It's Wednesday and I am not traveling. That's actually fairly rare during the biggest part of the year. I frequently travel during the middle of the week. It varies, of course. There are times that I miss part of the weekend on the road, but, for the most part, my travel starts on Monday and ends on Friday.
It doesn't seem like a big deal that I am home on Wednesday, but, it is the day we have choir rehearsal for the church choir. I usually make it for Sunday service but, frequently miss rehearsals during the middle of the week. I am fortunate in that I make enough rehearsals that I've usually at least seen the piece(s) we are doing on Sunday but, sometimes that isn't the case. There have been a few times I am sight-reading on Sunday morning.
I enjoy choir. It is an escape. Having rehearsal in the middle of the week is great because it is an interruption in the ho-hum that allows me an hour and a half of enjoyment (when I can make it). You see, for those of you who don't sing, music is the language of the soul -- the heart. It is a way to touch something divine for just a short period.
When we listen to music we want it to be good. When we sing, it is often far less than perfect. But, in a choral setting that doesn't really matter as much as you might think. The combined voices often mask individual imperfections and the overall effect can be excellent even when the individuals involved are not.
It's too bad that choral music is rarely heard any more. Most churches have gone to praise bands. Don't get me wrong, I like praise and worship music, but, often as not, praise bands aren't all that good. They become exclusive because there are so few in the ensemble that only the "top" singers are selected to sing in them. That leaves many very good singers out. Choirs are not that way. It is only in the very largest of churches that there is a level of exclusivity because of numbers. In which case tryouts determine who joins and who does not.
Any way. Tonight is choir practice. I get to enjoy a tiny slice of the divine for awhile. Maybe I'll even know the music!
"Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!
Serve the LORD with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing." Psalms 100:1-2
Chris
1 comment:
...and then there's the part about how one praise band member with a microphone can go nuts singing a descant part and completely ruin the worship effect of the music by turning it into a rock concert, or at least by focusing attention on themselves instead of on the Lord.
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