How can holiday music enhance Christmas?

If we listen closely, music can enhance meaning

The Rev. Sandra Walton, associate pastor and music director, First Baptist Church, 1330 Kasold Drive:

Music has a powerful influence on us.

Music of all kinds and from all seasons affects us more deeply than mere words or images, so it is natural that the music associated with the holiday season would have a profound effect. Certain music puts us in an amorous mood; drums and bugles have roused us to war; advertising jingles put us in the mood for a snack. Retailers know that the piped-in music of the holiday season can influence shoppers to get into a holiday (read “buying”) mood.

But more importantly, if we pay attention to the texts of Christmas hymns and carols, we can learn much about the real meaning of what it is we celebrate. We learn as we sing. Carols tell the story of angels, of humble, uneducated shepherds, of learned wise men, of God stepping into our world as a fully human, fully divine baby who would live and walk among us and give us a clue of what the invisible God of mystery is like.

But there is a downside as well. What is learned when set to music finds a deeper place in our psyche.

Bad theology can be taught as easily as good. “The little Lord Jesus, no crying he makes” conveys that Jesus was not fully human. For some, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is as “real” as the baby in the manger.

Eventually, the background music in the stores, which at first evoked happy feelings, becomes boring. We learn to tune it out while shopping, and, if we are not careful, even while we worship.

But if we are discerning, music can enhance our understanding of the true meaning of Christmas.

– Send e-mail to Sandra Walton at office@firstbaptist.lawrence.ks.us.

Traditional melodies elicit strong emotions

Geoff Ward, director of music ministry, Plymouth Congregational Church, 925 Vt.:

During the Christmas season, music is in the air.

You hear it played by the organ at church, and you hear it on Mass. Street as you shop. We are immersed in the music of the season.

The question that I wonder is how do so many people know so many Christmas tunes from memory? On Wednesday, my wife and I were performing piano duets for the women of Plymouth Congregational Church, and when I invited them to join in the singing, they all did! They didn’t miss a beat, and they knew all the words.

The melodies and pieces of music being performed elicited a strong emotional response. The response was very positive. The music being performed was important, and it had great meaning to everyone who experienced it.

When an experience, whether it is personal or corporate, has great value to the listener, then the experience is enhanced. Christmas music has been a part of our lives, and it allows us to relive memories while reveling in the present and what’s to come.

If I were to ask someone at church tomorrow, “What is your favorite Christmas hymn?,” I would expect to hear an immediate response. That response might be followed with a story about holding a parent’s hand while singing this hymn as a child.

We often remember important events that pertain to us; these situations help shape our attitudes and who we are. The ability to have time to reflect on personal stories related to “Silent Night” and “O Come, All Ye Faithful” is profound and is a gift in itself. What wonderful memories to have.

– Send e-mail to Geoff Ward at ghward@yahoo.com.