters are dealing with the entire gamut I just mentioned, their main concern is not what the churches will or will not accept. There were times when church music grew far beyond the The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. boundaries of the liturgy, in word and in music, but it is not up to us broadcasters to define those boundaries. Now we should like to go into the matter of the place the total supply of religious music should occupy in broadcasting. The radio program consists of elements of various origins. There are, for instance, the relays, live broadcasts from a church, a concert hall, an opera house, or an open-air bandstand. Those } U ]v (U } }( uµ]o À vX E ÆU Z Z }}]}v[ }Áv }µ]}vU carried out in the studios or in areas used as studios and destined for transmission by microphone only. t]Z Z Á} u vW Z oÇ v Z }}]}v[ }Áv }µ]}vU Z uµ]o (( Z } Á}lX Their job, by the way, shows some resemblance to that of the editors of a magazine. A musical program, just like a magazine, has to be edited. Editing consists of three phases: first, there has to be a fundamental idea as to the general course one wishes to steer; secondly, the possibilities have to be investigated and elaborated into a plan; thirdly, one has to find a concrete form, in whichvwithin a certain unit of broadcasting timevthe plans may be carried out. The length of this unit of broadcasting time may be a controversial topic. In general, however, one day of broadcasting is not nearly enough to include the result of all the ideas. For many broadcasting stations, one week might be sufficiently representative; in Holland, with its four broadcasting corporations to two stations, it takes a fortnight. Now what does the N. C. R. V. do with religious music in such a unit of broadcasting time? On Sundays, there is a program of community hymn singing, each season from one major church in our country, conducted by the cantor, Willem Mudde. The hymns to be sung are, of course, in keeping with various periods of the Christian year and with the Sunday of the particular broadcast. dZ ] ^ ZµZ v Dµ]_ ] ]v}µ Ç Æ }v &]Ç v }À] Á]Z uvÇ uµ]o illustrations on Sundays. This feature includes, for instance, the hymn of a particular Sunday set to music ]v uvÇ (}u ~(} Z íóZ ^µvÇ ( d]v]Ç ^ tZ '} K]v / oÁÇ '}}_V À]}µ (}u }( Kyrie, Gloria, Credo; organ partitas for Advent; Vespers of the Taizé Atonement Church; the use of a brass band in public worship (such as the local brass band in a small Dutch town, which plays the accompaniments excellently in the church that lacks an organ); examples of Bible texts sung as motets; new trends in the organ accompaniment of the congregational hymn singing; liturgical organ playing; modern Psalm compositions; and so on. We also have a series called: De Platenbijbel (a Dutch play on words, for platen u v ^]ooµ]}v_ Á oo ^ }]vP_X / ] v Z}µ Á]Z Z]PZo]PZ (}u ]oical oratorios, compositions illustrating the events related in the Scripture. During the past season, there were broadcastsvwith explanationsvon ^Z }o }( Z , Z vU_ ]ooµ Ç D v o}Zv[ St. Paul; on the glorious career from shepherd boy } l]vPU ]ooµ Ç ,}v PP [ Le Roi David; on the childhood of Christ (L'Enfance du Christ by Berlioz); on the Creation cycle (Die Schöpfung Ç ,ÇvV v (}u / o[ µ ]}v v miraculous rescue from slavery in Egypt (Israel in Egypt by Handel); on the Beatitudes (Les Béatitudes by César Franck); on the story of Naomi and Ruth (Ruth Ç &vlV }v ^ dZ]vP } }u }}v_ (oratorio Apocalyps by Henk Badings); on King Solomon (Solomon by Handel); and on Christ pictured before our eyes when He was crucified (La Passion by Migot). There have been many serials on Sundays: works for organ and choir by Matthias Weckmann, by Samuel Scheidt, Psalms by Sweelinck, and too many more to enumerate. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. On weekdays, too, there are many regular and one-time broadcasts of religious music. The N. C. R. V. s}o v uo v Z EX X ZX sX Z]o v[ Z}] (}u uvÇ }Pu }( ]]µo }vPU u} U v vX /v ] oo ^ dZ ^]]µo }}l }( ^}vP K v U_ Á }(( ZÇuv vP u v for vocal quartet, instrumental quartet, and organ. There are weekly organ concerts, sometimes in a cycle context. Last month, for instance, we made quite a number of recordings of South German and Austrian organs, after our experts had investigated the possibilities on the spot and obtained the cooperation of various church and secular authorities. Regular broadcasts of English cantata and anthems are performed by a double quartet with organ accompaniment. There are regular programs of religious music on records and on our own tape recordings. Fifteen minutes of Salvation Army music is a regular feature. Religious music plays its part, too, in our educational broadcasts on house, school, and folk music. The highlights of the church year are marked by special series and one-time broadcasts. Then there are the major works: oratorios, histories, Passion music, masses from Schütz to Pepping, from Purcell to Britten. It is a remarkable fact that nearly all contemporary composers chose religious subjects in composing their major works. It is much easier to ask, which modern composer did not write a major composition to a religious text; the simple answer is: Béla Bartók. A rule that is applicable to radio music programs in general and to religious music in particular: the dosage should be rather small. There are listeners who set their heartsvor rather, their emotionsvon the religious song to such an extent that, when turning on their radio any moment of the day, they expect at least a psalm of the N. C. R. V. It is hard to make them understand that too much religious music would have a devaluating effect, and that, as we said already, praying is not more devout than Á}l]vPU } Z Z o]PZ À ]v ]v } o]l ^ Dµ] ÁZ]o Ç}µ Á}l_ ] ]v] vo X Z]]v broadcasting corporation should not present as much religious music as possible but select it with insight and moderation and broadcast it at the right hours. I can mention a few figures concerning the place of religious music; those figures, compiled by the N. C. R. V., are based on 40 years of experience, so we may take it that they represent a satisfactory arrangement. More than 65 percent of the total program consists of music. Eight years ago, the musical programs were subdivided as follows: 50 percent classical music, 30 percent light music, and 20 percent religious music. Later, the classical and light music came a little closer together, narrowing the gap to 45 and 35 percent respectively, but religious music remained constant, at about 20 percent. It is of importance, however, that religious music is broadcast, almost exclusively, at peak hours and that these figures do not include the many hymns sung at the studio services, to the tune of about a thousand psalms, anthems, and spiritual songs per annum. In this connection, it should be pointed out that the conditions determining such a place for religious music depend largely on the general structure of the national broadcasting system. In his detailed }]}o}P]o Ç v]o ^ > uµ]µ U o ]} o[µ] µU_ oZ}v ^]o uvv PÀ }}( }( severe lack of understanding in this matter. He even says that it never made any difference to him whether broadcasting was run by the state or by private enterprise. Independent broadcasting, says he, conforms ] o( } Z o] v [ ( v U ÁZ }]vP }v(}u ] o( } Z P}À vu v[ ( v X tZ]Z u v o oÇ Z ] } v} u } Z]u ÁZ Z Z ] ] v Ç the dog or by the cat. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. In our opinion, however, propagation of the Christian creed, with the power of religious music as one expedient, should be carried out by Christian organizations, with experts of their own, who are free to shape the Christian ideas. It is not for us to decide here and now the nature and the limits of the ZµZ[ l ]v Z] u X / ] o U Z}µPZU Z Z }o u }( o]P]}µ uµ] Z ( Ç}v Z competence of the church. On the other hand, we should not forget that we owe much of the present revival and rejuvenation of religious music to a renaissance in and about the Evangelical Lutheran Church. But we are dealing with religious music in radio; so, apart from this ecclesiastic trend, which stimulated the revival and rejuvenation of religious music, it is only fair to point out quite another aspect: namely, the new horizons disclosed by radio engineering. We think, in particular, of the radiophonic oratorio Job by the Dutch composer Ton de Leeuw, which was awarded the Prix Italia in 1956. These and similar works are perhaps not extremely important in themselves but rather because they proved the workability of the specific possibilities of radio as a means of communication. After all, one thing is certain: the character of music broadcast is widely different from that of music made at home or relayed from concert halls or elsewhere. And this brings us to a distinction that should be borne in mind perpetually in broadcasting: one has to do with three kinds of musicvmusic fit for broadcasting; music adapted to broadcasting; and music made and destined for broadcasting only. Each of these kinds deserves a place in musical radio programs, and religious music has its function in all three of them. The first kind is the music preeminently suitable for broadcasting to homes. I might mention just one of countless examples, the Kleine geistliche Konzerte by Schütz. The second kind is music written for, or adapted to, broadcasting, the composer using the orthodox forms and instruments but taking the practical radio experience and demands into account. According to this principle, the N. C. R. V. commissioned psalm arrangements for small chamber orchestra. The third kind requires technical expedients which only the microphone can reproduce to their full advantage. An example of this kind of music is Ton > µÁ[ }}]}U ÁZ]Z / iµ u v]}v X Now there remains the important matter of the further development of what we might call radiophonic dramaturgy. In broadcasting, one is not through with the problems after planning the programs and just transmi]vP Z u ^}]vP } ovX_ E ]Z Z }Pu u ]o v} Z ]o v]}v the real problem. They should not, on the whole, be too difficult to cope with. Walter Michael Berten once said, Die Not des Rundfunks ist nicht eine Stoffnot, sondern eine Gestaltungsnot ~^ dZ }µo Á]Z }]vP ] v} ol }( u ]o µ u }( v]}v_X It is of primary importance to realize that radio is not in the first place an institution of art, like the theater and the concert hall, but something vastly different. Radio reproduction develops the }]}o}P]o ] }( ^}vµu]}v Ç u]}Z}v X_ / ] Á}vP ]uoÇ } o Z uµ] }µvV }v Z}µo cultivate active listening whenever possible, bearing in mind that the artistic pretensions of the actual form we seek should be modest. Not every radio program, in fact, is meant to produce unique, fierce emotions in the listener but to give a variable (and agreeable) shape to daily life. By involving the public in the making of certain programs, one may test the viability of some forms of broadcasting. Instructive radio programs of house music, school music, amateur choir singing, etc. may also stimulate the interest and build up knowledge of the literature and standards of appreciation. In such broadcasts, religious music comes into its own imperceptibly if the musical directors, besides The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. planning the programs at their desks, will engage a staff to whom music is not just entertainment or beauty but actually a form of worship. In addition to all this, the presentation by the announcer plays an important part. In the particular case of religious music, he can make himself useful by reading the original text from the Bible or the hymnbook to introduce a song or motet. During an unexpected interval, when the announcer has to improvise, it is important for him to demonstrate the basic principle of his organization. In this respect, I remember an extra news item about a serious plane crash; the announcer made a very unfortunate decision when he contivµ Á]Z µÇ[ }u]o oµ Minstrels. After such an alarming piece of news, a Christian broadcasting corporation would have every reason to raise thoughts to heaven by playing, for instance, an organ chorale on Vater unser im Himmelreich. But the real radiophonic form is not determined by the simple announcement nor by instructiveness or appropriate presentation. If one thing is becoming clear today, it is that one cannot stick to the traditional forms of radio program presentation. Of course, there will always be the broadcasts of church music, concerts, operas, light music, etc., as well as the talks and the news. But apart from these constant values, there is a trend towards new horizons of a purely radiophonic character. We already discussed radiophonic music. In a wider sense, we can speak of a new radio language, the structure of which, by the way, is still far from established. The urgency of such a specific radio language is not seen and realized by everybody. Here we are reminded of Henri Baµ[ Ç }v ^ Dµ]µ Z]}]((µ]}vU_ ]v Z] [ µ Z]}-Télévison, in which he begins by remarking that the big problem in our day is not that of the musical language, the tonal system, or dodecaphonics, not even that of the contact with the listeners, but . . . that of financing the programs. He then permits himself the little joke that, next to the cannon, music is the most expensive noise, an idea that has not yet occurred, however, to those who compose and those who listen to music. We have no wish to belittle the fact that the making of radio programs presents enormous financial problems, but those who stopped seeing one of their main tasks in the approach to the listeners are quite worthless as broadcasters. At the N. C. R. V. in Hilversum, a new radio language is experimented with in the so-oo ^ l}µ]l}vU_ }Pu ]v ÁZ]Z } U }u} U v }µv vP]v Á}l together. One of the fascinating things about this new radio language is the carefully balanced combination of sound elements. This language is no longer a written language or a language for reading, but its primary function is sound; it is a sonorous symbol. Although words determine the meaning of the }Pu v ]v] Z Z u U Z Á} v v v ]v Z ^ l}µ]l}v_ }v ]À acoustically in the first place. Words and combinations of words are placed in a highly associative context. In addition to language as an element of sound, we distinguish: Material Sound (sounds of stone, wood, iron and glass, put in rhythmical sequences, so that the so-called concrete music is produced) Instrumental Sound (all the sounds that can be produced by means of old and new musical instruments) Natural Sound (wind, water, birds, etc.) The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Electronic Sound (sounds produced by means of electrotechnical instruments) Now two or more of those elements of sounds are combined in such a way or brought into such an acoustic relation that a certain suggestive and associative tension, precalculated at will, is produced. This is the real heart of the matter: finding the right combinations, so that the listener, willingly or unwillingly, consciously or unconsciously, but inescapably, associates and communicates with what he hears. This new, radio-language production has something to do with the psychology of conveyance and hearing, receiving the sounds conveyed. In the Akoustikon, for example, things are not always called by their names; they are suggested, hinted at; the operation takes place just beside natural reality. It depends on the subject how far we can keep at a distance of sensorially perceptible reality. Each distance has its own tension value. The listener who is used to the orthodox talk, the conventional buildup of the text, the platitudes, the }À (u]o] uµ]o ^(u _ v ^]ooµ]À _ }µvU lv}Á ÆoÇ ÁZ Z ]]}vo } Z in store for him; more often than not, there is nothing in it to surprise him. But in radiophonic broadcasts, everything the listener hears should be new, unheard and full of surprises, so that he simply has to listen with all his attention. His heart is touched, his imagination is given new impulses by the unexpected turns, the associations that are unknown and new to him. The radiophonic combinations are built up in such a way that the listener, even if he fails to understand or appreciate part of it, will find new points of contact. In the radiophonic language, repetition, for example, is very important. This new language, of course, is not for reading; it is purely auditive, it can be heard and understood only in connection with sound-constructions made for that specific purpose. In view of the enormous possibilities of the radiophonic language, we are justified in expecting that before long it will be applied in all sorts of fields: in the spreading of the Word, the ministry of the Gospel, in broadcasting oratorios, special reports, operas, as well as in programs of a certain propagandistic or political nature. We of the N. C. R. V. have made a few modest attempts in this respect, but there is a great deal more to do. It might be an interesting venture for a workshop group of theologians, men of letters, poets, sociologists, and composers to investigate the practical possibilities of radiophonics. It should be evident by now that the Akoustikon has nothing to do with religious music in the traditional sense. But in the Akoustikon the musical means are being integrated into a new language, which may contributevin an absolutely radiophonic wayvto the spread of the Gospel. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Christian Culture and the Cultured Christian Leader Walter E. Buszin I ^ µoµ _ ] (]v Z u} ]uoÇ Ç vZ}}o}P]U ÁZ} Ç ] ] ^ ]v v }( o]( ÁZ]Z ]v(oµ v Z ]u v Z] }( u vX_[1] H. Richard Niebuhr of Yale University, in his book Christ and Culture,[2] fittingly calls attention to the fact that the problem of Christian culture is specifically a theological problem. Jakob Burkhardt, on the other hand, stresses that religion, state, and culture are ^µ u oÇ Z }P v }µ } Z }Z _V µoµ U }]vP } µlZU ](( (}u o]P]}v v state because it is not intrinsically authoritarian in character.[3] t Zµ Z }v[ µ }( culture and his resultant approach to its problems help to determine what the character of a culture may be. We realize, too, that not all culture is on the same high plane; a cultural heritage may be very good, but it may likewise be depraved and low. While a culture may thus be described and evaluated, its essence can never be defined. In further describing culture, we may say that it is always social and involves people; it is a realm of high, medium, or low values which have an outlook and which serve an end; it is human achievement which includes the arts, the sciences, and education and of which one can gain possession only through conscious effort. A culture usually experiences historic growth and development and requires constant nurture and care. In all cultural activity, the conservation of values is practically as important as the realization and achievement of these values. Decay and debasement set in the moment supervision, nurture, and care cease or begin to lag. This last point must of necessity be a matter of grave concern to the leader and educator who takes his work seriously. Every true educator, regardless of what he teaches, must of necessity regard himself as a propagator and disseminator of culture. If those whose duty it is to dispense knowledge and instruction fail to promote the cause of wholesome and progressive culture through the media of their teaching and guidance, said culture will soon decline and degenerate, and they themselves will become faithless to a paramount and preeminent duty of their most honorable vocation. We agree, I am sure, with H. Richard Niebuhr, when he says: Let education and training lapse for one generation, and the whole grand structure of past achievements falls into ruin. Culture is the social tradition which must he conserved by painful struggle not so much against nonhuman natural forces as against revolutionary and critical powers in human life and reason. . . . culture cannot be maintained unless men devote a large part of their efforts to the work of conservation.[4] / µ} o]l Á] (}u sX X u v[ Z }v ^ dZ ]u v µu]}v }( Kµ µoµ _W To call a pattern of life a culture means two things: first, that the pattern is a historic growth; it depends upon certain definite influences in a historic period; if these influences cease to operate, the plants will continue to bloom like flowers in a vase for some time, but cut off from their roots, they will not survive; }voÇU } µ Z Á} ^µoµ _ (} o]( -pattern implies that it is something which requires tendingvlike a garden and the land. Man has a responsibility towards it; if he treats it like a wild forest that will continue to grow by itself, it is doomed, and man with it. That is largely what has happened. We have taken our civilization for granted; or, to change the metaphor, it has become an artificial superstructure upon crumbling foundations.[5] II The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The problems posed by the realm of culture are as old as civilization itself. Our culture and its ethics concern not only the church but also the world at large. They play into our social, our political, our scientific, our ecclesiastical, and our home life; they likewise invade the various areas of education and hence concern us as members of society, as citizens of our country, as parents, as educators, and as members and servants of the church. Some have said that the church need have no cultural interest, that her work is to save souls and not help to establish a civilization through cultural interest and activity. In his The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Gibbon for this very reason faults Christian people (} ]vP ^v]u Ç }v u (} v Æ] v X_[6]We have a pronounced anticultural spirit in our midst which asserts itself strongly even in our church- and worship-life. People very readily refer to Phil. 3:8, where St. Paul says that he counts all things but dung that he may win Christ, but they very conveniently ignore Eph. 4, where Paul speaks of the edification of the body of Christ, and 1 Cor. 14:40, where Paul, while speaking of worship practices of the church, exhorts that all things be done not only in order but also decently, fittingly, Christo-culturally, if you please. Wholesome and inoffensive cultural interests and activities are too often sacrificed in order to cater to narrow and hateful prejudices and to introduce and support a worship culture of an indecent, unbecoming, lowbrow character. III As we view this anticultural interest and activity among nominal Christians, we think of Marcion, a pseudo-]]o }( ^X WµoU ÁZ} ]vZ ] v ]Z ^X Wµo[ P ]] v} Z] Z of understanding. This Gnostic insisted that he loved the Gospel of Jesus Christ and its blessed message; and yet Polycarp ( } Z]u ^Z (]}v }( ^vU_ v} }voÇ µ Z Á v }] ÁZ} uµ]o v deleted the Holy Scriptures to suit his corrupt purpose but also because he fanatically and cruelly sought to divorce the Christian religion from its many close associations with the culture of the Jewish people. Paul was more discreet and he was likewise more appreciative of cultural values. He made no attempt to reject the great and worthy Greek and Roman culture of his day unless it was definitely anti-Christian; in divinely inspired epistles, he quoted not only from the Old Testament Scriptures but likewise from classical literature of his day and previous days. He thus gave a great cultural Christian ethic to churches in Corinth, Ephesus, Rome, and elsewhere, churches which were in the very midst of societies steeped in depravity and darkness. As far as its origin was concerned, much culture enjoyed by the early Christians was not purely and expressly Christian in character. The early church, like Paul, adopted the great Greek and Roman culture of its day as far as it could and Z]]v]Ì ]U } } lU Ç ] }]}vU hv Wµo[s own leadership, the Christian church became also a great cultural institution which made diligent use of a great cultura1 heritage and which did not become extreme, fanatical, and anticultural. As you know, Julian the Apostate was bent on destroying the Christian church. He felt that one way in which to destroy the church was to deprive Christian people of their entire cultural heritage and thus reduce their status to that of illiterate and uncultured wretches and slaves. Motivated by this impulse, he forbade them to read classical literature. However, God converted this tragic misfortune into a blessing. Since they were not permitted to read classical literature, the Christians now did what they were permitted to do: They began to write their own literature. However, in writing it, they adopted the classical style and thus produced for themselves and for posterity many of the great Greek hymns which have stood the test of time, which the powers of hell could not destroy, and which are the marvel of hymnologists, poets, literateurs, and Christian people to the present day. True, they are not appreciated by many people of our day, but those who do not The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. appreciate them are invariably people whose cultural knowledge and interests are very limited or even low, perhaps through no fault of their own. We think, too, of Martin Luther, who did not reject the great heritage of the Middle Ages as a weapon of Satan and as a tool of Antichrist but who said in his Formula Missae of 1523: Quod bonum est, tenebimus ~^ tZ ] P}} Á Á]oo ]v_X >µZ o Z Z]]v o]( ]v Z] } Z o]( }( µoµ and did not believe that the two are irreconcilable with each other. Rather than abolish and reject entirely, as did the fanatics of his day, Luther, like Paul, applied the Christian religion to the great cultural heritage and traditions of his day as a catharsis and a prophylactic. Though he was able to make fine and delicate distinctions, Luther effected no divisions where divisions were unnecessary in the sight of God and where they might lead to disaster, bigotry, and chaos. Luther is, in fact, the only preeminent theologian of the entire New Testament church who may be put beside St. Paul as one who integrated Christianity with culture. He surpasses by far Clement of Alexandria, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, John Calvin, and others who played important parts in the cultural development of the Christian church. Not only the histories of music and books on liturgics but likewise great works treating the subject of culture speak of Luther with respect and awe, though they may at times disagree with him or fail to understand him or his philosophy. Permit me to quote again H. Richard Niebuhr, a Reformed theologian: More than any great Christian leader before him, Luther affirmed the life in culture as the sphere in which Christ could and ought to be followed; and more than any other he discerned that the rules to be (}oo}Á ]v Z µoµo o]( Á ]v v v }( Z]]v } ZµZ oÁX /v }v ^ P v v enlight v Ç Z ,}oÇ ^]] Z}µPZ Z t}_ Z vµo Á]}u }( uv ^] (] v Po}]}µ ]vµu v v Á}l }( '}X_ X X X dZ µ]}v }( Ç}µZ ]v ovPµP U U v Z]}Ç Á oo ]v piety offered great opportunities to the free Christian man; but cultural education was also a duty to be undertaken. (Cf. An den Adel)[7] Before proceeding to the next point, mention should be made of the fact that, though scholars invariably sing the praises of Luther, they likewise express their regrets that LutZ [ (}oo}Á }Áv } the present did not inherit the great spirit and insight of Luther also along these lines. We are reminded in this connection of words spoken years ago by the English historian Lord Macaulay; as we view what is happening culturally in America today, we see that his words were true rather than pessimistic. Macaulay said of America: Your republic will be pillaged and destroyed just as Greece and Rome . . . but the ones to destroy your nation will be the citizens of your own country, the products of your own civilization. If the cultural life of a people or of a church declines, it is likewise very possible, despite much outward growth, activity, and organizationalism, that the spiritual life of a church and people is on the downgrade, for the Christo-cultural life of a church is definitely an outgrowth and a fruit of her religiosity, faith, and spirit. Where a church rejects and repudiates her own God-given heritage and her members are acquainted with it only superficially or not at all, what may be the reason for her continued existence? Here lies a great challenge for us who insist that Christian educators are of necessity bearers of a great culture. While Christian people themselves often reject great culture and purposefully divorce religion and theology from its own fruits and blessings, it likewise happens, of course, that non-Christians outside the church separate culture from religion and thus dechristianize the very character of Christian culture and take it out of the church to put it into a museum to be gazed at and enclosed rather than used and The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. applied to life itself. While cultured and intelligent Christians bemoan this fact, others rightly attribute uvÇ }( Z] Á}o[ À]o v P ] } Z] P P]}vX Z]}Z Áon thus says: The present crisis of Western civilization is due to the separation of our culture from its religious basis.[8] Much of our cultural heritage is but a rattling skeleton without flesh and blood because people often divorce our culture from Jesus Christ, the very Rock of our Christian religious foundation. Often, however, this is the fault of Christian people themselves and of the Christian church of which they are members. Had they appreciated and enjoyed, used and shielded their great cultural heritage, the world Á}µo v} ZÀ ]ooP uv[ µoµo Z ]P } ]oÇX &}u Z µ oÇ µoµo }]v }( À] ÁU Z world often shows a broader and a deeper appreciation for the great cultural heritage of the Christian church than do the vast majority of Christian people themselves. Here, too, we as Christian guides and educators are confronted with a tremendous challenge. IV The church is by no means the only agency of our day that has belittled and neglected the potentialities of our cultural heritage, neither is the Christless world as such the only agency that has despiritualized much culture. Not a few so-called educational organizations, schools, and educators of the 20th century have become so imbued with the idea of mass and popular education, that any cultural approach is quickly brushed aside by them. Their thinking is quite different from that of a Martin Luther, who insisted that some people simply should not attend higher schools of learning, because God has not given them the necessary gray matter and because the world will always need streetsweepers, cowherds, and garbage collectors. We are all aware of the fact that many such people have no capacity for cultural understanding, interest, and activity. For very good utilitarian reasons, God Himself has not given them the capacity they require for such endeavor. The tragic feature of much mass and popular education of our day is that through its policies and activities it drags down people of great native capacity to the level of those who do not have it. By no means may it be said that all people who are uncultured or anticultural lack native cultural talents and faculties. That the talents God Himself has provided are not used and developed is due to negligence and disinterestedness of people, and more Zv }v ZµZ }Ç ] Pµ]oÇ }( Z ]vP } Z ]v]o W ^ < Z }o ]v ]Pv}v U v Ç}µ v µo Z u X_ When people divert or emasculate God-given talents and capacities, they misuse and exploit the responsibility God has given them, particularly if it is their duty as educators of the church and the world. While many American educators are today raising their voice against the evils and dangers of so-called popular mass education, their voices are often not heard. The loud cries of others drown them out, particularly when they speak of culture, classical languages, musical culture, the historical approach, cultural tradition, our artistic heritage from the past, and the like. Permit me to read some rather trenchant remarks to you which were made by Christopher Dawson of England, whom we quoted only a few moments ago. The real evil of popular education was not so much its secularism, but its utilitarian character, which led to the progressive discarding of all nonsecular elements and motives. It is true that in this country and in America we had a sort of alliance between dogmatic religion and secularism which was characteristic of the Victorian and 19th-century compromise. But it was an unnatural alliance which was incapable of withstanding the growing pressure of secularist culture. At the same time that this bleak utilitarianism was being replaced by a more humanist ideal of popular education, humanism itself was losing its The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. prestige and its influence on high education. As the idea of culture became divorced alike from religion and life, its social significance rapidly disappeared, until today we are witnessing a regular war against culture and the apotheosis of the Common Man and the Little Man and the Tough Guyva regular pantheon of strange gods who are emerging from some underworld of culture in the half-light between the old European day and the dark night of total barbarism. I do not think our civilization will be saved from this fate by the quantitative progress of education on the existing lines; that is to say, by more education given to more people for longer and longer periods. Indeed, the extension of public educationvonly increases the mass-mindedness of modern society without raising its cultural standards or deepening its spiritual life.[9] We must link up with this zeal for popular mass education even the undue and unbalanced athletic programs of hundreds of American schools, which contribute toward stifling cultural interest, activity, and achievement. I am sure that we all readily admit that this situation is a most serious one, one that affects also the ecclesiastical schools of the prophets at which many of us are privileged to teach. Not so very long ago one of our esteemed colleagues, who has taught at one of our synodical schools for many Ç U v ÁZ}U / Z}µo U ] v v oo (vU ul } u W ^ t l } µoµo]Ì }µ students through the majority of our activities, but we neutralize these efforts by barbarizing our students through an exces]À µ }( Zo ]X_ tZ]o Z ul Á o]l oÇ }À Áv (} µ} U the fact remains that many American educators of our day are more concerned about the purely physical and athletic side of life than they are about the mind, the spirit, the will, and the heart of their students. Even within the church we find that many an American parish expends large sums for parish houses, athletic floors, bowling alleys, lounging-rooms, card tables, and lavatories, whereas the church services must content themselves with a badly arranged and badly equipped church interior, electronic musical instruments, a vested but inefficient choir, cheap appointments, and pseudo church art of all types. May not this situation be due in large part to the type of training and education men have received in their school days? Is it really accidental that some try to foster Christian fellowship through an athletic program rather than through services of corporate worship of a wholesome and uplifting liturgical character? Is it only by chance that among those who are strongly interested in physical activity we too often find little or no interest in the things of the spirit, in Christian culture, in liturgical worship, and that at many ecclesiastical conventions pinochle and Schafskopf are the compline of the day? Is this perhaps not largely an outgrowth of the training men have received at the time they prepared themselves for service in the church? I honestly believe it is. The law of cause and effect plays into the situation. Please do not misunderstand me. My remarks are not directed against a well-regulated athletic program. They are directed against abuse and overindulgence, against those who, if not in theory then at least in practice, exalt what is physical, mercenary, and popular at the expense of what is spiritual and cultural. The underlying spirit of this tragic situation which confronts the educational world of America today does not take God and His Christ into serious consideration at all; it is basically hedonistic and self-centered in character. The painful experiences inter-scholastic athletics in America have had within the past two or three years help in part to substantiate what has been said. There can be abuse and corruption also in other areas, of course, including the cultural and the ecclesiastical, but the fact remains that the physical athletic spirit soon runs wild and degenerates when it is not linked up with Christianity and its great culture. We need hardly discuss how tragic it is that religion and culture do not The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. appeal to the masses as do athletics. Man is by nature not only more carnal but also more physical than spiritual. We are not directing our remarks against mass education as such but rather against its concomitant evils. Mass education is very necessary and unavoidable, also within the church. However, taking the unique character of the work done by pastors and teachers into consideration, we must conclude that those who teach at synodical schools of the church must be doubly careful that the rather low standards identified with much popular mass education, the lack of its spiritual approach, and the anticultural character of its attitudes do not determine the character, the standards, the approach, and the attitudes adopted for our church schools. There are other types of professional and vocational schools in America and in other 1ands which dare pay no attention to the cries and demands of impulsive and short-sighted masses. However, very seldom need they face problems of culture and anticulture as must the church. This is the case already because, unlike the church, they usually have no specific sociological concerns and worries. When our schools, as part of the church, must approach the problem, they must bear in mind the spiritual improvement and amelioration not only of individuals but also of groups of people. This sociological approach to our problems of culture intensifies the difficulty of our work as educators. If we train people who become pastors, teachers, and leaders within a chosen generation, within a royal priesthood, within a holy nation, and among a peculiar people, we should train them accordingly. Taking Z À Ç vµ }( '}[ Z} v }o ]v} }v] ]}vU }µ } v Z U u} } Zv vÇ other educators, should be men of culture and teachers of culture, good manners and refinement. }]vPU } '}[ }Áv À ]U Á }( Z ZµZ o]vP Á]Z Z Z]PZ Ç }( }] Ç ]v Z] world, a genuine spiritual society. Our sociological obligations are indeed on as high a level as our µoµo }o]P]}vX / Z}µo o]l } } Ç}µ v Æ (}u v ]o ]vP Z ]o ^ >] µ U ^}] ÇU v W }vo]Ç_V ] Á Á] v Ç Z} EX t]o}v v ]v Z :µv íõñî ]µ }( The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism. I preface the quotation by calling attention to the fact that Mr. Wilson is not thinking specifically of a Christian society or people. Relating his words to our own situation therefore gives us all the more reason to take to heart what he says. Perhaps the most damning indictment which can be entered against contemporary social science is that it has made of man something less than he really is. . . . Not only is it true that the student[s] of man have neglected those deeper qualities, the spiritual realms of values, creation, tragedy; but they have also disfigured even the relatively simple and superficial human of their designing. Social science has long borne a pronounced animus against the aesthetic and graceful. This animus, in turn, generated a u} } o }( ]}vo ] (} ^µoµ _ Z Á} ] }µooÇ uo}Ç X[10] I regret to state that the movement for popular mass education here in America has done much to exploit and foster what the German calls Pöbelgeist. A pronounced Pöbelgeistis finding its way also into our church and into her parishes and thus attacks also our seminaries, teachers colleges, and preparatory schools. This Pöbelgeist, even when found among Christian people, is quite different from the Christiav ]] }( '}[ Z} v P v ]}vX / ] v} o vP }µ v À]]}µ Zv the Pöbelgeist which is asserting itself in so many areas of American life today. This Pöbelgeist paves the way forPöbelherrschaft and is strongly anti-cultural in character. It is one of the great tasks of the church and her schools to offset this Pöbelgeist by fostering the cause of Christian culture. Ought not those who claim to be Christian educators be aware of the fact that the church has expressed her sublimest thoughts and her greatest ideas in her great liturgies, in art, music, hymns, and in literature? Do we not in our great cultural heritage see some of the most luscious fruits of the Gospel? Does not our culture The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Z}Á µ o oÇ Z '}[ Z} v }o v} Pöbel, a plebs, or hoi polloi? From the cultural point of view, is it not tragic that our people sing the praises of an inferior painter such as Heinrich Hofmann and ignore completely and even belittle the great art of an Albert Dürer? It is, I believe, good that also among us the Lutheran chorale must struggle for its existence, but does this very fact not point to our poverty-stricken minds, spirit, taste, and intellect? This is, no doubt, due in large part to the training and education they have received. It is known that the defects exhibited by people in their adult years usually reflect what was neglected in their childhood. Thus parents are often responsible for the bad behavior of their children because they neglected to apply necessary discipline. Many a child does not bring to maturity the musical talent God provides in its early youth because the v } v} }À] (} Z Z]o[ uµ]o À o}u vX E} '} µ uv (]o } }À] Z necessary training and discipline; not God but man must be blam (} (]o]vP } À o} Z Z]o[ inherent talents. V Radio, television, and movies discourage much serious reading, and many within the church, including many members of the clergy and many teachers, do practically no reading of great and noteworthy literature. This affects not only the church but likewise our entire civilization; permit me to quote once u} (}u Z} EX t]o}v[ ]o X The current paucity of great literature is compared with the lack of contemporary vitality in the others arts (so far as the productions of genius are concerned), and this general phenomenon is viewed as one possible index of a decline of Occidental civilization. . . . literature is probably, to a greater extent than any other part of culture, a mirror of the life in which it arose. It is, then, a peculiarly valuable key not only to culture as such, but to the societies and individuals who determine, and are molded by, that culture.[11] Within our own circles we have made much of the fact that we stress the classical languages and classical literature in the curricula of our schools. Europeans who have visited our shores in late years particularly have marveled at the fact that our Seminary in St. Louis, unlike the vast majority of theological seminaries in America, insists that its students be equipped to read the Bible in its original tongues and outstanding theological literature in Greek, Latin, and German. This is what they, too, insist on in the foremost theological seminaries of Europe. At a conference of theological professors which I attended recently, an excellent paper was read by one not affiliated with the Synodical Conference. He urged that a larger number of Lutheran theological seminaries of America adopt language requirements like those of our St. Louis ^ u]vÇX >µZ [ ul To the Councilmen of All Cities in Germany are well known. He said in part: ^ µU_ Ç}µ Ç P]vU ^Pv Z Á uµ ZÀ Z}}oU ÁZ ] Z µ }( Z]vP >]vU ' lU Hebrew, and the other liberal arts? We can still teaZ Z ]o v '}[ t} ]v ' uvU ÁZ]Z ] µ((]] v (} }µ oÀ]}vX_ / oÇW oJ / lv}Á Á oo Z Á ' uv uµ oÁÇ u]v µ v stupid beasts, as neighboring nations call us and as we richly deserve to be called. . . . Arts and languages, which are not only not harmful but a greater ornament, profit, honor, and benefit, both for the understanding of Scripture and for the conduct of government, these we despise. Therefore . . . let us open our eyes, thank God for this precious treasure, and guard it well, lest it be again taken from us and the devil have his will. For though the Gospel has come and daily comes through the Holy Spirit alone, we cannot deny that it has come by means of the languages, by which it was also spread abroad, The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. and by which it must be preserved. . . . In proportion, then, as we prize the Gospel, let us guard the languages.[12] Despite words of commendation from outside our circles and despite the foresight and insight Luther and our forefathers showed, yet do we hear loud voices within our own ranks which mention exactly the same argument which Luther rejected so effectively. Unfortunately the voices we hear come particularly from called servants of the church and from the ranks of those who themselves have had this linguistic and classical training and who today turn their backs upon this thorough type of training, which À o} ]v]PZ v µv v]vP }( '}[ Z}oÇ t} v }( Z]]v Z }o}PÇX What may be the cause? We can truthfully say, I believe, that we here have another manifestation of the anticultural Pöbelgeist of our day, for many who agitate against the classical tradition are not interested either in an exalted and distinctive cultural tradition. To stimulate discussion, permit me to point to what I consider a more tangible approach. In our teaching of the classical languages and of German, to what extent do we point out and stress the classical, the cultural character of this literature? Since a great purpose of classical culture is to develop an appreciation for the beautiful, to invigorate, and to inspire, have we not failed to a great extent by placing practically all stress on grammar and analysis? I have no desire to make disparaging remarks regarding grammar and analysis; they are very important and need stress. However, they should not have practically all the stress, even though a great objective of this linguistic training is to prepare students for later exegetical work. It is also possible to analyze something to death, and I fear we have done this in much of the linguistic training we have imparted to our students in the past. In music, too, form and analysis are very important, but how far would music get as an art and as a branch of culture if musical instruction were primarily analytical, if say, a Beethoven sonata were treated as nothing but a compilation of related chords? The late Dean Peter Christian Lutkin of Northwestern University once ul W ^ ^}u }o ]v uµ] À ÇZ]vP µ ] Zu v µÇX_ dZ are people, including many teachers and professors, who see in classical literature everything but its beauty. As a most important branch of culture, classical literature is far more than an expression of its philology. Exposing a student to our cultural heritage and to the classics should be more than teaching him a lesson; it should be an initiation into a new life, a revelation of new experiences, an unfolding of wonderful mysteries. A teacher of classical languages should not be a mere pedant, for it is an important part of his duty to create interest and to stimulate, to invigorate, and to enthuse. He ought by no means be one who sees not the woods because of the trees. I am reminded of an incident that happened many years ago. I was a guest at the time in the home of an outspoken German rancher in Colorado whose vZ Á µ}µv Ç o}(Ç v À Ç µ](µo u}µv]vX Kv u}v]vP / ] } Z]uW ^ uµ /Zv v doch viel Freude bereiten, jeden Morgen diese wunderschönen hohen Gebirge betrachten und beÁµv v ̵ lvv vX_ ^ ,uU_ Z o] U ^]Z Z À] o o] ]v v Pµ v ^] X_ ^} ] ] À Ç }( v o} with many other people. They are surrounded by the beauties of nature and of our great culture, but what do they see? They see chickens, ducks, oxen, and husky steers. When such bias and blindness comes to teachers, they tend to convert their students into nothing but Kleinigkeitskrämer and shorten their sight until they can no longer see beautiful horizons and expansive vistas. They teach them to see so many details that they lose all sense of perspective and are unable to progress fluently. They use cultural means to make technicians of them. Need we, then, wonder that they fail to see the beauty and intrinsic worth of their rich culture and too often become thoroughly averse to it? Why not, at least occasionally, have them read excerpts from the liturgies of the The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. church in both Greek and Latin? Why not have them sing Latin hymns and German chorales in their original tongues? Portions of the Scriptures could easily be read at an early stage of their linguistic training, and psalms could be chanted in Latin. Such use of ancient and foreign languages helps to give linguistic self-confidence to students, it relaxes them from tensions which are easily created by necessary analytical work and by translating passages in the classics which are truly difficult because their authors did not mechanically follow the rules of grammar. We can thus break down undue prejudices which have become traditional at sundry schools by applying wholesome pedagogical discretion and wisdom. We have teachers, who have followed the suggested procedure with outstanding success; their students learned to love these languages, already because they learned to enjoy using them. This is the procedure that was followed in Lutheran schools in the 16th century, and we know of schools and agencies of our own day which have exposed students to a most severe type of linguistic training without prejudicing them. We can easily interest students in German, Latin, and Greek through the media of church music, liturgies, hymns, and liturgical literature. While it is true that our chief objective may not be to interest them in these ancient and foreign languages as such, we are at least able to stimulate interest in these languages and in their great classical literature. VI Liturgical interest is in large measure an outgrowth of spiritual and cultural concern which these students have. True, there are some, a very small and insignificant minority, who are liturgically unbalanced, just as others are musically, athletically, and amorously unbalanced. There is much lack of balance at every school and we need not think for a moment that such lack is to be found among students only. But the vast majority of theological students and students who prepare for the teaching profession are not interested primarily in mere externals and frills of a culture. They are interested, for instance, in liturgics because liturgical theory and practice, like church music, is a handmaid of Christian worship. In many cases that have come to our attention, students are driven into liturgics, good church music, and superb Christian hymnody, wholesome ethics and good manners by the uncouth, irreverent, anticultural, and unchristian attitude they have seen manifested here and there within our own circles. We have yet to find a member of the student body of a theological seminary who is not interested in Christian culture in general; it is difficult to find a theological student or a student preparing for the teaching profession who, being interested in the liturgical heritage of the church, is not also a wholesome and consecrated type of individual. I may add that these are the students who know best how to look at things from the standpoint of the church. They do find it difficult to understand the type of thinking they see exhibited when they compare the chapels of our synodical schools with their gymnasiums. They find it difficult to understand why, with our appreciation for Word and sacrament, coupled with our vast cultural heritage, we Lutherans argue that one may worship God also in a barn, while beautiful chapels grace the campuses of schools which have not the Word in truth and purity, which undervalue the blessed sacraments, and which do not know the Christ as we are privileged and chosen to know Him. Many students are fond of discussing basic problems of worship, they are interested in good church music and in the better types of hymns; they are, on the whole, faithful in attending concerts and lyceum programs of a cultural character and do not interest themselves in chicanery and trickery. In their field-work program they often prefer to work among the lowly and the unfortunate, including our black citizens. It is most unfair, therefore, to condemn all who have liturgical The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. interests and to judge them all by the excesses of some unbalanced individual and to make flippant and uncharitable remarks about them. The character of much of our religious thinking is really very negative and destructive. This is most unfortunate and certainly weakens the evangelical character of the religious faith which we should have in our hearts. When we think of Christian culture, liturgics, and church music, we too often think too readily of the dangers involved. We quite readily ignore the fact that countless dangers may and do easily result from much of our teaching and preaching. When we regard and esteem Christian culture, Christian art, music, good morals and ethics, architecture, literature, and liturgics as precious and inestimable gifts of God and also as effective tools and weapons of the Holy Ghost, then does our faith not only become more positive and constructive, but then do we become also better aware of the manifold grace of God. That was Luth [ }]]}vU v Z ] }v ]Pv](]v }v (} Z P v }( Martin Luther. For that reason we could well take to heart the great theme adopted by the Lutheran t}o }vÀ v]}v ] u ]vP ]v ,vv}À W ^ E} l } >µZ U µ (}Á } >µZ X_ / Z}µo o]l } o} Á]Z Á} (}u Z]}Z Á}v[ }À}]À Z U ^ dZ ]] }( Z]]v µoµ W µ]}vX_ If we admit, as I think we all do in principle, that Western culture was a Christian creation, we ought to pay much more attention to this truth in our educational theory and practice than we have done in the past. . . . From the very beginning . . . Christian education was something that could not be conveyed by words alone, but which involved a discipline of the whole man. Thus Christian education was not only an initiation into the Christian community, it was also an initiation into another world: the unveiling of spiritual realities of which the natural man was unaware and which changed the meaning of existence. And I think it is here that our modern educationvincluding our religious educationvhas proved defective. There is in it no sense of revelation. It is accepted as instruction . . . but nowhere do we find that joyful sense of the discovery of a new and wonderful reality which inspired true Christian culture. All true religious education leads up to the contemplation of Divine Mysteries, and where this is lacking, the whole culture becomes weakened and divided. It may be objected that this is the sphere of worship and not of education; but it is impossible to separate the two, since it was largely in the sphere of Christian worship that the Christian tradition of education and culture arose and developed. The first Christian education was the initiation into the Divine Mysteries in the liturgical sense, and it brought with it a development of Christian poetry and music and art which was the firstfruits of Christian culture.[13] Cited References 1. V. A. Demant, Our CulturevIts Christian Roots and Present Crisis (London: S. P.C. K., 1947), p. 1. 2. New York: Harper and Bros., 1951, pp. 30ff. 3. Force and Freedom, 1943, p. 107. Quoted by Niebuhr, p. 31. 4. Niebuhr, pp. 37t38. 5. Demant, pp. 2t3. 6. Modern Library, I, 402. 7. Niebuhr, p. 174. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. 8. Demant, p. 35. 9. Ibid., p. 36. 10. P. 297. 11. Ibid., p. 302. 12. Works of Martin Luther (Philadelphia: A. J. Holman Company, 1931), IV, 112t113. 13. Demant, pp. 37t39. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Has the Lutheran Hymn Run Its Course? Friedrich Hofmann Tr. John Nicholas I Has the Lutheran hymn run its course? Many observers of the Evangelical Church today believe it has. The critics assert in a similar manner that the history of the Evangelical hymn has come to an end. This note was sounded in an Evangelical journal for students and scholars already in 1959 (cf. S. Daeke in Radius, 1959, No. 3). According to him, the Lutheran hymn, one of the outstanding witnesses of confessional Christianity, has run its course. Now, if we were to gather the somewhat divergent reasons these critics advance for this phenomenon, we would summarize them as follows. 1. In a constantly changing world everything has its day; this applies also to the hymn. Since the form of the hymn is a product of this world, change and decay are a part of its nature. 2. The Evangelical hymn of Germany, to the time of Jochen Klepper and R. A. Schröder, bears the ul }( Z U ]ooÇ ]v ] uvv }( Æ ]}vX Kv } v[ l Z ÁÇ }Ç because so much has changed so completely, especially the social order. 3. From the viewpoint of poetic art, the critics point out that the form of the rhymed strophic song Z Æ v ] vPZV ] } v[ (] }Ç v Zµ ] v} o}vP µo X 4. The critics also attack the musical form. They state that modality, especially major and minor, can no longer serve as the musical language of our time. And those who are active especially in youth services assert that hymns lack the vital rhythms so characteristic of the spiritual and of jazz. 5. In the matter of content especially, the slowly approaching theological confrontation with church music becomes very acute. The content, say the critics, no longer corresponds by and large to modern theological concepts, for hymns speak in much too primitive a way about God, heaven, Satan, and the angelsvyes, even about Jesus Christ. 6. The critics also assert that contemporarÇ uv v} o}vP ]vPU } vÇ Z } v[ o]l } sing anymore. He likes to listen to music; perhaps he will play an instrument, but singing means nothing to him. And the feeble singing heard in the churches today proves the point. Has the Lutheran hymn run its course? It almost looks like it when one gathers the individual critical expressions and presents them as forcefully as in the six points above. II But we would make it too easy for ourselves if we would put off the sharp criticism of the Evangelical Christian hymn with a shrug of the shoulders and refuse to take the critics seriously. It is difficult to take these people seriously and to avoid sarcastic comments, because the substitute some of them offer is of such ordinary quality, both in text, literary form, and musical expression. The new hymn writers in Tutzing do not hold that the rhymed strophic song has reached the end of its development. To the contrary, they use a form of this genre which makes one wish it had. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Unfortunately, this manner of criticism, the substitution of watered-down religious hit songs, of such poor quality that one resists even discussing them, has actually been very effective. For right now the songs from Tutzing, especially those used in the modern youth services, have supplanted the hymns in our hymnal. I cannot examine this phenomenon in greater depth at present. I shall rather assume the prerogative to offer my own explicit criticism after I have supported my rejection with detailed, factual argumentation in a series of essays and lectures. With the exception of a few noteworthy examples which do not deserve the name, the religious hit song is not well suited to the life of the Christian congregation, because the world of entertainment music, from which it comes, hides the gulf between the holiness of God and the sin of man and aids in removing the fear of God. The religious hit song also disregards emotional restraint by and large. I should like to quote from a radio broadcast concerning sentimentality (M. Dombrowl]W ^ tZ v Z strength of faith wanes, an emotional bliss comes to the fore which expresses itself in sentimentality. This counterfeit sentimentality is not a conscious deception, but it does in fact deceive the participant v Z] ( oo}ÁuvX_ DÇ Z] }bjection to the religious hit song in the Tutzing style concerns the quality of text and of music. God is not taken seriously when songs of thanksgiving are of such cheap construction. As a church with many gifts, we owe God quality. I shall withhold any further objections of a specialized nature. III I should now like to demonstrate why we dare not give up the treasury of hymns in the Evangelical hymnal and in other sources, also why it may seem difficult to feel at home in many of these hymns. Perhaps in the process we shall gain a measure of appreciation for the old hymns and also for the new hymns of superior quality. It is unfortunately correct to state: our age is no longer receptive to the hymns of Reformation ancestry. As people who breathe the air of this present age, we are not particularly disposed to use the Evangelical hymn. It was an entirely different matter during the Kirchenkampf. I should like to speak from my limited experience in the Bavarian State Church. At that time the hymns concerning the church were truly alive for us, and never did it bother us to encounter archaic expressions. The hymns matched the situation perfectly. They were true to life and flourished in the fullness of strength without any kind of external aid. O little flock, fear not the Foe Who madly seeks your overthrow; Dread not his rage and power. What though your courage sometime faints, ,] u]vP ]µuZ }[ '}[ ]v Lasts but a little hour. (TLH 263, Jacob Fabricius, 1593t1634) Can they do the same for us today in the moment of truth? I am sure they can. Our good hymns are indeed for the moment of truth. We clergymen experience their power anew when we pray at the hospital bed or at the deathbed in the words of Paul Gerhardt: The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Thy hand is never shortened, All things must serve Thy might; Thine every act is blessing, Thy path is purest light. Thy work no man can hinder, Thy purpose none can stay, Since Thou to bless Thy children Wilt always find a way. (TLH 520) Our good hymns are for the moment of truth. Much criticism will cease forthwith when the circumstances of life demand a sturdy spiritual diet in place of a meager fare. In his bookDie treuen Helfer Willy Kramp tells how the power of the Evangelical hymn was revealed anew in the solitary confinement of his undeserved imprisonment: In the hour of utmost need, when all images of the world outside were withheld from my eyes, I experienced to my great amazement that the hymns I learned in my youth arose from the depths of my memory. . . . I had not realized previously what I had lost. But now, in my empty cell, where no books, no music, no human voice called me away from my utter loneliness, I experienced, and not without pain, what a treasure had slipped from my grasp, and I attempted to reach into the depths to retrieve what was not completely lost. . . . And what I recovered helped me to live . . . In those days I resolved that in the future I would treat these spiritual treasures with more respect, that I would not let them repeatedly slip into obliv]}v ]( / ]v[ v Z u µ Á}µo P]À Z u }u]v v place in my life, if indeed God would again grant me a normal life. Kv Z}µo Z <u[ À}] À Ç (µooÇU µ ]v Z]u } ] l]oo v Z Æ ] v }( Christian who has traveled the valley of the shadow of death concur in thanksgiving for the inexhaustible strength of the Evangelical hymn. Is it still possible to seriously ask: Has the Lutheran hymn run its course? Our discussion so far does not pretend, of course, to settle the question of the contemporary hymn. But the questions will be raised with more restraint and less nerve when one comes to the full realization that the living character and actual strength of the hymn is attributable to a directness of expression born of the Holy Scriptures rather than of the spirit of an age. One rejoices to see hymns written today that ring true. The members of our Christian congregations naturally embrace these hymns and sing them joyfully, because they are seeking Biblical consolation and divine comfort in the hymn. This is true particularly of a hymn that Jochen Klepper wrote in 1938, for which Johannes Petzold, the Thuringian cantor, supplied a new melody. Many said it would not last when it was included in the Evangelical hymnal. They said the text was too conventional, the melody was too modal; the congregations would never accept it. But surprisingly enough the hymn is still flourishing today: Die Nacht ist vorgedrungen, Der Tag ist nicht mehr fern. So sei nun Lob gesungen dem hellen Morgenstern! The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Auch wer zur Nacht geweinet, der stimme froh mit ein, der Morgenstern bescheinet auch Deine Angst und Pein. (EKG 14) One may certainly point to the fact that this hymn is already 30 years old. Nor does it answer the problem of the contemporary hymn. But this Advent hymn, which is really broader than Advent, demonstrates at the very least that the line of good hymn writers extends from Luther even into our own time. If we today want to draw near to the hymn treasures of old and to the new hymns following in their path, we must allow them to address us, and we must expose ourselves to their power in the hour of our greatest need, either collectively in the church, or as individual Christians. In view of the criticisms leveled against hymns, it seems necessary to me to point out another fact that may help explain the estrangement of many contemporaries from the hymn. At the same time I should also like to encourage renewed use of this neglected approach. The solid Evangelical hymn is not a light snack that tastes good at the moment and then disappears like whipped cream before it is swallowed. To the contrary, it requires effort. It is rather like a complete dinner that has to be digested slowly. Perhaps another comparison may be risked: the hymn is not like a loose woman who flippantly embraces anyone. To the contrary, it desires to be wooed and won. Permit me to quote Willy Kramp once more. Since this poetry yields itself entirely to the Word that created heaven and earth, it expresses an existence in God. And that is its peculiar gift. Because of this, one cannot grasp the content like that of a lecture or a sermon that he has heard or read once. This text can only be comprehended if one assimilates its totality, its individual words as well as its subtleties. Every detail is important, just like getting to know another person. Such study opens an inexhaustible treasure of deepened understandings and viewpoints. Then we are safe on the entire path that leads through the trials and joys of this world to the place where the power of suffering and death is removed in God. Since our ability to worship God with undivided attention or to study a religious painting (not just to give it a fleeting glance), in short, since our ability for evangelical meditation is so meager, access to the Evangelical hymn is almost impossible. But we can learn a lesson now and regain access to the hymn if we are willing and if the matter is worth the effort to us. It is of utmost importance in the training of the youth in the congregational hymn to realize that they need not understand every detail right away. Who can do that under any circumstances? But it is important to grasp the spirit of the hymn and to Æ ] v ] ]( }]o X /( / u Pµ ]v }u }v [ Z}u U / v v} examine every room in the house, including cellar and attic, to feel at home there. It is enough to be with the host and hostess in the living room. The same principle applies to the hymn. If I have perceived the comforting mood of the ZÇuv ^ }uu] tZ À '] À dZ U_ uvÇ P ]v Z ZÇuv uÇ µvo (] } uÇ even remain unclear, but I shall still be consoled and shall experience the strength of this hymn of my church. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Perhaps I shall make use of it for a long time before I penetrate the deeper thoughts of the hymn and discover its nuances. Perhaps I was drawn to the hymn in my youth, and, unless I set myself against it, it never slipped away from me. This has happened to many people with a morning hymn of greater dimension than the desigv]}v ooÇ ]uo] W ^ }u U dZ}µ ]PZ v D}v]vP ^X_ / ] ]v Z many a turn of phrase is influenced by the era of the poet Knorr von Rosenroth. But there is great reward in store for him who does not stumble over this fact but rather prays the hymn meditatively, or better yet, sings it even though he may question the musical form: May Thy fervent love destroy Our cold works, in us awaking Ardent zeal and holy joy Z µo u}v[ (] l]vPX Let us truly rise ere yet Life has set. (TLH 539) It is not by accident that this hymn has been translated into 40 languages and has thereby become an ecumenical treasure. In our discussion of the hymn we must consider the fact that it is not only the text that is important; the melody also is an essential ingredient. The relation between text and melody varies considerably in our hymnal, depending upon the type of hymn, and particularly upon its stylistic background. Some hymns lend themselves more to reading than to singing; there are not many of these. There are others that become lofty and unfold in full beauty and strength when they are sung. And there are still others, again not many, that are effective only when they are sung. Among the latter is the Advent hymn of Luther which has been ZZoÇ ]]]Ì W ^ ^À]} }( Z E]}vU }u X_ / uµ }v( Z ] v} difficulties for me, since I learned to sing it many years ago. And ever since that time the splendor of this early Christian hymn has refreshed me again and again. The full strength of many a hymn is revealed only when one hears it in its complete form, in the union of Æ v u o}ÇX À v Z}µPZ }v u]PZ ] Z }u(}]vP Æ }( ^ D]PZÇ &} _ Z}µPZ reading or speaking, he perceives a new dimension in the hymn when he sings it in its rhythmically forceful setting, not the isometric version. In some cases text and melody are so closely joined that one is moved spiritually by the melody alone. dZ] ( Z o } Z µ }( Z}]X ^ E}Á dZvl t oo Kµ '}_ } ^ W] } Z >}U Z ou]PZÇ_ ZÀ Z Z Z }( uvÇ }v Z o ]]o ]Z Ç ]v }oÇZ}v] ]vP with cantus firmus. But if one is to experience the inexhaustible strength of the hymn most profoundly, then he must literally sing it into his bloodstream. It is true that people do not care much about singing today, and there are many reasons for this trend. Perhaps the emphasis in the curricula of our school has been badly misplaced, perhaps even in our entire educational system. A little child still likes to sing. And the children in our schools could sing much better if our teachers and also our clergymen were better equipped for the task. In my opinion, it would be a serious violation of parental responsibility if we should yield on this point. Fortunately there are still many children in our schools who like to sing. The steady growth of the Z]o v[ Z}] v Z Ç}µZ Kantorei in Germany proves the point. It is very questionable, therefore, The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. whether one should conclude that our people in general and our children in particular are losing the joy of singing. The Union of Evangelical Church Choirs in Germany saw the opportunity a few years ago to }(( µv]µ À] } Z P}Á]vP Á}l }( Z]o v[ Z}]U v Á very fortunate to be able to observe a promising development. If the diagnosis of the critics were correct, those who appear almost exclusively in church-related journals, on church-related radio and television programs, then the church today would consist only of congregations of tired singers, young people to whom the hymn is completely foreign, and Christian families who no longer sing hymns at home, except perhaps at Christmas. On the basis of my life experience, I should like to vigorously attack this defeatist attitude over against the hymn, without in any way spreading a contrived optimism. It is precisely through the constant emphasis of criticism and resignation that many living and healthy traditions can be shaken and even destroyed. What we need is encouragement and experienced help. We know from the writings of Luther that even at his time he had to overcome much indolence and resistance to the singing of new hymns. The simplistic, popular view of the Reformation era would lead us to believe that almost all people at that time sang the new hymns with enthusiasm. This was indeed the case in given instances, as for Æuo Á]Z }µ 'µo ZÇuv (} Z ( ]Ào }( Z (}u]}v ^ ^oÀ]}v µv} h , }u X_ µ whole, a responsive effort has always been necessary in the church, and with some changing elements, of course, it still is necessary today if the church is to sing enthusiastically. We dare not give up. We know that the singing of a little child awakens naturally and spontaneously even in an unmusical environment. This fact demonstrates that we are dealing with a most basic element of human behavior. He who does not sing anymore has sold a most precious birthright. Let us take this opportunity to ask ourselves seriously what our contribution to hymn singing has been. We still have not adequately treated the problem of modern melodies. But one fact is sure: the resources of modal melodicism, especially major and minor, has by no means been exhausted. IV But there are still a few things to say about the problem of the contemporary hymn. There are contemporary hymns that can be used. But there are not many that affirm our tradition and at the same time bear the marks of our own age in text and melody. It is indeed difficult to define exactly what is contemporary in text and music. For we have at present no definite criteria that will aid us in the use of contemporary songs as congregational hymns. Contemporary lyrics, with their extremely individualistic imprint and their many meaningless syllables, cannot become a congregational hymn. Neither can a tone-row, derived from the principles of dodecaphony, form a melody that congregations can sing, because it is simply too difficult. The element of syncopation has been used ad absurdum in the youth services. Yet there are texts and melodies which do not merely restore the old forms but owe their life to our present age. In this connection one is u]v }( u v }( t}o(PvP ^ZµÌ W ^ dZµ Z }v u}Ç ZÇuv ] ]v v} ÁÇ u} v v true to life in the banal sense, as many would like to have it today. Its literary style may very well make uv µ}v Z Z v u]v }( Z ]vP]vP Á}Z] X_ Those people who take a positive view over against our hymnal also affirm the use of the contemporary ZÇuvX µ Z Ç } v} ((]u ] Á]Z (o ]v ]}v }( Z ]viµv]}vW ^ ^]vP µv} Z >} v Á }vPJ_ &} Z] ^]µo ÆZ}]}v Z v}Z]vP } } Á]Z Z ]u ÁZ v ZÇuv ] Á] vX ,X :X The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Kraus, professor of Old Testament, comments thus }v WX õòWíW ^ dZ v Á }vP ] Z }u Z v]À U Z}o}P]o }vP ÁZ]Z l oo ] }( ]u v X_ dZ E Á d u v µv } v voP µ}v Z] ]v ]}vW Z ^v Á }vP_ ]v Z Z À o]}v }( ^]v :}Zv ] µvP ]v Z vo world created anew by Christ. For the singing of this hymn God has called men who are created anew Z}µPZ Z]W ^ /( vÇ}v ] ]v Z]U Z ] v Á ]}v_ ~î }X ñWíóX &} Z u ^v Á_ Á]Z ] eschatological emphasis, the New Testament usually employs a special word, while to describe temporally new things it uses a more secular term, so to speak. We may only use the Biblical injunction ^ ^]vP µv} Z >} v Á }vP_ ]v }µv}µ ÁÇ Z ] }( v ÆZ}]}v }Á contemporary hymnody. Yet we are forced to take up the problem of the contemporary hymn very seriously in view of the transitory nature of all earthly things, the change in attitude toward life, the change in the social order, changes in linguistic usage, and the responsibility of each age to coin its unique manner of thanksgiving. At the same time it must be said that one cannot force the contemporary hymn to be written. There are times when such a harvest is very meager. Then we have to wait patiently, and we must not create hastily contrived substitutes. In any case, continued use of the heritage of hymns is justified not only because the contemporary hymn is not flourishing at present but because we affirm thereby that we in the church join those who have gone before us in singing our common praises. By our singing we affirm the historical nature of the church. Wilhelm Stählin once stated that to understand the nature of Reformation a short Latin sentence is helpful: Anima forma corporis. dZ] v v À u vW ^ dZ }µo ] Z (}u }( Z }ÇX_ /( ] Á µv }µvU ] Á}µo µv }} W ^ dZ }Ç ] Z (}u }( Z }µoX_ Forma must mean something else: The soul is the formative principle, the creative power of the body. This gives the sentence its correct meaning. Reformation is not the restoration of a past form or structure of the church. That would be antihistorical Romanticism. Reformation rather wins anew the true form, or formative principle, of the church of Jesus Christ. Thus in order to carry out hymnological and liturgical reform properly, we must return to our true heritage and there find the responsive beginning and impulse for continuation and renewal. And this is also the way we should understand the Evangelical hymnal: not only a compilation of our heritage but at the same time an instruction book, a source, and an impulse for the new song. Consequently we may assert that the Lutheran hymn has by no means run its course, since every good contemporary hymn writer draws strength from it. Together with our obligation to criticize responsibly the rich heritage handed down to us, we should not cease to use it thankfully and to incorporate also the new attempts at contemporary hymnody. I believe that although some of its directness has been o}U >µZ [ v}µagement has lost none of its profound meaning for us: Dear Christians, one and all, rejoice, With exultation springing, And, with united heart and voice And holy rapture singing, Proclaim the wonders God hath done, How His right arm the victory won; Right dearly it hath cost Him. (TLH 387) The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Luther and the New Song Martin J. Naumann >µZ ] v} Z }v ÁZ} Á} Z Á} } Z uµ] (} ÁZ ,}oÇ ^]µ oo Z ^v Á }vPX_ On the other hand we must say that where Luther and the work of the Reformation is remembered, there the new song is sung in our own day. For the new song is the Gospel. >µZ [ ]u Á }v }( }µv v }vPX u v}µ Z}] }( À}] }µo Z ]v Z Ç }( the Renaissance. Man entered the phase of discovering himself as he discovered the glories of past cultures, arts, and philosophies. Making the beauty and glory of past generations his own, the man of the Renaissance saw himself enabled to rise from the night of ignorance, gloom, and fear to an enjoyment of life that was reflected in song and sound, old and new, precious as gold vessels resurrected by archeologists and polished to new luster. But as we listen, we realize that the song of man, the song of the humanists, is discordant; there is a certain harmony, there is a motif, but it all struggles for a solution in a song of victory and fulfillment. This lack of final truth was experienced on all levels of learning and art. The queen of the sciences, theology, shared in the discords of the new fermenting thoughts of man. There were songs, there were multitudes of sweet notes, there were chords almost, but not quite, in concord with another. Man found himself but did not find his soul. There was that monk, Luther, who probably heard and felt but could not interpret what he knew. The Creed, the Psalms, so dear to him as poetry, the liturgy, the sacraments, the Scripture, actually it was all Z U µ Z ]v[ Z Z (µoo }µv }( Z }vPX dZ o]( }( uvU >µZ lv ÁU Z}µo ]v Zu}vÇ with God. How he struggled to find a gracious God, like a poor composer in his attic listening to himself v v} (]v]vP Z]u o(U } (} ]u >µZ Á o] v]vP } '}[ t} v v} ZÀ]vP '}vtill the ]u u v >µZ Ç '}[ P (}µv '} v Z]u o( '}[ ( t, at the feet of the crucified Z u X ^ dZ iµ Zoo o]À Ç (]Z_ u }µ o oÇ Z u}]( }( Z v Á }vPX v >µZ oo Z ÁZ v Z (]vooÇ o]Ì Z Z ]PZ }µv }( '} Á Z ]uµ } >µZ (} Z][ l U then it was to him as if heaven itself were open and all the angels were singing. God had taken Luther and pushed him into the study of Scripture. Appointed to be a doctor of Holy Scripture, he began lectures on the Psalms, partly because he liked poetry, partly because it was the book that he had prayed through in his devotions many a time. At first following ancient rules of interpretation, he soon discovered that Scripture interprets itself, and the Wittenberg Nightingale began to sing the new song. But why is it called the new song? Was this song never heard before? Was it a novel thing? Was it a new unheard-of rhythm? Was it eccentric in its words and melody? In our day untold attempts are made to give, make, sell, sing, say something new. The new songs of the new generation claim to replace the old }vPU u o}] U u} U v o X µ ] Z ÁZ Z ou] l (} ÁZ v Z uvW ^ ^]vP µv} Z >} v Á }vP_M In the Holy Scriptures, especially in the Old Testament, we find that there is a definite relation between ^v Á_ v ^Z}oÇX_ dZ , Á chadash ~^v Á_ uÇ v} o ] oÇ } qadosh ~^Z}oÇ_U µ there is a theological relation between the two concepts. We could almost say that it was natural for }í } }vv Z ] ^Z}oÇ_ v ^v ÁX_ In the religions of gentile nations this is found. It was very definitely a part of Hebrew thought. When the Philistines were forced to return the stolen ark of the covenant, they followed certain rules for holiness. They made a new cart and took cows on which ^Z Z }u v} Ç}l _ v Zµ v} Z l l } / oX dZ u } µ Á The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. followed when the ark was taken to Jerusalem. A new cart was used to bring the ark into the city of David. When Samson (Judges 16) tells Delilah that he would }vµ ]( Z Ç }µv Z]u ^Á]Z v Á } Z v À Á }µ] U_ Z Á l]]vP Z U µ Z o] À Z Z Á uP] vPZ ]v the unused ropes. The sacrifices and gifts brought to the temple by the people of God all were to be sanctified unto the Lord. The sacrifices were to be of the firstfruits, or the firstborn, that is, things which were not used by man previously. New things were to be holy things. Things were to be unsullied, not degraded by the use of sinful man for his purposes, not second-ZvU v} o u]Z X / ] À] v Z Z }v ^v Á_ is not a chronological concept of contrast to old and ancient, it is much more a contrast best exemplified Ç Z ^]µo µ }( Z µ ] }( Z ^}í_ v ^v Á_ uvX u ( Z Fall cannot stay in W] X dZ ^}o uv_ uµ }Áv v Z ^v Á uv_ }v P]v ]v Z}o]v v ]PZ }µv X The Old Adam is not fit for the kingdom of God, man must be born anew. The new heaven and new earth are the new and holy creation of God where no unrighteous creature will dwell. dZ }v }( ^v Á_ o} ]voµ Z ] }( ]vP ] } '} }v v (} ooX / ] v Æ ]}v made for a matter of life and death when David takes back out of the hand of the priest the sword of Goliath, which he had dedicated to God. It was the sin of sacrilege that Achan took of that which had been dedicated to God. It was a jealous God that protected the holy vessels of silver and gold that Nebuchadnezzar had carried away to Baby1on so that they were returned complete and in full count to Jerusalem. So the New Testament, too, is the testament that is renewed by the holy blood of the Lamb of God. The new creation is that of holiness. The new song is therefore the holy song dedicated to the glory of God. This song is separate from the songs of the world. From the blasphemous song of Lamech to the song of the Philistines over Samson, the world has celebrated its defiance of God. The holy song cannot and uµ v} }v(µ Á]Z Z ZÇuv }( uv[ Po}Ç v uv[ Zu X The implications for the heritage of song in the church of Luther ought to be clear. The music and words uµ v Á ]v Z v }( Z}oÇX dZ Ç v v} v Á ]v Z v }( ^v}À o_ } ^v À (} Z X_ dZ Ç uµ ] } '} nd therefore free of the desecration of man. The songs of the ZµZ uÇ v} }}Á (}u Z Á}oU ]( ^}}Á _ ]uo] o µvX /v Z }( Z church taking songs and music for worship from the secular realm, there can be no return of them to the world. That which is dedicated to God must not be returned to man. The matters offered as a sacrifice to God are holy and must not be made unholy. The unholy and filthy works of man are not fit for worship. It should not be hard to draw the conclusions as to what the Lutheran stance should be in regard to that type of music for worship that is also used in hippie joints. There should be a natural and definite reaction among sincere church musicians and composers that look for music for dedication to the praise and worship of God, a reaction that feels and knows that there is no place in worship for the purely secular, no place for the sullied, smuttied, polluted music of the world in the house of God. One should have a feeling for this, that the strains and rhythms that accentuate and accompany the writhings and gyrations of go-go girls, the wailings and moanings of freakishly dressed artists, cannot simply be transferred into a church service. There must be a standard of evaluation, there must be an intuitive appraisal as to whether or not the sacrifice of thanksgiving and praise to the high and holy God is one like that of Abel primarily of faith, who brings, as a German exegete explains, das Erste und Beste ~^Z The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. (] v Z _U } ](]ce of Cain, who reflects his faithlessness in bringing das erste Beste ~^Z (] Z]vP_X dZ uµ o} }]v }( v} µvV ]( uµ] ] P]À v } '}U Z ] }]v ÁZ]Z ] vv} µ P]v } ](Ç uv[ Ç v (} v ]vu v v ]uµo]}vX >µZ [ Z }o}PÇ sets standards of evaluation for Lutherans: Songs of the church are new and holy because they are songs of faith in the forgiveness of sins. Faith is the main source and fountain of the new song; art, too, is a means but never should serve without faith. Songs of the church are such that flow from faith to faith, flow lovingly and peacefully. Songs of the church must be poetry and beauty, a worship frame for worship. Songs of the church must be such that the congregation of the saints recognizes and accepts them as part of the new song, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. What Makes It Lutheran? E. Theo. DeLaney When the word gets around that one is working on the hymnal project of a church body, inquiry and suggestion flow freely (}u oo ] X ^ / Z} Ç}µ[ P}]vP } µ ]v }u ZÇ ZÇuvJ_ ^ ,}Á }µ }u ZÇuv }( }]o ]Pv](]v M_ ^ tZ Á v ] }u ZÇuv Á]Z X_ ^ ^µ oÇ Ç}µ v[ P}]vP } l oo Z} Ç Z}o J_ ^ t }µPZ } ZÀ }u ZÇuv }v Z (}ol}vP vX_ ^ ']À us some hymns that will appeal to the Shehans and the Doughertys in the church rather than just ]vP } Z ' uvJ_ ^ Ç}µ P}]vP } ZÀ oo Z} doctrinal things in the hymnal? I feel like crying when I have to sing some of th ZÇuv µ }( Z }]v Z Ç ZJ_ ^ t]oo Z Ç l }µ oo }µ }o (À}] M_ ^ / Z} Ç}µ P}]vP } µu Z} iµvlÇ ]] Z }u }o oo ZÇuvJ_ ^ t]oo ] ]oo Lutheran ZÇuvoM_ Perhaps this last is the basic question which should be examined by any and all Lutherans interested in Z ] ZµZ[ Á}Z] o]( X / Z }u Z]vP ÁZ]Z ul ZÇuvo vl} À] }}l ]]voÇ Lutheran? Is there any value to having a distinctively Lutheran service book and hymnal? If not, there certainly would be no sense in wasting money to edit and publish a separate hymnal with its worship aids. The churches could then buy whatever hymnal best suited their desires and use the extra funds to evangelize the world for Christ! Doubtlessly there are Lutheran Christians who feel exactly this way. But what about this question? What does make a hymnal and service book Lutheran? First of all, the doctrine set forth in the hymn texts and the liturgical texts should immediately show this to be a Lutheran book. Writing in The Hymn, Ruth Ellis Messengerva non-Lutheranvsays that the hymnologist may not evade the theological issue which from the beginning has controlled and regulated the choice of hymns suitable for worship. It does so today. From the thousands of hymn texts which have been written since 1600, editorial censorship must select those consonant with the theological preferences of the group in question. . . . No greater obligation rests upon the hymnologist who is called to the editorial function Zv Z]X / µP vÇ ] u µ Ç Z oÇuv[ Á]oo]vPv } }] Z Z }o}PÇ }( Z] ZÇuv as an authentic expression of religious belief.[1] There seems to be a growing movement which would rule out doctrine as a factor in Lutheran hymnody, holding that the hymnal should contain only such texts as are doxological (where God is concerned) or speak to the existential needs with which the worshiper must cope in daily life. This attitude seems to find its roots in the desire for ecumenical appeal, a striving for the lowest common theological denominators rather than a conscious endeavor to raise the theological sights of the Christians in the pew.[2] In the light of the foregoing, it is most refreshing to hear Luther D. Reed tell The Hymn Society of America: If Luther were a member of The Hymn Society today, he would not be particularly interested in polished verses and pleasing tunes. Content would be more important to him than form. He would recognize the claims of beauty as well as those of truth and goodness, and he would welcome the ministry of art in worship. But he would also be deeply interested in every expression, whether particularly artistic or not, of positive Christian faith. He would appreciate as he always did the noble tradition of liturgical worship The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. enriched and empowered by great music. But he would insist upon an emphasis in Christian worship upon essential Christianity, a body of belief which rests firmly upon Scriptural foundations. Thus we see that the essential strength of LutZ [ Á}l ]v Z] (] o ] v} } (}µv ]v Z ]v]]}v of a new idea, the quality of his gifts as poet and composer, or the force of personal leadership or national influence. It lies in the depth of his faith in God and his Pauline conception of the divine plan of salvation. >µZ Á }v }( Z Á}o[ P (]Pµ µ Z Á P Z]]vU Zµuo o] À ]v Z µZ }( '}[ ,}oÇ t}U }v u]v] }( Z '} o }( : µ Z]X[3] Martin Britt, O. S. B., notes also that hymnody is one of the best ways to convey doctrine, to have it sung Ç Z À P o] À X ^ ^X u} Pv Z Á]]vP }( ZÇuv u v }( }u]vP Z pernicious doctrines of the Arians. His hymns were used to convey correct Catholic doctrine to the mind v Z }( Z] }o X_[4] It should be noted that Ambrose found it extremely necessary to fight his theological adversaries on their own grounds. The Arians were using hymnody to sing their heterodox faith into the hearts and minds of Christians, and Ambrose merely turned their own methods against themvmeanwhile giving to the church a doctrinal treasury in poetic form. It is quite generally recognized that the same situation obtained in the days of the Lutheran Reformation with the doctrinal repristination spreading as much by singing as by preaching.[5] And what was the medium by which this Gospel doctrine was sung into the hearts and lives of the Lutheran faithful? The oft-decried chorale in its true form was the chosen vehicle. Not the straight-jacketed isometrical tune divorced from its essential text nor the elaborately embellished harmonizations but the simple tune with its clear-speaking text carried the doctrinal impact of the hymn. To be sure, there are Lutherans who declaim against using the Lutheran chorale in a hymnal for mid-twentieth-century American churches. And yet we find non-Lutherans rejoicing in the availability of iµ Z] ZÇuv}Ç (} }Ç[ ZµZX Within the present century, attributes of worship belonging to a number of national, or linguistic, traditions have been recognized and welcomed by the hymnologist. Naturalized by translation into English, the hymnody of other modern languages has been introduced. Had we received only the German chorales with their musical settings, we would have been rich . . .[6] Pathfinder, a national news magazine no longer published, a number of years ago quoted Episcopalian T. Tertius Noble as saying: All bad music is not secular . . . Contrasted with the chorales of the 16th and 17th centuries, destined to o]À (} À U Z ^i]vPo _ ZÇuvX[7] Taking only the hymns of Paul Gerhardt as an example, John J. Johansen notes that his hymns have a popular appeal because he understood the people; not because he put the teachings of Christian truth into verse but because he had absorbed the Gospel into his innermost being and then reproduced it in poetic form in the language of the people as his own experience and his own possession. He is subjective only in the sense that his hymns are a personal confession of a universal truth. . . . The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. dZ o vPZ }( ' Z[ ZÇuvU Z} }( }Z ' uv ZÇuv Á] U Z v} }µ µ Z] ZÇuv to be less used in English than otherwise might have been the case. It ought to be remembered that this feature of German hymnody is due to the practice of dividing a hymn into verses for use throughout a service. The result has been that English books in accommodating these hymns have had to keep in mind the different customs here. This has, however, caused abbreviations and revisions that have weakened the original power and beauty of many of the hymns.[8] /v U ] uµ o]Ì Z Z Z}o (}µv ]v oo }} uvÇ }( }Ç[ ZÇuvo ] v} Z u chorale that the poet and the composer knew. As a result, the cry goes up from many sides for a freer type of music than this longwinded stuff. And yet it is to be remembered that the chorale has been edited into museumpiece status. Edward Dickinson quite rightly says that there was far more variety and life in the primitive chorale, the movement was more flexible, and the frequent groups of notes to a single syllable imparted a buoyancy and warmth that are unknown to the rigid modern form.[9] dZ ZµZ Z}µo P]À ]}µ }v] ]}v } >}µ] &X v}v[ pleavand remember that this was a Presbyterian speakingvZ ^Z ' uv Z}o v } } } Z ] }]P]vo ZÇZu (} Á ] Z u µoo v Z ÀÇJ_[10] It is, perhaps, this unawareness of the original version of the Lutheran chorale which is behind the cry for hymns in the folksong tradition and for hymns with more rhythm. Take a look at the three musical examples given below and note their similarity in pattern and rhythm despite their belonging to three supposedly different musical schools of thought. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. And now compare melodies B and C with their modern-day counterparts to see how their identity has been altered with a resultant loss for the singing worshiper. Melody B is the plainsong tune Divinum Mysterium, which is used as a mµ]o À Z]o (} Wµ v]µ[ P Z]u Æ Corde natus ex parentis. In the Common Service Book with Hymnal the first tune for No. 20 gives the melody as arranged by Sir John Stainer, where considerable liberty has been taken with the melodic line. The Lutheran Hymnal, at No. 98, claims to have restored the original rhythm to this melody[11] and yet mutilates the melodic line. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. In the Service Book and Hymnal No. 17 brings two settings for this melody; the first by the late Canon Winfred Douglas, is in agreement with the original form of melody B, but setting two again takes µvÁv o] ] Á]Z Z ZÇZu ]v v tZ] [ vP u vX Melody C is, of course, the great chorale Christ lag in Todesbanden, based on the 11th- or 12th-century melody Christ ist erstandenvone of the earliest of the Leisen, or extra-liturgical texts, permitted for use by the people in the medieval church service on special occasions. Note how the very life of the melody Z v µ Ì }µ Ç µ]vP ] ]v} ^v}vÇv} _ (}u ]v CSB, No. 110, and SBH, No. 98 (first tune). The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Folksong quality[12] in chorales is lost when the chorale is edited radically and, in some cases, prejudiciously. This can quite readily be seen in the case of the melody Komm, heiliger Geist Herre Gott. Now note how the melody has been altered in order to fit the requirements of the Winkworth translation, which has eight syllables in all lines v actually in Long Meter Double v rather than adapting the translation to agree with the melodic flow. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Note also that although Luther had eight syllables per line for his German text as his pattern, his last line before the alleluia in each instance was one of nine syllables. The arrangement of the German text permits a shifting of melodic stress which is not readily available to English versions, hence one finds Z >µZ [ O Herr, durch deines Lichtes Glast Zu dem Glauben versammelt hast Das Volk aus aller Welt Zungen; Das sei dir, Herr, zu Lob gesungen! was rendered in the Evangelical Lutheran Hymn Book as Lord, by the brightness of Thy light Thou in the faith dost men unite K( À[Ç }vPµ v À[Ç v]}vV We, therefore, sing with exultation: while the editors of The Lutheran Hymnal felt compelled to alter the latter two lines to read Of eÀ[Ç ov v À[Ç }vPµ V This to Thy praise, O Lord, our God, be sung. v Ç }Z À ]}v }v(}u u} o} oÇ } >µZ [ }]P]vo uµ]o }v Zv } t]vlÁ}Z[ original English rendering: Thy light this day shone forth so clear, All tongues v v]}v PZ [ v U To learn that faith, for which we bring Glad praise to Thee, and loudly sing, Hallelujah, Hallelujah![13] The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. dZ À]]o Z }( Z Z}o [ u o}] u P ] }( v o} Z}µPZ ]}]o Zvo]vP }( Z music. As was definitely the case with plainsong, to which the church had long been accustomed, so the chorale of the Reformation era was intended to be the united voice of the church agreeing in unison in its praise unto the Lord who created, redeemed, and sanctified her members. A good case in point is >µZ [ À]P}}µ }]P]vo u o}Ç o]v (} ]v[ ( µPX The church then went into a period in which her music was not fully written out except for the accompaniment, it being understood that the cantus firmus ought to be so well known that the musician needed no full score to guide him for the melody line. As a result, during the time of Bach and Handel embellishment of the melodic line had become the order of the dayvÁ]Z Z uµ]]v[ v]À ]o]] becoming almost tZ }o o]u]]}v }v ÁZ u]PZ }v } Z Z}o [ ^ vZv u v_ µv Z improvising hand of the artist. This was true not only of instrumental music but of the vocal rendition as well. Hence it is not exactly fair to charge Bach with having altered the melodic line of the chorale, since Z Á u oÇ (}oo}Á]vP Z µ}u }( Z] uµ]o ]u X µ ÁZ v Á ul µ }( Z[ ]vP (} the chorales, we ought to remember that what has come down to us in most instances represents not his arrangement for congregational, that is, unison, singing but rather settings designed for choir. Thus the setting so often used in hymnals and ascribed to Bach is not a fair representation of the chorale. And it is to be noted that the rugged, living quality of Luthe[ }]P]vo Z v (o v }µX ^}u }v }v }u Z Á} À ]}v } u }( Á X /v >µZ [ }]P]voU Z Z}o ] u}µv]v u leaping from crag to crag as it is highlighted by white waters, and then having reached the broad plain it becomes the majestic smooth-flowing river of the Bach settingvstill beautiful but lacking in essential character. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. (µZ o} }( Z ]] À]P} ] v} ÁZ v }v o] v } >µZ [ u o}Ç Ç & o]Æ Mendelssohn for his Reformation Symphony, ÁZ ^u}v[ o}l Z}v v Z Z v voÀ by strict isometrical chains. One must look or listen very closely to recognize in the original Luther chorale. A return to the rhythmic form of the Lutheran chorale will do much to restore this worthy vehicle as the readily comprehended and appreciated carrier of doctrine. It will go far toward answering the clamor for uµ] Á]Z ^ _ v (} ZÇuv}Ç ]v Z (}ol}vP ]]}vX ,}Á À U }v uµ v} } Z] juncture and feel that the whole problem of what makes it Lutheran has been solved. Even as the flow of Christian doctrine has not been limited to one national school of teachers, so the church must not limit herself to just one musical format. The chorale is only one form, albeit a very vital one, through which the Lutheran understanding of the Christian message is to be carried in song. There are other possible musical media available to the church. But one criterion must never be forgotten when selecting musical settings to carÇ Z >}[ u P v Z ZµZ[ }v } Z '} oU vu oÇU the melody must be worthy of the message it is to convey! DvÇ }o oÇ }v v }À ÁZ Z Ç u Z ] ^}o (À}] _ ÁZ ZÇuv}Ç ] discussed. All too often they seem to forget that the music is not the total hymnic picture. If it is true that the melody must be worthy of the message to be conveyed, it is even more basic that the message must be worth conveying! Superficiality and sentimentality have no place in a deep-rooted faith which confesses what God has done for mankind through His Son Jesus and what God expects from His o] À ]v µv (} Z] P X , v ] ] u} ( Z]vP } Zo D ]oo ^u]Z[ }vPµ -in-cheek remarks on what makes a good church hymnvin which he satirizes sentimental subjectivity in both text and tune.[14]The Lutheran Christian will recognize as part of his own spiritual heritage those texts and melodies which clearly depict the real vitality of the Christian confessionvfaith which is grounded in the Christian Evangel and demonstrated in the Christian lifevregardless of the source whence such texts and melodies arise, for they are Lutheran without being so labeled. But they must evince such qualities, or they have no place in a Lutheran hymnal or service book. Cited References and Notes 1. ZµZ oo] D vP U ^ ,Çuv}o}PÇW ,vu] v }( t}Z]U_ The Hymn, Vol. 6, No. 2 (April 1955), pp. 66f. Quotations from The Hymn are by permission of The Hymn Society of America. 2. A good case in point is given in Una Sancta, Vol. 23, No. 4, pp. 23f., q. v., for a fuller delineation of this ideology. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. 3. >µZ X Z U ^ >µZ v }vP P]}vo ^}vPU_ The Papers of The Hymn Society of America, XII (1947), last three paragraphsvused by permission. 4. Introduction to his The Hymns of the Breviary and Missal (New York: Benziger Bros., 1924), p. 21. 5. D]oo W]lU ^ }vP P]}vo ^}vPU_ The Hymn, s}oX ïU E}X íU X ô(XU v} Z ^]v Z ZµZ_ Z }o ]v Z Á ^Á ]o v µv]o Z Z (}u]}v stored their voices to them. It is true to say that multitudes of people sang themselves into the Reformation; such was their o] ( v i}Ç ]vP oo}Á U ]v Z ] }Áv ]PZU } o]( µ Z ] }Áv À}] ]v Z ZµZ[ ] }( '}X_ 6. Messenger, p. 66. 7. Pathfinder Magazine, Oct. 16, 1944, p. 23. 8. :}Zv :X :}Zv vU ^ Wµo ' Z ~íòìótóòU W} }( }v}o]}vU_ The Hymn,Vol. 5, No. 3, pp. 86f. 9. Edward Dickinson, Music in the History of the Western Church ~ E Á z}lW Zo ^]v [ Sons, 1923), p. 263. 10. Louis F. Benson, The Hymnody of the Christian Church (New York: Doran, 1927), p. 272. 11. William Gustave Polack, The Handbook to The Lutheran Hymnal (St. Louis: Concordia, 1942), p. 81. 12. Example A above is the well-known English folksong: Early one morning just as the sun was rising I heard a maid sing in the valley below: K }v[ ]À u J K v À o À u J How could you use a poor maiden so! 13. Catherine Winkworth, Lyra Germanica: Translated from the German, First Series, 2d ed. (London: Longmans, Green, 1855). 14. Charles Merrill Smith, How to Become a Bishop Without Being Religious (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday and Co., 1965), pp. 78t87. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Aesthetics of Music* Joachim Widman *This essay was delivered at the Second International Conference for Organ and Church Music in Bayreuth, 1963. It is printed in Musik und Kirche, Nov.tDec. 1963, pp. 249t258. It appears in this volume in an English translation by John Nicholas by special permission of the Bärenreiter Verlag. The following observation should be valid particularly for aesthetics of music. Aestheticsvwhat lies hidden behind this word? Two hundred years have passed since Immanuel Kant, the great philosopher }( <v]P PU v (}}v} } Z] ^ dv v vo }]v }( o u v_ ÁZ]Z W The Germans are Z }voÇ }v ÁZ} v}Á µ]vP Z Á} ^ Z ]_ } ] ÁZ }Z oo the critique of taste. This is founded upon a false hope . . . namely, to subject the critical judgment of beauty to the principles of reason and to elevate the principles thereof to a science. These efforts, however, are useless. . . . It is, therefore, advisable now to drop this terminology.[1] The advice of Kant was not heeded. On the contrary, his own later inquiries into the phenomenon of the beautiful (das Schöne) were by no means the least to bring essential knowledge to the aesthetics of art and to secure for this entire field the rank of a fundamental philosophical discipline. Since that time the number of those has been legion who have added penetrating observations, insecure intuitions, and more or less untenable speculation to this subject. What were all these attempts about? Briefly stated: the criteria of art. They concerned themselves with the question: Why is it that something is considered beautiful, artistically significant or insignificant, superior or inferior, overwhelming or unenjoyable? Our task, therefore, is to let our minds plumb the depths and search the hidden reaches of all music, to ascertain the essential standard according to which the beauty, significance, and power of a musical composition is measured. But are we not, with the first step in our quest for beauty and significance in art, entering a wilderness of conflicting opinions and views? The one experiences beauty in classical music, the other in jazz; the third states that electronic montages of sound are the fulfillment of his ideal of beauty; the fourth selects popular songs. And behind this division of musical interests the opinions really begin to divide. What is more beautiful: symphonic or chamber music, Baroque or Romantic, organ or other keyboard music, Mozart or Stravinsky? And so it goes on, and the possibility of finding more opposites is endless. You will gladly excuse me from not offering even an approximate enumeration. In any case, one thing is indisputably true: it is very difficult to express a unanimous viewpoint concerning aesthetics in music as well as in other areas. And if we are honest, we shall also admit that the criterion of pleasure and displeasure has changed in the course of our life; we shall admit that a second hearing of a work has already caused us to wonder how we could have been so enthusiastic about it before. In view of this undeniable situation many have again and again come to the wholly understandable conclusion that in the last analysis an aesthetic evaluation is a purely subjective matter and only gives Z v }( ZÀ]vP }i ]À U P v o Ào]]ÇX D}Ì[ (Z }v (}uµo Z] vÁ u} ]l]vPoÇW ^ µÇ ] v} ÁZ ] µ](µo µ ÁZ o X_ > µU v À Z o U o}}l ]v} Z] u to see whether in the final analysis the paths of aesthetics really become confused and disappear in the The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. thicket of subjective opinions or whether there is not a way out of this wilderness into areas freed of arbitrariness and subjectivity. I Let us first of all get a much closer look at the subjective aspect of our problem. What actually happens when we experience music? Think of any work which pleases you in particular. When you hear this work, it does not come into being in an instant, but it is formed tone by tone in a succession of sounds. It is not at rest, static, stationary, like sculptured marble or cast bronze, but is rather a living event, a continuous birth and death of tones and sounds. And that which we perceive to be its beauty comes forth from this uninterrupted process of sound production and decay. It comes forth not from something which exists unchanged outside us in finished form, like a sculpture, but rather from something which occµ }µ] µ v ^}i ]À oÇ_ exists in reality as a sounding work of art only as long as this event lasts. Butvand now I must draw your attention to an important pointvin this sounding form the work is never entirely present in objective, physical reality at any given moment. When the work begins, everything which follows has not yet occurred; and when the final chord sounds, the beginning sonorities have long passed away, and instruments a thousand times more sensitive than our ears are no longer able to identify them. A sculpture, in all its parts, always exists in objective reality at one time, as an entity. A musical work, in its entirety, never exists outside us at one time but has physical reality only in the portions which are sounding at the moment. We can, nevertheless, judge the work in its completed form. But where? In the room in which we are enjoying the music the tones which have been sounded leave no traces by which the entire work might be observed, like a picture. Where, then, does the music take on the form which we do perceive in spite of everything? Within usvthanks to the power which gives form to memory images and retains themvZvl } Z] uÇ ]}µ }Á ÁZ]Z À Z v l ] (} µ }u Z]vP ^ vX_ Thereby Á ZÀ ]}À Z ^µi ]À U_ ]v P]vP u}u v ]v Z } }( Z ] perception. There are many things outside us that we cannot grasp and have as an entity because we cannot leap back in time and have as a living object that which is past and outside us. But we are able to put them all together as they are impressed upon us, shaped within us, and constructed as a comprehensible form. The actual event which we as listeners did not produce has penetrated our consciousness, has come into being there, and has left a permanent mark. This mark may be impressed to a greater or lesser degree, sometimes vague, almost imperceptible, sometimes branded upon the innermost part of our being. As listeners we were not entirely without participation in the creation of that which appeared to be beautiful to us. Even though we did not consciously cooperate, we contributed something decisive. This is the fundamental power of the mind, to retain the past as present, the power to put together the pieces which time has scattered and shape the work of art into a diverse cosmos so that it seems to be experienced as an entity. Here is a significant fact: we never directly judge a musical event as it is happening on the stage, but we judge that which this objective event creates within us. For insight into the essence of the musical experience it is also important to know clearly where the event we have discussed takes place, in which part of our being the objective musical event meets the powers of our life. This does not really happen in the area of our reason nor essentially in the corporeal region but rather in the region whose function it is to mediate between body and spirit, the region of The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. the psyche. This region is like a river which flows between two countries, its waters touching both. It separates and at the same time joins them. So also the region of the psyche touches both the areas of reason and of the body. And an event that comes into being within it equally influences both sides, the conceptual powers of reason and the biological function of the body. In this region between body and spirit, music achieves the form which we directly comprehend in the experience. Better yetvhere, in this area of our being, we ourselves directly live that which we comprehend as music. Our psychic life is the substance in which the objective musical event is completely formed into any entity which has been put together by the power of memory. What takes place here has its effect in two directions. So it is also with the musical event. It is able, without traversing the path of rational concepts, to move us directly, to undo us, to give us joy, to lift us up, and to depress us. At the same time it also offers substance directly for the activity of the spirit. That is why the double countenance of music appears, its sensuous and spiritual aspect, the potential cleft between sensuous desire and greatest intellectual dislike for one and the same work, or stated in reverse, between pronounced torture of the senses and greatest attraction for reason. The music itself remains an undivided unity, but its effects always move in two directions, and the music, therefore, always meets two general criteria by which it is judged. The one depends upon whether music arouses physical, corporeal, biological, vegetative pleasure; the other, whether it arouses intellectual pleasure. As an illustration of both fundamental criteria, you need but think of the world-encompassing extremes of contemporary musical practice. On the one hand there is the world market of popular songs, with their emphasis upon unbridled, emotional, biological excitement but very primitive intellectual demands. On the other hand there is the abstract, thoroughly rationalized tonal mathematics of the intellectual avant-garde of music. } v} Z]vlU Z}Á À U Z }Z }( Z ] ] v uo}Ç }]vP } }v [ }Áv o µ X Both are directly and continuously engaged with the work. The body measures all music with its criterion, and reason likewise. There is latitude in choice only in the degree to which we wish to yield to one or the other. Here the degrees of difference in need and taste which form the basic character of an individual, are countless. Johann Gottlieb Fichte once said that the philosophy of a person is dependent }v Z] v]o Z X dZ u v o] } uµ]W }v[ ]v uµ] ] v v }v his essential character. Music and life have very much in common. Nether is static but is rather a durative event. Not only external characteristics mark the difference between us as individuals but much rather the nature of our innermost life and being. Many things influence us, but in the last analysis only the things we cherish influence us significantly. From this source, then, we already bear all our criteria hidden within us. The experiences we desire please us. But our experiences are not always pleasant, and our life often takes devious paths. Even then, more or less clear images of the life we desire still accompany us. And we might stress that everything pleases us which corresponds to our dream of life, which happens according to it. This pleasure, to be sure, is aroused spontaneously without lengthy reflective thinking or observation. But music, as we observed, is not only an outward physical event, but it becomes part of our inner life. Our pleasure in it, therefore, is governed by whether the nature of this event has been formed within us to correspond to the dream of our life pattern. As we leave the purely subjective aspect of aesthetics, we can never say that our particular dream of life is indeed the one which is in reality good for us. And for this reason neither is all music that pleases us The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. good in a higher sense merely because it gives us pleasure. Where then are the criteria of music to be found that are outside the realm of the subjective? II So far we have considered the end of the musical process, so to speak. That is the point at which the tonal event comes together from its expanse in time and unites again into a comprehensible whole. Let us now give our attention to the opposite pole, the point of origin of the musical work. By that I mean the process by which the work takes on its original form at the hand of its creator. We as listeners did not create the music we encountered. Even the interpreters, with all their influence on the life of the music, were only intermediaries in its total genesis. Let us then revert to the original composition. How are its criteria determined? First of all, according to what the composer, in the highest sense, is able to do (for art cannot divorce itself from ability). Secondly, according to what the composer sees. tZ } / u v ÁZ v / Ç Z (}u }( Á}l ] u]v Ç ^ÁZ ] v_M t }( v Ç Z inspiration is everything in music. Inspiration is, of course, an essential moment in musical composition. And it becomes evident if the composer has no inspiration at all. And yet it is by no means the case that every inspiration is automatically the one the composer is seeking for his work. Thivl }( Z}À v[ sketchbooks, of his incessant labor to find a motive or a theme that would present not just anything but that which was, so to speak, hovering before him in its sounding form. Is this not significant? Before he has found the motive he has been seeking, he already knows exactly how it should not be; he already has a fixed criterion for the music not yet composed! He has not created the music as yet, but he has something according to which he can measure, according to which he can search for his music in the elemental substance of all music. This is what I mean when I stated that the laws of creation and formation of a work are dependent on ÁZ }u} ^ X_ (} v µ]vP Z ]u Z uµ] ] ]vP (}u ]v Z }u} [ ]] for its final sounding form, his attention is directed toward something according to which he will construct his composition. This original model of his work, if we may call it that, can by no means be the sounding music of the kind that we perceive afterwards, nor can it be that which the composer sought to form in his composition. If that were the case, then he would have to do no more than take it down and transcribe it, like dictation. But it does not work this way. In the act of composing it is more the ][ l } vu]X , uµ (}u ÁZ Z ^ _ (]Z(µooÇ }]o Á]Z Z u v v materials of sounding music and translate it at the same time into the language of music. For this transmission he needs inspiration. The elemental material of music is also necessary, together with as full a measure of technical skill as tradition from past generations and his native ability place at his ]}oX , v v ]Z }( Z U Z}Á À U } ^ _ Z }]P]vo u} o }( Z] Á}lV Z] ] v v] ly ](( v } X µ Z Ç v Ç } vu] Z ^]µ _ ]v} Z vµ}µ u ]µu }( uµ]X Paul Klee once said that art does not reproduce what is visible; it rather makes visible. This is exactly what happens in all genuine musical composition. The composer transmits what he perceives into a form that makes it comprehensible for the world of the senses, in this case, for our ears. His ability for such transmission, his ability to make the inexpressible perceptible in the language of musicvthis constitutes his peculiar art. And the more clearly and adequately he succeeds in his transmission, the more he succeeds in being what we call a genius. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. This does not mean that others are not able to perceive the same thing. The difference is whether and to what extent an individual is gifted to make visible with the means of music that which he has perceived. In his Munich lectures, Thrasybulous Georgiades once referred to the noteworthy fact that two outstanding events in the more recent history of world thought happened not only in the same µ ]v Z u Ç W Z v }( <v[ Critique of Pure Reason and of the Russian String Quartets of Haydn, both in 1781. The amazing thing is not the outward coincidence but rather the fact that a spiritual experience of reality, identical in its innermost core, should appear in two completely different media. Development of motives in a pervading contrapuntal texture (diskontinuierlicher Satz, as Georgiades called it), which Haydn first used consciously in these quartets, and the Copernican trend of thought, which manifested itself in theCritique of Pure Reasonvboth are representative of one and the same spiritual experience which broke forth into music and philosophy at the same time with a power determinative for the history of both fields. One does not get very far in this case with the hypothesis of chance or of a reciprocal influence conditioned by a given period of history. Kant was one of the most unmusical people of his time, a man who incidentally saw the main purpose of music to be the same as laughter: to excite the lower viscera. And, to my knowledge, Haydn bothered even less about philosophy than Kant about music, let alone transcendental philosophy! The cause of this parallel occurrence was Ç v} u v }u Z]vP ^]v Z ]U_ v} Á ] Z Æ vo ]µuv }( Z ÇX Kv the contrary, it lay in the depths, in the hidden foundations of all being and of world-events (geschichtliches Geschehen).[2] Something happened in the continuing genesis of history which each of Z u Á vU ]v v voÇ }( Z }Z U u ^À]]o _ ]v Z] }Áv uvv X ,}Á o]o Z fundamental discoveries were common property of his contemporaries is witnessed by the fact that only Mozart and Beethoven, certainly with tremendous creative powers, and to a certain extent ^Zµ U Á o } ]u } Z ] uµ] Z À Ç Z }( ,Çv[ ]}À ÇX /v Z (] o }( philosophy, it was Fichte alone who was able fully to develop the embryonic ideas of Kant. We may adduce a few more examples of the striking parallelism between music and philosophy. One might think of the legacy of the two contemporaries, Descartes and Monteverdi, each of whom in his own medium brought the fundamental theme of the new era to light: an awareness of the possibilities v vP ]v uv[ }v]}µ µv]vP } Z]u o( v } Z] }Á }À vµ X d}ÇU Z v }( the portion of history begun in the 16th century, one may observe the division of music into abstract exclusivity and primitive biopsychic hedonism. And the resulting double countenance of an abstract world of science which can be explored only by specialists matches it. It is a world which has, from a practical standpoint, little more to offer man than a more or less sublime satisfaction of human needs. Think of Schönberg, for example, who brought about, between 1908 and 1921, the conscious dissolution of the traditional rules of functional harmony that are brought to fulfillment through the senses, into the nonsensuous laws of twelve-tone technique which one can follow only through the intellect. During this time Einstein in 1906 formulated his specific, and in 1961, his general theory of relativity, through which a most decisive step was taken from the perceptible world of Newton to the imperceptible, abstract world of modem physics. This did not stem, as many think, from certain irresponsible individuals. These people rather perceived a fateful event in the foundations of all being; they saw, so to speak, the unlocking of gates previously closed and sought, with their media, music or mathematical symbols, to ul Z ÁZ]Z Z Ç Z ^ v_ À]]o v (µ](µo } ooX As we summarize this second part of our investigation, let us remember that in the previous consideration of the subjective criteria we stressed the fundamental character of music as an event. In the subjective area it was the individual preference of a person for a particular mode and manner of all events which unconsciously became the plumb line for pleasure or displeasure in a particular work. In The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. the suprasubjective area of the historical process, we are dealing likewise with events, namely, the fundamental world-events, that is, the basic substance and fundamental element in which our personal existence is rooted like a plant in the ground to which it owes its nourishment. In this fundamental area of world-events, we have found another entirely suprasubjective criterion for a musical work: the criterion, whether a work, as it comes into being, is a true picture of the fundamental world-events in and from which its age is living. We may state it another way. The significance of a work depends upon whether and to what extent the work is able to make visible the hidden, and because they are hidden, much stronger elemental powers of the historical process. The great works in music history are significantly not always the works which elicit the cheers of contemporaries. They are the ones rather wherein the elemental powers of their age, hidden particularly to contemporaries, have achieved a form perceptible to the senses. The progress of history itself has made the great works of art legitimate, so to speak, as a true expression of their respective eras. In passing, it should also be noted that it belongs to the character of larger epochs in the history of world thought to develop with preference within the entire area of the arts the particular art form that is closest to the essential character of the epoch. Among all the overpowering contributions in the arts which the West has made in the one thousand years approximately since the conclusion of its Christianization, there is no doubt that music is the characteristic and specific art form of this era. Europe has accomplished two things in this period, each of which stands without parallel and without further example in other cultures. The one is the tremendous development of music through polyphony, a world of form suited only to the West. The other is the vast development of science. This Goethe unfortunately overlooked in his conception of Faust: that the fundamental spiritual disposition of western man is a key not only to the world of nature but equally to the world of music. Here Thomas Mann was more perceptive when he made his Doktor Faustus a demonic musical genius. III Are we now at the end of our search for the absolute criterion of music? I do not think so. We have found a criterion, to be sure, according to which music pleases us personally. We have also developed a criterion according to which a musical work takes on its significance as high art, whether it suits our own taste or not. In both cases, however, a decisive factor is lacking, namely, firm connection with an absolute measure of all being. We, with our individual inclinations, strengths, and weaknesses, are not suited to be this absolute measure. When we attempt to measure, then we are being measured; and we do not always fare particularly well. But neither is history, in its entire course, the measure, for not every event happens the way it should. Now that we have made a distinction between that which happens throughout the history of man and often distorts its course, and that which in all truth should happen, we have arrived at the most essential point of our investigation. Why do the events of history, which appeared to give us a suprasubjective measure, fail when they are measured according to the criterion of what should in all truth happen? How can a work be very significant because it grasps the essential evil character of a distorted historical situation, and why, at the same time, are we not able to perceive it as essentially beautiful? The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The answer is relatively simple: history does not transpire without the cooperation of man. Augustine }v ]U ^Á v } v}Z]vP Á]Z}µ '}V '} Z}} v} } Á]Z}µ uvX_ µ Z u ]u À Ç}v ] o} ( } u]v Z u} }( Z] o]( [ ]À]ÇX ,]}Ç Z v }oµ P]vv]vP v P}oX dZ ÁZ]Z ^Z}µo _ ] Z À v v }( Z Z ÁZ]Z o } Z] P}oX À Ç ]v]À]µo ] free to cooperate with the strength given him in bringing about the events that should be or to seek other fictional goals and to separate himself from the hidden source of life in history, as a tree from its roots, and finally dry up in the desert of absurdity. In this fundamental freedom we have the basic situation before us in which every encounter takes o U v} Á]Z }v }( Z o]À ] ] µ Á]Z Z }oµ u µ }( oo W ^Z ÁZ]Z Z}µo X_ &} Z ÁZ]Z Æ]U ] Z}µo ]v he light of absolute truth, is at the same time absolutely beautiful. With this knowledge we come to realize a dimension of art still deeper than mere connection with the empirical events of history. In the latter case the work of art was measured according to that which occurred in history. But with this deeper tension the work reaches beyond the events of history to the picture of that which should truthfully occur. It envisions this picture in its own way as that of a real work and thus actually places a criterion to the events of history. The work of art does not thereby become timeless in a naive sense; it is not dissociated from everyday living, from all the stresses and movements of life. On the contrary, its real-life character increases, and thereby it acquires for the first time its true foundation. For the work of art does not only appear in its era as a representation of that which has already occurred, but it speaks much more of that which is true for its time; it demands that which actually should be. It proves to be a picture of that which is actually able to supply the specific need of the time. It turns out to be a picture of the conquest of that which should not be. And thereby it stands as something much more than mere diagnosis, than a mere copy or report of the situation. It is rather an answer to a situation, a demand upon the situation, and a summons for man. This noblest meaning of a work of art is accomplished not in an area of unlimited possibilities but rather within the bounds set for each art form by its very nature. We stated before that the creation of a ranking work of art is identical with the transmission of an original vision into the sensuous medium of the particular art form. We also stated that this original vision might also be transmitted into another medium there to become visible. (This is comparable to describing a landscape with words or sketching it with a crayon.) But we should be mistaken to think that the various means of reproducing the same vision are interchangeao }v [ o µ X Ç v} u vJ dZ µ} }( Z ] ](( v vµ ] rather to complement than to replace one another. There are trends in the hidden events of history which only language can bring to light. There are other tendencies which only music can make visible, nothing else, neither language, nor gestures, nor the plastic or graphic arts. This does not mean that all arts have to be brought on the stage simultaneously. Land and sea complement each other meaningfully without being mixed together. It is enough that the arts complement one another within a given historical situation. Let us now ask a final question within the framework of our theme (and thereby we point to the original u v]vP }( Z Á} ^ Z ]_ïW tZ ]v o] Z µv]µe quality of music, relative to our perception, which nothing else, neither language nor any other art form, can replace? In the region of the psyche we found the place where music achieves its perceptible form. If we observe carefully, we discover, moreover, that the essence of music is suited to the nature of the psyche in a The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. manner that cannot be found in any other art form. We had stated that the mediary position between reason and body was significant for the region of the psyche, that it was neither a forum for concepts nor an organized substance but rather a third entity by which body and spirit are bound together, inseparably united. In exactly the same way music is true to its nature by hovering between the sensuous, spatial, corporeal world and the nonsensuous, abstract world of concepts. It touches both, is surrounded by both, and yet it is something else. All arts which use words, the symbols of concepts, must proceed via reason, whether they want to or not, for reason alone is able to grasp concepts and draw conclusions. Conversely, every art form which needs the eye invariably draws its life from material corporeal images; for the eye is the sense which, for the most part, transmits the perception of the corporeal world. Music, on the other hand, meets man directly in the center, in the place which binds reason and substance, body and spirit, and holds them in a fruitful balance. And the directness with which it unites itself in this area to the source of our life gives it an irreplaceable advantage. Through this, its characteristic place, will the essential and profound beauty of music break through in perfection, if it is created as a picture of the harmony of the spiritual and corporeal world, a harmony which should be according to the law of creation. In this form its beauty is not only aesthetic enjoyment, but, if you will permit the expression, also allurement to that which is good, attraction for reason and the senses alike to come with the center of their existence into the world of its laws. Cited Reference and Notes 1. Immanuel Kant, Critique of Pure Reason, I, i. 2. dZ u ^Á}o- À v_ ] µ } ]v] Z }v]]}v v }v µ v]o À v }( Z]}ÇX 3. dZ u ^ Z ]U_ (}u Z ' l aisthetike episteme, means, in the broadest sense, the teaching about sensuous perception. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. International Cooperation in Church Music Willem Mudde Good and trusted friends, well versed in the ways of the world, have often told me that to undertake a long and expensive journey one should have more than just one reason. Well, by the standards of these friends I am doing fine, for to accept Dr. Hoelty- E]l o[ l]v ]vÀ]]}v } attend this seminar I even had more than two reasons. First of all, the invitation meant a welcome opportunity to revisit Valparaiso University, where in the past decade I have had several teaching assignments, and which is also my alma mater, since it was at this campus that I received my honorary }}[ P X ^ }voÇU Z] ]u / Á } u] } ]vP o}vP uÇ Z}]U Ze Utrecht Motet Society, which on numerous past occasions when I was staying here wished it could drop in to verify my alibi for not attending rehearsals. And thirdlyvthough this may sound more like an excuse than like a bona fide reasonvthis visit would offer an opportunity to do something in the way of promoting the idea of international or interdenominational cooperation in the field of musicva matter which for the past 12 years has been not a mere hobby but rather a heartfelt concern of mine, stemming straight from my conviction formed in numerous fact-finding trips throughout Europe and the United States that international cooperation among church musicians simply has to come about. And looking back on all my experience in this country, I find that I have every reason to believe that this present meeting will provide a most fertile ground for promoting this ideal of mine. To begin with: this seminar is organized as an international seminar for church music, attended not only by numerous Americans but also by quite a few Europeans. And furthermore: the very topic to which this seminar is dedicated is suggestive of the benefits to be derived from discussions on an international level, for this aptly chosen and highly significant topic rightly characterizes Lutheran church musicvsuch as we know it, serve it, and love itvas a turbulent heritage from the Reformation. In other words, as something wholly opposed to what many people expect church music to be or believe that it should bevand also as the exact opposite of what Roman Catholic church music used to be until the Second Vatican Council. For Catholic church music in its traditional form as governed by its traditional intention actually gloried in constituting a unique species of music, an isolated musica sacra, a musical style all by itself, distinctly shaped by a variety of ecclesiastical laws and principles and therefore recognizable all over the world. Incidentally, Catholic church musicians nevertheless have been internationally organized for a long time already, for the simple reason that the Catholic Church is an international institution itself. Now before going into the problems and aspects, the advantages and the necessity of organized international cooperation, let us first examine the question whether the turbulent development of >µZ v ZµZ uµ] Á v (( }( >µZ [ ]µ }Á uµ] v ] o ]v ZµZ v liturgy, that is, of his theological views on the nature and essence of music, or whether it was brought about through the liberation, in the wake of the Reformation, of church music from control by the church, its councils, pastors, and congregations, so that its turbulent development would have to be ascribed to incompetence on the part of turbulent musicians. It is of vital importance that this question be conclusively settled before we embark on international cooperation or on establishing ecumenical contacts with other churches, After all, if the latter possibility I mentioned were the correct one, hence if the turbulent church music heritage of the Lutheran Church were the result of an uncontrolled or erroneous development, then those other churches would be perfectly right in suggestingvas they undoubtd1y wouldvthat we first clean up our own mess. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. / }v[ Z]vlU Z}Á À Zat I need to assure you at length that the turbulent church music heritage of the Lutheran Church in both past and present is not the result of a wild development nor the product of vÇ}v [ ( }}]vP µ Z Z µ} (µo }v µ v }( >µZ [ Z (ormation, which not only in doctrine and liturgy but also in music was theologically oriented. To put it in the outstanding words of Dr. Oskar Söhngen, who many years ago was my teacher in liturgy at the Berlin School for Church Music: Although Luther was anything but a reactionary in church life, anything but a ruthless renewer of the church, his discovery of the real treasure of the church, namely the holy Gospel, nevertheless caused him to change or even upset many a traditional matter or custom. Thus he replaced a dead language, Latin, by the living language of the simple believers, and instead of a restrained type of singingvGregorian chant, which in itself he liked very muchvhe introduced the exuberant folk song, the congregational hymn, as the means for the people to give expression to their faith and adoration. And it was this radical change of the chief musical language of the church which tipped the scales. Replacingmusica ecclesiastica by musica vulgara proved to be a fundamental and historic decision. This, as we know, did not become apparent right awayvthink, for example, of what Musculus wrote 400 years agovyet it revealed itself slowly but surely as time progressed. And the secret of this transformation is, at bottom, no secret at all: whereas Gregorian chant, introverted as it was, shunned polyphony, knowing that it could only lose by it, the new hymn of the Reformation, being more striking and rhythmical in nature, actively sought it, realizing that it could only win by it. And so it happened that the congregational hymns of the Reformation, after first having strengthened the people in giving expression to their faith, eventually even destroyed the traditional structure of the Mass, rapidly becoming the cantus firmus of a great many motets, the axis of a variety of still newer forms and styles, and in the end even the backbone of major compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach and numerous other masters, including contemporary ones. Of course, as we all know, Luther did not drop plainchant altogether, just as he did not abolish the Latin ovPµP }uo oÇX µ Z] } v} o Z u]v }]vW Z ] v }( >µZ [ Á}lU Z fundamental result of his reform efforts in church music, was that he gave music a fresh start and provided it with a new means of expression. And we only need to look at the great history of Lutheran church music to realize that this restoration of musical freedom, this reinstatement of music in its proper rights, including the right of assimilation and adaptation, meant nothing less than reopening the door of church music to the wide world of music as a whole and conferring upon church music the power of wide varietyva variety stretching from Walther and Ducis to Buxtehude and Bach, from Schütz and Schein to Pepping and Distler, from the motet to the cantata, from the chorale prelude to the concerto, and also (it should by no means be overlooked) from the German to the Italian style, from the old Dutch forms to the English chant, and from Swedish to American church music. In short, then, we find that church music as it has been created by the cantors and composers of the various Lutheran churches, as it has been preserved for us throughout a turbulent yet rich history, and as it continues to be written to this very day by contemporary composers is anything but a stylistically limited or nationally circumscribed phenomenon. On the contrary, it is nothing less than a worldwide, nearly boundless form of activity, a thoroughly and perfectly international phenomenon which keeps innumerable musicians all over the world busy, introducing various types of liturgy into worship and enriching the lives of millions of people in search of truth and consolation. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Here we are approaching another point, another aspect of Lutheran church music and a first reason why international discussions among church musicians are both desirable and necessary. For all its international variety, Lutheran church music, precisely because it is church music, has always manifested and must continue to manifest a surprising degree of homogeneity, thus introducing a remarkable degree of unity into its basic variety. This unity lies in what constitutes its very heart, in an attribute which we might call its nature, its real essence, something which cannot be discovered through conventional musical analysis (just as nobody can prove by mere biological analysis the existence of uv[ }µo µ ÁZ]Z v À Z o }v]µ ] u]vv (}U ] µv U ] Z] dimension, the quality which actually makes church music out of music and which elevates the best music existing to the dignity of music of the church. À Ç}Ç Z Á]oo µv v ÁZ / u vX /v Z] uµ]U , ]v]Z ^ZºÌU ^Z }u} }( Z ]o U_ employs all the musical styles of his epoch, even assimilating the latest Italian forms, while his Christian mind functioned in all of this as a melting pot, thus enabling him to fill those new forms with the outflow of his own will and heart and thus create music capable of giving comfort to his bereaved contemporaries, music which to this very day is recognized as a Christian profession of faith expressed in musical terms. Or to use another famous example, we all know what is meant by the third dimension, the soul of Lutheran church music, when we are listening to Bach, who in his church cantatas used the da capo aria, in his organ works (including his organ chorales) the sarabande and other French forms, and in his Passion According to St. Matthew even the dramatic style of the Italian opera, yet knowing in each and every one of these assimilations how to preserve his own message. For in the deepest strata of his music there glows a spark which even today electrifies every person with a fine ear for music and with a receptive heart in which questions of life and death, of belief and unbelief are vital questions. Now it is this feature of Lutheran church music, its mystery, which unites its various forms and internationally different styles and which therefore should also unite church musicians, coordinating their thinking about these matters and merging their efforts to penetrate into this mystery. Kv Z]vP ] ]v À v v}ÁW Z] ](] ]o }( ZµZ uµ]U ] µv]µ ^oµ_ ÁZ]Z Z criteria of music theory, cannot be assessed by aesthetic standards either, nor can it even be approximated by mere philosophical reasoning, forvas was aptly recognized by Thomas Mannv] ] ^ Z}}µPZoÇ Z }o}P]o u _ ~eine hochtheologische Angelegenheit). And this brings us back to Luther, his Reformation of 450 years ago and his theology, in which there was room for music because music was an integral part of it. If we were to list this important matter: the study of the relationship between theology and music, among the objectives to be pursued by church musicians through well-organized and regular international cooperation, this would mean that we church musicians would undertake an important jobva most important job of worldwide significance, since at this very moment there are new developments under way in music all over the world which tend to set music farther and farther apart from any other phenomenon and from any other engagement, thus making it revert to the atmosphere of l'art pour l'art and to a status of absolute autonomy. Although lack of time prevents me from going further into the various aspects of this problem and this trend, it is my firm beliefva belief which a great many friends of mine in various countries have been sharing for a quite some timevthat we as church musicians, as Christian creative artists living in a confused world, yet realizing our position and our tasks among our fellowmen and therefore playing an active part in the Lutheran Church in which we can ÁZ Z (( }( P}}U ^ vPP _ uµ]U µv }oemn obligation to raise our voices in concert The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. and to declare publicly and jointly that present-day humanity just cannot go on living with music devoid of any tendency, of spiritual contents, and of a message able to fill people with courage, joy, strength, and consolation. E}Á o }v[ P u Á}vPX / u Ç v} u v P]]vP P]v u} v uµ]U }( ÁZ]Z / ZÀ always been a convinced advocate. Nor am I agitating against experimenting in music, against new forms of twelve-tone music, electronic music, or anything along those lines. On the contrary, I am convinced that experimenting in music is something we need, something which must undoubtedly go onvbut only go on, I believe, inside the studies of composers (or, at best, among circles of experts), at least as long as the experiments have not yet yielded artistic profits in the form of a truly good and useful new musical style. Speaking as a church musician, I am also sure that a sterilization of music, its disengagement from all other ideas, in particular from the Biblical message, which always was its principal source of inspiration, would mean a fundamental impoverishment of music, would make it lifeless and soulless, and would cause a great rift to spring up again between new music and church music. And this is the very thing which we, all of us together, could prevent by publicly calling attention to the existing danger, both to music as a whole and to church music. In mentioning international action of this nature, I do not, by the way, mean to say that this is what I consider the most important, let alone the most urgent, task to be solved by organized international cooperation. What is needed first is a thorough discussion on an international level of all aspects of this problem. Even if this discussion were initially limited to the main problems existing in our professional field, it would still cover a wide variety of subjects. One of these subjects I raised earlier in my essay when I spoke of the heart of Lutheran church music, its third dimension, the quality which is in the focus of }Ç[ Z }o}PÇX E}Á ÁZ } Z }Pv]]}v }( Z v }( µZ Z] ]u v]}v ]v Æ]]vP compositions mean to the present-day composer anxious to write new church music? To what extent would it be possible for him to put some Christian or missionary substance into his score? What kind of musical elements could he use for it? I am aware that formulating the question in this way means oversimplifying it grossly. However, I feel it would be a good idea for us as church musicians to approach the important problems involved in this question from a direction opposite that used by the theologians, for the simple reason that music is a matter close to our heart, a matter over whose artistic soundness we have to watch, much as we are ]v ]v Z }o}PÇ[ }v(}v]}v Á]Z uµ]X /v Z]}Ç Á ZÀ }v Z }v Zv Z u} Æ]]vP examples of church music with a Christian message impressively wrapped up in a pure artistic package. Just remember Heinrich Schütz and his astonishing handling of decisive words in the Biblical text of his compositions. Or take Johann Sebastian Bach and his famous so-oo ^}v Çu}o]u_ ~Tonsymbolik) orvto cite a more recent example toovthe often surprising and significant quotations from hymns in the works of Max Reger. But on the other hand we have also the most terrible examples from the music }( Z íõZ vµÇU ÁZ v ZµZ uµ] ]} ]v} l]v }( ^ o]P]}µ uµ]_ µo }( Z efforts of numerous second- and third-rate composers to camouflage their artistic impotence behind an µvv }( ^]}µ ( o]vP_ Æ ]v Z ] }µv ÁZ]Z v v} o}vP ~]( À Z Ç }µo Z o or convert one single sinner and which can only disgust serious church musicians. A discussion on an international level of church music in all its aspects, spiritual as well as, shall we say, material-musical, would at long last make it clear to all concerned that church music can only then be The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. full-fledged church music (hence possess an evangelical, missionary core) if it is at the same time full-fledged music, and if our churches allow it to be and want to have it as music in the real and full sense of the word. The reason for my saying this is that after all there is a real need for an international pronouncement on such an international matter as church music. Also, the quality level of church music should not only be the personal, individual concern of each one of us but also our joint concern, the object of international deliberations through which we jointly seek to raise the standards of church music within the church, to set a high ideal in all our churches, and also to raise the consideration given to, and the prestige enjoyed by, church music all over the world, so that it will be recognized again as a serious form, indeed one of the most serious forms of music. E}ÁU / lv}Á (µoo Á oo Z } ( / ZÀ }voÇ vµu ^o}(Ç_ }] (} (µµ ]v v]}vo discussions. Too lofty, perhaps, in the opinion of those who share my familiarity with the actual situation v Z v µ voÇ Æ]]vP ]v À]}µ }µv] X t}µov[ ] (} }i }( ]v v]}vo }} ]}v } o (] Á]Z ( Á ]uo v u} ]o Z]vPM ^Z}µov[ ] P]v the bottom and only later decide just what it can and cannot handle? Now we are getting to the point. For this is precisely what I think myself, and for a very good reason. Indeed, though I believevand always will believevthat subjects of the type I just enumerated should be the main topics for any international discussion, its basic and principal starting points, the dome as it were, under which all other, lesser problems will find their ordered places, I also believe, in fact I have even become thoroughly convinced in many years of experience, both disappointing and rewarding, that this international discussion will have to start in a wholly different and far simpler way. Please permit me to explain. I am sure that some of you can still recall another, earlier attempt at bringing about a certain measure of international cooperation, ecumenical Lutheran cooperation, in the field of church music. Although this happened some time ago, some of you may be familiar to some extent with the way this worked out. This first attempt was undertaken in 1957, when the Lutheran Church in Holland celebrated the introduction of a new liturgy and a new hymn book, and when my friend, the Reverend Hofmann, chairman of the large Bavarian Society of Lutheran Church Choirs, and I conceived the idea of using this occasion to organize an international meeting of Lutheran church musicians in Amsterdam, where the celebrations were to take place. Our idea was to find out whether the fruitful, binational German-Dutch cooperation we had instituted and which had already been functioning satisfactorily for several years might now be expanded on a truly international scale, since we had discovered that questions we were worrying about were of topical interest in many other churches and countries as well. So we sent out invitations to just about all the world, arranged for some lecture recitals, church music performances and panel discussions, and solicited reports on the situation and development of church music in various countries and churches. The results we obtained were nothing less than surprising and most encouraging. Though our invitations had been sent out at rather short notice, this first ecumenical Lutheran conference on church music was attended by church musicians and representatives from 11 different countries: such European countries as Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Holland, Iceland, Italy, Norway, and Sweden, while in addition we had the very great pleasure of being able to welcome one participant from the USA. This, of course, was Dr. Theodore Hoelty-Nickel, who soon became our partner and who, incidentally, was the man who The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. often admonished me to think up at least two reasonsvor excusesvfor embarking on a long and expensive journey. No doubt his own trip at the time was in keeping with this principle. The meeting became a big success, even acquiring particular significance (by our standards of that time) by the presence of an official observer of the Lutheran World Federation. After the meeting, which continued for several days and culminated in a well-attended church service in an ancient Lutheran church in Amsterdam with festive music sub communione, a committee was set up and instructed to go ahead with the project by working out basic outlines for continued cooperation. The committee, composed of Dr. Nickel, the Reverend Hofmann, and myself, did indeed go ahead: it met several times at different places and it worked out the basic outlines in consultation even with non-members of the committee who had taken a great interest in the project. After a few years a second congress was held in Oslo, Norway; the outlines were drafted, printed, and put into circulation, and everything seemed to be set and ready for the long-awaited foundation of the Lutheran World Conference for Church Music. But believe it or not, all of a sudden all sorts of trouble arose. It turned out that we were using identical names for different concepts, and in the end the whole carefully constructed edifice collapsed like a house of cards. I am not going to tire you here with all the details of this breakdown, what actually caused it, who was at fault, who made the principal mistakes, or who did what wrong. Undoubtedly one of the major errors was our decisionva regretable one, alasvto make the Lutheran World Federation a party to our plans. For, to begin with, the LWF, already afflicted with enough headaches in other new movements and in formulating its reactions in various countries with different church systems, was in no position whatsoever to assume this additional burden. Againvas we discovered to our regretvthe Lutheran World Federation had in mind an organization in which the ideals and problems of the church musicians would be discussed, taken in hand, and acted on not by the church musicians themselves but rathervas is normal within the LWFvby church officialdom, that is, by the council presidents, bishops, and even archbishops, regardless of whether they are music-minded or not, regardless even of whether they know a single thing about music or not. What was not a mistake, by the way, was our working out and publishing the outlines I mentioned for well-considered cooperation in the field of church music. These outlines were partly taken over by the Lutheran Society for Worship, Music and the Arts in America in the preamble to its own statutes. I still remember the historical day in the fall of 1957 when I had the honor of being present as the only foreign participant at the founding meeting of this society at the University of Chicago, and I am proud of the fact that to that extent I may count myself among the founders of this successful organization. Since the breakdown occurred, we have learned a great deal. Disappointed though we were, we have learned that we are not above making mistakes. And in spite of everything, we kept our eyes fixed on our goal, and we continued to believe that this great goal well justified the undertaking of efforts to rally the Lutheran church musicians, those musicians who have so many identical interests and so many things in common, the same theology of music, the same liturgy, the same great past of Lutheran church musicvto rally them, I say, into a powerful movement dedicated to the defense and promotion of Lutheran church music as a joyful kind of music and a missionary power in the world. And so, after the untimely funeral of the Lutheran World Conference for Church Music, Dr. Hoelty-Nickel, Dekan Friedrich Hofmann, and I went right on organizing congresses and conferences, meetings and seminars in Europe The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. as well as America, in Valparaiso and Herford, in the Hague and in Stuttgartvand we do not regret having done so, for this time we began with a mutual exchange of information. Now we discovered how much we could learn from one another. We learned that we were moving in the right direction. We learned, too, that we needed some help. We decided to become what we actually already were: a committee for church music, and it is our intention to expand this committee today and to make plans for our continued advance in the years to come. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The Problem of Expression in Music Donald N. Ferguson These papers are the result of an attempt to condense into comparatively small space the fruit of some 30 years of study and speculation. The problem with which they deal is for the most part ignoredvin some quarters, because the fact with which they deal is taken for granted; in some, because that fact is denied. It is ordinarily taken for granted by those who, deeply moved by music, as they are by appeals from many other sources, ask no more than the gratification they have thus received. It is denied by those who, having inquired into the actuality of the idea supposedly expressed by music, have found that idea indefinable and have thus come to believe it nonexistent. They who believe that music expresses nothing are few in number. This, considering the vast number opposed to them, should be, to the minority, a disturbing fact. It is evident, indeed, that for that minority the history of music as it is written can have little real meaning; for the true history of our art is the record of its adaptation to the larger, constantly changing field of thought of all humanity. But in so far as the thought which music expresses fails to be understood, its history remains a defective chronicle. My undertaking is thus highly presumptuous. It assumes a defectvof course, unsuspectedvin the work of men far more learned than I. But what I here proposevin spite of its length, too briefly for the true dimension of the problemvis nevertheless a method of observation by which I can work (and which has proved, to a good many of my students, likewise workable) toward a more certain understanding of what music means. This problem, once it is pondered, can hardly appear less than vital. The Nature and the Process of Musical Expression A good many years ago, I ran across a definition of physical man, so ingeniously simplified that it has }( v uµ u ]v X ^ DvU_ ] ]U ^}v] }( }u Á oÀ } (]( v }µv }( }o] u u]Æ µ ]v ]Æ ]o }( Á X_ dZ P} µv rstatement is true, as far as it goes; but its chief value is to make us think of all that man is besides. Religion, philosophy, and the sciences have all striven for definitions of that more complete man, but not with complete success. Psychologyvwhich word suggests that science deals with what, to the ancient Greeks, was indisputably the soulvhas attempted to describe the behavior of this mixture of solids and water as that of a mechanism designed for reaction to stimuli. Rigidly pursued, this mechanistic psychology presents the human creature as the mere sport of impressions, present and past, that impinge upon himvan automaton in the clutches of a complex which he fondly believes to be his will. And its ultimate product is perhaps the strangest paradox in the history of thoughtva thinker who thinks he cannot think. Such a creature could hardly obey the old ' l uÆ]u ^ <v}Á ZÇ o(U_ (} Z Á}µo ZÀ v} o( } lv}ÁX Yet you and I and, I suspect, our mechanistic psychologist also, have somewhere within that mixture of solids and water which we and others identify as ourselves a spiritual self in which we ineradicably believe. Like that physical mixture, we also find the spiritual self in constant need of nourishment. Science has studied pretty competently the needs of the physical body, and in various intellectual ways the needs of the spirit have also been explored. Two world wars in three decades, however, suggest that these explorations have left a good many essentials undiscovered. Religion is one general type of such nourishment: the arts are another; and humanity has cherished both these contributions accordingly. Aesthetics, in the somewhat narrow view I am now taking, might be called a sort of spiritual dietetics. At any rate, its business is to assess the value of the arts as spiritual foods. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Criticism, in the best sense, is an assessment of artistic valuesva practical aspect of aesthetics. It has developed a very elaborate processvso elaborate that its original and proper purposevthe assessment of values in terms of human needs, is often obscured by the working of its process. Musicology has contributed vastly, of late, to the process itself and to that kind of objectivity in judgment which keeps criticism from turning into the mere operation of a formula. But while I hope I understand enough of the achievements of musicology not to undervalue them, it seems to me that even its elaborate appraisals are inadequate, in one very important field, for the valuation of music in terms of those demands of the spirit for nourishment of which I have spoken. I shall therefore first set before you what seems to me a serious deficiency in the existing apparatus of musical criticism. I shall then propose an addition to that apparatus which, I believe, will fit into the gap of which I complain. I cannot pretend that it will wholly fill the gap, but I shall hope to convince you that the gap needs to be filled and that the earnest effort of musicians like yourselves will be helpful toward that end. The deficiency I complain of is the lack of any tangible definition, first, of what music expresses (that is, of the nature of the nourishment it offers to the spirit), and secondly, of the process by which expression is achieved. I am glad that I speak to an audience of church musicians, among whom I am sure there are few who are so absorbed in the interest of musical structures as to believe that music is incapable of expressing any other than a purely musical idea. The musical heritage of Lutheranism was not accumulated out of any such belief. I shall be able to refer to that heritage only incidentally, but you will see, when I have finished, that I could find in it thousands of other examples than the single one I shall take for illustration; and I believe you will see in this heritage alonevif the vaster literature of music were not availablevan impregnable defense of the thesis I shall propose. My problem, as I have already hinted, can be set forth in two simple questions: (1) What does music express? (2) How does it achieve expression? These questions sound simple, but you will recognize that they are not so. Precise answers, even to the first of them, are difficult. I shall therefore deal with it at first in somewhat general terms by describing an example in which both the purpose and the fact of expression are indisputable, and then, by presenting the music to you, allowing you to judge the accuracy of my statements about it. You probably all know the D-Minor Piano Concerto of Bach. It was originally written for violin, and that }]P]vo À ]}v ] o}V µ Z[ vP u v }( ] (} ]v} (}µv oÇ Æ]X dZ (] À ]}v Á written at Cöthen. Some years later, at Leipzig, he chose as text for a church cantata the somber phrase (from Acts 14:22) Wir müssen durch viel Trübsal in das Reich Gottes eingehen ~^ t uµ Z}µPZ uµZ ]µo]}v v Z l]vP}u }( '}_X dZ (] u}À u v }( Z }v }U }u ÁZ µv}u(}oÇ transcribed for organ and orchestra, forms the introduction to the cantata. The slow movementva kind of passacaglia on one of the most pregnant themes Bach ever wrote, with potent harmonies and what must have been originally an exalted violin solo above this bassvhe kept intact but added, set to the text I have already quoted, four amazingly interwoven choral voices. The music is a miracle of structure, but it is also evidently intended to appear as appropriate to that text; and it is of the sense of those words, and particularly of the word Trübsal, that I should like you to think just now. Will y}µ }v Z (} U v} u oÇ Z ]]}vÇ[ (]v]]}v }( Z Á} ^]µo]}v_ µ Z ÁZ}o spiritual condition it implies, as if you were at this moment immersed in that condition. We shall presently attempt to explore more minutely the substance of this verbal idea; but for the moment I shall The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. ask you only to judge whether there is not a palpable kinship between the mental state to which this Á} ( v Z ÁZ]Z ] À}l Ç Z[ Z u W You have now for comparison two very different utterances of what is in essence one state of mind. The Á}U ÁZ]Z u} }v ]v Z ] µPP ]}vU uÇ (} Z }v (] } ^ (]v _ Z music; but if you ponder the music as you did the words, I think you will agree that, on the contrary, the music defines the wordsvthat it evolves a more illuminated awareness of the condition of Trübsal than that word, even in its Biblical context, is capable of suggesting. For the word, although it is a conventional symbol for that state of mind, had to ferment for some time in our consciousness before it yielded any vivid awareness. But the musicvwhile it was also intelligible and deeply interesting merely as a tonal structure, yielded so kinetic an awareness of that state that it seems to me at least, the very stuff of tribulation. Now we cannot suppose that this musical idea, conceived originally as an instrumental piece, had for its composer a different meaning than it displays when associated with this text. Like Beethoven, on the occasion of Napole}v[ ZU Z }µo (}µvU ÁZ v }v(}v Á]Z Z À o Z}µPZU Z ^Z Z o Ç Á] v Z uµ] (} ]X_ , u oÇ ] v](] Z Æ ]À µ} }( Z] Z u Ç associating it with appropriate words. The music, in its original form, possessed for Bach the power of expression. We recognize, as he did, the propriety of its association with the idea of tribulation. Therefore, for us also music possesses that power. I have thus answered, if only in a general way, the first of my crucial questions. Music is capable of expression. The second question, however, remains, and that one is much harder to answer. If we admit that in some form the idea of tribulation was expressed, just how was this expression achieved? Where, in the substance of tone that you have just heard, does that agency reside which is capable of evoking in our minds that awareness of tribulation whose existence we have just acknowledged? What, precisely, is that agency? It is to this problem that we must now turn. I shall have to take you through what may appear a labyrinth of reasoning before the answers can be clear. I cannot pretend that the going will always be easy. Our original question, how does music achieve expression, has at once divided itself into questions of what and where; and still more divisions will appear as we go on, each of them imperatively demanding an answer. I could, by ignoring many of The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. these, apparently simplify the problem and perhaps more easily win your assent to the theorem I shall propose. But in Z U / ( Ç}µ }uu v Á}µo Z u} À]vP µ ÇU ^ ^} ÁZM_ v / hoped that I might forestall that question. For I have more to do than to set forth a theorem. I have also to convince you that this problem of expression is really a problem in spiritual nourishment. And I shall confine our analytical observations to this single theme from Bach because its nutritive content, thus minutely examined, will illustrate more decisively than a variety of examples would do, the dimension of this problem. / o] À Á oo P Z[ Z u ]v ]u]o v U µvu]loÇ ]v } Á]Z Z µ} }( Z composer. That is to say, a process of expression worked. The text has a similar expressive purpose to that of the music. That is to say, there is a common ground upon which verbal and musical expression may meet. Obviously that common ground is not discoverable in the substances or the technical processes of music and language. They meet in the world of experience; and in this case in that region of that world which we call the experience of tribulation. We evoked an idea of tribulation in two very different formsva verbal and a musical. The actual substance of the ideas was, of course, very different in detail, but in both cases there was reference to the experience of tribulation. How was this done? The substance of verbally expressed ideas is familiar enough so that we can to some extent explore the process by which this verbal idea arose in our minds. To do this may also reveal something of high importance in the process of musical thought. What, then, was actually in our minds as we pondered the meaning of the word Trübsal? I think we shall find there two interrelated awarenessesvone, of the impact upon us of some bitter and ineluctable circumstanceva bereavement, a deep injustice, a frustration of cherished hope, or whatever. (I did not say that these circumstances were imagined in detail; I said merely that we sensed their impact as a spiritual influence.) Secondly, and probably with more vividness, the word evoked the image of an emotional stateva state which is the natural and appropriate product of circumstances such as I named. These two awarenesses were closely relatedvso closely that we cannot tell which was firstvthat of the circumstance or that of its emotional correlative. Indeed, the word tribulation may connote either experience from which feeling is generated, or feeling from which a generating circumstance is to be inferred. In either case, however, a relation of circumstance to feeling was established, and without this we should hardly say that an idea existed. This fact, that a probable cause may be inferred from a known feeling response, just as truly as a probable feeling response may be inferred from a known cause, will prove important for our future purpose. Let me repeat also that neither your image of the experience of tribulation nor your feeling response to that image can be the same as mine. A thousand threads of association will lead to stores of kindred experience that exist in your mind and in yours alone. I doubt, indeed, that the general sense of tribulation which was evoked by the music was as various, in our several minds, as the images of that same state which were evoked by the pondered word. But in both responses these two awarenessesvthat of external circumstance and that of an attendant feeling statevwere present, in some magnitude, in your mind as in mine; and to the extent of their similarity, we entertained the same idea. Indeed, from the inevitable presence of these two components of consciousness, I think we may deduce, for the purpose of our further discussion, a usable definition of idea. Let us say that an idea is at once a mental image and a valuation of experience. The image may be an immediate perceptvthat is, The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. of encounter, at this moment, with actual conditions of experiencevan image of reality. Or it may be evoked by various means of suggestion or portrayalvby such vehicles as drawing or painting, or by abstract symbols, such as wordsvwhat we might call a virtual image. The dimension of image, however, is not a forecast of the dimension of valuation. Even faint images, exciting what I may call tender spots in the areas of association, may call up valuations of high intensity, out of all proportion to the dimension of the image of circumstance. Also, the whole complex of image and valuation may comprise an amazing variety of detail. But both image and valuation, I believe, in some dimension, will be found in any idea. I need hardly say that the valuation of the image is that which gives significance to the idea. And in any significant idea, we shall find that the factor of valuationvwhich is the measurement of significance in the imaged experience for the percipient selfvis highly tinged with emotion. Even in such a problem as we are now considering, where a great number of careful intellectual discriminations must be made, and where the final decision will be one of truth or falsity, that decisionvwhich is the valuation of the experiences we have ponderedvmust excite our love for that which is true (or right) or our hatred for Z ÁZ]Z ] (o ~} Á}vPX /( ] } v ]Z U Á lU ^ ^} ÁZM_ µ À v ]v](( v U µv]v ]vP as it is, is an emotional attitude. In the practical business of every-day living emotion is not only a sign of significance in experience, but is the sign upon which we chiefly depend to measure that significance. We work as well as play, we strive and placate and pursue and shunvnot merely for immediate but also for ultimate satisfaction, not for the mere joy of momentary achievement or the relief of escape but to gain the sense that the self has been nourished. In terms of feeling, then, rather than in terms of the more laborious intellectual discriminations out of which the feeling summary is derived, we measure the significance of rea1 or imagined experience. In terms of their feeling value, also, we store up memories of past experience. And as evidence that this swift feeling-judgment has been depended on for ages, we possess in addition considerable inheritances of instinct or intuition which may contribute to our valuation of new experiences as they arise. What we call our convictionsvZ}Á À o À oÇ Á uÇ ^]}vo]Ì _ Z uU Z Ç}µvP }o Ç v}ÁÇvare comprehensive emotional summaries of real or imagined experience. And because our convictions, or our lack of them, are visible to our friends, they accept this evidence of emotion, or of disposition to emotion, far more confidently than any brilliance of intellect, as the true index of our character. For the purposes of art, this fact is of the highest importance. It is said, sometimes in praise, sometimes in blame, that music is the language of the emotions. But in reality, all art is a language of the emotionsva language which speaks in terms of those final emotional summaries which I have just described and which consequently loses all but a tithe of its appeal to the world at large when it fails to speak in terms of feeling. I am quite aware that feeling, amounting even to conviction, may arise from false images of fact and thus yield a false valuation of experience. Such feeling we call sentimentality. But to recognize the danger of exciting false feeling-judgments, and to attempt to substitute what is supposed to be a more intellectual attitude toward experience, may only substitute one emotionvin the last analysis, a species of fearvfor another. And to assume a coldly intellectual attitude toward artvto demand of it, along with its sensuous appeal, intellectual satisfaction onlyvseems to me a similar error; a similar attempt to deny the normality of the emotional valuation of experience. The product of such a denial is self-incarceration in an ivory tower. Bach possessed, and constantly exercised, a musical intellect of the highest order. But he had no love for ivory towers. He chose for his works, as for this cantata, themes (and in this case words also) which bore reference to general human experience, knowable in terms of feeling. The core of this cantata is the The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. theme of Trübsal; both words and music bear reference to that experience. In these two utterances, the text and the music, we have thus an exemplification of two methods of expression. The method of the textvalthough that is perhaps hardly an art-workvis nevertheless that of the so-oo ^ v]À _ arts. This method portrays or describes or otherwise recognizably represents conditions or facts of experience in that aspect which will arouse in the mind of the observer an emotional realizationva valuationvof the import of that experience. Literalness of representation may or may not be required. The merest hint of the simplest fact, in a suggestive context, may evoke in us a valuation wholly incommensurate with the dimension of the act. For a poetic Æuo U Z]vl (} u}u v }( v [ story of Paolo and Francescavthe two lovers who read together the story of Lancelot. Presently, as they U }u Z]vP }À ÁZ ou Z uV µ Z u} À]À] ]Pv }( Z À vU ]v v [ À ]}v }( ]U ] that the bo}l Á (}P} vW ^ /v ] o À U Z ÇU Á v} u} X_ A fact of experience is here portrayed in such a way that we who read will ourselves complete the given image of experience by interpretingvor as I have called it, valuingvthe act. Dante knew we could complete itvhe was compelling us to complete itvout of that store of experience which he knew we possessed. The essential fact in the method of representative art is that from a portrayal of fact an inference of feeling is drawnvthat an image of experience has been valuedvthat an idea has been communicated. Music, to be expressive, must also intelligibly communicate idea. But it is at once evident that this representation of external experience cannot be the method of musical expression. Music is almost always ridiculous when it attempts the literal portrayal of external fact. What, then, is its method? We uÇ o v }u Z]vP }( ] Ç Æu]v]vP u} u]vµ oÇ Z[ Po] Z u U ]v Z uµ]U o]l the text, did achieve the expression of the idea of tribulation. It did not portray external conditions of bereavement or injustice or frustration or any other fact that would ordinarily induce the mental state of tribulation. It portrayed that mental state itselfvor at any rate the feeling-component of that mental state. Consequently, the idea evoked by the music is vastly different from the idea evoked by the word for that state. For the word, as we normally use it, implies conditions of experience and connotes, rather than portrays, feeling. The music, on the other hand, portrays feeling and connotes conditions of circumstance appropriate to that feeling. If it were not so, we should not have been able to identify this theme as related to tribulation. We did so identify it. An image of the experience we call tribulation was inferred from what I think we may call a portrayal of feeling. If this is true, then the method of musical expression is also a method of representation. To many of us that statement may well appear alarming and perhaps subversive. Music is generally supposed to differ from all the other arts by virtue of its complete disassociation from external experience and by many it is held to be thus exalted above the other arts. Some, following the lead of Hanslick in his little book Vom musikalisch-Schönen and of Edmund Gurney in his big and important book The Power of Sound, have argued that music really expresses nothing save the musical idea itself. Others, unwilling to abandon the generally recognized relation to feeling, have tried to retain the proud isolation of the art v ]oo µZ}o ] }Á }( Æ ]}v Ç ]]vP uµ] ^ v]À _ U P]v Z }Z ÁZ]Z ^ v]À _ } ^ - v]À X_ dZ] Z } u µ] u}u v[ v]}vX By the method of v]}vU }u} [ u}]}vU }u Z}Á u}] ]v }v U ] µ} } re-created, intact, in us who listenvapparently by our mere exposure to the musical stimulus. Just how The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. the composer embodies the whole substance of an emotion in the substance of tone is not clear, nor have I found any account of this theorem that recognizes the need for more than musical thought in ] v](Ç]vP Z u}]}v µ} oÇ Zµ ^ v _ Á]Z Z }( }µ }v]}µ Æ] v X v] o Gregory Mason, a spokesman for the theory of presentation, avers that music deals not with things but Á]Z ^] u}] ( o]vPU ]}vo v X_ dZ] ] ]À -sounding nonsense, but it is nonsense all the same. What is a disembodied feeling? How are we to grasp itvhow identify it as a human fact? DX D}v[ }µv }( Z } ]}v ] v} µ]vPX Dµ]U Z ÇU ^}o]Z Z}µPZU } µ ]v ] v}À o ]À]Ç Z ] ( o ]uu ] oÇU ]v Æo]oÇ P (µoX_ ^ v]u vo u] v ÁZ} accept music as the food of love seem, by comparison, to be blindingly rational creatures. They at least associate music, however indiscriminately, with a reality of experience; but the contemplation of a disembodied feeling is indeed the abolition of thought. I doubt that rational beings will find that condition of consciousness especially grateful. By comparison with this, the position of the purists, who find that music expresses nothing save the idea of music itself, is wholly rational. Obviously, I differ with them, but I have not time in which to set forth what appears to me to be their point of view. If, however, their opinion were generally heldvif the Á}o ]v P v o Á v} o]}v Á v uµ] v Z u} ]v ]vP Z]vP ]v o]( U ÁZ]Z uv[ emotional valuations of experiencevI doubt that the musical public would be numberable in millions. I contend, then, that music in so far as it is an expressive art is a representative art. It is virtually incapable of representing things; but it does represent emotions. This supposition may at first sight seem as incredible as the notion that music can present emotion. The turmoil of an excited mind seems, as a mental fact, incapable of definition or of any representation. But our minds are themselves somehow embodied in the twelve pounds of solid matter and the six pails of water of which we are made, and the behavior of that part of the body which is not the mind is so correlated with the turmoils of the mind itself that from that bodily behaviorvand in the last analysis from no other sourcevwe are able to know the turmoil itself. Emotion is recognizably displayed in bodily acts. Is it possible that music can represent the behavior of the emotionally disturbed body accurately enough to evoke an idea of the emotion as it exists in the mind? Unless this is possible, my whole theorem is indefensible. Psychology has differentiated and defined and measured various features of emotion, but it has never disputed the existence of two elemental factors of emotion that were familiar to humanityvand to artistsvlong before the science of psychology was invented. The first of these is a perceptible condition of nervous tensionvor of its opposite, nervous calmvwhich is an invariable characteristic of a state of feeling. Although this condition is not externally manifest as a nervous state, it is often clearly perceptible in consciousness, and a considerable variety is distinguishable in these statesvdistinguishable in terms of inner tension. The second, more manifest because it is externally perceptible, is a product or at any rate a close correlative of the nervous tension. This is the apparently inevitable innervation of certain muscles which we call the motor outlet of the emotion. I believe that these two elemental factors of all emotional states can be recognizably portrayed by music. In fact, I believe I can show that in this portrayal we have twovand the only twovelemental factors of musical expression. If this is true, it may constitute the foundation of a workable theorem of musical expression. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Such representation may well seem both too remote and too fragmentary to evoke what, if expression is actually to occur, we can recognize as idea. And expression, in any rational use of that term, is the intelligible communication of idea. But these manifestations of nervous tension and motor impulse are perhaps more highly characteristic than we at first suppose, so that a really vivid representation of them may be sufficiently suggestive for our purpose. Let us inquire, therefore, into the implied meanings, as we ordinarily observe them, of these two facts. We must remember that we are dealing with emotional statesvthose that we have described as the valuations of experiencevand not with mere instantaneous reflexes such as occur when I jerk my hand away from contact with the hot stove. That jerk is not the product or the characteristic of an idea. It is only a reflex. But as I realize that my hand has been burned, an idea does arisevone that is in some part a product of the continuing pain, but is in larger part what I might call an overall sense of injury to myself: a feeling in which resentment, both at fate and at my own stupid carelessness is mingled with disappointment over the fact that I shall now be unable to use my hand for something that I had hopefully planned to do. These nervous stresses are as much a part of my whole consciousness of the accident as is the sight of the blister on my hand (which also adds to my distress); and they will have, either individually or collectively, their motor outlets. I am conscious of them, not as individual strains of excitement, but in their concrescence as a feeling-sign of my present state. With some effort, indeed, I can differentiate this sense of tension from the whole of my conscious awareness. These tensions, at any rate, are very different from those which would have accrued if I had barely escaped burning my hand instead of actually burning it. If you will now compare with this simple instance of feeling and idea the much more complex awareness ÁZ]Z ] Çu}o]Ì Ç Z Á} ^]µo]}vU_ / Z]vl Ç}µ Á]oo P Z Z ] }voÇ ](( v ]v degree, not one in kind. The contributory experiences are far more numerous, but in the last analysis they are injurious contacts between my self (which is more than my body) and the world (which is more capable of doing me injury than is a hot stove). Yet, just as we can imagine the bodily injury of burning and its feeling-consequences, we can imagine the spiritual injury of tribulation. We doubtless cannot clearly describe the nervous conditions themselves which are characteristic of the state of tribulation. Yet we do know these conditions. They were in some measure imagined by you when I asked you to ponder the meaning of that word. Indeed, an image of your mental attitude toward those conditions formed a considerable part of your whole awareness of the meaning of that word. That image was thus a part of the definition of that word as you understood it. We noted also that the word did not so much defiv Z u v]vP }( Z[ Po] Z u Z Z u ] o( (]v Z Á}X And that was because no small part of the meaning of the word, when that word comes alive in our minds as the equivalent of a living state, is an awareness of feeling. We do know these nervous conditions, however ill we may be able to analyze or describe them. They are, indeed, the immediate substance of all our emotionsvsigns through which external experience and its significance is translated into consciousness. They are so variablevso delicately adjusted to the character of each experience as we undergo itvthat it is not strange that we have but few and feeble words by which to symbolize them. But, I repeat, we do know them, and know them with a certainty such that if we found them adequately represented we should at once recognize the likeness. We do not, however, usually observe these states as nervous conditions, isolated from the rest of our consciousness. Arising in connection with, and as a product of, external experience, they are so palpably The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. related to that experience that, instead of trying to name it by some word directly indicative of feeling, Á ] v](Ç } (]v Z ( o]vP ]v u }( ] Æ ] v]o µ Xí dZ À ^} o}À U_ (} Æuo U does imply a general mental attitude and a corresponding nervous condition; but that word has little vividness of suggestion until an object for our affection is presented. We do not just love. We must love something or somebody; and the nature of our affection is largely determined by its objects. We love men and churches and bridge and oystersvbut not with the same affection; and if you will dispose your affection on each of these disparate objects in turn, you will see that in each case a considerably new complex of nervous tensions arisesva new set of overtones for the original fundamental of affection. Almost all our names for emotion are similarly vague, when used as symbols for the states they attempt to signify. Yet, once associated with their appropriate external cause, the tensions vaguely implied by these words come clear in the mind as vivid images of feeling. We do know these nervous conditions. Sometimes also conditions of feeling arise for which no assignable cause seems to exist. These conditions we call moods; and some of them are definite enough so that we give them names, such as pensiveness, boredom, and buoyancy. Here, more precisely than with the word love, the symbol suggests the overall nervous conditionvhas to suggest it, indeed, because there is no fact of experience present that can explain or account for it. It is true that such words are somewhat vague, but the fact that they exist at all is proof that the nervous conditions they symbolize are characteristic and sometimes vitality important facts of consciousness. Our verbal vocabulary for all states of feeling is feeble. The states themselves, howevervwhether ^v]]À U_ o]l o}À U } ^]vv]]À U_ o]l } }uvare important, always to our own selves, and sometimes to the selves of others. An adequate vocabulary through which important facts of experience can be expressed and discussed is of incalculable value for every man. The nervous states which are aroused in us by experience are the signs of significance in experience itself. Thus if we can find in music an adequate vocabularyvan effective means of communicationvregarding these states, not merely as feelings but as indices of significance in experience, it seems to me we shall have added incalculably to the effective vocabulary of experience. For it is through such a vocabularyvthrough the knowable }uuµv]]}v ~ÁZ]ZU o] ooÇU ] ^Z]vP }P Z _ }( Z ÁZ]Z ] ]v }Z u]v Zv }µ }Ávvthat the spiritual self is nourished. The remaining element of emotional experience (considering emotion as a psychological process) is the inevitable motor outlet of accumulated nervous tension. This outlet is more readily observable than the inner tension itself, since it often appears as the visible motion, or as a characteristic of the motion, of various members of the body. These motor outlets, it is true, are seldom the most direct, or as we might say, natural, products of the originating tensions. They are very often redirected or inhibited motor acts. Indeed, it is probable that we do not feel them unless they are inhibited. But in many cases these inhibitions are purposive, arising from conscious effort toward control or concealment; and since we all find it desirable to adapt our behavior to that of our fellows, the result of all this careful redirection is a kind of socialized behavior. It is not, however, on that account less interpretable as an index of feeling. I do not strike the pretty lady whose sharp heel has ground into my toe on the crowded bus. Instead, I smile sweetlyvor sourlyvmaking a grimace which, unless she is very stupid, she will recognize as an (( ]À v]o }( uÇ oÇ]vP µv Z ] ]v[ ZµX This will suffice, I think, to indicate the vast possibility of motor behavior as an index of feelingvof feeling which, as a valuation of experience, is a vital portion of idea. I need not dwell upon the extent to which we interpret the ideas of our fellows in terms of their conscious or unconscious motor reactions. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. We watch for these signs and depend on them, in almost any encounter, to supplement our understanding of what is being communicated to us in words. Consider your reliance, for the interpretation of the whole state of mind which accompanies an expressed thought, on posture, gait, facial expression, and that most subtle motor release which is manifest in the inflections of the speaking voice, and you will be sufficiently aware of my present purpose. It is also worth noting, however, that just as we have inexplicable nervous conditions which we call moods, we have also motor impulses for the execution of which we have no muscular equipment. In spite of this lack, some few of these impulses are so vivid that, like some of our moods, they have been Çu}o]Ì ]v Á}X }v] Z Çu}o}PÇ }( Z Á} ^ o _ ÁZ]Z u v ^}v µ_voff the earth, and kept there in defiance of gravitation, by some mental image of spiritual excitement. Ecstasy ]u]ooÇ ] ^ ]vP }µ] }v o(_V ]}v ] ^ ]vP Á ]PZ }Áv_V v} ] ^ ]vP ] }À _ ]v} P]}v Á Z}µld never be able to reach in the body. I can find but few words that imply such inoperable muscular impulses as these; but these few will show that such impulses exist, and they are probably more numerous and more important for the whole fact of consciousness than we realize. But taking them along with the vastly greater body of recognizable motor impulse, we find again a fact of consciousness for which an adequate vocabulary is in the highest degree desirable. These two facts of nervous tension and motor release are essential factors in the whole phenomenon of emotion. No matter what the stimulus, they appear; and they are therefore elemental constituents of emotional states. We are seeking, in the substance of music, for an effective vocabulary for these statesvfor that which in some way can represent or portray them. It will be natural, then, to search first for those features of the musical substance which show direct relation or some indubitable similarity to those elements of emotion. If we can find them, and if, in the ordinary reception musical utterances, their presence and their correlation with the elements of psychological experience is readily recognizable, then we may hope to have discovered the elements of musical expression. What these elements really are; how far they may need to be complemented by other factors; and how, as a cooperative body of elementary and secondary suggestion, the whole vehicle of musical expression functions, is a problem at least as complex as that of the identification of the elements of expression. But if we can with some certainty identify these elements, the direction of our study will have been indicated. Our next section will take us far along this road. Elemental and Secondary Factors in the Process of Musical Expression Our search for the bases of a tangible process of musical communication appears to have yielded, thus far, the following results: Having agreed that music can relate, not to the facts of external experience but to the mental response aroused in us by our confrontation with those facts, to the idea formed in our minds, we have defined idea as at once a mental image and a valuation of confronted experience. That valuation is an estimate of the significance of the experience for the self that encounters it. It is both an intellectual and an emotional valuation, for while the facts are recognized as facts, there is also a deep concern for their effect on the well-being of the perceiving self. That concern is largely emotional, but it is also very complex. It is compounded not merely out of regard for the immediately confronted facts but also out of our memory of innumerable former occasions of experience, similar in some degree to this one, and out of our certainty that similar occasions will be encountered in the future. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. This feeling, whether anxious or hopeful, is not apprehended merely as feeling. We find it an appropriate response to the situation that confronts us. If, then, this emotion can be portrayedvwhether in music or through any other mediumva dependable inference may be drawn as to the nature of the experience to which the feeling is appropriate. We have now to see (1) whether such musical representation is possible and (2) whether such an inference, from such a representation, can reliably be drawn; for without this inference we shall have an apparent valuationva valuation of the unknown, which is undesirable, if not actually unthinkable. We found that common sense, corroborated by psychology, distinguishes two elemental factors of emotional statesva characteristic nervous tension and a correlated (and thus equally characteristic) motor impulse which is the outlet of the tension. We have seen that these nervous and motor manifestations are of immense and subtle variety and are closely related in consciousness to our awareness of the external circumstance which is their causevso closely that they constitute a part of }µ ] }( Z Æ ] v U v }v]µ ]voµooÇ } ÁZ Á oo Z ^ (]v]]}v_ }( Z vu Ç which we call the experience. We are now to explore the substance of music to see whether it possesses properties which enable it to portray these elemental facts of motion and tension. If we find them, it will be natural to suppose that we have identified the elements of musical expression. But we must not suppose that if our search is successful, it will at once reveal the whole detail of the process of expression. Elemental facts are by no means always obvious. They are often so completely hidden by what is on the surface that we do not even suspect their presence. This is true of our present problem. There are a large number of expressive devices, used by every interpreter and familiar to us all, which I have as yet not even mentioned. I am as keenly aware as you of the value of these devices; but we shall find that, like the parallel devices used for inflection and emphasis in speech, they are dependentvand therefore secondaryvfactors in the whole process of expression. They are a manner related to a matter; and the matter to be uttered must determine the manner of its utterance. The indubitable designation of the emotional facts of nervous tension and motor impulse as elemental determines precisely the direction of our immediate inquiry. We are to see whether there is that in the substance of music which can recognizably portray or effectively represent these two characteristics of emotional behavior. No musician needs to be told that the substance of music is in its very nature an extraordinary complex of fluctuant tone-stresses. Indeed, the correlation between these and the stresses of feeling is probably obvious to everybody. But more is needed for actual expression than a possible correlation. The tone-stresses must be shown to be capable of that precise suggestiveness which will portray recognizably that emotional tension which is a part of our valuation of an experience. To show so precise an adaptability, we must explore the various features of tonal arrangement and relation which convey the sense of stressvor of its opposite, the sense of calm, which may be equally important for expression. Three types of tone-stress are universally recognizedvindisputable features of the musical substance and familiar to everybody; but their differentiation is often unobserved. I will therefore take time for a brief summary of the values useful for our purpose inherent in each of the three types. The first of thesevthe simplest, the most obvious, and the least precise for expressive suggestionvis that of relative height and depth of pitch. I need hardly say that high tones normally suggest greater stress than low tones, or that progression from low to high generally implies increasing tension, and The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. progression from high to low, relaxation. The maintenance of a single level of pitch has also its natural implication of unchanging tension. Other factors of the musical substance may alter or even negate these primary implicationsvfor example, a rising line which diminishes in intensity or fades into obscurity. But such progressions are exceptions, and you will hardly find in all musical literature a tense climax which is achieved by descending progression. The second tone-relation suggestive of stress depends for recognition on the prior acceptance of a tonic, or at any rate of a tone-center, in relation to which other tones stand in various degrees of stability or instability. In our musical system (with which alone this discussion is concerned) the tonic is the most stable notevthe gravitational center of the whole tonal mass. Our almost invariable dependence on harmony in music-making has reinforced this sense of stability in the tonic, making it more positive than was the final in the old modes. By virtue of the shift from modality to tonality, with consequent emphasis on the sense of major or minor key, we have also come to feel that the third and fifth of the tonic chord, whether that chord is major or minor, partake of the stability of the tonic. This is so far true Z ]v ÁZ uÇ oo ^v_ u o}Çvthe three notes of the tonic chord are distinguishable (}u Z }Z ^ _ }v U ÁZ]o oo Z }Z v} }( Z o U ]}v] } Z}u]U ^]À _ }v X voÇ] }( v u o}Ç Á]oo Z}Á ZU ]v ]v]o U ]À v} v } } } the nearest rest tone. They have, of course, great liberty of progression, so that melody from an active tone may not only execute considerable gyrations before it proceeds to its destined rest point, but may also evade that point altogethervwith all the advantage of novelty and logic combined. Because of this high variability, it is impossible to ascribe precise values of activity, or even of rest, to any one of the v} }( Z o X dZ À vZ v} U Z ^o ]vP }v U_ ] µZ Z u} ]À v} }( Z o X µ this same note, heard as the fifth of the mediant chord, loses much of its tension. Similarly, the tonic, dissonantly harmonized, loses much of its value of rest. But it is obvious that without this high variability, music would be unequal to the suggestion of many subtleties of stress, a great number of which suggestions must be available if the fact of expression is to be attained. The third type of stress suggestion is of course that of harmonic concord and discord. These, palpably, suggest rest and activity. Like rest and activity in the notes of the scale, and to a far greater extent, these qualities are fluctuant and variable, and description would be merely tedious. It is worth noting, however, that active notes, in melody, may be harmonized by either concord or discord, with great variety of suggestion; that rest tones may be similarly subtilized; that the rhythmic position of tonal stresses may be adjusted to almost any purpose of intensity or its opposite; and that in consequence these three primary values of tone-stress, working in combination, present a pretty adequate equivalent of the immense variety of nervous stresses which are a part of our amazing equipment of reaction to our daily contacts with the world. Appropriately to his expressive purpose, also, the competent composer, in a given musical movement, will provide a general norm of harmonic intensityvZ ^ vÀ]}vu vU_ } } lU }( Z] u} ](] thematic utterances. This environment may contribute greatly to the vividness of the thought expressed, or may of course be so badly handled as to interfere with our apprehension of that thought. A high norm is not, in itself, an infallible index of high intensity of expression, and if such a norm is established at the beginning, it is obvious that still higher excitements must be sought at the expense of more and more unusual harmonic tensions. And whether the end result is an actual gain in expressiveness is a question that can be finally answered when the real idea of the composition is valued, not in terms of the ingenuity of the language but in relation to other ideasvto other images and valuations of experience.[2] The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The various types and combinations of tone-stress may of course be exhibitedvand interestingly exhibitedvwithout reference to any external experience. So rich a resource for pattern-making cannot but appeal to the born patternmakervwhich every artist is. But that is not our question. Without destroying the musical interest of the fabric, can they also be so disposedvhave they been so disposedvthat at the same time they pointedly suggest states of feeling? I believe they can. And their power is further enhanced by another resource which, so far, I have all but ignored. This is the fact of motionvin itself possibly representative of activity or calmvwhich may subtly qualify the purely tonal suggestions of stress. We are as keenly aware of the motion and the rhythmic propulsion of music as of the pitch, activity, or dissonance of the tones; and the whole quality of a given stress-moment may be profoundly affected by the rhythmic energy which propels it or the lack of energy which impedes it. Surely there is enough here so that the skillful and imaginative composer may use these resources for expressionvfor intelligible reference to, or portrayal of, those facts of nervous tension which are elemental to emotion itself. The possibility that we have here an actual element of musical expression seems to me evident. Our recognition of the fact of motion as a component of what is largely perceived as tone-stress will somewhat blur the identity, as an element, of the musical fact we are observing. But it seems to me that for the purpose of verbal discussion we may call this element by the name we have already often usedvZ }( ^}v - X_ We found that the fact of motor release was another elemental fact in the psychology of feeling. The correlative of this should prove to be another element of musical expression. It may well appear to you that this element has long since been identified. You will point at once to the familiar fact of rhythm as the fact we are seeking. No one, at any rate, will deny to music the power of exhibiting, and so possibly of portraying, rhythm. For since rhythm, whether in the creeping of the worm or on so vast a scale as the precession of the equinoxes, is invariably characteristic of motion, that which portrays rhythm can be understood as a portrayal of motion. But again, recognizable portrayal of characteristic motion, such as is required for the purpose of intelligible expression, is not attained by a mere general exhibition of motility. Music, like a human body, is capable of both, and a discrimination is necessary. The conventional sense of the word rhythm, which designates an element of musical structure, barely comprises the fact of motility, and certainly lacks the implications, needful for expressive suggestion, which I believe to be present in the musical substance as we all normally apprehend it. The usual process of musical analysis defines or exhibits rhythm in terms of marked instants of accent and nonaccentvessentially as a series of detached thumps of varying weightvwhich mark the instants and the relative energies of propulsion in the musical mass. Doubtless, musical analysis implies more than this; but the word ^ZÇZuU_ ]v Z] }v ÆU ]oo (]o } }vv} oo Z ( }( u}]}v ÁZ]Z Z Á} in its original etymological sense conveyed.[3] The fact of motion in music, even to the ordinary observer, appears as far more than the succession of thumpsvthe mere instants of propulsionvwhich the marks I have mentioned indicate. For just as the }Ç }( Z v À]]o Á v Z v Z (]v ] }µo]}vU } Z ^}Ç_ }( Z uµ] rises and falls and gyrates and floats; and it is this motion of the whole body, human or musical, which is interesting. What happens between these instants of propulsion, indeed, is usually more indicative of the real character of the motor-effort than is the pattern given by the thumps. Any given rhythmic The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. patternvdactylic, iambic, or whatevervmay be exhibited in music which moves with energy suavity, timidity, grace, hesitance, or a hundred other characteristics; but I think you will agree that these characteristics, far more than the mere basic pattern (which is no more than a poetic foot in comparison to the poetic thought) are the really compelling features of the music. Structural analysis can usually classify rhythmic patterns in terms of the poetic feet from which at least the principal meters of music are derived; but musical motion, even when exhibited an a single poetic meter, is so diverse that no given pattern of rhythm may be said to retain any intrinsic feeling character. Even such a general classification as that which we found possible in tone-stresses is thus impossible. µ Z } v} ]v Z o u]v]u]Ì uµ][ }Á }( u}} µPP ]}vX / ] µv(}µv oÇ µ Z the qualities of motion I spoke of (energy, suavity, and so on) are not as positively indicated in musical notation and design as are the facts of tone-stress (dissonance and tonal activity) which we have already discussed. The interpreter, therefore, comes into our picture, and his presence must ultimately be recognized; but for the moment we shall try to do without himvto show, indeed, what he, as executant, often fails to perceive. Musical motion is of all possible degrees of speedvlagging far behind or far outrunning our normal two-legged gait. But motion at almost any speed may appear as impeded or impelled, laborious or effortless, or anything between these extremes. The tensions of the musical substance, as well as the nature of the melodic line (legato, staccato, syncopated, or whatever) will greatly influence the character of the motion. The substance of harmony, likewise, not merely by virtue of its consonance or dissonance but by its obviously heavy or tenuous mass, may affect both the superficial motion of the melody and what I may call the apparent momentum of the whole musical substance. These things are exhibited in the rough in our present system of notation; but even when the actual substance of music (in the given v} v ] }( u}]}v ~]v Z }u} [ ]Pv]}v }( u} o]Z U l v interpretative insight is needed if the intended character of the musical notation is to be appropriately exhibited. I have doubtless mentioned no aspect of musical motion which you have not long since perceived, nor any which is not a recognized feature of music considered merely as music. But again I pose the question: can this suggestion of motion be understoodvhas it been understoodvby composer and listener alike, as the correlative and even the representative, not merely of such physical facts as the rending of the veil in the St. John Passion, but of the subtler motor acts which reveal our mental states? If so, I shall be justified in regarding this portrayal of motion, which may appear in a variety as endless as that of actual motor impulse within ourselves, as a second element of musical expression. Since not only the continuity of the represented motion but also the characteristic propulsive or impeding stresses perceptible in it contribute to the whole motor fact we are considering, the word ^ZÇZuU_ ]v ] }vÀ v]}voU Zv]o v U u } u µvµ]o a name for this element. I have Z (} }}Á (} ] Z (}u uµv 'µv ÇU v oo ] ^] o u}]}vX_ These two facts of tone-stress and ideal motion in music are possible correlatives of the two psychological facts of nerve-stress and motor impulse Because the psychological facts are elemental for emotional states, I believe their musical correlatives to be elemental for the musical expression of those states. Because the elemental facts in the psychological response to the stimulus are two in number, I believe that there are two, and only two, elements of musical expression. They seem to me to offervwithout detriment to the interest of the musical substance as suchvdependable reference to the world The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. of general experience; and I think I have sufficiently shown that expressionvthe intelligible communication of ideavcan hardly occur without reference to the world of general experience. I should have liked to go on from this point to a discussion of the manner in which these elements functionvto describe their actual working, as I see it, in the process of expression. But I cannot yet do that. I am building up a hypothesis, and it is not yet complete. The elements, as I have called them, are indeed the fundamentals of that hypothesis; but they function conjointly with other contributory factors which remain to be described. And there is another reason for delay. Even the elements, in the perspective in which we have seen them, have an unwonted look. We have seen themvfor clearness of identificationvas no more than the correlatives of certain details of emotional experience. But they are alsovand first of allvmusical phenomena. They appear, not in isolation (as for identification I have described them) but as if in solution in the fluid musical substance. Although I may have, as I may say, precipitated these elements, they do not function for expression in this state They function only when in solution. I contend that the substance of pure music can with no detriment but rather with high addition to its musical interest, contain in solution the active principles of expression. It may also contain these principles in an inactivevthat is, an unsuggestivevstate. And it is also possible, even though the active principles be present and active, to ignore their v v Z uµ] u oÇ µ X Z[ passacaglia theme is as well constructed as music can be. I believe you also found it expressive; but to look at it as a sample of pure music will perhaps keep you from thinking that I have no interest in this aspect of the art, and it will also offer an opportunity for something like a judgment of the contribution which expressiveness may make to pure music, or of the derogation from its pure value, if you find that that occurs. What does this theme yield, when observed as pure music? You can see a coherent overall design, based on the motive announced in bars 1 and 2vthe rising line of a triad, followed by a sudden descent. In bars 3, 4, and 5 this pattern is pursued in a kind of diminution or foreshorteningvthe note completing the drop being also the first note of the next rising triad. Variety in this continuation is gained by the use of two diminished triads instead of the minor triad of the opening; these two are followed by a major triad; and the quasi-cadential value in bar 2 reappears only in bar 6, where the pattern of bar 2 also appears in a foreshortened state. The middle part of the theme, which may be seen as the B-section of an A-B-A form, ensues. It is made of the diminution of bar 2, just mentioned, ingeniously combined with the swerving figure B-flat, F-sharp, G; the motion is now in continuous eighth notes; and the characteristic fact of the sudden drop is exhibited at every strong beat. But the notes which complete the drop form a definite pattern of ascent (B-flat, C, and D) to the E-flat, upon which a pause is made. The E-flat, however, is an unstable note (the submediant) so that continuation is clearly implied. The final A-section is entered upon by a kind of inversion of the swerving figure of the middle part; there is another rising triad (uncertain in that it is again diminished) and another sudden drop to the lowest of the many low notes thus emphasized. The cadence is striking. It departs from the motive patterns so far persistently used into a straightforward figure, rhythmicallyvand by implication, harmonicallyvdecisive. Although no harmony is actually heard, the triad arpeggios and the rising line in the middle section delineate unmistakable harmonic progressions, and these, almost at every long drop, are given a high degree of unexpectedness. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Certainly, with no thought of expression, this theme presents a compelling musical idea. Nor is this pervading musical thought irreconcilable with the definition of idea to which I have bound myself. There is an image and a valuation of experience. The experience, it is true, is not portrayed. It is presented. But it does yield an imagevan image of form. And our valuation of that image is partly in terms of our satisfaction with any patently perfect organization and partly in terms of the sensuous interest of the tones themselves, in their contrasts of register, their unexpected behavior, and other aspects. Since we have already associated this theme with a nonmusical idea, we may find it difficult to view it in a nonexpressive aspect. But I have tried to be just in my appraisal of its purely musical value. If you prefer to accept only the purely musical idea, I shall have no ground upon which to complain; but I doubt that that will be your decision. However, this excursion has led us astray from the straight line of our inquiry, and we must find our way back. You will not have forgotten that in addition to the elemental factors of expression, of which we should now have a pretty definite idea, are an undetermined number of accessory or contributory factors. To these and their function we must now return. We shall find most of them akin to the endless varieties of inflection and intonation which contribute to the meaningful utterance of verbal ideas. Their contribution, whether in music or in speech, is so great that we often quite forget the fact that they are essentially contributory to the conveyance of thought but do not themselves contain the thought. However eloquent may be a verbal inflection, it is so because it reveals the true significance of the word to which it is applied; for it is evident that if this same inflection were applied to a word of different meaning, or to an almost meaningless word like a preposition, its effect would be ludicrous instead of expressive. The same may be said of musical inflections. I hardly know how to name all these secondary or accessory resources. Of them all, I believe appropriate dynamic shading to be the most important; but you may equally be right if you feel that first place should go to precision of rhythm, and to that kind of rhythmic shading which, though all but imperceptible, contributes incalculably to the vitality of the motion aspect of music.Ritardando and accelerando are obviously in this category. When this kind of shading occurs within a phrase, we call it tempo rubato. When it becomes too conspicuous, we call for ]}v }( }X /v Z Ál }( oo Z U ÁZ]Z uµ v ]v [ ]v v U }u µZ resources as tone color, contrast of register (as when a violinist plays high on the G-string), lightness or weight in attack or release (really, but not always apparently, a dynamic device), and many others which I need not catalog. Of all these, only the shadings of dynamics or tempo require any discussion. Everybody knowsveven those performers who, when they play, seem often to forget itvthat minute control of dynamics is of the highest importance for musical utterance. Nor is a mere indiscriminate placing and shading of dynamic stress sufficient. Inappropriateness is almost as annoying as dynamic ]v](( v X µ (} iµPu v }( }] v Á uµ vÁ Z µ ]}v ^}] } ÁZM_ v Z vÁ uµ ^} Z v }( Z Z X_ dZ Z U Á ZÀ vU uay by different interpreters be regarded either as purely musical or as also expressive, and the character of the phrase may be considerably altered according to this opinion. In general, however, the syntax of a musical phrase is a structural fact which remains the same in any enlightened view; and it may be worthwhile to describe what seems to me an illuminating analogy with verbal phrases. In any phrase of words, you will find that the precise utterance of your meaning demands that some one word in that phrase be given predominant emphasis. While this may be an emphasis of sudden softness, The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. the most frequent demand will be for emphasis of loudness, with subordinate points of stress placed as the sense demands. The position of verbal emphasis is clearly determined by the meaning of the word. Notes have no individual meaning such as words have, and their sense is created by their relation, in intelligible sequence and combination, to other notes. Yet a phrase of notesvas is indicated by our unquestioning use, ]v uµ]U }( Z] u Á} ^Z _vhas a similar contour to that of a phrase of words, and for effective utterance it must display similar points of predominant and subordinate stress. The exact dimension of a phrase (which may have two notes or an indefinitely greater number) is sometimes a matter of legitimate dispute. The carelessness with which the slur was used as a mark of punctuation by almost all composers until at least the second half of the 19th century adds to the difficulty. Yet, I believe that if the notation is obscure, musical common sense will generally provide at least a tolerable solution of the problem. But to determine the stress-point is not enough. The quantity of stress is as important as its position; its dimension in relation to other notes is by no means a matter of rule; and the relation of this to the surrounding phrases, and at last to the whole design or sense of the movement, poses incessant problems which only keen intuitionvand of course perfect techniquevcan solve. The problems of rhythmic shading are so similar that I hardly need to dwell on them. It is probably true that dynamic shadings are more closely related to the element of tone-stress and that rhythmic shadings relate more frequently to the element of ideal motion; but this is an almost useless generalization. To extend the catalog of these values would result in the utter boredom of us all, who are familiar with niceties of utterance which, described at length, would appear but as two grains of wheat hid in two bushels of chaff. It is time for synthesis, not for more analysis. The apparatus of expression, as I have described it, seems to consist of two elemental factors, tone-stress and ideal motion, whose function is the portrayal of conditions of nervous tension and motor impulse within ourselves. That apparatus also includes various contributory or accessory factors, usable for the heightening of the portrayals given by the elements. Through this apparatus, if its parts are made to work harmoniously to a single end, I believe it possible to convey intimations as to actual states of mindvintimations which, rightly apprehended, may be enlarged into images and valuations of experience. That enlargement is not provided for by the music, which gives only the intimations. The recipient mind must accomplish the enlargement for itself, and it will do it in its own way and according to its powers of inference. Images of experience, immediate or represented, must be erected into idea through this process of inference. Images of the feeling characteristics induced by experience may similarly be erected into ideas by the process of inference The only difference in principle is that the process of inference, with music, works in the opposite direction to that which occurs when, as is usual, we are confronted by an actuality or an image of experience. Neither, I believe, is this reversal of the direction a serious impediment to exactness. Words themselves are far from conveying with absolute precision the thought of him who utters them; and when we deal with the highly suggestive words out of which poetry is made, the inferences we draw are as various as those we draw from music. Not only you and I but actors like John Gielgud and Maurice Evans, and also all the eminent Shakespearean scholars, past and present, will draw different implications of meaning from Hamlet. But beneath these differences lies a deep well of unanimous opinion which they and we share and which is the best and perhaps is the only final evidence of the significance of that tragedy. Analysts can show us details which substantiate that significance; but neither they nor we can express the whole of that deeper opinion which we all share. We are reduced to the dull statement that Hamlet is a great play. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. The reason why we cannot express it is, of course, that what I have called an opinion is both less and more than that. It is less, because an opinion is a reasoned judgment, and reason is not evident in that banal assertion of greatness. And it is more, because the reasonsvwhich we could give, if they were demandedvare swallowed up in our embracing consciousness of greatness. That consciousness is too comprehensive to be shaped into a single clear image of experience out of which most of our puny ideas are generated. But it is not the less an ideavan acknowledgment, not lightly offered, of the spiritual nourishment that our starving selves have received. I have set before you a hypothesis which, if it really works, should add appreciably to the soundness of our judgments of musical value. Whether it will work or not remains to be seen. We shall look once u} Z] Z u }( Z[ } ÁZ]Z / ZÀ } ] voÇ ( X / ZÀ }} uµZ (} Z principle of sufficient reason to suppose that in one demonstrationvhowever successful it may provevthe validity of this hypothesis can be finally proved. But I shall hope that it will be convincing enough so that you may use it for yourselves, in your own valuations of the spiritual nourishment which music offers. A Test of the Process of Expression What I have presented is a hypothesisvand is no more than thatvof the process of musical expression. It has been, I hope, a reasonable hypothesis; but many an unworkable theorem can be reasonably argued. This hypothesis is valueless if it will not work; and I shall try to put it to as severe a test as my opportunity will allow. At first contact, my theorem will probably have appeared to you very complex. The process, in operation, should however appear fairly simple; but you would hardly expect so significant a fact as the communication of idea to be accomplished by the mere turning of a psychological crank. I have obligated myself to show that an ideavonce more, if you will allow me to repeat my definition, the image and the valuation of an experiencevcan be communicated by the vehicle of music. In the first section of my paper I offered an example of such communicationvone which the composer had indisputably intended as an expression of a state of mind which is indicated by the word Trübsal. We }Pv]Ì U / o] À U Z Z[ Po] Z u }uo]Z Z µ} X dZ Z u vwhich, as we saw, lacks no value ordinarily attributable to pure musicvmay now be explored in the light of our expressive theorem. If it seems to you that I have chosen too convenient an example, and one which takes my theorem for granted, I will ask you to remember that it was originally a purely instrumental piece, and that the association with the word Trübsal was established later. Bach perceived the association as valid. I shall try to show why he was rightvnot because he needs justification but because his judgment, analytically justified, will also justify our search for expressive purpose in other cases where association such as exists here cannot be invoked. In the substance of this theme we are to observe especially two supposedly elemental facts, tone-stress and ideal motion. These, our hypothesis assumes, may be perceived as portrayals of two elemental facts of emotion as we know itvnervous tension and motor impulse. Amplified by normal associative accretions, the fragmentary suggestion given by the elements may assume the dimension of an idea. The amplification is of course essential; for nervous tension and motor impulse alone do not form the substance of idea. They are merely phenomena characteristic of a mind in which an idea is present. But they are characteristic; and they may evoke interpretative inferences. We gained the idea of that which overwhelmed Paolo and Francesca merely by amplifying, inferentially, the fact that they read no more in The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Z ] }}lX t Z}µo o]l Á] o } P Z[ Æ ]À µ} U ](U ]v ÁZ ] }À]}µoÇ cogent musical idea, we attend to what I believe was also designed as a portrayal of the feeling appropriate to a given type of experience. Perhaps I should say, before we begin, that I am not supposing Bach to have conceived the problem of musical expression in the terms in which we are now considering it. We are observing, analytically, a process which the artist executed synthetically, and probably with little or no thought of the process as such. Bach, as his adaptation of the concerto theme to the cantata proves, devoted the resources of his incomparable musical imagination to the utterance of what may also be conceived as a nonmusical idea; but he no more pondered the things we shall observe in the light in which we shall observe them than Milton pondered the principles of English grammar while he was composing the highly periodic sentence with which Paradise Lost begins. Bach, like any master of language, was utilizing resources of his language which were put there long before he learned it by other users of the same medium of expression. Let me emphasize that the facts of nervous tension and motor impulse were not invented by the psychologists but were only named by them. They are universal characteristics of feeling states, and to perceive the fitness of music for their representation, it is not in the least necessary to see the substance of music in our present analytical light. I did not invent the facts of tone-stress and ideal motion. They, also, have been there from the beginning. In our observation, let us ignore, as far as we are able, the implications of Trübsal which we found in the music. Let us look, with active sensibilities but without any definite expectation, at what, merely as portrayals of tension and motion, our hypothetical elements of expression have to say. Our first question will be what sort of tension is exhibited by these notes, in those relations of height and depth, activity and rest, or consonance and dissonance, which we cataloged previously. Our second inquiry will explore, similarly, the characteristics of motion. Then, assuming that these are possible portrayals of tension and motor impulse within ourselves, our next question will be: What feeling-state do they characterize? And the lastvif we need to go so farvwill be: Out of what conditions of experience would such a state arise? It would be more precise to take all these types of inquiry in the order in which I have stated them; but it would also be tedious. I think we may safely observe the notes or the phrases in their order, noting what each yields of tension suggestion. I shall restrain, also, my impulse to interpret these suggestions, but I shall sometimes yield to the temptation. You, however, will feel entire liberty of disagreement and, if you like, of verbal protest. We shall cover the ground pretty slowly, and this will amount to the magnification, by many diameters, of the values we perceive. But this magnification, without which many significant values might go undetected, we may rectify by thinking the music though at its normal rate. We shall then perceive, in its proper perspective, what the magnification has revealed. The music begins with three rest tones. Their only hint of stress lies in the fact that they form a minor triad (faintly stressful by comparison with a major); secondly, that they rise; and thirdly that they rise very slowly. (This slowness is more obviously a fact of motion; but you will remember that we could not wholly divorce the fact of motion from the fact of tonal stress.) No very distinctive quality of stress is suggested by this upward progression. Indeed, we might gain from it an impression of calm, if it were not for the faint echo given by the second of the repeated notes in each beatva hint of some impediment in the motion which, at this slow speed, implies effort or hesitancy. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. But the next four notes forcibly intensify the whole character, and belonging as they do in the same phrase as the three rest tones, cause those notes also to be seen in this new light. The laborious climb of the rest tones (from which all superficial excitement is expunged by virtue of the fact that they are rest tones) ends in a precipitate dropva descent far longer than was the whole dragging ascent. The drop is also to an active tone, so that the thud with which the melodic line falls to the E-flat, is perceived as a fact of motion; but its unexpectedness is certainly a fact of stress. The heaviness of this fall is nothing less than alarming; and it is the more so because we shall hardly have understood the E-flat, at the instant of the fall, as possibly grouped with the g-minor triad in a single, dissonant chord. If you now think these notes as forming a major seventh-chord, you will find that the force of the fall is much weakened; but you will also see that Bach meant you to feel its full force. And you can measure the alarmingness of the long drop by imagining the high D as rising to a higher E-flat, instead of falling to the lower one. This active note E-flat at once descends (further emphasizing the length and weight of the fall) to a rest tone, D. But there is no sense of rest in that tone. It is the lower octave of the high D from which the musical body fell so precipitously; but that fall showed the sense of rest in the high note to be precarious, and the low D, displaying no sense of rest at all, consequently returns to the E flat as if it might find there something of rest, and on this note of uncertainty the phrase, with extraordinary vividness of suggestion, is silenced. Perhaps I only imagine the tension which persists throughout this silence as being portrayed by the silence itself. But even though it is determinably the product of the pause on an active tone, the silence is eloquent. In these seven notes, as we noted before, lies the underlying structural motive of the whole theme. We noted the consequent impression of structural coherence in the music; but we may now also observe that the logic of persistence extends also to the expressive sense of the music, which never departs wholly from this motive until the end. Now, as if it had taken some hidden path in the silence, the melody emerges again, far above, on the active note A. Uncertainty or a kind of groping obscurity seems evident in this unexpected emergence. The active A now shows no disposition to seek a neighboring rest tone. Instead, it begins anew the pattern of effortful ascent, and the fifth of the triad (now the unstable diminished chord) is again followed by a longer fall. This time, however, the drop is cushioned by alighting on a note immediately associable, in a harmonic sense, with the preceding diminished triad. Accordingly, the ascent can begin again, and it proceeds once more in the short steps of the minor third. The next drop is longerva minor seventh; but as it falls to the dominant and rises once more on the arpeggio of that triad, we almost sense stability in the midst of all the uncertainty that has so far ruled. But this suggestion is deceptive. Another drop of a major seventh makes the B-flat (really a rest tone) active; and the strangeness of this note, refuting the hint of stability in the dominant triad, is almost appalling. You will note that from the A on to this B-flat, the trend of the whole design is downward, with unusually forceful implications. We observed previously that the eighth notes execute the same melodic curve as that in bar 2, but foreshortened and with no ensuing pause. This curve, whose motor energy is increased by the foreshortening, seems now to instigate a new condition of activity, in continuous eighth notes, and centered on the higher octave of the B-flat. This center is considerably stabilized by the repeated leading-tone progression, F-sharptG (which, however, hardly sounds like a true leading-tone progression). Each swerve to G is followed by a fallva motion fact which has by now acquired a pretty distinctive significance in the theme; but the successive drops outline a progression of three rising notes (C, D, E-flat)vthe only varied notes in this whole momentary patternvand this gradual but determined The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. rise, combined with the more kinetic eighth-note motion, gives what I think you will perceive as a more purposeful sense than has hitherto appeared. The E-flat, the goal of all this progression, is really an active note, but it has a considerable implication of restvprobably by association with the Gs and B-flats so often reiterated, and also because of the stoppage of the kinetic motion. Tonally, however, we are lost. We do not know whether a modulation has been made or not. And this indecision is at once terribly heightened by the weary resumption of melodic movement on the legato curve, GtA-flattF, the descent into the dark obscurity of the diminished triad, and another long pause on the tonally indeterminate note, A-flat. This is the lowest note we have heard, so far, and you will agree that everything conspires to make its lowness impressive. In view of the whole character of what has occurred, nothing could be more unexpected than the firmness of the final cadence. I have tried to speak of these notes in terms of their actual musical tensionsvvalues which they possess for any experienced musical earvand with little reference to the whole expressive sense we are still to seek. For that sense does not literally reside in the tones. It must be inferred from them, and inferred similarly (if not identically) by all of us, else no fact of expression will have taken place. I doubt that you will have disagreed substantially with my findings thus far. I suspect, indeed, that you may have gone much farther than I in the direction of inference. But we have yet more facts to consider before we release our faculty of inferencevthe facts of what I have called ideal motion. These may prove, in themselves as suggestive as the facts of tension; but they must also be integrated with those facts, and this integration may considerably enhance the whole value of meaning which, through critically controlled inference, we may draw from the music. We have indeed made some mention of the value of motion, since that value is sometimes indissolubly bound up with active tension; but the theme must also be studied in its motor aspect primarily. The motion is slow, and I think you will agree that it is heavy. There is no hint of that energy or assurance with which imagined limbs would move if they were impelled by a state of exaltation. The sudden alarming drops, viewed as motor facts, have the precipitancy of actual falling. This does not mean that we have here the physical representation of an unsuccessful attempt to scale a cliff, but we can hardly follow the persistent repetition of these descents without some awareness of earnest, yet always defeated motor purpose. The pauses, whether of actual silence as in bar 2, or on long note as in bars 9 and 11, also need not be visualized as pauses for breath during physical effort; but they do contribute to and define that motor purpose. Although this theme is wholly melodic in texture, we have seen that the implications of harmony are frequent and compelling. Because of this texture, the music acquires none of those propulsions which harmonic accompaniment usually provides for melody, and which, whether of special harmonic significance or not, are ordinarily absorbed into our awareness of the melodic character. Yet we do sense in this music a peculiarly weighty mass, such as accompaniment usually provides, and no small portion of our total impression of motion is that of the momentum of this mass. The middle portion of the themevthat where the continuous eighth-note motion is presentvyields, both in its more kinetic energy and in the rise of the three notes, C, D, E-flat, an impressive manifestation of this momentum. For the three notes represent three triads, rising toward a position of apparent stability (the long E-flat). But the music topples from that position, even during the continuation of that unstable note, and falls ominously, in spite of its futile rise on the diminished triad, to the low A-flat. The departure from the The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. established patterns of motion which occurs at the cadence is in the highest degree striking; but that, I think, we need not now interpret. Here, I think, are the principal facts of tone-stress and ideal motion. You apprehend them, in the actual process of hearing, simultaneously, and in a hundredth of the time it has taken me to describe them. But I have described them only to make sure that they are perceived as therevinherent in the stuff of this music. What do they mean? Their musical interest is great; but is this their only interest? And was an awakening of purely musical interest the real purpose of the composer? Dare we go outside the field of purely musical perception to look for more meaning in the field of human experience? Shall we do violence to the music by such a search? Or shall we do violence to the composer if we fail to make that search? The result of this inquiry will be an inference, drawn from the facts of motion and tension which the music exhibits. The shape of our inquiry will be the question, what would be our mental state if it involved such tensions and such motor impulses as we have just observed in the music? And along with the awareness which will be the answer to that question we may combine anothervthe awareness, also inferential, of the external circumstance or experience out of which such a condition of mind would normally arise. Together, these awarenesses will comprise an image and a valuation of experience. The music has represented only a few features of that valuation and has left us to complete it, and to form the image of experience, by inference; but this reversal of the usual direction in which inference is drawn need not prevent our acquiring, through the medium of music, the full stature of an idea. Even if we had not established, at the beginning, an association with the word Trübsal, I suspect that you, if asked to tell what state of mind these notes depicted, would have found at least an analogous word to that. I, at least cannot but feel in the slow climb of the first phrase and its ensuing dreadful drop the tensions and the sudden loss of grip, not of groping hands but of a spirit that labors and is heavy laden. I do not have to seek for this impression. I am compelled to it by the music; and I am not released from that compulsion by all that follows. The middle section, with its more active motion, does not alter the basic character, but it does add a sense of kinetic purpose, without which the earlier phrases would appear as a portrayal of despair. It is in the light of this section, I think, that the cadence, which certainly departs from the tone of all that precedes, begins to come clear. Before we interpret that, however, I should like to make one more comment. I said I saw a spirit, not a body, that was heavy laden. I could easily visualize a body thus burdened and could manufacture a series of events corresponding to the various indications of movement and effort I have noted. But if I once began to impersonate these inferences, I should end by making up a story about the person I had imagined. Various things happen, as music goes on, and it is all too easy to take a sequence of musical details as implying a parallel sequence of actual events. But there is no real reason why this parallel should be recognized. A musical idea must, indeed, unfold itself in time; but that which is said last in music is not on that account the sequel in time or causality of that which preceded, and the disposition to make music into a story is an error, not merely because music does not portray event, but because it ignores this fact in its possibly justifiable inference of event. The cadence of our theme, which portrays a very different vein of feeling from the rest, seems to me a case in point. If we were to interpret this theme in a narrative sense, we should have to accept the cadence as the reversal of all that had gone beforevas a kind of deus ex machina, such as always appeared in 18th-century opera to straighten out impossible tangles in the plot, and figuratively to dry The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. the tears and smooth the sensibilities of the aristocratic ladies who had suffered through the harrowing production. There is no need to do that. This music is not a story. The end belongs to the beginning. However unexpected and dramatic it appeared, our very acceptance of its musical sense argues that somehow we knew that the end belonged to the beginning. Yet that cadence is no portrayal of tribulation. Was it, possibly, the conclusion toward which all the music }]v M /( Z Z v ]v Z[ u]v }voÇ Z ]uP }( ]µo]}vU Á}µo Z ZÀ P]À v Z}µPZ}µ so unmistakable an intimation of strength? Is there not, along with the persistent slow climbing and the sudden loosening grip, an equal intimation of indomitable endurance? Was I not misled into a sentimental preoccupation with the obvious when I called the music the very stuff of tribulation? Bach was thinking of more than that. The word Trübsal was not, for him, the key word of his text. The real sense is at the end, both in the music and in the verbal phrase; and in both the end brings the rest into focus: Wir müssen durch viel Trübsal in das Reich Gottes eingehen. Notes 1. Poets, wisely, use the same method for the evocation of feeling. Compare, for instance, '} Z [ }u ÁZ ]v (( ]À o]v U ]]}v }( ( o]vP ] o(W ^ ZÁ]v o u]U vv u ]v ]vP Á ] _ Á]Z }o ]P [ ]uP }( À}o]vP o]ÇW ^ v o]uÇ Z]vP ] Áo Á]h legs h}v o]uÇ X_ and compare your bodily responses. 2. This comparison, extendedly pursued, would lead to another problemvthat of taste. This problem is so intimately related to that of expression that it cannot be ignored, even though it is too large for more than brief mention here. What is taste? It is obviously a product of experience, and takes the form of a complex habit of choice. But the word taste is also our name for one of the five senses; and this implicationvof something given before our individual experience beganvstill remains when the field is transferred from that of more sensation to that of artistic enjoyment. A cultivated taste is generally thought of as one which discriminates finely in the field of pleasure. In that view, pleasure and its refinement would be the true object of all the long effort of cultivation. A philosophy of pleasure, which is called hedonism, is the possible product of this pursuit. But it seems it me that such a philosophy ignores one of the primary functions of taste. That sensory function was indeed given for discrimination, and was also, from the first, doubtless concerned with pleasure; but primarily it was given for the discrimination, not of that which is pleasant but of that which is nourishing. And this holds, whether the question is of the body or of the spirit. Appetite and taste are obviously relatedvagain in both these fieldsvand I need not describe the disasters, physical or spiritual, which result from overindulgence. Age has also its influence on both appetite and taste, as have the many idiosyncracies of body and mind which are built into us and which we cannot resist. Even allergiesvinexplicable bodily repudiationsvhave their parallel in the spiritual field; and since there can be no agreement about the things to be discriminated, for or against, the old Latin proverb (which says, not that tastes cannot, but that they ought not to be disputed) still holds. But if the question of nourishment is allowed to enter, and particularly that of the nourishment }( Z ]]U Z i ]À ^P}}_ P]v } Æv ] u v]vP Ç}v Z (]oÇ oP The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. which it covers, even at the sensory level. The spirit has an appetite for beauty; and this appetite, cultivated under favorable conditions, may rise to a point where beauty, as the satisfaction of a discriminating taste, may be called the highest Good. This, again, is hedonismvor, if you prefer a more palatable name, is eudaimonism. But it seems to me that the possibilities of nourishment, where pure beauty is proposed as the spiritual offeringvare here not wholly admitted. If they are admitted, however, the word good will again expand its meaning. The antithesis between good and bad will not merely imply the distinction between the beautiful and the ugly but will begin to imply also the distinction between good and evil. The lover of pure beauty has an allergy for this implication. But if we explore again the ]uo]]}v }( Z[ Z u U /U (} }v U vv} Z}Á Z µ ]}v }( u}o Àoµ v wholly excluded from the field of reference. Neither have I the least objection to its presence. The music has reference to the experience of tribulation. That experiencevas St. Paul, and after him, Bach, conceived itvis unthinkable in a world where goodness is beauty and the pleasure of beauty only and evil is ugliness and the distress that ugliness brings to the spirit enamored of beauty. I am not contending that it is the business of art to moralize. But if experience, as we have been thinking of it, is the proper field of art, then I cannot see how the moral implications of any fact of experience can be excluded from our final valuation of the work of art. 3. On the etymology of this word, and also on its ancient meaning, see Werner Jaeger,Paideia, I, 125 f. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Heinrich Schütz and Johann Sebastian Bach in the Protestant Liturgy* Leo Schrade *This article is a reprint from Volume IV of this series, which is out of print. Any discussion of Heinrich Schütz and Johann Sebastian Bach is, if nothing else, a very ambitious enterprise. The reasons, obvious to all, need no particular mention. The discussion is by no means made easier by linking the two together. If the link were to be established for purely objective reasons of history, there may be no ground for any criticism. And yet, if the connection carries historical weight, we should assume an artistic communication to have existed between the two. There has been nothing of the kind. It is more than likely that Bach knew nothing of Schütz, except perhaps the Psalter of Becker, which, after its first publication in 1628, has frequently been re-edited and was still in use when Bach was young. But this work least of all could have exercised an influence artistic in nature on Bach. Hence there is no such thing as an artistic contact between the two. The frequently made assumption that Z[ Á}l µ}v ^ZºÌ ] ]u}]o } iµ](ÇX ,]}]ooÇ l]vPU Z }voÇ o]vl Z i}]v Z two is, therefore, the idiom of the baroque epoch that they have in common, even as men of the same age always will speak essentially the same language. Both are the towering posts that set chronological limits to German baroque music, one at its beginning, the other at its end; and they are at the same time the cornerstones in the baroque phase of Protestant church music. But it is not this objective, historical point of view alone that related one to the other. Prejudices have often entered the discussion and consequently beclouded its issues. Schools of thought have been formed, and Schütz, whose greatness could not be doubted, was made the precursor of Bach in a very peculiar sense, as if he had started what Bach completed. Bach, the fulfiller, was therefore the greater of the two; they were actually pitted against each other. To make one greater at the expense of the other will always be a very questionable enterprise, to say nothing of the difficulty that we have in trying to understand why Bach should have had a small precursor at all in order to become as great as he was. There exists no scientific method by which one could furnish proof as to who of the two masters was the greater artist on purely aesthetic grounds. There are compositions by Schütz that stand above the best of Bach, and there are works by Bach which surpass those of Schütz. Even so, most of the two }u} [ }µµ } v} o v ] o( } ] }u]}vX , v U u} }( Z }u]}v u failures because the points of comparison do not meet. Here lies the chief reason why the method as a whole can well be discarded without loss to anyone. If Schütz had really been the precursor of Bach artistically and stylistically in the sense that Bach had studied the work of Schütz and learned from his predecessor, the situation would be entirely different. Since history, however, does not confirm such a relationship, because Bach had entirely different artistic precursors, whose work he studied, and from whom he learned, the two composers must be taken as entities by themselves who belong to one age, and they will be great in their own time and beyond and above all times, even if we should be unfortunate enough to approach greatness with thoughts of small measure. Surely I will not be expected even to attempt a comprehensive interpretation both of Schütz and Bach. I should like to limit myself to a few artistic problems that include certain aspects of matters liturgical and religious, and I should perhaps add that all will be seen under the historical point of view. To understand the artistic-liturgical significance of SchütÌ[ uµ]U Á} µi uµ ]µ W certain factors of his artistic career and the temper of his musicianship on the one hand, and on the other the situation of the musical liturgy at the time when Schütz began to work for the Lutheran The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Church. The f] À Ç ]l]vP } À]}v Z µ v }( ^ZºÌ[ ]] v ZoÇ (]o } ul U results from the fact that, contrary to the usual habits of the time, Schütz came rather late and almost unwillingly to choose music as his profession. Despite his most extraordinary gifts in music that at once amazed people of his environment so as to encourage him to the musical profession, his heart was actually set upon humanistic studies. The thorough training in the liberal arts that made him a man of deep thought and culture, was in part due to the interest of Moritz of Hesse, a prince, exceptional among the German princes of the time, the majority of whom were rather uncouth, rough, and hardened by continual warfare. Schütz attended first the Collegium Mauricianum, a school founded by Moritz for the purpose of training the youngsters of the nobility of Hesse, to make them educated v}o u v }]vP } Z ] o }( o ]Po]}v [ El Cortegiano. The humanistic education of Schütz became fundamental to his conception of music. Let us hear a passage from Geier, who wrote Z ^} u} u_ (} Z (µv o }( ^ZºÌX ^ , ^ZºÌ Ç Z Collegium Mauricianum for several years. In this distinguished court school, or rather Gymnasium,amidst counts, noblemen, and other valorous ingenia, he was brought up to study various languages, arts, and exercitia, for which his industrious, keen mind and intellectual appetite prepared him well. Within a short time he acquired Latin, Greek, French. . . . In view of his capacities and success his professors would have liked him to }v]vµ ]v Z o v }( ]}vX_ / Z}µo o]l } v}Z }X ^ l]vP }( t luvvU Z µ]o }( ^ZºÌU :}Zvv DZ }vU Z o ]vP Z }] }( Z[ ]}U Á} Z ^Zütz in Dresden Z À] t luvv µv oo ]µuv } µÇ , ÁU ovPµP ^ uµ]]v Z}µo u ÁZ v }u}]vP Z Ko d u vX_ /( Z } ] } U Á }µv } µu Z ^ZºÌ one time of his life had acquired the Hebrew language. This, I believe, is very close to the problems that will be discussed later. Why did Schütz consider the study of so many languages necessary for a musician? I am convinced that behind this demand is not only the learning of a humanistically trained man; nor does a purely artistic interest explain the request. What clearly seems to have caused the attitude is rooted in Lutheran ideas. The musician is the discoverer of the truth of the meanings inherent in words; and he cannot discover the truth unless he masters the original languages. To be the faithful interpreter of the connotations of the texts is a task of the composer that Schütz set forth because he was a Lutheran musician. However, it still took many a year until Schütz would think of this task. First, there was the decision to be made in favor of professional musicianship. Schütz continued to pursue his humanistic studies and prepared himself for the profession of law by enrolling as a student at the University of Marburg. He was interested in music; in all likelihood he also composed while a university student. Despite his musical genius, nothing that he did in matters musical during that time gives the impression of that determination that distinguished the pursuit of his other studies. Indeed, in his autobiography, Schütz, in an almost nostalgic manner, reveals how close to his heart the study of the liberal arts and of jurisprudence had been. He mentions this at a time when he regretted that he had ever turned away from these studies. He cursed the decision that he had made, since now, old and embittered, he had to admit that he had worked in vain. At this point an adequate comparison appears between Schütz and the aged Bach. The same tones of bitterness, the same wrath that all the costly efforts and energies of a long life had been wasted; and the comparison holds even for the reasons of such painful distress. The reasons were not purely artistic, they were linked to religious and liturgical purposes which the two composers had spent their lives to serve. In all other respects, however, the comparison is wholly inadequate. How different their early career! Bach never questioned his choice of profession, and it appears as if he had no other choice. He grew into the position of organist and cantor by the power of tradition. He had a clear view of the task of his life as The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. a composer already when Schütz still was wavering. Bach was trained in the well-established setup of musical education, linked to school and church. Schütz grew up among young noblemen, and later at the university amidst an international group of students who were attracted to Marburg as a Protestant university from all parts of Europe, Switzerland, Holland, Denmark, Poland, Russia, Hungary, and Scotland. Bach learned his musical technique as a craftsman. Schütz made himself first of all a humanist, who turned to study and training in music because of his enormous genius; Bach took up music, not because of the recognition of his genius, but because music was the craft of his kinsfolk; he did not think about any other profession. Schütz, however, was finally led into professional musicianship as a result of the persuasive encouragement of Moritz. Again, Martin Geier gives us an interesting report on the way in which the decision was made. Moritz came to Marburg for a visit, and Schütz at once made a polite oo }v Z]uX ^ Z ]v À] ÁU D}]Ì ]uu ] oÇ Pv } Ç Z Z Z o v ^ZºÌ Z completely turned to the Studium Juridicum. Since, however, he had always found Schütz to have particular inclination to the profession of the noble music, and since Giovanni Gabrieli in Venice, a man of world-wide fame, was still living, he, Moritz, would like to provide the funds needed to send him there in case he would be inclined to go in order to continue the study of music in a proper manner. Inasmuch as such offers were scarcely ever rejected by young men, he, Schütz, also was ready to accept the generous gift most gratefully, thinking that upon his return from Italy he would nevertheless pick up Z] }}l P]v v }v]vµ Z] µ] X_ dZ] ] Z } ÁÇ } }u } ]]}v ]v (À} }( music for a man who was to become one of the leading composers of all time. Before he went to Italy, he seems to have played with the idea that all would be merely a matter of temporary change. But things turned out differently. In 1609 he followed the advice of Moritz and went to Venice to study with Giovanni Gabrieli. Schütz was twenty-four years old. At the same age Bach held his third position and had gained a certain renown as an organist. More remarkable still, at the age of twenty-three, in 1708, when he resigned from his post in Mühlhausen, he had, with determined tones of finality, defined the end of his artistic work in a documen Z / P Z u} ]u}v ]v Z ÁZ}o }( Z[ o]( X t uÇ Á oo µ} (}u ]U oZ}µPZ Á oo ZÀ ] uvÇ ]u W ^ oZ}µPZ ] Á uÇ ]v v]}v } advance the music in the divine service toward its very end and purpose, a regulated church music in honor of God; although it was also my intention here to improve the church music, which in nearly all villages is on the increase and is often better treated than here; although for the purpose of improvement I provided, not without expense, a good supply of the best selected church compositions, and also, in obedience to my duty, submitted a project for the repair of the unsatisfactory and damaged organ, and in short, would have fulfilled my obligations with enthusiasm: it so happened that none of this was possible without vexatious relations. . . . So God willed to bring about an opportunity that will not only put me in a better position so far as the subsistence of my livelihood is concerned, but will also make it possible for me, without annoyance to others, to persevere in working towards my end, which }v] ]v }Pv]Ì]vP ZµZ uµ] Á ooX_ / Á]oo (} À uÌ]vP Z Ç}µvP uv }( Á vÇ-three, with such clarity and determination, was able to formulate the reorganization of church music as the very principle of his art for the whole of his life. Schütz, even a year older, made the first really serious attempt to acquire the science of music. When he came to Giovanni Gabrieli, whom he venerated for the rest of his life, a sudden revelation must have come home to him that no longer allowed his musical genius to be held back from its rising path. Schütz shall not return to his books of jurisprudence; his musical genius had once and for all driven him to artistic creation. Of course, he realized immediately that his craftsmanship was totally unsatisfactory, at least to his own critical mind. He had been very familiar with the religious music of the sixteenth century that was cultivated by Moritz at the court of Kassel; and that music followed the pattern of purely The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. Netherlandish tradition; there the work of Clemens non Papa, of Lassus, and Georg Otto represented the style of choral polyphony, more or less in purity. When Schütz came to Italy, he found the Venetian school of choral polyphony under Giovanni Gabrieli at its height and at its end. He was, of course, a most attentive observer; he absorbed the large religious choral works; he studiedvadmittedly counterpoint; but v to judge from the artistic results he apparently studied counterpoint largely through the profane u ]µuX dZ U ]v U À Ç ( Á ] Á]Z Z u]v ^ZºÌ[U ÁZ} Z ]v Z]u o( } the ever-austere clarity of thought. Thus, when in Venice, he at once must have recognized that the Italian climate of music was predominantly profane; to put it in other words: he must have seen that the profane medium, such as the madrigal, revealed, more than any other category, specifically Italian characteristics. An that time, the five books of madrigals of Monteverdi were available. More than ten }}l }( D vÌ]}[ u]Po Z v µo]Z X /v íòíí Z Z (](Z }}l }( u]Po by Carlo Gesualdo, Principe da Venosa. It seems that Schütz followed the line of madrigalesque composition from Cypriano de Rore through Gesualdo and Marenzio. dZ ]] µo }( oo Z µ] Á ^ZºÌ[ (] Á}lW }oo ]}v }( (]À -part madrigals, published in Venice (1611t12), but dedicated to his patron, the Landgraf Moritz of Hesse. Schütz is all at once fascinated by the art of madrigalesque composition, which required a highly skillful and clever hand to be satisfactory to the sophisticated Italians. He at once knows about the latest phase of Italian poetry and chooses poems of Guarini and Marino for his madrigals. He is stirred by the technical problems which the madrigals present. And why? The answer gives the reason why we mention this Á}l }( ^ZºÌ[ Z X ^]uµo Ç ]v Zv]µ }( Z /o]v u]Po]U ^ZºÌ ]}À that the composition of madrigals contained the most fascinating problems concerning the relation between text and music. He discovered that the madrigalist at his best was an interpreter of the text and its connotations. For the sake of the most faithful interpretation of the text he struggled with the vocabulary of the madrigal. This relationship between word and tone gave his work an enormous artistic passion. Fascinated by the problems of the text, he strikes out toward the boldest adventures in harmony, in chromaticism, in the treatment of the dissonance. Schütz apparently did not want to be outdone by any Italian; and wherever possible, he increased the technical difficulties, not for their own sake, but because of his artistic passion to be faithful to the text. The madrigals of Schütz are an exceedingly complicated, soloistic art; for only the best-trained singers will be able to render them. As a (]v }vv}] µ }( Z Z]}Ç }( Z /o]v u]Po }v ]W ^ ^ZºÌ[ u]Po }(}µv Zv vÇZ]vP /o]v_ (Einstein). We may add that they are, though immensely artificial, the boldest madrigals ever written and at the same time they combined all that the madrigal had been: the whole apparatus, the techniques of generations. For the work of a beginner this is a miraculous achievement. When these madrigals arrived in Germany, they must have been admired with awe; one can be certain that the Germans, who were connoisseurs, had not seen anything like them. But those madrigals were probably also immediately shelved. We do not hear of any performance; nor is there any mention of a demand for them; nor has there ever been a German reprint of the Italian edition. One must assume that these works were lost for Germany. We have treated these compositions at such length for good reasons; they exemplify certain principles }( ^ZºÌ[ ]] }ZX tZ v ]v /oÇU ^ZºÌ Z }µ }( }(v Ço }( uµ]V Z carries the results of his studies home, but applies his experience to categories of religious music. That is a startling fact of first importance. We shall make the same observation again. The relation of Schütz to Italy is peculiar. He knows that the Italians had advanced the leading style of the seventeenth century; he knows that the style is essentially profane and that it originated in profane categories. His reactions The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. will be consistent. Once he had made himself familiar with the style, he turned his knowledge to the benefit of religious composition. There is another reason for dwelling upon his early work. Historically speaking, the madrigals of Schütz were in their impact on German musicianship probably a total loss. One more attempt was made by Schütz to convince German musicians and win them over to all the subtleties of the madrigalesque style that he had presented in his first compositions. But significantly he made the attempt no longer within a profane category. He carried the style over into the sphere of religious music. The Cantiones Sacrae, which Schütz published in 1625, are the direct parallels of the early madrigals. The collection of u} Á] v ^µµ} À}µu µu } }Pvµu_ ] v} µv](}u Z u]Po µ Á}lU ]v Z Ç Á }u} ](( v ]u ]v ^ZºÌ[ o]( X dZ µo]Z U P } (Z]}vo v modernistic, forced Schütz to add the basso continuo to these classical four-part compositions of strict polyphony. Schütz protested in vain, for the musical structure of most of these motets precludes the organ as an accompaniment. Schütz frankly admits that he had been forced to that addition of the basso continuo against his own will; he turns to the organist and gives his advice, yet his advice amounts to saying: disregard the whole thing.vIn the preface to the Cantiones Sacrae Schütz made a brief but important remark; he stated that music to him had only one purpose: the glorification of God, not the consent and applause of the great men, the rulers, the princes. Although this statement of the ^Po}](]]} ]_ Z µ} }( oo uµ] uÇ v} ZÀ vÇ (ar-reaching liturgical implications, the serious belief in the predominance of religious music should be kept in mind. The Cantiones Sacrae are as unique from an artistic point of view as were the madrigals. Schütz, who had meanwhile learned a great deal about the conservative character of German music, saw new possibilities in the classic form of Netherlandish polyphony of the past, and he hoped it would still be possible to recast it and to modernize it. This is the meaning of theCantiones Sacrae. The same artistic problems that he had solved in the earlier madrigals are set forth once more. He applies the same adventurous boldness to the motets. So do all the harmonic experiments, the dissonances, the forbidden progressions and combinations, surely not for the sake of being complicated. Schütz more clearly than ever feels himself to be the interpreter of the text. The notes are expected to translate all the inner meanings of the words despite their polyphonic structure. Thus, in view of the technical difficulties, these motets can hardly be imagined as choral works; the choral style has not that flexibility which is here expected, and these motets call for a soloistic performance, as did the madrigals. Schütz has attempted a combination of almost irreconcilable elements: the strict Netherlandish polyphony on the one hand, and on the other a highly individualistic, faithful interpretation of the content of the texts by means of the madrigalesque vocabulary. The attempt remained an experiment, unique, of high artistic quality, but isolated; for the German musicians could not follow him, and Schütz never again repeated such an experiment. In this work the passionate will to interpret the text faithfully may also have influenced the choice of the texts. They are Psalms, passages from the Song of Songs, and religious lyrics of St. Bernard and St. Augustin. Schütz had brought home from his first Italian trip another artistic experience: the polychoral composition that the Venetian school since Adrian Willaert had cultivated, especially in conjunction with Psalm texts. The results of this experience were presented by Schütz in the collection Die Psalmen Davids, published in 1619, when Schütz had had the leading position at the court of Dresden for about two years. He applied the psalmodizing style to the polychoral combination and realized the antiphonal form in a double sense. The antiphony implied both the liturgical style of psalmodic recitation and the alternation of the choirs. In the preface Schütz made a surpris]vP ulW ^ / ZÀ }u} Z uÇ Psalms in stile recitativo (which up to now is nearly unknown in Germany), since in my opinion there is nothing more appropriate for the composition of Psalms than the recitation without interruption and The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. without any particular repetition, because of the extensive text. In view of this style, I kindly request that all those who have no knowledge of this manner should not take the tempo too fast, rather a medium, in order that the words may be sung comprehensibly. Otherwise an unpleasant harmony will result, or nothing but a battaglia di Mosche, } Á }( (o] U v] oÇ P]v Z Á]Z }( Z µZ}X_ The use of the term stile recitativo is strange. Schütz did not refer to the recitative that originated within the new dramatic music. He took, quite correctly, the psalmodizing to be a stile recitativo. But the liturgical recitation in the manner of the chant could not possibly be said to have been unknown in Germany. Obviously, Schütz had in mind the application of the liturgical recitation to the polychoral forms. In doing so Schütz closely observed the characteristics of the German language. The selection of the texts is again of interest. Some of the texts are passages from Jeremiah, rather than the Psalms proper. Others show a combination of verses from various Psalms. All of them seem to be selected under the aspect of highly emotional lyricism affectionally rich; as such Schütz regarded them as a stimulating challenge to the imaginative power of composition. But are these Psalms really liturgical music? It is true, some of the Psalm compositions have the doxology and thus are in keeping with the liturgical structure of antiphonal psalmody. But one may doubt that the presence of the doxology alone is satisfactory evidence. Of course, the Psalms were performed as church music, and were therefore probably placed where the singing of Psalms was appropriate, that is, in the Vespers. These works could, however, also have been used on any special occasion. At all events, there is no mention of any particular liturgy or service for which Schütz may have intended the compositions to be performed. They all require a huge musical apparatus and carry the character of festival solemnity. I do not think that Schütz had primarily liturgical considerations in mind when he composed the Psalms. At that time ^ZºÌ[ ]v Á v oÇ Æoµ]À oÇ }v v }v }o u }( v ]] vµ V Z Z}µPZ entirely in terms of an artist. In that capacity he felt at once the urgent need for new solutions of the artistic problems he recognized as soon as he came into professional contact with the music of Italy. But this was not all. It took the foresight of a genius to discover as early as 1609 that German music, rooted firmly in the sixteenth-century style, would soon be hopelessly outdated, unless, through an intimate contact with the new tendencies of Italian music, a gradual transformation would be carried out. And that transformation appeared to him first as a purely artistic matter. The idea of reshaping German music, of keeping it in pace with a modern spirit, in order to prevent the musical art of his country from falling out with the time, this is the noble and ambitious task that Schütz set for himself at the beginning of his musical work. For that reason his mind is set on matters of art, of style, of techniques of composition. And yet it is remarkable and worthy of particular emphasis that he thinks of religious music when thinking of German music. Both to him are identical from the very start. To transform German music means transforming religious music. He said, and we quoted the statement, that the purpose of all music to him is the glorification of God. The religious character is, therefore, nothing but a general attitude, a state of mind, a temper of the music. It goes without saying that religious is not identical with liturgical music; a composition may be sacred without being liturgical. This general implication of religious music characterizes the artistic beginnings of Schütz. He is still far remote from accepting the idea of liturgy as the primary problem of any reform of church music while his mind was actually possessed by the passionate will artistically to reconcile German religious music to the new style of Italy. At this point, especially, the enormous contrast between Schütz and Bach makes itself felt. Bach never had to strike the balance of artistic reconciliation between two divergent styles. Bach unknowingly became the heir to the artistic accomplishment of a reconciliation that was due to the efforts of Schütz. When approaching religious music, Bach did not start out with problems of an exclusively artistic nature; nor did religious music have, for him, merely an all-comprehensive, general connotation. When he set The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. out to reorganize religious music and to bring about a well-regulated form, religious music at once implied the music of the Church, that is, of a liturgical character. Bach began with recognizing liturgy to be the prevailing problem of the religious music of his time; Schütz began with discovering artistic problems to be the first needs of religious music. Neither was really in harmony with his own time: Schütz was out of sympathy with the artistic characteristics of Protestant church music, and Bach disagreed with the religious-liturgical tendencies of his time if we at all can grant his time as having had liturgical tendencies, except negative ones. If in such a vital manner as this there is so fundamental a difference in the historical conditions between the two, comparison and evaluation of one set against the other do not make sense in any respect. By the power of historical conditions Schütz was forced first of all to establish a balanced artistic situation for Protestant music just as much as Bach was driven to a reorganization of church music under liturgical aspects because of the general situation of Lutheranism and Lutheran liturgy. This difference can hardly be over-emphasized and must continually be kept in mind if we care at all to endeavor to reach an objective interpretation. The further development in the work of the two composers moves on in exactly opposite directions. ^ZºÌ[ P]vv]vP ]v Z }u}]]}v }( o]P]}µ uµ] }u]vvoÇU ]( v} Æoµ]À oÇU ]]X The clearer he became about the artistic problems of style, the more he grew to be the master over Z uU Z u} Z } v Z] Á}l } Z o]Ì]}v }( o]µP]o ] X ^ZºÌ[ Z o (}u } o]µPÇX v Z[ À o}u v } ]v À } X /v Z oast phase of his life, when the rise of new music took place, which had nothing in common with what he artistically believed in, he realized that the new spirit of the time would demand an artistic revision of the musical style. He made a few feeble and exceedingly inadequate attempts to establish a contact with the younger generation by preparing major collections of his instrumental compositions for publication. He hoped that by doing so his art would be recognized also by the younger men. He hoped, of course, in vain. Beyond this he did not take part in the revision of the artistic principles of music; on the contrary, he rather strengthened artistically the musical forms which he had worked out throughout his life. Schütz, on the other hand, learned at the end of his life that after he had found the solutions to artistic problems, and after he had turned his thoughts more to liturgical and religious matters, his artistic efforts had not been rewarded by German musicianship. He had many pupils and followers, but he had no artistic and spiritual heir. And at the end he is as desperate and bitter as Bach. If there is any point of comparison, it is seen only on the basis of tragedy where Schütz and Bach stand in an inner relationship. What are, then, the liturgical elements in the work of Heinrich Schütz, and what do we think is the religious character of his composition on the basis of a liturgical understanding of music? During the age of the Reformation, and largely throughout the sixteenth century, the highest artistic form in which the liturgical function came to its own, was the motet, in which category the chorale-motet may well be included, since even the German chorale wherever it had replaced a Proprium motet in the main service was not always sungchoraliter with the participation of the congregation, but artistically formed in accordance with the style and behavior of motet composition. The Psalms and antiphons, the cantica,the Magnificat, their liturgical place being in the Vespers, largely followed the traces of the motet that governed the style. The musical interpretation of the texts, held within the framework of choral polyphony, was possible only as an objective procedure. That is to say: Music as a whole fulfills the interpretative function, and the single composition is always pars pro toto. Luther in particular and for the whole of the sixteenth century has clarified musical interpretation to be such an objective procedure. The individualistic approach of the text by the composer is thereby excluded. The individual genius of the musician can still be manifested through the degree of craftsmanship and through the degree of intensity. But that is not what can be called an individualistic interpretation of the text. This The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. objective procedure in artistic work may well conform to the impersonal, objective character of the congregation in the liturgy, even if the congregation had no direct share in such artistic manifestation. Not only the chorale, but also the choral polyphony in the motet style seems to reflect in a unique manner the congruity of an artistic form with the congregation as an objective element of the liturgy. No wonder that the Lutheran musicians clung to the motet style with striking tenacity. Toward the end of the sixteenth century, the congregation begins, physically and idealistically, to be separated from an influence on form and character of artistic composition. Together with a rapid increase of very simple harmonizations of the chorales for musically untrained laymen, the congregation moved into its own closed circle of liturgical activity, and the distance between the development of the artistic forms of church music and the congregational share became rapidly, and, some of us may say, alarmingly, greater. In the seventeenth century, some musicians tried to draw the congregation closer again to the artistic form by providing artistic varieties for the performance of the chorale whose various strophes were performed in a changing manner. But this seems to have been a solution from which, as a liturgical factor, the artist drew the benefit rather than the congregation. In my opinion the separation of the congregation from the development of the artistic work is excessively difficult to evaluate, even if we change the positions from which to view the situation: as a matter of theological content, or of liturgy, or of religious music, or of art, or simply of history. Everyone with a strong sense for liturgy will be ready, perhaps too quickly, to condemn the event and its consequences. Without suggesting any compromise, unprejudiced caution in evaluating seems to me the best advice, since after all the congregation is not the only element of the Lutheran liturgy. Above all, what happened is a historical fact, a reality that has to be accounted for. And what we have mentioned here as a historical event, had bearing on both Schütz and Bach, though in different ways. Schütz grew up in a period when the event that we mentioned had already had its full effects, since we vv} o ^ZºÌ[ ]stic career much before 1608. He learned that the congregational chorale stood within a sphere nearly untouched by artistic efforts of the musicians. That is a factual situation we have to take into account as much as did Schütz. On the side of artistic composition he found the motet style to be the prominent form of the music of the services. This situation aids in explaining the reason why Schütz at once could concentrate his energies on artistic problems after he had fully recognized the implications. That, in fact, he did recognize the situation is clearly proved by the very existence of the Psalmen Davids as well as by the Cantiones Sacrae. The Psalm compositions were, as religious music within the artistic sphere and separated from the congregational liturgy, surely a success. Their success is also shown in the imitations by German musicians, and had it not been for the devastating effects of Z dZ]Ç z [ tU ÁZ]Z ((o] }µU ZµZ U Z}}oU v oo µo] ]v]µ]}v o]l Á]Z poverty, the cultivation of such Psalm compositions with their huge musical apparatus would probably have flourished more and longer. The Cantiones Sacrae are another attempt within the same sphere, one more attempt that Schütz had made in order to test the foundations of the motet style and its liturgical function. They were not successful, as we have already pointed out. Their passionate interpretation of the texts which Schütz faithfully carried through, reveals yet another aspect of seventeenth-century music that is particularly characteristic of Schütz and of the liturgical element in his music. I shall presently discuss it. First, however, one more reference must be made to the separation of the congregational chorale from the sphere of artistic music. In that situation there may lie the answer to the rather infrequent use Schütz has made of the chorale in his artistic work. (It is, however, not quite so rare as is often stated.) At this point, reference may, perhaps, be made to the music of Michael Praetorius, whose compositions, in great contrast to Schütz, are frequently based on the chorale. Although Praetorius died in 1621, he is artistically not a seventeenth-century composer, not a modern The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. composer. The only modernization he ever carried out within choral polyphony involves the polychoral style of Venetian derivation. Otherwise he operates with the tools of the motet style and thereby quite naturally frequently incorporates the chorale. And although Schütz had personal contact with Praetorius and thought v Ç Z]PZoÇ }( Z] uµ]U Z (]v] oÇ ] v} (}oo}Á Z]uX dZ ] ]l]vPX ^ZºÌ[ Psalms of David are not derived from Praetorius, but directly from Venice, from the same source from which Praetorius drew for his polychoral compositions. The infrequent µ }( Z Z}o ]v ^ZºÌ[ Á}l Z o} v µv ]v} v ]v ]}v unfavorable to Schütz by comparison with Bach. Such an interpretation suffers from a misunderstanding }( Z[ P U }( Z] ]] ]v v]}vU }( Z µ} }( Z] uµ]U }f the liturgical situation of his uµ]V ]v }Z Á}U ] µ(( (}u u]µv v]vP À ÇZ]vP Z ] v]o ]v Z[ uµ]X /( frequency of the chorale is an acceptable measure by which to establish the greatness or even the Lutheran spirit of a composer, then all those whose work would consist of nothing but harmonizations of the chorales will be the greatest, and a host of little ones will at once be superior to the best religious art man has produced. Applied to our situation: on such grounds very decent, honorable, but small musicians would all be greater than Schütz. If and when Schütz made use of the chorale in his composition, and there is evidence of it in all his major collections, the Symphoniae Sacrae, the Kleine Geistliche Konzerte, theGeistliche Chormusik, he always presents a highly fascinating and instructive treatment. Now he takes up the chorale melody and begins in faithful observance as though it were a strict cantus firmus. In the course of the chorale text, however, he suddenly breaks off, introduces changes, proceeds absolutely freely and may then return P]v } Z u o}Ç ~^ K Z]o( Z] U '} ^}ZvU_ Symphoniae Sacrae, I). Then he may strictly adhere to the full chorale melody without any actual change, but with a repetition of melodical phrases that is of Z] }Áv ul]vPX ~^ Eµv l}uuU , ] v , ]ovU_ ibidem). He may make use of a chorale melody to u ]o (} Z u}]( }( Z }u}]]}v ~^ t] Poµ v oo v ]v v '}U ibidem). Then he may take up merely the text of the chorale and regard its melody as unfit for the specific purposes of }u}]]}v ~^ tvv µv µP v Zo( v ]vU_ Symphoniae Sacrae, II). Now he may introduce deviations from a traditional chorale melody for the first strophe; he may bring new deviations for the second strophe; he may drop the melody altogether for the third strophe; and he may faithfully take up Z o]Z (}u Á]Z}µ ZvP (} Z (]vo }Z ~^ oo ]v '} ]v ,Z[ ] ZU_ Symphoniae Sacrae, II).The artistic techniques with which Schütz has treated the chorale are at least as varied as those of Bach, despite the considerably lesser frequency. On this occasion I cannot list them all. All cases are exceedingly instructive. For the particular structure of a composition reveals nearly always the reason for the special method of treating the choral; above all we can usually identify the reason that Á l }( ^ZºÌ[ ]]}v ÁZ v } À] (}u v ÁZ v } u]v]v Z Z}o U ÁZ v } } ] and when to take it up. The reasons largely rested on the individualistic attitude which Schütz assumed for his interpretation of the text. The use of the chorale in a larger artistic work has, however, not come about by considering the function material or idealistic, that the congregation fulfills in its relation to the chorale. When Schütz avails himself of the chorale, he does not think of the congregation. Here again, we are forced to recognize a marked and important difference between Schütz and Bach in their attitude toward the chorale. Bach often takes the chorale to be the most important organizing factor in the structure of the work; in addition to and above this structural function, however, the chorale is at least symbolically the representative of the congregation, the reminder of religious messages to the congregation, which cannot have an active share any more, but should be admonished } µv } o]P]}µ Àoµ U ÁZ]Z Po}]}µoÇ vo]PZ v ]u Z }µ Z Zv o](] X Z[ The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. chorale seems first of all to serve the aedificatio hominum, the second purpose of religious music next to the glorificatio Dei. Thus, Bach thought of the congregation when he approached the chorale. Schütz, on the other hand, treated the chorale primarily as matter of a religious text, independent of any relation to the congregation. And he understood the chorale text to be as traditional within the Lutheran Church as any other traditional Scripture: a passage of the Bible, a Psalm, the Gospel. I do not mean to say that the chorale text was to him as holy as the Bible; it would be presumptuous to venture such a statement. I mean to say that Schütz as an artist took the same attitude toward the Scriptures and the chorale texts, that is, the attitude of an interpreter. He Á }u o } }µ }o u }( Z o]µP]o ]uo]]}v ]v ^ZºÌ[ Á}lX dZ ]}v }( Z congregation from the artistic development was only one of the important movements in the seventeenth century. That separation was by no means antireligious. It was expressive of the desire to formulate the part of the congregation in austere simplicity. The powerful, emotionally stirring religious expression, equally sought after by seventeenth-century men, fell upon the individual. There arose in this century of religious and political passions an individualism that differed widely from the age of the Reformation. Religious poetry, in many instances as powerful as in the period of the Reformers, begins to speak of religious values and realities as individualistic experiences. The poet, the musician, each has his own message, not intended to be dogma or ever to become dogmatic, but surely meant to be expressive of a personal, subjective recourse of the individual to God, that is, to God as revealed in the Scriptures. Thus the musician becomes the subjective interpreter of the Scriptures and by the grace of God experiences their meaning. Of this meaning, that is, the interpretation he arrives at, he speaks in terms of artistic composition. We shall not dispute this subjectivism in terms of for or against on the basis of theological reasons. We accept its existence as a historical fact, perceptible in religious poetry and music alike. Moreover, Lutheranism had had this subjectivism as a possibility of its religious form from the very beginning. When it unfolded itself, subjectivism as such at least did not essentially conflict with certain theological aspects of Lutheranism. Especially the interpretation of the texts had the support of the doctrine. Although the new individualism manifested itself in many phenomena of the life of the Church, it found its chief expression in art, which included both poetry and music. It must be stressed that under the aspect of the interpretation of texts the new artistic individualism of the seventeenth century is in keeping with the Doctrina Christiana of Luther. In my limited opinion, and one that I clearly want to be understood in relation to art alone, a distinction between needs and principles is necessary. That is to say: There are periods in the history of the Church that seem to call for the more objective form of Lutheranism, the more uniform conception which binds all and in which all find themselves held and expressed; there are other periods in which individualism prevails and nonetheless seems to be a comprehensive representation of Lutheranism, for which, in other words, the individualism is the more adequate form of Lutheranism. That the seventeenth century in terms of art saw a fulfillment of Protestantism in the individualistic expression can hardly be doubted. What the music of the Lutheran Church is in need of today, of the more objective, more uniform conception of the Reformation, or of the manifestation of the individual according to the seventeenth-century form, that is altogether a different matter which must be decided by those who establish the course. But the needs of the present should not distort the interpretation of the past. The artistic interpretation of the texts in the form of the individualism that the seventeenth century has produced seems to be the climactic result of Lutheranism. As a matter of fact, it was for the first time in the history of the music of the Church that this genuine element of the doctrine, the interpretation of the texts by the individual in a state of grace, broke through. Whatever greatness lies in the music of the Reformation, and it abounds in greatness, the musician has not been the individual interpreter of the The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. text. In view of this fact it is understandable and appropriate that the artists, the poets, and the musicians of the seventeenth century felt themselves to be most faithful to Lutheranism, inspired by what the Reformation had brought about. In sharp contrast to the history of the music of the Catholic Church, individualism as such has never brought music into conflict with the religious principles of the Lutheran Church. Whenever a generally individualistic tendency arose, and it happened frequently in the music before the Reformation, the place of music in the Church at once became altogether problematic. Each time individualism made itself felt, the aged struggle ars contra religionem broke loose in full force. I do not see that this holds principally true for the music of the Lutheran Church. At all events, the great epochs of its history show that individualism as such, on principle grounds, did not cause the conflict between art and religion. The music of the seventeenth century surely proves that its individualistic traits did not endanger the principles of doctrine and of the Church, since those traits were altogether and indissolubly linked to the interpretation of the texts by the individual. That an artistic interpretation of texts is a proper, adequate, and acceptable form of religious life in the Church has been taught by Luther once and for all. Once more, then, not individualism as such is wrong, but it may be the wrong individual who takes advantage of this element of Lutheranism. Surely, only the great individual can successfully lead the artistic expression in the name, or in the place, of the congregation. For the new temper of the seventeenth century also changed the relation between the individual artist and the congregation. The individual musician becomes the active element since he took over the function of being the interpreter of the holy Word, of being the intermediary, or the medium of transmitting the message. Consequently, in view of the leading and active role the musician maintained as an artist, as a composer who transmits his interpretation of the text to the congregation, the function of the congregation began immediately to assume a certain passiveness. Surely, this fundamental change in the relation between individual and congregation must be reflected in the character and use of the congregational chorale. The simplicity of chorale harmonization, far removed from being intended as predominantly artistic expression, certainly was indicative of the structure of the congregation. But with equal certainty we can say that it did not satisfy Z }u} [ ] ]À oÇ v individualistically to find the truth of divine content in the texts that he felt himself called upon to express in the highest and noblest artistic forms. In this change of relationship to the congregation there may lie another reason why Schütz none too frequently incorporated the chorale in his artistic composition. Schütz is, however, the greatest representative of that individualism which, founded on the Lutheran interpretation of the divine content of religious texts, is the most prominent character of seventeenth-century Protestantism. The striking tones of an extraordinary passion and of profundity which distinguish nearly all his works, resulted from his awareness of being the interpreter. Indeed, any study of SchüÌ[ Á}l v }( ÁZ Z Z }µ Z } µ }( }u}]]}vU ]Z ]v Z] o U } in the prefaces to his works, or in the theoretical treatise that his pupil Christoph Bernhard wrote as a result of what he had learned from Schütz, all this gives indisputable proof that the primary problem he sees in musical composition from beginning to end, a problem that dictates structure, style, and technique of composition, a problem that truly possessed his mind, is the text and the translation of the content of the text into terms of music. Tone and word are an inseparable unit, a new entity, different from what it was in the period of the Reformation. Quite apart from the religious aspects of the matter, the individualistic artist of the seventeenth century sees the music, the tone, in subordination to the text. We shall refer briefly to this general historical situation that Schütz accepted for his composition. The word, the text is the superior element through which the composer justifies the musical form and the style. Schütz takes the superiority of the text over the music to have religious implications, those of The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. his Protestantism. The superiority of the text, in contrast to the Catholic composer of the seventeenth century and the composer of profane music, to him is twofold: prescribed by the musical style itself and inspired by the religious implication. What he himself called the stile oratorio, which he described on various occasions and which he had Bernhard explain at great length, is based on the predominance of the word. To Schütz, music exists only in its connection with the text; music without words never did inspire him to any artistic achievement, since such a composition would be deprived of the very foundation of his music. Schütz therefore had no interest in instrumental composition. As a matter of fact, he did not compose any instrumental work that was separated from a vocal context. And is this not another point upon which Bach and Schütz part company? Nobody should use, as a counterargument, the assertion that instrumental music was in its infancy at the time of Schütz. For such historical distortions no longer excite any interest. Schütz lived a long life, till 1672, in the course of which he had encountered pure instrumental music of great brilliance. German musicians were traditionally given to strong interests in instrumental forms, due in part to the sociological conditions of German musicianship. Schütz was not very German in that matter; he totally disregarded that tradition. Bach maintained the attitude of interpreting religious texts through music, comparable to the individualism of Heinrich Schütz. Nonetheless, the large quantity of his purely instrumental music is not a sideline in his work. Although most certainly his cantatas represent the essence of his art, his musical composition is not bound up with the word to the exclusion of any other artistic manifestation. The difference between the two composers as to basic conceptions becomes even more striking when we take into historical account the period Bach spent in Köthen as a court composer, a Hofkapellmeister. It was then and there that Bach had turned almost exclusively to the representative categories of instrumental music. It was with the choice of the position as a Hofkapellmeister that Bach had dropped Z] }]P]vo l }( }Pv]Ì]vP ZµZ uµ]X /v Z[ ]] U Z] Á Z u} ]]À µv Z made; a turn that could not well be anticipated after he had at first in Muehlhausen formulated the purpose and end of his music in a manner that had the ring of finality as though that purpose would hold for the rest of his life. The turn could also not be anticipated after the enormous concentration on the realization of the task in Weimar, where the first large part of his liturgical music originated with the organization of a well-regulated church music in view. Weimar in the end brought disappointment as did Muehlhausen, and the turn to Koethen implies the turning away from religious music. An that moment, it looked as if Protestant music would lose Bach forever. All the great instrumental compositions fall into the period of Koethen. Bach no longer composed cantatas. Historically speaking, we must take the period at Koethen as an entity by itself, and it is of greatest importance to realize the historical ]uo]]}v }( Z[ vµv]]}v }( Z] o]P]}µ lX tZ v Z ]À Z oo } > ]Ì]PU Z Á not at all ready to end the attitude held at Koethen. It was only with great hesitation and also grave doubts that he accepted the position at Leipzig and, together with it, the return to his task. Much too often, this situation has been either overlooked or misinterpreted. In this respect, then, the historical conditions of the work of Bach and Schütz have nothing in common. Schütz in his ninety-three years never departed from the once-accepted purpose of his art: the interpretation of the text. Never did he give over any part of his work to musical categories that would not conform to that purpose, as did Bach during the period of Koethen. Even the relatively small section of profane music which Schütz has composed does by no means disagree with the purpose of religious art; for there too he submitted the composition, in an equal measure, to the interpretation of the text. We must return to the point where we have seen Schütz discovering the implication of being the individualistic interpreter of the religious text. We also have seen that Schütz had made certain attempts to adjust the traditional motet style of Lutheran church composition to the new individualisic intentions; The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. we have also seen that the traditional motet style did not have the flexibility Schütz expected it to have; it could not be bent without being broken. Shortly after or about the time he published the Psalmen Davids, the fruits of his first stay in Italy, Schütz learned of the most astonishing changes that took place in the art of music in Italy, carried out by musicians other than Giovanni Gabrieli, different from those whom he had met in Venice ten years before. A new generation had arisen there and, together with it, a new ideal of composition, a totally new style, related to dramatic music, which we know under the name of baroque style. When hearing about the new music, Schütz also must have learned that the new style was essentially based on the interpretation of text, a style that conformed to the intention of the artist. It is understandable that Schütz, who from the very first had seen the interpretative function of the composer to be the very essence of composition, who meanwhile also had come to learn that his purpose could not satisfactorily be fulfilled with the tools of the motet style of old even if modernized by madrigalesque or polychoral methods, was stirred to the core of his artistic being when he learned that Z v Á Ço Á Z Æ vÁ } Z uµ]]v[ ]v v]}v } P]À v ]v]À]µo]] ]v ]}v }( the text, its content, its mood. He knew that the modern style had been formulated within categories of secular character, that the new style was essentially profane; but that was no cause for concern as long as he would be able to acquaint himself with the new trends. Schütz heard about all this through Germans who returned from Italy, through Italians who began to come to Germany in ever-increasing numbers, and, of course, through whatever musical compositions he could get hold of. It was not much, but enough to whet his artistic appetite. The years passed by, and Schütz, growing more and more restless, could hardly restrain himself from his eagerness to go once more to Italy, to Venice. That restlessness is well revealed in the letters: as soon as he learns that someone of his surroundings is to go to Italy, he immediately puts in his request by all means to bring back as much of the latest Italian music as possible. His thirst for knowledge of the new style is insatiable. Moreover, the war began to have the unavoidably devastating effects under which the musical activities at the court suffered considerably, so that Schütz rightly felt he could easily be spared in Dresden. But for some years he must collect his information about the style of Italy through merchants and political ambassadors, since the court did not grant the furlough, for which he applied persistently. In was not until 1628 that he obtained a leave of absence and went once more to Venice. By letter to the Dresden administration, he requested funds ]v } ^} µÇ uvÇ v Á µ](µo }u}]]}vU ]v / ( o Z (}u Z ]u / Á o Z U Z ÁZ}o uµ] Z }uo oÇ ZvP X_ dZ ÁU ]v µ v o } uv ÁZ}U (}Ç-three years old, looked upon the musical situation with the eyes of full maturity. He himself was an accomplished artist, but his keen mind was ready to benefit from intensive studies. We know nothing about the personal contacts he made in Venice. Yet it is unthinkable that he failed to meet Claudio Monteverdi, the very creator of the style of which Schütz was in search. (Schütz later incorporated some of D}v À ][ compositions in his own work.) It was in the sphere of profane music that Monteverdi, theMaestro di Cappella at St. Mark, had become the founder of the baroque style. With the soloistic stile concertato and the accompanied monody he had found the artistic form appropriate to the purpose of interpreting the next, in which he believed with as much passion and profundity as did Schütz. But Monteverdi did not arrive at this end for the sake, or through the aid, of religious considerations. His chief concern was the expression of human affections as given in the poetical texts he set to music. Although the most original musician, from whose work all the basic factors of modern music can well be derived, Monteverdi was no radical revolutionary. He gradually transformed the sixteenth-century polyphonic madrigal, and in this transformation arrived at the dramatic, baroque cantata of secular character. His cantata-madrigal was most influential for the development of the repertory and idiom of the seventeenth-century musician. By 1628, when Schütz came to Venice, Monteverdi, after having gone through a long struggle and various phases, had formulated the final The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. form of the style that was to hold for the baroque epoch as a whole and, in certain aspects, for the rest of modern music. When in earlier years, as a matter of fact not much before the time when Schütz was in Venice as a student, Monteverdi was viciously attacked by representatives of sixteenth-century polyphony because of the startling novelties he introduced, he planned a reply in form of a treatise to be called Seconda Prattica in contrast to the old Prima Prattica. That treatise was never completed. Instead, he instructed his brother to make the reply and to explain briefly the fundamentals of his, that is, of modern music, principles that he had planned extensively to describe in the treatise. In the reply of his brother, together with the preface of his own fifth book of madrigals, we find the most important points taken into consideration. Two that are of interest to us should be mentioned. The first deals with the relationship between music and text, tone and word. Monteverdi maintained that the old style, the Prima Prattica of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, had allowed harmony to have complete control over the text; music prevailed over the words. Modern music, that is, his music, sets forth as the supreme law and invariable guide for all composition: that the text is master over the harmony. From the text and its content the composer derives the general outline of the musical form, the individual structure, and even the details. Thus Monteverdi, too, saw the composer to be the interpreter, who through his composition carries out an artistic exegesis of the text. And the second statement of importance is this: Monteverdi wants to assure his critics that even his most startling novelties were not the product of accidental and willful procedures. Based on the law of the relation to the text, they all were well considered and fully justified. And he concludes with the address to his student: Believe me, the modern composer works on the foundation of truth. Monteverdi meant the discovery of all the inherent secrets of the text by the individual, to be rendered faithfully in terms of music. In view of this conception of musical composition we can understand the reason why Schütz was immediately attracted to Monteverdi, who had given the principle as well as the form. Schütz made himself ready to acquire all the media of the new art, the stile concertato, the new soloistic form of melody, all the dramatic possibilities that the new style has brought about, the various forms of monody in the arioso, in the recitation, in the mixture of aria and expressive declamation, in short, all the elements that by their very nature were flexible enough to allow a faithful interpretation of the text. Schütz acquired the style with all its implications. Of all the German composers of the seventeenth century he was the only one who exhausted all its possibilities. When he came home from Italy, it was not the profane music that he cultivated; he again took up the categories of religious music. He did not condemn secular music; he used the new style also for those works which he dedicated to representational purposes of courtly life. But most of these compositions are lost. And his chief efforts were, at all events, concentrated on the categories church music needed for the services. Despite the basic secularity of the style, Schütz consistently works with these categories in religious music. What Monteverdi achieved through a gradual transformation of the madrigal to the secular cantata is now presented as a complete and perfect product: the motet becomes the sacred cantata, not, of course, in the sense of Bach, but in accordance with the understanding of the form the seventeenth century had obtained through Schütz. In hisKleine Geistliche Konzerte Schütz gives an interpretation of the text in the style of the monody and the stile concertato. He does this with a completeness and perfection that in the field of religious music has never been surpassed. The three parts of the Symphoniae Sacrae and the Kleine Geistliche Konzerte not only show the result of what he had acquired through his studies, but they contain the new individualistic interpretations of traditional texts; they are the compositions which Schütz now dedicated to the services of the Church. The texts are mostly traditional. The first part of Symphoniae Sacrae (1629), for instance, is altogether based on passages of the Bible, from the Psalms, from Samuel, from St. Matthew, from the Caticum Canticorum. The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church Volume VII From The Musical Heritage of the Lutheran Church, Volume VII (Valparaiso, Ind.: Valparaiso University, 1970). Reprinted by permission of Valparaiso University. For personal use only. According to the traditional character of the texts, the compositions are motets; according to their musical form they are cantatas. Such compositions as Fili mi, Absalom from the Second Book of Samuel reveal what the new individualistic but faithful interpretation of text implied, a work without comparison. Most of the compositions contained in the three parts of the Symphoniae Sacrae and in the two parts of the Kleine Geistliche Konzerte are liturgical in the sense that they were composed for a definite liturgical place in the main service or in the Vespers. With regard to assigning the individual compositions to their proper places in the various liturgies of the church year, we must admit that much research is still to be done to arrange the work of Schütz in liturgical order. The first part of the Kleine Geistliche Konzerte, for instance, consists chiefly of Psalms; there are furthermore two Gospel compositions, one Epistle, four chorales. The second part has ten Psalms, three Gospels, four Epistles v ]Æ }Z] ÆU u}vP Z o ^ oo ]v '} ]v ,Z[_ ~ ]µMU ^ /Z µ([ ̵ ]_ ~ ^ µV Z ] o} Z v]Z}v ^ s v]U ^v ^]]µX_ /v Z v }Z collections it is surely characteristic that the Gospel composition and such works as are related to it through the sermon, play a distinguished role, characteristic, because the act of interpretation had here a specific importance. The Germans called the music centered in the Gospel and sermon the ^ W ]Puµ]lX_ This part of the liturgy had considerable importance for Schütz. At all events, the texts he had chosen usually present a particular challenge to the interpretative mind of the composer. Although most of his works are liturgical in the strict sense of the word and can therefore be attributed to the specific liturgies, it becomes clear, when taking the work of Schütz as a whole, that he never had the intention to organize systematically the Lutheran o]µPÇ Á]Z Z] uµ]X dZ ]v]o }( ^ZºÌ[ liturgical music, that of the individualistic interpretation, was new. It would not have been a far-fetched idea to have the new principle penetrate all the liturgies. The result would have been a comprehensive musical reinterpretation of the services. This did not come to pass. Schütz did not aim at a well-regulated and reorganized church music. Perhaps he was too much of an individualist to be capable of carrying out his task systematically in organic harmony with the liturgy of the church year. His accomplished work seems to suggest it. At this point there is the final difference between Schütz and Bach. Bach had always thought of church music as an organized, systematic form. He thought in terms of liturgical completeness, which he would gradually reach when all the regulations that he foresaw for church music would materialize. In that sense, Bach is perhaps the stronger liturgical thinker of the two. At any rate, he saw the need of a systematic organization to come from the conditions of his own time. t]Z P } Z ]] ]v ]}v }( Z o]P]}µ Æ ÁZ]Z ]v Z[ Á}l Á v} À v oÁÇ ^]]}voU_ Z Á uµZ }( v ]v]À]µo] Á ^ZºÌX t }v (}u }( ]v]À]µo]u really greater than the other? We confess that we do not know. Under the aspect of church music, their work is not subject to a decision in favor of one or the other. dZ Z]}Ç }( ZµZ uµ] } v} u] Z ]µ } (}uµo ]v uvv }( ^ ]Z }X_ /( ] were a matter of accepting and rejecting, we can accept only both or none. Such a condition, however, has no historical justification; but both, in an equal measure, can justify their artistic work within the liturgy of Protestantism.