Today in class (10/28), we focused on a style of music labeled “Holy Minimalism”. John Rutter is a famous composer of this style. When reading the interview he did with varsity, it was very interesting to learn that he himself is not religious, yet is known for the religious music he writes. His first submission made in college was a collection of Christmas carols. In class today we talked about how this is interesting, but does it really matter that he is not religious? To me it does not. I think if the music sounds good and you like it and can connect to it, then it doesn’t matter who wrote it. If someone who is Christian feels as if his music is something they really enjoy and can spiritually connect to, then they should listen to it. We also related this to acting which makes a lot of sense. In the same way Rutter writes for his audience, actors and actresses act for the part and for their audiences. An actress playing the role of a teacher does not have to be a teacher in real life for her to still understand the part and be able to preform as a teacher. This is the same for Rutter. He does not need to be Christian to be able to write pieces that appeal to the Christian audience.