Author: Benjamin R

As we listened to the Arvo Pärt piece in class today, I couldn’t help but notice the similarities between this piece and those that we have previously discussed of the Classical Era. When I personally think about modern music, I imagine drums, keyboards, and maybe a few guitars. The ideas of this modern piece that… Continue reading The Modern Classical Tunes?

After class discussion on October 7, 2021, it dawned on me how much of the song “Hallelujah” by Leonard Cohen is biblical. When I have listened to the song in the past, it has always been clear to me that some lines of the 2nd verse were biblical. “Your faith was strong, but you needed… Continue reading New Meaning to Old Words

As our class took a look at a number of children’s songs this week, I realized just how little about many of the biblical stories we actually teach to children. Yes, there is a word to be said about protecting the innocence of youth and withholding certain details that they can not possibly comprehend. But… Continue reading Protecting the Youth at the Expense of Truth

After class on 10/5, the one thing that really stuck in my mind was the idea that there were so many musical versions of the same lines of text. It feels odd that no that are so many versions, but in how many different ways these can be written. It felt like there were no… Continue reading Magnificent Magnificants

It never ceases to amaze me, the number of theatrical depictions of the crucifixion of Christ. It is never odd that there are multiple of them, as this is such a popular story for many on this Earth. No, the interesting part of this reality is the odd fact that executives see profitability still. Surely… Continue reading The Multiplicity of Crucifixions

The story of Jesus’ death and crucifixion is one of the most well-known stories in our society. There are very few, both nonbelievers and believers, who have not heard this famous story in the modern age. Children are taught from a young age the story or have it passed down to them. For this reason… Continue reading A Passion for Passions

While discussing the works of Handel in the world of religious music, it became quickly apparent how much effort he put in to his pieces. It is clear that Handel put a great deal of thought into the details of his musical selections for worship. Zadok the Priest, in particular contained many lines that I… Continue reading A Handel to open a door to the past

In 2012, a group of Christian Artists got together to form a compilation album called Music Inspired by the Story, an album entirely of songs meant to interpret the Bible into music. I have been a long time fan of this album, but only after the last couple of weeks in this class have I realized… Continue reading A Higher Biblical Interpretation in Music

While attending our class on 9/21, I couldn’t help but feel the vast difference between the Bible that I thought I know and the Bible that truly is. At first I thought that maybe my pastor was just incorrect when he was teaching us, but then I moved on to a deeper plane of thought… Continue reading Filling in the Gaps of History

It’s rather odd, isn’t it, that we can create music without instruments in today’s day? Gone are the days of massive orchestras dominating the music performance world, for now we are in the time of DJs and people with a small laptop able to make professional quality music. What’s the benefit to this advancement of… Continue reading The Modern Era of Musical Production