This is a brief series recommending good, conservative sacred music recordings. I began the series with several introductory remarks and a list of good albums of choral hymns and anthems. Last week I suggested several albums of Psalms sung in English. This final installment will list some different instrumental recordings of hymns. My list, again, is not… Continue Reading
I was pushed to write a series on discernment when I heard a famous evangelical pastor define discernment as the ability to see, allegedly by the Spirit of God, obscene things on a kind of imaginary “movie screen.”1 I also wanted to respond with sound exegesis to the opinions of some that any extra-biblical moral… Continue Reading
Anthony Bradley recently submitted a commentary for World magazine publicizing ‘holy hip hop.’ He writes, “If you are looking for theologically saturated Christian music that has the greatest potential for widespread appeal, your best option may be Christian hip-hop.” The first sentence gives away a great deal. First, he missteps in the first clause, for… Continue Reading
The other day I was listening to a conversation among some ministers and seminary educators. Among them, there was an assumption of sorts that expository preaching is a necessary activity in Christian churches. And I have noticed that many, indeed, appear to agree with these men on the importance of expository preaching. And I agree… Continue Reading
“It’s like reaching the rich young ruler by throwing money at him,” is the apt comparison of T. David Gordon in response to whether or not church music should be “seeker-friendly.” In an interview with Christianity Today‘s Mark Moring that springs from his book Why Johnny Can’t Sing Hymns, Gordon makes the case for traditional worship. Among other… Continue Reading
My goal in this series is to help believers apply the Bible to their musical choices in life and worship. My contention is, however, that believers today approach the issue of musical choices with certain errant foundational presuppositions that need to be corrected before they can rightly apply the Bible in this area. So my… Continue Reading
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Pre-order for 30% off | Book Website “Scott Aniol has contributed a reasoned, thoughtful, Scripture-infused, and theological approach to his subject. This book should prove to be a helpful volume to any serious worshiper.” Paul S. Jones, D.M. Organist and Music Director – Tenth Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia Author, Singing and Making Music: Issues in Church… Continue Reading
Pre-order for 30% off | Book Website SECTION ONE: LAYING THE FOUNDATION Chapter One: Biblical Authority in Matters of Faith and Practice Many Christians insist that because the Bible says nothing explicitly regarding the kind of music that pleases God, God must not care what we listen to. This chapter dispels that idea by demonstrating… Continue Reading
I am very excited about the upcoming release of my new book, Worship in Song: A Biblical Philosophy of Music and Worship. Published by BMH Books, this volume will be released in just a few weeks! The book will retail for $17.99, but for one week only, Religious Affections Ministries is offering a pre-order discount… Continue Reading
Speaking of good things coming out of SoundForth, I recently received a choral demo from them featuring the music of David Rasbach. First, and add it to your choral collection. It is excellent. It is only $6. It is professionally recorded, features the Bob Jones Academy Chorale (which Rasbach directs, and whose sounds is better… Continue Reading
I’ve taken pains on this site to explain the differences between high culture, folk culture, and pop culture. Last night my wife and I witnessed a very enlightening collision of all three types of culture. Some friends of ours invited us to join them for an evening at the Rockford Symphony (incidentally, we had front… Continue Reading
On March 19, SoundForth will release its latest choral recording, “The King of Love.” In anticipation of the release, Dan Forrest sent me a review copy and asked me to share some thoughts here. I do not pretend to be an expert in choral recordings, but here are some thoughts from my little corner of… Continue Reading
Many of us bemoan the fact that there really aren’t very many new, fresh, yet profoundly conservative hymns with rich, doctrinal texts and stable, lasting tunes being written today. There are some. The best I know of are being written by Paul Jones in collaboration with a few pastor/theologians. You can find those hymns here.… Continue Reading
One particularly common misconception in the realm of aesthetics is that “we all have different tastes, and that’s OK,” and Christians are certainly not immune to this errant perspective. The error here lies once again in a careless use of terminology. If by “tastes” in such a perspective one means “preferences,” then I have no… Continue Reading
A music theorist whom I have found very helpful is Manfred Clynes. Clynes argues that music communicates through its natural connection with emotion. I can best explain Clynes’ theories at this point by quoting from “Music Hath Charms . . .” by Iaian D. Edgwater in Biocultural Approaches to the Emotions edited by Alexander Laban… Continue Reading