People Say Worship Music All Sounds the Same. They Might Mean Something Else.
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“when I hear someone say, ‘Contemporary worship music all sounds the same,’ I think of my music history students and wonder if that person simply doesn’t like the music very much.” - CToday
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All About That Tenor: Why Men Don’t Sing in Worship
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“Men hear higher, wider vocal ranges from popular singers and worship leaders…. that expectation for vocal range can make it harder for the average guy to have the comfort and confidence to lift his voice on a Sunday morning” - CToday
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At Sing! Global, a faithful pushback to the spread of megachurch praise music
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“The annual Sing! Global conference, held Sept. 4-6, drew some 8,500 Christian worship music leaders and other church musicians, pastors, vendors and hymn composers from as many as 35 countries.” - RNS
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The Good Old Songs and “In Christ Alone”
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“Sixty years from now… will the then 73-year-old wish that his church sang some of the good old songs he grew up singing, like ‘The Power of the Cross,’ ‘His Mercy Is More,’ ‘My Jesus Fair,’ ‘Behold Our God,’ and ‘In Christ Alone’?” - DBTS Blog
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Why a Piano and Not a Praise Band?
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“it’s important to observe that if we say that the ‘old style’ of music communicates, the ‘new style’ does as well. That is to say, it is incoherent to say, ‘Music is neutral and shouldn’t be judged, and also the old style of music is terrible’ ” - Michael Riley
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The Idolatry of Worship Service Flow
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“Worship is about believers speaking the message of Christ to one another. But when the focus of the service becomes about everyone on the platform doing the right thing at the right time, worship begins to look more like a performance than a gathering of believers.” - Lifeway
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Worship Music Nostalgia Brings New Profit to Old Songs
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“In recent years, industry giants like Capitol Christian Music Group (CCMG), which, as of 2021, claims over half the market share of the Christian music industry, have invested more in catalog acquisitions and are seeing profits from publishing catalogs increase.” - CToday
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Using Screens without Hymnals: Some Problems
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“#1-Even if hymnals are available and acknowledged, hardly anyone…uses them….#2-Generally, there is very little to no harmony being sung….#3-It is much more difficult to teach through the stanza progression of hymns….#4-Only those familiar with the hymn can sing it.” - P&D
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Few worship leaders avoid Hillsong, Bethel songs — despite controversies and scandal
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“A new study looked at how worship leaders pick music for services — at a time when a handful of megachurches dominate the market.” - RNS
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