A stirring testament to the strength of the human spirit and the power of music, Violins of Hope tells the remarkable stories of violins played by Jewish musicians during the Holocaust, and the Israeli violin maker dedicated to bringing these inspirational instruments back to life.The violin has formed an important aspect of Jewish culture for centuries, both as a popular instrument with classical Jewish musicians—Jascha Heifetz, Yehudi Menuhin, Itzhak Perlman—and also a central factor of social life as part of the enduring Klezmer tradition. But during the Holocaust, the violin assumed extraordinary new roles within the Jewish community. For some musicians, the instrument was a liberator; for others, it was a savior that spared their lives. For many, the violin provided comfort in mankind’s darkest hour, and, in at least one case, helped avenge murdered family members. Above all, the violins of the Holocaust represented strength and optimism for the future.In Violins of Hope, music historian James A. Grymes tells the amazing, horrifying, and inspiring story of the violins of the Holocaust, and of Amnon Weinstein, the renowned Israeli violinmaker who has devoted the past twenty years to restoring these instruments in tribute to those who were lost, including 400 members of his own family. Juxtaposing tales of individual violins with one man’s harrowing struggle to reconcile his own family’s history and the history of his people, it is a poignant, affecting, and ultimately uplifting look at the Holocaust and its enduring impact. Read more

The long-awaited reissue of Alice Coltrane’s original spiritual teachings and reflections, which provide powerful insight into her transcendent music, cherished by millions across the globe ALICE COLTRANE (1937–2007) was a composer, master of various musical instruments, improviser, spiritual leader, and wife of John Coltrane. Throughout her adult life, she worked within and combined a broad range of musical genres, including gospel, R&B, bebop, free jazz, Indian devotional song, and Western art music. She recorded more than twenty full-length albums for Impulse and Warner Bros. Her music speaks to her experiences as a child playing for church congregations in Detroit; the transcendent and mind-bending avant-garde improvisations she performed with John Coltrane; and her religious pilgrimages to India. When Monument Eternal was originally published in 1977, Alice Coltrane was living in Southern California and had recently become a swami, building and nurturing an alternative spiritual community. In these pages, she says that the book is “based upon the soul’s realizations in Absolute Consciousness and its spiritual relationships with the Supreme One.” Monument Eternal offers deep insight into Coltrane’s tremendous musical output, and shines a light on her transformation from Alice McLeod, Detroit church organist and bebopper, to sage thought leader Swami Turiyasangitananda. It also reflects the extraordinary fluidity of American religious customs in the mid and late twentieth century. Akashic’s long-awaited reissue of Monument Eternal includes a new foreword by Ashley Kahn. Read more

Music, Carrier of Intention in 49 Jewish Prayers, a Jewish music anthology. .Music Mind & Body Spirituality .What does a particular liturgical song mean in a community, and in an individual heart? What is your personal story of connection to music, song, chanting, and spiritual lyrics? How does music change a life or bring back memories of a time of transformation?How are new songs, lyrics and music birthed in the Jewish community? .These questions and more are explored by the authors-rabbis, cantors, poets, healers, and musicians, who share their wisdom and delight with you..Music, Carrier of Intention in 49 Jewish Prayers is a window into the heart and spirit of a profoundly diverse Jewish prayer community. .If you are looking for ways to make your own spiritual practice more engaging or more meaningful, this book can provide a gateway to that journey. Forty plus authors open their hearts to you and share the ways in which music, song, prayer and Judaism have touched each of them. They come to you from diverse backgrounds-East coast to West coast, North America and beyond, Orthodox and Conservative to Reform, Reconstructionist, Jewish Renewal and more..Each section is a prompt for individual and communal soul searching. It will provide you, your book group or spiritual community with the tools to pray more joyfully and intentionally. .JewishMusic.CreatingCalmNetwork.comCCNPublishingGroup(at)Gmail.com.Co-editors, Rabbi Elizabeth W. Goldstein and Kimberly Burnham share the pages of this Jewish music anthology with 40 other authors including: Shefa Gold, Kimberly Burnham, Ann J White, Elizabeth W. Goldstein, Serene Victor, Natalie Young, Sheila Pearl, Susan Colin, Judy Caplan Ginsburgh, Joy Katzen-Guthrie, Rosalie Boxt, Beth Hamon, Shawn Israel Zevit, Robbi Sherwin, Jeff Gold, Hannah Seidel, Marci Vitkus, Rebekah Giangreco, Lisa Doob, Shira Wolosky, Sheldon Low, Saul Kaye, P. Faith Hayflich, Victoria Carmona, Brian Yosef Schachter-Brooks, Dahlia Topolosky, Mindy Sandler, Jack Kessler, Eric Komar, Rami Shapiro, Shira Kline, George Henschel, Diane J. Schmidt, Ruth Anne Faust, Aaron H. Tornberg, Arnie Davidson, Rebecca Schwartz, Shelly Aronson, Steve Dropkin, Ter Lieberstein, and Michael Gurian. Read more

Musical culture in Jewish communities in early modern Italy was much more diverse than researchers originally thought. An interdisciplinary reassessment, Music and Jewish Culture in Early Modern Italy evaluates the social, cultural, political, economic, and religious circumstances that shaped this community, especially in light of the need to recognize individual experiences within minority populations. Contributors draw from rich materials, topics, and approaches as they explore the inherently diverse understandings of music in daily life, the many ways that Jewish communities conceived of music, and the reception of and responses to Jewish musical culture. Highlighting the multifaceted experience of music within Jewish communities, Music and Jewish Culture in Early Modern Italy sheds new light on the place of music in complex, previously misunderstood environments. Read more

Sing! has grown from Keith and Kristyn Getty’s passion for congregational singing; it’s been formed by their traveling and playing and listening and discussing and learning and teaching all over the world.  And in writing it, they have five key aims:  • to discover why we sing and the overwhelming joy and holy privilege that comes with singing • to consider how singing impacts our hearts and minds and all of our lives • to cultivate a culture of family singing in our daily home life • to equip our churches for wholeheartedly singing to the Lord and one another as an expression of unity • to inspire us to see congregational singing as a radical witness to the world They have also added a few “bonus tracks” at the end with some more practical suggestions for different groups who are more deeply involved with church singing. God intends for this compelling vision of His people singing—a people joyfully joining together in song with brothers and sisters around the world and around his heavenly throne—to include you. He wants you,he wants us, to sing. Read more

A renowned musician in his 85th year explores the nature of wisdom, how we learn to recognize it, and how we pass it forward.In this entrancing memoir, timeless questions about music and life are explored by a master musician in his 85th year. The stern father who built an empire of words; the solipsistic uncle whose hypnotic voice calmed millions: these are just early glimpses of Mathieu's memory. Soon he is crimped into an overhead baggage rack in Stan Kenton's tour bus as scenes of scotch-soaked melancholy play out below; he is sharing late-night quarts of ice cream with Duke Ellington in his hotel room; he is co-inventing improvisational theater at Chicago's Second City with Alan Arkin and Mike Nichols; he is receiving the title of Sufi sheikh from an heir of Inayat Khan; and he is gleaning wisdom from a woman bundling firewood in Bali.In prose at once wry and lyrical, Mathieu carries the reader through the adventures and misadventures of a scintillating and deeply examined life. Read more

Music and Theology will be a volume in the Horizons in Theology series. It will offer a relatively brief but highly engaging essay on the major concerns and questions regarding Music as it intersects with theology—past and present. Don Saliers is a senior scholar in this field, one who is able to address in a clear and concise style the scope and contours of this question as it relates to theological inquiry and application. He will sketch the nature and significance of the subject, the history of reflection, the current lines of inquiry, and his own contribution to the discussion. The scope of the essays cannot be exhaustive and completely interdisciplinary. Instead, Saliers will open the broader lines of discussion in suggestive, evocative, and programmatic ways. The Horizons in Theology serve as supplements and secondary required texts in colleges and seminaries, as well as the interested nonspecialist reader. Read more

This book explores an important aspect of hip-hop that is rarely considered: its deep entanglement with spiritual life.   The world of hip-hop is saturated with religion, but rarely is that element given serious consideration. In Street Scriptures, Alejandro Nava focuses our attention on this aspect of the music and culture in a fresh way, combining his profound love of hip-hop, his passion for racial and social justice, and his deep theological knowledge. Street Scriptures offers a refreshingly earnest and beautifully written journey through hip-hop’s deep entanglement with the sacred.   Nava reveals a largely unheard religious heartbeat in hip-hop, exploring crosscurrents of the sacred and profane in rap, reggaeton, and Latinx hip-hop today. Ranging from Kendrick Lamar, Chance the Rapper, Lauryn Hill, Cardi B, and Bad Bunny to St. Augustine and William James, Nava examines the ethical-political, mystical-prophetic, and theological qualities in hip-hop, probing the pure sonic and aesthetic signatures of music, while also diving deep into the voices that invoke the spirit of protest. The result is nothing short of a new liberation theology for our time, what Nava calls a “street theology.” Read more

This is a compilation of 100 Sathya sai bhajans. I am not the composer of these songs. But the notations have been written by me as I played these bhajans on veena which can be watched on youtube @saibhajansonveena5562.Front cover image..A photograph of Swami which was given by Bhagavan himself to my sister Dr. N.Vasanthi, a Sai studentBack cover image: sketch by the author Read more

During his 10-year career as the frontman of acclaimed metal/hardcore band, For Today, Mattie Montgomery spent countless nights in bars and night clubs all around the world, sharing the love of Christ with a largely secular subculture—one that has been all but forgotten by much of the modern church. In Lovely Things in Ugly Places, he invites us to come with him as he revisits the moments in his ministry (some incredible, some hilarious, and some tragic), that shaped him most substantially. Known for his bold and fearless proclamation of the Gospel, Montgomery writes with vulnerability and transparency, beckoning the Body of Christ into a radical lifestyle of love. He challenges his readers to lay down the labels we use to identify people, and to see them (and ourselves) as God does, reminding us that if we are willing to look, we too will find Lovely Things in Ugly Places. Read more

The organ was first heard in church as it set the pitch for chanted liturgies.Most often a simple, short keyboard was used, one with just a single set of pipes, called a ‘rank,’ and pumped by hand. Eventually the number of keys was increased, as well as additional pipes. This not only allowed for more choice of pitches, but also for more tone colors to choose from.The organ began to be played between verses of sung Gregorian chant processional antiphons. And pieces were improvised, then composed, on the chant melodies.Organs eventually were built with pedal keyboards that used “pull-downs” to play notes on the existing pipes. And then, independent pedal pipe ranks were added as well.The music in this book is in order of the era of composition. More specifically, the birth year of the composers, beginning with 1495, and ending with 1878.Much of the music is on two staves, like a piano, and occasionally notated with ped., indicating the option for a pedal part, if pedals are available.The few pieces that include a third stave have pedal notes that are not optional. They must be played using the pedals.Initially there are no stop registrations given by the composers. Organists were expected to use the stops they had on their organ - many organs were quite small, some with only one keyboard.A “standard” stoplist common to most organs took years and years to be in use. As you will see several of the last pieces include registrations, in different languages, based upon a common stoplist that has evolved over the years. Noel Jones, AAGO Read more

Music for the new organist and organists who struggle to find time to practice, including Postludes and Wedding music, all set in keys to build confidence. Music that is easy, useful and beautiful for the Mass.Suggested stop registrations included for all pieces. Read more

Noel Jones has put together a truly wonderful collection of varied pieces, all based on hymns in honor of Our Lady.The pieces are varied in character and technical requirement, but they are all rewarding to play and listen to, and they are supremely well suited to liturgical use. In addition, many would not be out of place in an exciting organ recital program.Although these pieces are based on Marian hymns, there is no reason why they couldn’t be used in a variety of other settings. There are some truly wonderful works in this volume, many of which are not readily available elsewhere, and I congratulate Noel Jones and Frog Music Press in bringing this useful volume to print.Neil Weston Read more

REVIEWS Being a French-American amateur organist, I like the fact that you included several works from the French baroque period (9 pieces for a total of 28 pieces in the book), which covers a significant part of the repertoire I really enjoy playing at the mass services in my church. The book is a nice combination of shorter and longer pieces, of easier and more involved works, from quiet and soft pieces to louder "Plein Jeu" works. It is a very useful compilation for the church organist who can choose the more suitable postlude for the mass for which he/she is playing; for instance, my Saturday afternoon mass is very well attended and a longer and "louder" postlude will work better while some Sunday morning masses have a lower attendance and a few people stay for prayers after mass; therefore, a softer transition postlude is more appropriate. The way that you suggest the registration is also well done. Instead of listing the registration on each music sheet, the summary page at the end with the piston setups is easy to refer to and to use. .......................... Often, when receiving a book of music, I flip through it and see how many pieces I already have. This book of Postludes stopped me at “Playing Postludes after the Mass”. I have had many experiences where I have been asked to play a Mass or Catholic Service as their new organist is not familiar with the order of the Service. Those who play the piano, and are asked to play the organ for the Catholic Mass, usually find themselves playing whatever organ music they find, if any, in the choir loft for the Offertory and Communion. Sometimes, it’s just easier to play an extra verse of a hymn on softer stops, to fill the time before the priest is ready to continue saying the Mass. And after Mass, they might choose to either not play at all, or again, play an extra verse of the recessional hymn as a Postlude. ........................... ABOUT THIS BOOK Students who graduate with a degree in organ have spent the last 4 years, or more, learning how to play lengthy masterworks by Bach, Vierne and other composers, to satisfy their degree requirements. Unfortunately, both the pianist-suddenly-become organist, and the degreed organist, are faced with the same problem. They need short pieces to play during the Mass. The last book we released had short organ pieces to play for both Offertory and Communion processions. Now we introduce a book of short organ pieces that are ideal for playing as Postludes after completion of the Mass. As with our other books, we include suggested organ registrations, and the link to a site that gives extensive background to the organ stops on your instrument. Organ music for the Catholic Mass has a much different function than music played in Protestant churches. In Protestant services, the organ is often played as a solo instrument during the service. People sit, listen, and enjoy hearing the organ as a part of worship. In the Catholic church, the organist plays during processions and the music must be suitable - essentially, the music must not be the center of attention. The organ must sustain the mood for the various processions supporting their place and function within the Mass. But always remember, this is not “background music” but an essential part of the Mass. The highest and most important liturgical musical instrument at Mass is the human voice. Second is the Organ. Those moments when the choir goes to receive Communion or when they finish and anthem of motet and there is time left for music, the organ must step up and sing with its own voice. But after Mass, the Organ is Supreme. Read more

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As part of the growing literature on theology and the arts, God’s Mind in that Music explores the substantial theological insight expressed in the music of jazz legend John Coltrane. Focusing on eight of Coltrane's pieces, themes under consideration include lament (“Alabama”), improvisation (“My Favorite Things” and “Ascension”), grace (“A Love Supreme”), and the Trinity (“The Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost”). By attending to the traditions of theology and of jazz criticism, and through a series of interviews with musicians, theologians, and jazz writers, Jamie Howison draws the worlds of theology and jazz into an active and vibrant conversation with each other. Built around a focused listening to John Coltrane’s music as heard against the background of his life and social context, and interacting with the work of a range of writers including James Baldwin, Dorothee Soelle, Jeremy Begbie, and James Cone, God’s Mind in that Music will be of interest not only to those interested in the intersection of music and theology, but also to Coltrane fans, students of jazz studies, and anyone who believes that music matters.“Written with vivid attention to sound and the sacred, Howison’s pages open up the spiritual and aesthetic depths of John Coltrane’s world . . . Along the way, we hear many voices testifying to this uniquely American musician who continues to astonish our too-easily-established categories. Coltrane desired to ‘sound’ the cosmos, to reveal the mystery that surrounds us. This book is an informed act of love for a beautiful, complex, one-of-a-kind musician.”—Don E. Saliers, Emory University“Howison has given us an original study showing the connections between jazz music and theological truths, bringing together a rare combination of musical and religious expertise. His book is a deeply personal look at the great music of John Coltrane and other jazz artists, showing how their creativity is an expression of the many facets of our humanity, from tragedies to triumphs. There is nothing quite like this in the literature. Must-reading for anyone who cares about the arts in relation to faith.”—William Edgar, Westminster Theological Seminary“One need not be a fan of jazz or Coltrane to appreciate the enormous favor Howison has done for all those who would seek to be transformed by the good news of the gospel. Rooted in the theological tradition, careful in its attention to basic biblical themes, and highly conversant with the history of jazz and its most able practitioners, Howison’s book takes us into waters that brim with musical life and joy, waters where God is making all things new.”—Christopher R. J. Holmes, University of Otago“Through a humble and incredibly brave look at the music and life of John Coltrane, Howison manages to briefly unveil one of the ways God interacts with people, and conversely, how people interact with God . . . The wonderful and challenging beauty of this work is that just as the reader catches a glimpse of the Holy, it slips away, and like Coltrane with a fearsome yearning in his soul, playing until kingdom come, we are left with a thirst for more.”—Alana Levandoski, songwriter and recording artist“Howison’s work on Coltrane is insightful and just what you’d hope for—a deeper, wider groove, a take on Coltrane that has not been peddled to death. Read and be enriched.”—Charlie Peacock, musician and producer Jamie Howison is a priest of the Anglican Church of Canada, and the founding pastoral leader of Saint Benedict's Table in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Follow Jamie Howison at http://godsmindinthatmusic.com. Read more

A Zen chant is like a compass that sets us in the direction of the awakened life; it is the dynamic, audible counterpart to the silent practice of zazen, or sitting meditation; and it is a powerful expression of the fact that practice happens in community. Here is a concise guide to Zen chants for practitioners, as well as for anyone who appreciates the beauty and profundity of the poetry in dharma. An introduction to the practice is followed by fresh and carefully considered translations and adaptations of thirty-five chants—some common and others less well known—along with illuminating commentary. Read more

Desde la musicología se han realizado importantes análisis sobre los papeles de música que se encuentran en los repositorios parroquiales de los antiguos «pueblos de indios» (así llamados por los españoles); sin embargo, los autores que han escrito sobre la realidad de los habitantes originarios posterior a la conquista sólo exponen de manera tangencial la participación de sus cantores e instrumentistas en el mundo musical novohispano. Su trabajo dentro de los templos ha pasado desapercibido o se ha considerado como un fenómeno aleatorio al quehacer cultual del orbe indígena. El presente libro analiza los factores económicos y sociales que influyeron en el desarrollo de la actividad laboral de estos músicos, con el objetivo de comprender mejor su importancia dentro de la sociedad novohispana, en específico al interior del altépetl. De igual manera, pretende comprobar que, pese a los obstáculos que encontraron para el desempeño de su oficio durante todo el periodo virreinal, la trascendencia de su labor como sirvientes dentro de los recintos sagrados se fincó, por un lado, en que la música fue siempre indispensable en el culto católico y en las prácticas religiosas y sociales de la época y, por el otro, en que su oficio les proveía de prerrogativas, de prestigio y de dinero que no hubieran alcanzado ejerciendo otra ocupación desligada de la Iglesia. Read more

Say the words “evangelical worship” to anyone in the United States -- even if they are not particularly religious -- and a picture will likely spring to mind unbidden: a mass of white, middle-class worshippers with eyes closed, faces tilted upward, and hands raised to the sky. Yet despite the centrality of this image, many scholars have underestimated evangelical worship as little more than a manipulative effort to arouse devotional exhilaration. It is frequently dismissed as a reiteration of nineteenth-century revivalism or a derivative imitation of secular entertainment -- three Christian rock songs and a spiritual TED talk. But by failing to engage this worship seriously, we miss vital insights into a form of Protestantism that exerts widespread influence in the United States and around the world.Evangelical Worship offers a new way forward in the study of American evangelical Christianity. Weaving together insights from American religious history and liturgical studies, and drawing on extensive fieldwork in seven congregations, Melanie C. Ross brings contemporary evangelical worship to life. She argues that corporate worship is not a peripheral “extra” tacked on to a fully-formed spiritual, political, and cultural movement, but rather the crucible through which congregations forge, argue over, and enact their unique contributions to the American mosaic known as evangelicalism. Read more

Teachers, students, composers, performers, and other practitioners of sacred sound will appreciate this volume because, unlike any book currently available on sacred music, it treats the history, development, current practices, composition, and critical views of the liturgical music of both the Jewish and Christian traditions. Contributors trace Jewish music from its place in Hebrew Scriptures through the nineteenth-century Reform movement. Similar accounts of Christian music describe its growth up to the Protestant Reformation, as well as post-Reformation development. Other essays explore liturgical music in contemporary North America by analyzing it against the backdrop of the continuous social change that characterizes our era. Read more