The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1899-09-08

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wealth of a nations song and gladne,
had accumulated. In our day we hav
a division of labor In music. and we hay
one man to make the hymn. anothe
man to make the tune. another man :,
play IT on the piano and another ma,
10 sing It, Not so in Bible times
Miriam, the sister of Moses. after III,
passage of the Red sea, composed
doxology, set il TO music, clapped Il O,
a cgmbal and at the same time sang A.
David, the psalmist, was at the sam,
time poet, musical composer. harms,
and singer. and the majority of hi.
rhythm goes vibrating through all the
| ages,
There were in Bible times strinred
instrumental harp of three string,
playing by fret and bow, a harp of tt n
strings resounding only to the finger.
of the performer. Then there was the
crooked trumpet, fashioned out of The
horn of the OK or the ram. Then there
were the sistrum and the cymbsls
clapped in the dance or beaten in The
march. There were 1900 Levites. the
best men of the country. whose ONLY
business il was TO look after the mu.i,
of the temple.
These 1000 Levites were divided into
two classes and ofiiciated on different
days. Can you imagine the harmony
when these white robed Le,ites, before
the symbols of Gods presence and b,
the smoking affairs and the candlesticks
that sprang upward and branched out
like trees of gold and under the wings
of the cherubim, chanted the One
Hundred and Thirty-sixth Psalm OF
David? Do YOU know how IL was done?
One part of that great choir stood -
and ehanted: "Oh, give thanks unto the
Lord, for He is good" Then the other
part of the choir, standing in some
other part of the temple, would come in
with the response: For His mercy Ell.
dureth forever" Then the first mart |
would take up the song again and say
Unto him who only doeth great won.
ders." The other part of the choI
would come in with overwhelming re.
sponse: For His mercy endureth for
ever" until in the latter part of IN.
song, the music floating backward and
forward, harmony graphing with har.
nony, every trumpet sounding, every
BOSOM heaving, one part Of this great
white robed choir would lift the an.
hem: oh, give thanks unto the God
II Heayen! and the other part of the
-evite choir would come in with the n
ponse: For His mercy endureth 1jr-
YER"
But am glad to know that all throxh
he ages there has been great atteniAn
aid TO sacred music. AmbrosSIs,
augustine, Gregory the Great, Chfle-
nagne, gave il their mighty infiueuce.
nd in our day the best musical geH3ls
5 throwing itself on the affairs ord1h.
Handel and Mozart and Bach and g.
ante and Wolf and scores of ODER
men and women have given the 49,,
art of their genius 10 churs
truth in words is not half 50 ny2N
5 truth in song. Luther's sermons J
ave been forgotten, but the Judgment {
lynn" he composed is resounding yet
ii through Christendom.
Noht i1AuldNc INC NOfiu anG tDe :
hurch OF the advancement mac in this Q
rt-the Edinburgh societies for The J
OF music. the Swiss sing
ng societies, the Exeter hall concerts, G
he triennial musical conyocation at c
dusseldorf, Germany, and Birmingham, c
ngland, the controversies of music at
funich and Leipsic. the Handel and u
aydn and Harmonic and Mozart 20.
eties Of this country, the academies OF %
lusic in New York, Brooklyn, Boston, II
harIeston, New Orleans, Chicago aid o
very city which has any enterprise.
Now friends, how are we to decide u
hat rs appropriate, especially for v
lurch music? There may be a great +"
any differences of opinion. In some II
the churches they prefer a trained u
loir; in Others they prefer the meIo- D
,oD, the harp, the cornet, the organ;
other places they think these things III
e the invention of the devil. Some I'll
ould have musical instrument VI
syed so loud you cannot stand it, and y
aers would have il played so soft you u
mot hear il. Some think a musica III
strument ought to be played only in -
e interstices Of worship, and then l"
tn Understandable softness, while w
hers are not satisfied unless there BE- 10
irtling contrasts and staccato pas ~
ges that make the audience iumn. VI
tn great eyes and hair on end. a, Oh
)m a vision of the witch OF Endor. az
It, while there may be great yarie- ~
$ OF opinion in regard 10 music, il .,
Ems to me that the general spirit Of w
E word of God indicates what ought W
be the great characteristics of church ou
Isle. III
md / remark, in the first place. a
ointment characteristic ought TO be IN
iptiyeness 10 devotion. Music that pe
~ be appropriate for concert lau vi
the opera house, or the drawir,, NC
I'm, may he inappropriate in church III
res, madriGals, ballads, may be as -
locent as psalms in their places. But 3e
lrch music has only one design, and vi
Il is devotion, and that which comes u"
IA the toss, the swing and the display n'
an opera house is Lindrance TO the -
rship. From such performances we
away saying: What splendid execu. ~
n! Did you ever hear such Soprano %.
~ Z,