I came across an article that merely skips the surface of this topic, but caught my attention sufficiently that I had to look up the book that was being referenced [My Only Comfort: Death, Deliverance, and Discipleship in the Music of Bach by Calvin R. Stapert, 2000]. If you have a google acount you can read most of the book here. But pages 109-111 really open things up for me as it relates to Bach's theological efforts.
Ever since I took a music theory class in college and realized the connection between music and math I was hooked. It was as if there were some secret code revealed to me that made sense of sounds and notes, or at least explained why some sounds were "right" and others "wrong". That doesn't mean I can play any instrument any better as a result - this is purely a thick handful of cognitive cotton candy for me. So when I read of the layers of meaning and the musical symbolism that Bach employed in his work I was all the more amazed. Music truly is the means by which the mind of God transcends science and becomes art, which reveals the beauty of God. The one is the vehicle chosen to reveal the other.
To give you an example, Bach used keys to designate movement in his Christmas Oratorio. When the angels declare the birth of Christ the music is in 2 sharps. As the Oratorio moves to the human players it drops to 1 sharp. And when Christ is seen in the manger there are no sharps, reflecting God had descended fully to "ground zero". The progression reverses as the Oratorio moves back toward heavenly beings rejoicing (the number of sharps paralleling the level of action between heaven and earth).
Additionally, the instruments that were used in each part are also symbolic. Bach used strings to reflect angels and wind instruments for humans (could it be their distinction in the act of creation when God breathed into man?). During scenes of announcement the wind and string instruments parallel each other, or their respective vocalist, and overlap when all are rejoicing.
And then there are the words. It is all there to read and see the brilliance in Bach's work - not just the music, but how he chose the notes and the symbolism in the actual instruments and the play on words. It truly is more masterful to me than when I merely appreciated his work for the simple beauty of the sound.
Music is powerful to be sure. But when written, conducted, or performed by a theologian, there is a depth of expression that can really be profound and divine. Maybe this should be the lesson for worship leaders in our churches today: your theology is critical to how and what you sing. Whether it is explained or understood by the congregation, it will be powerful as a result of the truth it contains. This is true of Bach and of you as well.
Ever since I took a music theory class in college and realized the connection between music and math I was hooked. It was as if there were some secret code revealed to me that made sense of sounds and notes, or at least explained why some sounds were "right" and others "wrong". That doesn't mean I can play any instrument any better as a result - this is purely a thick handful of cognitive cotton candy for me. So when I read of the layers of meaning and the musical symbolism that Bach employed in his work I was all the more amazed. Music truly is the means by which the mind of God transcends science and becomes art, which reveals the beauty of God. The one is the vehicle chosen to reveal the other.
To give you an example, Bach used keys to designate movement in his Christmas Oratorio. When the angels declare the birth of Christ the music is in 2 sharps. As the Oratorio moves to the human players it drops to 1 sharp. And when Christ is seen in the manger there are no sharps, reflecting God had descended fully to "ground zero". The progression reverses as the Oratorio moves back toward heavenly beings rejoicing (the number of sharps paralleling the level of action between heaven and earth).
Additionally, the instruments that were used in each part are also symbolic. Bach used strings to reflect angels and wind instruments for humans (could it be their distinction in the act of creation when God breathed into man?). During scenes of announcement the wind and string instruments parallel each other, or their respective vocalist, and overlap when all are rejoicing.
And then there are the words. It is all there to read and see the brilliance in Bach's work - not just the music, but how he chose the notes and the symbolism in the actual instruments and the play on words. It truly is more masterful to me than when I merely appreciated his work for the simple beauty of the sound.
Music is powerful to be sure. But when written, conducted, or performed by a theologian, there is a depth of expression that can really be profound and divine. Maybe this should be the lesson for worship leaders in our churches today: your theology is critical to how and what you sing. Whether it is explained or understood by the congregation, it will be powerful as a result of the truth it contains. This is true of Bach and of you as well.