I think one of the beauties of life is that each of us who ‘believes’ begins to see the gospel of Christ permeating the things we do. Architects see the beauty of design in the works of creation. Authors appreciate more fully the ‘Author of Salvation’ and contemplate the ’cause and effect’ of our everyday actions. Gardners and farmers see seeds and weeds, a subject of Jesus’ parables, in an intimate way that those who do not grow food cannot really comprehend. I’m sure that those who clean things for a living certainly gain a depth of appreciation for ‘being clean’ that some of us do not share. As for musicians . . .
Over the years many metaphors for life and the gospel of Christ have popped out of my study of music; some are tied to scriptural references while others spring from practice, collegiate theoretical study and writings about music by other authors. I’d like to focus here on one of the principles I’ve noticed that is fairly common . . .
Harmony
Harmony is a gosple term borrowed from a musical phenomenon. I love this word. It is used ubiquitously in the Church of Jesus Christ, from the ‘Harmony of the Gospels,’ to living our lives in ‘harmony’ with the gospel, to having ‘harmony’ in our families and marriages.
- Harmony in celestial marriage was the subject of a recent talk by Russell M. Nelson. He said, ”Just as harmony comes from an orchestra only when its members make a concerted effort, so harmony in marriage also requires a concerted effort. That effort will succeed if each partner will minimize personal demands and maximize actions of loving selflessness.” Interestingly, he also uses the word ‘concerted’ which means ‘in concert’ and is the root of the word ‘concerto.’
- The Harmony of the Gospels shows how the events described by the major chroniclers of Christ’s life fit together.
- L. Tom Perry stated, “The closer we keep our lives in harmony with the direction the Lord has given us to guide our lives, the more we will be in tune with His Spirit.” This analogy also adds another commonly used set of words, ‘in tune.’
Though we use this term ‘all the time’ in church meetings, talks and articles (there are well over a thousand references to this term in the online church magazine archives), I think it unlikely that many people actually stop and think about what the word actually means and how it is different from the related term ‘unison’ which shares its root with unity (sometimes people use the words interchangeably, but they convey distinctly different meanings). So what is harmony?
- Wikipedia’s entry on harmony states simply that “In music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches (tones, notes), or chords.”
So, how’s that different from ‘unison’ and why is the difference important?
- Again, from Wikipedia on unison : “When several people sing together, as in a chorus, the simplest way for them to sing is to sing in “one voice”, in unison.” I currently direct the American Fork Children’s Choir and we mostly sing together in unison. It is a skill of its own and requires the skill of ‘listening’ so that you can sing ‘in tune’ (and ‘in time’) as one voice.
Continuing with the choral application of these terms, singing in unison is a foundational skill so that we can progress to the more difficult skill of singing in harmony. I find the application of these terms to gospel concepts intriguing.
- While we may make our strongest actions together as a church when we move in unity (as in sustaining church officers, and adhearing to common gospel principle and doctrines), our greater challenge as we progress spiritually through life will be . . .
- . . . to live our lives in harmony. To go about the actions of our daily lives, combining them ‘in concert’ with our the principles of the gospel and the needs of those around us to create a ‘song of redeeming love’ that enfolds us with harmony.
It would be impractical and unwise to try to live our lives in unison with that of the Savior’s (we can’t do all that He did or walk in all the places He walked), yet we can, and should, live our lives in harmony with His. Our actions should form a complimentary counterpoint to the song Jesus lived.
It is easy to live in discord or disharmony; if we tune two radios to different stations it becomes hard to appreciate what is coming out of either radio. On the other hand, some of my avante-garde composer friends might argue that this would make an excellent exercise in listening, picking out the sound of one signal and filtering out the noise of the other in our heads.
Perhaps a better analogy might be that there are many signals being broadcast out there in the world. Our job as believers is to tune into the Spirit and listen to its promptings so that we might put our actions in harmony with the message God is sending us.
About the Author
Composer, vocalist and producer M Ryan Taylor is the author of three operas, dozens of choral works, art songs, song cycles and other works. Taylor has performed leading roles in Cosi Fan Tutti, Tartuffe, The Merry Wives of Windsor, as well as his own operas Abinadi and The Other Wise Man. He has also performed a number of musical theater roles, recently including Rev. Shaw Moore in Footloose. Taylor is the co-founder of the Salty Cricket Composers Collective in Salt Lake City which three times a year performs concerts of works by composers residing in Utah, as well as the founder of the Utah Mid-winter Song Festival, produced in conjunction with the American Fork Arts Council. Taylor has extensive experience as a choral conductor and currently directs The American Fork Children’s Choir.
Taylor’s discography includes the Christmas-themed EP All Heaven and it was One Hour Old, featuring soprano Venicia Wilson and pianist Lynn Jemison-Keisker as well as two solo albums, American Revolutions and children’s album Thirteen for Halloween. These albums and many of Taylor’s scores are available at MRyanTaylor.com.
Taylor enjoys being a husband, a hiker, a biker, a gardener, an artist, work-out explorer, minimalist eater, recipe hacker, artist, animator, videographer, church organist and LDS stake music chairman.
[...] Gospel Harmony and Music [...]