Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1920-01-21
DR.. LAKELAND
HIRES JAZZ s''ND
FORMER Pastor Methodist Church y
Decorah Aims to Keep Congre-
cation Awake and Succeeds
and Fills Pews.
NOBODY SLEEPS
THROUGH SERVICE NOW
IL Went Over Big Declared the
Preacher i'm Discussing the En-
pertinent of the New Music

Df. u. >. Lakeland, I0rmer pastor
OF the NJ r. church in Decorah, nov
of Denver, Colo. started some thing
new in his church recently, in using
jazz music, and dispatches in the
daily papers have the following to
say about the experiment:
Denver, Colo.-The S. r. o. sign
was hung out recently at Grace NJ.
+. church Pastor G. S. Lakeland 8
scheme OF "jazzing 'em to heaven
was responsible. The big auditorium
of the church was crowded to the
doors. Scores of people were clamor-
ing for admission.
The jazzing of syncopating Negro
orchestra packed the church as it
never before had been packed. Every
seat was occupied and all other
available room was filled with chairs
The Negro jazzers were cramped for
space in which to jazz, so great was
the crowd.
1T went over big" DR.. Lakeland
declared in discussing his experiment
of popping up church music by using
Jazz orchestra that plays ragtime
in fashion to wake up the dead.
What next?" exclaimed the Rev.
Henry Foster, pastor of the Church
of the Assertion. jazz music does
not put people i'm religious frame Of
mind 1t causes them to want to
dance. l can't see any relation be-
tween jazz and religion. use it my
self in the parish house for child
ren's dances, but in church--it has
no business there"
They simply ate it up" declared
Dr. Lakeland. There have been
some criticisms, l understand, but
none have come to me direct. The
PERSONS who complained were not at
the open forum meeting. A lot OF
those who were there didn't know
Until Sunday afternoon what jazz
music really is.
Il have had lot of requests to
continue it,"
1t is Dr. Lackland's idea that some
thing must be done to liven up the
church service. The music in most
churches, he insists, tends to put the
congregation to sleep, while a Jazz
orchestra, he thinks, would waken
every one up and put the worshipers
in more receptive mood for the SER
mon.
Jazz music woke up France" de-
clares DR.. Lakeland. why not use il
TO wake up the church? The old,
poky church service is so slow peo-
pie who come to worship God are put
to sleep. Let's wake them up with
real music--music that has pep and
a punch and kick and which will
put them in frame of mind to ap-
preciate the blessings of religion.
Ninety per cent of the churches
in the United States are using jaz2
music today, but they don't know it.
They are using a poor brand. While
we're at it We might as well have a
good jazz.
Christ was no monk. He mingled
with the common people and used
their customs to improve their con-
dition. Most everybody likes jazz
music Certainly the churches are no
better than Christ. Let them take ad-
vantage of and use the Jazz music
which appeals to the multitudes.
Anybody who has ever slept
through a church service-and the
sleeping percentage is enough to
make any minister of the gospel lie
awake nights trying to improve his
service so it will lead his congrega-
tion to heaven instead OF dreamland
knows how sleepy and dead and
pepless the music in the average
church is.
The idea of the average church
is to set high and mighty standard
and then try to educate the people
up to it. That's what they do in
music. It's a fine idea, but it don't
work. Choirs sing in Latin and Ital-
ian and French and other foreign
languages. Perhaps it's Just as we'll
they do, for nobody knows what they
are singing and nobody would know
J! most of them sang in English.
The use of Jazz music in church
probably will be condemned all the
way from the conveae to the penl-
tertiary, but 1t will make the church
service more attractive and more
enjoyable. and | say the time has
come for the church to jazz up"