I am a music minister at a United Methodist Church. My duties include directing an adult choir. I am very intentional with my choir leadership. The first rule of my training as a church musician is that church music is not a performance, it is an act of worship. Sometimes I wish that this wasn’t so ingrained in me. I get a little too serious about it. After all, it’s just choir. It’s 5 minutes a week. I don’t expect everyone to feel about it the way I do.
I confess, that I do get bent out of shape when I feel that my choir’s musical offering is received as nothing more than a musical performance, like we went and had a little concert in the middle of a worship service. When that happens, I wonder if I’ve done my job as a worship leader poorly. And I also wonder if there is a little confusion about what we’re actually trying to do.
So if the choir’s anthem is not a musical performance, then what is it?
This comes down to my church music philosophy. Let me break it down. This is my intention for choral offerings on Sunday mornings.
Instrument of Worship
I intend for the choir to be an instrument of worship. I teach multiple stages of singing. Learn the notes and rhythms. Learn the musical expression. Learn to express the text. And finally and most importantly, learn to worship with the music. If we only get one of those things right, it must be the worship. Have you ever been moved to tears by a musician of humble ability, and bored to tears by a brilliant musician? Music is a form of expression. Without expression, it’s not really music, and your brain understands this. Our business is to move people, not just with our skills but with our worship expression. We actually take time in rehearsal to worship with our song so that when we stand up on Sunday morning, we can let go and worship.
Worship Leaders
Not only are the singers worshiping, they are intending to lead everybody else in worship. We pray about this every rehearsal. We pray that as we sing, someone’s heart might be turned to God in an act of worship. If this isn’t happening, then we’re doing something wrong. I would need to rethink my selections or do a better job inspiring my choir to be filled up with worshipful energy when they sing. We could be singing Mozart’s Requiem like the Robert Shaw Chorale, but if worship did not occur, it is absolutely worthless.
And there’s more to worship than praising. There is surrender, mourning, praying, confessing, professing, repenting. If the choir can help you do those things, then we did our job.
Witness to the Word
The anthem is a witness to the Word. In worship, there are many ways of witnessing to the Word of God. Our hymns develop around the themes of scriptures. The liturgists reads the scripture. The pastor preaches on the scripture. And the musicians sing the scripture.
Musical Excellence, but not for it’s own sake
That the singing will be excellent in a way that most effectively presents the offering of music. We work very hard at the technical aspects of singing and musicianship, but I never put it higher than the worshipful aspects.
Offering
The anthem is an offering to God, not to the congregation. This is when my seventeen singers offer music as a gift to God.
These are my intentions. Some may not see it that way. Perhaps some folks are just music fans and like the performance aspect and don’t need all the worship mumbo jumbo. Or perhaps you’re not a fan of choral music and prefer a band . No matter. Choirs and bands are going for the same result. My hope is that when your music leaders stand up to sing or sit down to play this Sunday, that you will become a part of the offering. Open yourself up to the possibility of having a moment with God.
For more of my thoughts on choral music in church:
Are Choirs Relevant to the Modern Church?
Import complicated 