Where Have All the Choirs Gone?
I awoke early that February morning and peered out of the 21st-story window of my downtown Chicago hotel room in anticipation of a great day. I live in southern California, so I wondered what it would feel like to walk outside in brisk, winter air again.
I soon descended in the elevator, trekked across the lobby, and excitedly opened the rounded glass doors to meet the chill head on. I was attending the National Convention of American Choral Directors–and the headquarters hotel was six blocks away. Fortunately, I walked passed a department store and bought their last stocking cap. It was cold, icy cold.
Spiritual leaders must value the power that music exerts on culture and the importance of the church’s role in the artistic expression of a community. |
When I arrived in the lobby of the convention hotel, the sight of thousands of choral conductors milling around overwhelmed me. Approximately 5,000 registrants filled the hotel. Every session was crowded with eager observers and passionate moderators. I quickly forgot the chill outside by the tangible warmth inside. Choral music is alive and well in secular culture.
THE DISMANTLING OF SANCTUARY CHOIRS
Unfortunately, the converse is not as evident in the church. And in an age of increased awareness of the effects of art on culture, I am concerned. Nature abhors a vacuum. If the church does not value the performance of a sanctuary choir, secular institutions will fill the need for artistic choral expression in our American communities. College choirs are thriving across the landscape. Community choirs are multiplying and the symphony chorus is healthy. But the message of these choirs is most often aesthetic, not redemptive. How utterly ironic that choirs are so popular in secular culture but out of fashion with some sectors of church leadership. One such sector affirms the constructs of seeker sensitivity. Seeker sensitivity is currently in vogue with church-growth consultants and founding pastors of well-known megachurches. Essentially, the seeker modality calls for a de-emphasis of tradition, manifested in the use of:
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rhythm sections instead of organs.
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folk music instead of hymn tunes.
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worship teams instead of robed choirs.
The dilemma with this concept is simple: a choir can function as a worship team, but a worship team cannot function as a choir. A choir has much more versatility and historic identity. People will attend a choral event in a church without hesitation–especially at holiday seasons. It seems peculiar to drop a choral program in an effort to attract a new constituency while alienating another.
Today, there is an alarming trend among pastors of my generation who are being voted into historic congregations. It seems that when a young man or woman succeeds a lengthy-tenured pastor, there is a temptation to radically position the image of the church into the realm of seeker sensitivity, or into the river of revival, with the swiftness of a surgeon’s knife. Just as surgery is traumatic to a body, a swift paradigm shift may be traumatic to a church. For example, seniors often remark that they miss their traditions and feel displaced when a new pastor aggressively makes changes in the worship style. Another adverse consequence of downsizing the worship program is the risk of estranging the younger generation. After all, a worship team needs only a few talented singers, whereas the choir is inclusive.
Changing the sound of worship or the look of the worship space is a matter of taste. Dismantling a sanctuary choir in favor of a worship team is a shortsighted, strategic miscalculation. Who will sing for civic ceremonies without a Pentecostal choir in town? Who will infuse the Christmas tradition of our communities with the gospel without a charismatic choir’s presence? And who will call America to repentance on the Fourth of July if the Pentecostal church is not in the middle of the cultural celebration of that day?
EXPANDING THE STYLISTIC BORDERS
Many of my colleagues have extraordinary vision for their choirs in terms of outreach ministry. Consider the following evidence:
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Carol Cymbala conducts The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir in an event outside the church each time the choir debuts a new CD. The most recent occurred in Madison Square Garden to a sold-out crowd of 16,000. Many hundreds responded to the altar call.
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David Ritter, Phoenix First Assembly, conducts the sanctuary choir in 14 Christmas presentations to a total audience of 90,000. Last season, 2,000 persons raised their hand for salvation each night–and were all followed up within 24 hours.
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Tom Matrone, Central Assembly of God, Springfield, Missouri, conducts the historic sanctuary choir in two classical recitals each year. The sanctuary is nearly filled with members of the church and community.
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Kent Ferrin, Calvary Temple, Concord, California, conducts the sanctuary choir annually in three presentations of The Singing Flag from July 2—4. Last year, 20,000 people attended and there was a tangible response from visitors all year long.
In an effort to define the taste of boomers, prognosticators have fed us a gross generalization. Simply stated, they assume that boomers do not hear choirs on the radio so they must not prefer to hear choirs in church. This is not so.
In 25 years of conducting choirs on two coasts, I have never had a person tell me he or she does not like to hear choirs sing in church. They have repeatedly told me that they enjoy hearing a choir sing with musical precision and spiritual fervor. Humanity will respond enthusiastically to excellence and anointing. The responsibility, however, is on the conductor to prepare thoroughly.
In the profession of choral conducting, there is an indicting axiom that states, "There is no such thing as a good or bad choir–only a good or bad conductor." As ministers of music, we cannot afford to sit on our laurels and conduct ministry as we have in the past. We need fresh models and anointed compositions; we need continued in-service training and refresher courses; we need to become lifelong learners; and we need to expand our stylistic borders and delve into new grooves and novel genres. We need the support of senior pastors. Spiritual leaders must value the power that music exerts on culture and the importance of the church’s role in the artistic expression of a community.
THE ROLE OF THE CHOIR
If we settle for "program lite," we leave too much of the entertainment dialogue to Hollywood. A city’s art is a continuum in which there are viable options for the classical, jazz, rock, country, and gospel music. A choir of 100 can roar with energy, captivating the listener’s attention in public venues much more effectively then a worship team of 10. This is where the Pentecostal church needs to be built up. This is not a season to cut corners but to expand our music departments with an intentional choral emphasis. Every city in America needs a Spirit-filled choir. A choir can become a mighty tool of evangelism and countermand the darkness that threatens to steal our children.
Second Chronicles 20 contains a powerful account of a choir’s role in spiritual warfare. Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, was facing a crisis. A legion of enemy soldiers was quickly approaching to destroy God’s people. After prayer, the king summoned the choir. God’s provision for victory was profound–sing. Send out the choir and see the salvation of the Lord. The enemy was so confused they began to kill each other. The use of a choir in this account is significant. Their anointed, unified blend assaulted the works of the adversary. The people of God were triumphant.
During my second year as minister of music at the Church on the Way, we were invited to sing for the Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast. Our choir gathered in a large, downtown ballroom and sang for businesspersons, politicians, and clergy. Following our selection, Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan stood and addressed the gathering. His comment was poignant. "Ladies and gentlemen," he said, "if I could have the choir from Pastor Hayford’s church sing for me each morning, I’d never fear my responsibilities again." He was deeply moved by a song and wanted to feel that dimension of peace each day. The mayor felt peace because a multitude of singers had assaulted the enemy in the spirit world.
Evangelist Kathryn Kuhlman knew the power of a gospel song in the hands of a Spirit-energized choir. She used a mass choir in virtually all of her healing meetings. In our attempts to be on the cutting edge, let’s not abort what the Lord may wish to anoint.