Music

Online choir rehearsals

Will has set up virtual choir rehearsals adults on Wednesdays at 7-8:30 p.m. Click here to join via Zoom.

Thoughts during a musical quarantine

As the world shuts down, music in the church lives on. It’s been a particularly poignant Holy Week and Easter this year, like none before, and my 25th in music ministry. I never could have imagined it looking like this. But I feel somehow blessed to be able to continue creating musical offerings for the HTP family.

If you haven’t talked to any musician friends of yours, you may not notice how painful this lockdown has been for musicians. I’m not talking about losing music jobs or finances, even though that is a huge issue for every musician I know. I’m describing a deeper longing, a burning, a need to make music. Not just for other people but for ourselves, for our own souls. Listening to our parish choir members, it feels like a lot more than just missing our weekly choir rehearsal. There’s something magical that happens when we make music together, in the same place, at the same time. We breathe together, we express our faith together, we worship together.

As a musical mentor and songwriter once wrote, “ain’t nothing like the real thing, baby.” This quarantine has inspired us all to do creative things in our ministries. Learning new technology and adapting rehearsal practices all come with the daily terrain. But, no matter how adept we become in this new situation, there is no substitute for real live music, made in the same room with other musicians.

You see, musicians thrive on their interactions with other musicians and audiences. Making music alone and practicing is only a part of the equation. There’s something that happens, an indescribable connection between musicians that only lives in the actual, not virtual, world. And this, whether you sing in a choir or play in any sort of ensemble, is why we’re hurting. Musicians need actual interaction to create the best music. We need it to inspire us and to challenge us. We need it to find our own voices and to say what needs to be said. It’s a testament of our love for God.

Don’t get me wrong. We’ll be fine. And I am beyond grateful for what we’re able to do virtually. Our weekly rehearsals and services are proving to be spiritually healthy and rich. I will keep using this time as an opportunity to be creative, learn new things, and share moments of healing and calm. Besides, I’m in no rush to end social distancing. I just ask that you pray for musicians, and know how much we long for the day when we can come back and pray through song together.

‘See’ you at church.