Music For The Four Acts Of Worship

Music is integral to each of the four basic acts of worship. Music sets the tone or mood for what takes place in each act. It is also a means by which the unique aspects of each part of the service many be expressed. The process of planning music for worship should always take into account the function of music in relationship to the structure of the worship service.

Music has the power to express the various moods of each part of worship: the Entrance employs joyful music; the Word, instructive music; the Table, celebrative music; the Dismissal, triumphant music. This is equally true of the various seasons of the church year: Advent music expresses the longing of the heart as it awaits the coming of Christ; Christmas, the joy of his appearing; Epiphany, the stirring command of the missionary advance; Lent, the quietness of the inner journey; Holy Week, the sobriety of death; Easter, the joy of resurrection; Pentecost, the excitement of the coming of the Holy Spirit. Music captures and expresses all of these moods in the four acts of worship. Music for the Acts of Entrance Gathering Music. Music during the gathering can create either a mood of reverence or of joy. Traditional worship will use an organ prelude or instrumentation or both to reach the hearts and allow people to meditate before the service begins. Today many churches, desiring to create a mood of joy and celebration, will sing praise songs as the people gather, then move to a traditional Entrance hymn to signal the procession and the beginning of the various parts of Entrance into the presence of God. Many churches are using praise choruses for the gathering. Praise choruses constitute a new musical form which found its origins in the Jesus movement of the early 1970s and in the rise and spread of the charismatic movement. In the praise-and-worship tradition, choruses are often sung for the entire acts of Entrance. Praise choruses are also being integrated into a more traditional form of worship in two very effective and helpful ways. First, some churches have a time of praise choruses during the gathering, followed by an Entrance hymn that signals the beginning of the more formal worship. In these churches the praise choruses replace the more traditional organ prelude and prepare the people for worship through joyful singing. Second, praise choruses are very effective during the Communion as an expression of praise and adoration to God for the work of Christ experienced at the Table. Entrance Music. Careful consideration needs to be given to the mood of both the Entrance hymn and the act(s) of praise. The Entrance hymn should be joyful, familiar, and capable of accompaniment with organ and brass. Coming into the presence of God is a festive act, which, if not expressed by the music, probably will not be experienced by the people. A hymn is the most appropriate expression of Entrance, especially if it is used with a procession. A hymn, as Augustine stated, is "the praise of God in song." So convinced was he of this truth that he went on to say that the praise of God not sung is not a hymn. It is generally thought that Ambrose, the fourth-century bishop of the church in Milan where Augustine was converted, is the father of ancient hymnody. Although a number of hymns were written in the ancient and medieval church, few melodies are found before the twelfth century, and not until the twelfth century were hymns officially admitted into the Mass, although they were used extensively in the divine offices. Hymn singing in the vernacular was promoted in the fourteenth century in the worship of the Bohemian brethren led by John Huss. During the sixteenth century the Reformers introduced more hymns which were to exert a lasting influence on the people. Hymn singing was popularized by John Wesley in the eighteenth century and through revivalism in the nineteenth century. Today there is a considerable amount of hymnal updating and many new hymns are being written. Nearly every denomination around the world is producing new hymns and new hymnals. This is a sign of the vitality hymn singing brings to worship and the importance of hymns that support the action of worship. Praise tradition groups that have neglected the hymn in worship are now reconsidering, recognizing that they have cut themselves off from the rich treasury of hymn material available to the church to support and intensify its worship. The act of praise is addressed to God and extols God's worthiness of praise. The ancient Gloria in Excelsis Deo is the traditional act of praise sung here. There are numerous musical settings for the Gloria, ranging from formal to folk or praise tunes. While the Gloria is really the most appropriate act of praise, other hymns or praise songs extolling God's worth can be used. Because the mood is one of joy and adoration, the musical expression should be fast and upbeat. Numerous instruments or combinations of instrumental music are appropriate for the Entrance. A canticle may also be sung in the Entrance, especially when sung to a metrical tune as in the New Metrical Psalter. In Christian worship a canticle is a song from the Bible other than the book of Psalms. Canticles, originally sung at morning and evening prayer, are now sung in worship on special occasions. For example, the gradual alleluia, not sung during Lent, may be replaced by a canticle. The most often sung canticles are the Benedicite, a song of Creation which comes from the Apocrypha; the Benedictus, the song of Zechariah (Luke 1:68–79); the Nunc Dimittis, the song of Simeon (Luke 2:29–32) and the Magnificat, the song of Mary (Luke 1:46–55). A good translation of these and other canticles can be found in The Book of Common Prayer. Music for the Service of the Word In the Service of the Word the act of worship shifts from Entrance into the presence of God to hearing God speak. Consequently, the musical shift is from voices raised in praise to ears attentive to the Word of God read and preached. Music must serve that shift and assist the congregation in hearing the Word. Music of the Word can include

1. The singing (chant) of the Scripture lessons (this form of music was used in the synagogue and passed down to the early church). Chant fixes the words in the mind better than reading.

2. Sung responses such as the responsorial psalm and the gradual alleluia; the form of music that best expresses an attentive and listening mood is chant in one form or another. Some churches will sing the psalm to a metrical tune. Although metrical music is not as conducive to listening, it may be used for congregations not accustomed to chant. 3. The singing of the Apostles' Creed. A number of chants, modified chant, and melody tunes are available. 4. Singing the prayers. Chant best expresses the mood of prayer.

It is also appropriate to speak all of the above since the spoken word serves well the mood of attentiveness. Generally instrumentation for music in the Service of the Word should be used sparingly, and almost never with chant. One exception might be the use of an organ accompaniment to the monotone chanting of the Apostles' Creed. These usually are subtle modulations and harmonizations on the chant tone that reflect the emotional or dramatic contour of the creed.

What is used most often in the Service of the Word is the psalm. The oldest form of music in the Christian church is psalm singing, a form rooted in Hebrew worship. The earliest form of psalm singing was chant. The early church developed what has come to be known as the Gregorian chant. In the Reformation era John Calvin introduced metrical psalm singing, and in 1719 Isaac Watts introduced a Christianized version of the psalms in The Psalms of David Imitated in the Language of the New Testament and Applied to the Christian State and Worship. For example, "Jesus Shall Reign Where'er the Sun" is his rendition of Psalm 72, and "Joy to the World" comes from Psalm 98. In contemporary worship renewal, psalms have been recovered in all three styles—chant, metrical, and translation. Chant is rooted in the biblical tradition and has been used in worship throughout history. Although Protestants have seldom used chanting in worship, this musical form is undergoing a renaissance today, especially in prayer. Because chant is given to the repetition of a word or phrase, it is highly useful as a form of meditation, a way of centering in worship. Chanting the Psalms has the advantage of singing the actual text rather than a paraphrase of the text. Psalm chants are used primarily in the responsorial psalm in the Service of the Word, located between the Old Testament reading and the Epistle, and in the gradual, the singing before the reading of the Gospel. In the Catholic church the psalm must be sung by chant and not meter because chant, it is argued, fits the mood of hearing the Word and concentrating on it better than does meter. There are a number of chant patterns. One of the most widely used is the antiphonal chant. The soloist or a choir sing the psalm refrain or an alleluia. Then the congregation repeats it. The entire psalm is sung this way with the cantor chanting the verse and the congregation responding. This is a very beautiful way to sing a psalm and an effective one for hearing the Word. A more simple form of congregational chant is the pattern found in the Lutheran Book of Worship. In this form the entire congregation sings the psalm together. Although the chanting of the psalms is used primarily in liturgical churches, nonliturgical churches should consider its occasional use. The best time for nonliturgical churches to use chant psalms is during Lent and Holy Week. The metrical psalms originated among the English Protestant exiles who fled the persecution under Queen Mary to reside in Geneva. These psalms were popularized by Calvin and have been used in Reformed churches with continuing adaptation and change to the present. In contemporary worship renewal metrical psalm singing has enjoyed a renaissance. Many denominations already have, or are in the process of creating, new Psalters for congregational singing. While metrical psalms may be sung as Responsorial Psalms, they are more appropriate in the Gathering, in the Entrance, and as Communion Songs. This is particularly true of those psalms that are joyful in nature, offering praise to God. For example, a number of churches now sing a psalm or two as the people gather to worship. These psalms create a mood of joy and reverence and prepare the people for the Entrance song and rites that bring them into the presence of God. The Entrance song itself can be a psalm or a psalm can be used as an act of praise where the traditional Gloria in Excelsis Deo appears. Because many psalms are joyful and express high praise for the deeds of God, they are quite appropriate as acts of praise during Communion. These are the major places in worship where a metrical psalm can be used effectively. Music in the Service of the Table The shift that occurs at the Table moves people from attentive listening to active involvement once again. The focus, which shifts from the Word to the Table, from our encounter with Christ in the preached Word to our encounter with Christ at the Table, needs the assistance of music that will support the text and convey the mood of what is actually occurring. Setting the Table. Here people of the congregation bring the bread and wine and place it on the Table. Here an anthem can be sung, the congregation may sing, or both may occur. It is best to do both. If a choice has to be made, sing a hymn. People have been sitting and listening to the Word; they now need to express their faith. The Prayer of Thanksgiving. In high liturgical churches the Prayer of Thanksgiving is sung in a chant tone. The people respond at the appropriate point in the prayer with the Sanctus, the eucharistic acclamation, the Great Amen, and the Agnus Dei. Even if the text is read, at least the responses should be sung. Here is the great commemoration of the mystery of the incarnation, death, resurrection, and return of Christ. Music is a much better way to express mystery than speech alone. It communicates the meaning of the gospel to deeper levels of the personality and allows for a response from the hearer that comes from deeper than the intellect. Of course, to accomplish this the liturgy must be sung as a prayer and sung in faith. A mere rote recitation of the words without adequate intention or reverential awe, which this great mystery should inspire, will fall flat and be uninspiring. Communion Song. What is said above is equally true of singing during the reception of Communion. This is no time for soft organ music, for instrumental performance of any kind. It is time for the corporate singing of songs of joy. Here praise music of the Taizé or Maranatha or Fisherfolk varieties fits well, as do great ancient hymns regarding the meaning of the Eucharist. It is a celebration of the Resurrection, not a sober reflection on the death. Communion is also enhanced with the use of chants, acclamations, litanies, and refrains or antiphons. Besides psalm chant, there are at least three other uses of chant: processional chant, intercessory chant, and devotional chant. The processional chant is best used as the people are processing to the Table to receive Communion. One Scripture chant made famous by the Taizé community in France is the phrase of the thief on the cross, "Jesus remember me when you come into your kingdom." These words, sung over and over again, allow a scattered and busy mind, body, and spirit to focus on the meaning of Christ's death and participation with him in the kingdom. As the congregation chants this Scripture and joins together in song and centering, a sense of God's spirit can be felt and experienced intensely. The intercessory chant is sung with penitential prayers (usually during Lent) and with the general prayers of intercession. The chant tone supports the action of the community, its penitence or its petitions. The devotional chant has a strong likeness to the intercessory chant except that nothing else is going on in worship at that time. It supports personal devotion and is therefore best done as a post-Communion song, allowing worshipers to express their devotion in an intense way. Acclamations may also be sung in Communion. An acclamation is a short burst of praise that may be said or sung as a response to a divine action occurring in worship. Examples are

1. The gradual alleluia

2. The Sanctus (Holy, Holy, Holy) in the prayer of thanksgiving 3. The memorial acclamation in the prayer of thanksgiving "¢ Christ has died "¢ Christ is risen "¢ Christ will come again. 4. The Great Amen in the prayer of thanksgiving

While these acclamations are used primarily in the liturgical church, there is no reason why they cannot be used as effective congregational responses in a nonliturgical church as well.

Litanies are also often used in Communion. A litany is a form of song or prayer that builds through repetition. A litany such as "Lord have mercy" or "Lord, hear our prayer" is often sung or said in the intercessions at the end of each prayer.

In the Communion the Agnus Dei ("Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world have mercy on us") is frequently used. This phrase is repeated twice and then the third time the congregation sings "Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world, grant us your peace."

A refrain or antiphon is not nearly as "explosive" as an acclamation. It is a response that is more subdued and subtle, a meditative response that echoes and re-echoes in the heart. A refrain may be used after the responsorial psalm or it may be used in the Communion time. Communion refrains such as "Taste and see that the Lord is good" or "Ubi caritas" ("Where charity and love are, there is God") have been widely used throughout the centuries at Communion. Music for the Act of Dismissal The recessional hymn, usually the only music in the Dismissal, maintains the upbeat mood of the Table. Here a gospel song may be sung. Gospel songs that speak of God's touch or the mission before the church are appropriate ways to be sent forth. Gospel songs, which are also called witness music, have their modern origins in the music of the Wesleyan revivals. The texts of these hymns shifted from a vertical focus on God and God's character to a more horizontal approach, a concern for the human person before God. Attention was paid to sinful conditions, to the need for salvation, to God's offer of salvation in Christ, and to the change in heart and life that comes through conversion and restoration with God. Most hymn books contain many gospel songs from the pen of John or Charles Wesley, Fanny Crosby, and others. While these gospel songs are not generally fitting for an Entrance hymn, they may be used effectively as response to the sermon (in churches that do not use creeds), and as a concluding recessional hymn. In summary, all forms of music may be used in any given service—chant, ancient hymns, psalm singing, praise music, gospel, and more. All of these musical styles create an environment, a mood that carries the community into an experience of heaven. Consequently renewal worship draws on all the traditions of music and does not adhere, or should not adhere to one single style.