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VOL. LXXXVII. RICHMON
Vocal Music in
Is singing a part of pu!biic worship, is it incumbent
upon the congregation?the people at
large?to take part in the praise service?the
only part in which the rank and file can openly
participate?
Or, should the praise be confined to the
choir the select few?who "do" the whole
thing?
The "stated service" is practically reduced
to: 1. Sermon and prayer from the pulpit; 2.
Music from the choir loft; and 3. Collections
from the pew. And this "division of labor"/
has gradually and inevitably induced the peo*
pie to regard themselves as little more than
spectators at the church service. Since they
openly participate in nothing they come to
consider themselves "onrselv^a " end
course, their interest wanes proportionately,
and their sense of responsibility for the success
of the church and its enterprises, drops ever
toward the null point, although success or failure
depends at last upon the pew.
In this picture overdrawn shrdlu shr shrdl
Is this picture overdrawn! Step into the
average church, take notes of the service, and
see.
The song service is that which more than any
other, tends to arouse the feelings, touch the
heart and move the man. Will the church allow
this powerful lever to fall from her hands!
xet in the average church, city or country,
the picture just drawn finds its counterpart,
the lineaments are easily recognized; we mentally
apply the portrait to a dozen churches of
our own acquaintance.
Old Israel sang in the temple and synagogue
services. Even without "hymnals," or annotated
music, the people could?did?shout
"Amens" to the song service led by Asaph or
the "Sons of Korah." The early church sang
till the Roman governors believed that hi*
magic song service was the spring of Christian
enthusiasm and success, and martyrs went to
the cross, or to the stake with songs on their
lips.
The early Reformers were noted for their
singing. Luther's fine alto voice won him
bread as a penniless boy in the streets; and in
the darkest hours of the Reformation he oft
times called to Melanchthon: "Come, Phillip,
lets sing and drive the devil away." In his
Prison Virmi-o +V. ~ tit?' i *
m mvmao vu tuc YY ariDurg ne wrote:
"Ein Feste Burg 1st Linjser Gofct."
The poor Calvinists of France hidden in the
caves and forests of the Cevennes, cheered
themselves with the Psalms of Marot; and neither
St..Bartholomews nor revoked Edicts of
Nantes could subdue them. The Wesleys, singers
themselves, were so conscious of the power
of song that they introduced hymn-lining that
the poor miners who harl npitVi??* 1?-1
_ ? VMV. IIJ liiu UUU1SH,
nor the ability to read them, might nevertheless
take part in the service.
This scribe has heard children of Moslem,
ID, NEW ORLEANS, ATLANTA. JANl
the Public Sch
or other non-Christian parentage in mission
schools singing English hymns for lack of any
proper lyric music in their native tongues; tor
the missionaries were too conscious of music's
power to deprive themselves of it.
But the question with our churches today is:
"How can we make our lyric music universal
Or PVon fronoro 1 wUk ??? - - 1?* * *
~ bUU^iai nxui uui puupie, i. e., uring IX
to the comprehension and use of our people?"
,/^Our girls of the better educated class have
g^gfljiifLmore or less knowledge of instrumeut&yy
many of even these do not
no use to the music of the conour
boys and young men, he
who!*** Teakflniusic with any facility is the exception,
probably not one in fifty can read music
at sight.
In the choir are generally a few singers who
pride themselves on their voices and are fond
of "showing off" on public occasions. These
do not wish the "bother" of the miscellaneous
JUST FOR TODAY
. Lord, for to-morrow and its needs
I do not pray;
Keep me, my God, from stain of sin?
Just for to-day.
vited nor welcome to any part of the praise
service, ai\d they yawn in their pews waiting
for soloists, quartettes and choruses to get
through with their several performances.
Such praise service is a dismal failure as to
any spiritual uplift on the part of the congregation.
The hired singers who sing in the
theater on week nights and in the church on
the Sabbath in both cases for pay,?are not the
artists to briner anv nnlift tn
D _ ? -i ? nua iv,
heavy hearts in the pew,?with all their trills,
warblings and contortions.
What can be done to change all this? We
answer: Make vocal music a part of the common
school enrricnlnm. Let it be taught by
courses and grades; let the pupils be examined
%
Let me both diligently work,
And duly pray;
Let me be kind in word and deed?
Just for to-day.
Let me be slow to do my will,
Prompt to obey;
Help me to sacrifice myself?
Just for to-day
Let me no wrong or idle word
Unthinking sag:
Set Thou a seal upon my lips?
Just for to-day.
Cleanse and receive my parting so
Be Thou my stay;
O hid mc. if to day I die ?
Come home to-day.
So for to-morrow and its need
I do not pray;
But keep hr, guide me, hold me Lord?
Just for today.?Selected.
congregational singing, and prefer to be rid of
it. The plebs know that they are neither in
/ ter/A/^
no r>n
rr/iL rrrt z>or / tN/AN JT
menn Presbyterian
JARY 22. 1913. NO. "3- 4^
< |. BY
OOiS Rev. H. A. Scomp, D.D.
upon it just as upon all other branches of
study. Children of twelve will read muaic as
they read the printed page. The song hour will
be the hour of the day with them, the hour they
most enjoy. In the church they will read the
music and sing any hymns the choir can sing.
Very few children are hindered by any natural
defect of voice or ear from learning to sing,
and very few but love music and would gladly
join in song. One generation under such training
will solve the problem of congregational
singing as it was long ago solved in Germany.
Enter a great German church with 1,000 to
3,000 people in attendance and note when the
song begins that practically all are joining in.
Why? Because all were trained in childhood?
even from the kindergarten?to sing.
Why not so in America? It can be so if we
would begin from the common schools.
Are there difficulties in the way? Yes, some,
but not insuperable.
The great body of our public school teachers
are not able to teach vocal music. Must they
lose their places and give up their vocation by
reason of this inability T By no means. Let
each county, municipality, district, or other
sufficient civil division of territory, have its
musical director whose business (vocation), it
shall be to teach vocal music in as certain num
U * -
uer ox scnoois?six, eignt, or a dozen, as the
case may be.
Let this director have the same control for
his hour as the teacher over the pupils, and be
held to the same accountability for his work.
Let regular and rigid examinations be held to
test proficiency in vocal music as in other studies.
; and ten years, or even less, will bpp n rovn.
lution in our church and congregational music.
Can it be done? No doubt of it.. It has been
done in other lands and in parts of our own
country.
In St. Paul, Minn., at the National Educational
Convention (1890); a crowd of children,
none over twelve years, were put upon tha
BLuge; a music dook ot considerable size was
put into their hands and copies were distributed
through the great audience who were invited
to select such pieces as they wished for
the children; while the latter were required to
read the pieces: First by note and then sing
them; and they did sing them fully and correctly.
The exclusive church choir could not have
shut out those children from the praise certain,
even had it tried.
irn ? -
wnat was done by those St. Paul school
children, and by thousands of other pupils-can
be done generally throughout our country.
Some additional expense Dfust; t>je /incurred,
which however, might be lessened by a thorough
overhauling and cleaning-up of our pres
ent school systems of their illicit, connections.
No man should be permitted to h'cld an of