Black Church Music Part 1
Concerning Hymns In The African American Church;
Concerning Hymns In The African American Church;
I think it's important to note that the majority of hymns we sing in the black church were not written by us. They were given/taught to us by whites. Hymns and European anthems were promoted and ingrained in "US" as a more sophisticated, theologically sound form of worship in lieu of our own songs.
Growing up in the black Baptist church and subsequently studying classical music in college(HBCU) further promoted this music superiority complex ingrained in "US" by Europeans. In most white Universities and some HBCUs, black church music is still seen as unsophisticated and less technical due to the lack of education of many professors, university restrictions and in some cases lack of resources.
I think hymns are important. I've spent more than half my life learning, playing and singing hymns. Many are rooted in sound theology. I think hymns, regardless of who wrote them, should be sung in church. They have and continue to provide spiritual nourishment. My concern is "OUR" exaltation of European hymns and anthems, as we currently define them, as a necessity for worship in the black Church. We exalt "Their" music and degrade/downgrade our own as optional choices. It's even sadder that the majority of black church musicians are not aware of the hymns written by black people.
I see this trend also with CCM/Black Gospel Music but that's another post. I want to encourage African American church musicians to research, learn, introduce and teach your congregations the hymns and anthems that were written by our own people. We've already spent hundreds of years promoting hymns written by others. You may find a deeper connection with your audience. Many of our songs/hymns were written to address "OUR" conditions of which we are still suffering from in many ways.You will unlock new treasures for the people you serve. They may take a little longer to learn but that just speaks to the musicality, sophistication, technical prowess and spirituality of our people that "OTHER CULTURES" have been trying to emulate for years.
As someone who grew up in a pentecostal church, I find your words quite encouraging. As a member of a Baptist Church and part of their music ministry, I sometimes feel like the congregation would be better served by re-introducing "Our" music back into it's hearts and minds. Thanks, again for stating these points so eloquently.
ReplyDeleteThank you
DeleteI did not grow up in the church. I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior when I was age 19. As a little girl, my mom would sometimes have me stay with my grand-dad at his home while she went to work. My grand-dad was an active member of his church and at his home, he kept his portable radio on the AM stations and the only thing I heard was spirituals and preaching. Aside from this experience, I learned nothing about church life and music in my youth. Since my conversion, I've sang in various church choirs over the years and I've sang hymns but I still don't know much about them and I don't believe that enough is taught about them in general. So, yes, I agree that African American church musicians should be encouraged to research, learn, introduce and teach congregations the hymns and anthems that were written by African Americans because they are relevant to our past and present experiences. I also believe that there needs to be more sound biblical teaching on music and its importance to worship and preaching. For example, I don’t believe that a lot of people know, or if they are aware, actually understand that the Book of Psalms is a book of songs that are meant to be scored and song with musical accompaniment. So, really, there needs to be more teaching on music and God’s intended use for it in the church and in our everyday lives.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment. Great points here.
DeleteViolet Lucas January 22, 2020 11:08 PM
ReplyDeleteI was raised as a Methodist but with Catholic "fringes". My Mother was raised as a Baptist and my Father as a Catholic. When they married, they became Methodist. I worshiped as a Methodist most of my adult life-visiting many Methodist churches but never joined one. I enjoyed the hymns that were sung maybe because of the choirs. Never were they introduced by their authors. Only when we sang The Black National Anthem did we know the author and the history behind the song. When I joined Mt. Sinai Baptist Church, I began to sing Spirituals. Only through several Ministers of Music,including Mr. Phillip Carter, was I educated about the difference between Hymns and Spirituals. The former being a song of praise and the latter a religious folk song of America. We need to upgrade not only our Black History in America but Black music sung in churches-hymns or spirituals. Yes, they were written by own people to address the conditions then but some of the same conditions exist today.The goal of all HBCU music departments should educated their students about the author(s) of all kinds of music. If any become ministers of music at their churches then they can educated their choirs and congregations.
Thanks Mrs Lucas. Great comment.
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