Sacrament Approved Music

[I.J. Reilly]

I was thinking this morning a bit about the music that is a part of our Sacrament worship, thanks to Indy's link to the RedBrickStore website. On there there was a small article about the practical relationship that the church has to music. There were several theories put forward in the comments section about the oftentimes poor nature of Sacrament meeting music. Feel free to read about them if you would like.

What it got me thinking about, though, was music I would like to hear in a Sacrament meeting. I've always had a soft spot in my heart for Cat Stevens and I think that his rendition of a traditional Christian hymn is one of my favorites:

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I included this version of it, but I found another on YouTube that doesn't allow embedding (so I can't put it here), but it has a choral part to it that is a nice addition. Here is the link if you want to listen to that version. I think that Steven's use of the guitar in this song is very well suited for a Sacrament meeting, but I think it may be a cold day in Hell before I ever hear a guitar in Sacrament meeting (although I gather that it is not an impossibility, I've just never seen it).

How does Sacrament meeting music work in your neck of the woods? Does your ward have a strict, hymns-only policy? Do you have a good ward choir? Could you ever imagine a guitar being used in your ward's service? What have been some of your favorite Sacrament meeting performances? Is there anything you think would work well in a Sacrament meeting that you've never heard?

[creekster]

I was thinking this morning a bit about the music that is a part of our Sacrament worship, thanks to Indy's link to the RedBrickStore website. On there there was a small article about the practical relationship that the church has to music. There were several theories put forward in the comments section about the oftentimes poor nature of Sacrament meeting music. Feel free to read about them if you would like.

What it got me thinking about, though, was music I would like to hear in a Sacrament meeting. I've always had a soft spot in my heart for Cat Stevens and I think that his rendition of a traditional Christian hymn is one of my favorites:


I included this version of it, but I found another on YouTube that doesn't allow embedding (so I can't put it here), but it has a choral part to it that is a nice addition. Here is the link if you want to listen to that version. I think that Steven's use of the guitar in this song is very well suited for a Sacrament meeting, but I think it may be a cold day in Hell before I ever hear a guitar in Sacrament meeting (although I gather that it is not an impossibility, I've just never seen it).

How does Sacrament meeting music work in your neck of the woods? Does your ward have a strict, hymns-only policy? Do you have a good ward choir? Could you ever imagine a guitar being used in your ward's service? What have been some of your favorite Sacrament meeting performances? Is there anything you think would work well in a Sacrament meeting that you've never heard?

I have played classical guitar, acoustic electric guitar and hard body bass guitar in sacrament meeting, usually to accompany other people people but once my friend and I did a duet of silent night with two guitars and no vocals. My oldest son once played an arrangement of hymns he and I put together which included a 'sample' of morning has broken (the Wakefield intro and accompaniment) but I think that only about 20-30 people caught it, to be honest.

I like Cat Stevens a lot too, btw. THe words on that song are tradiional, but I dont think the tune is, abd I know the emotive 70s style singing isnt.

[Babs]

How does Sacrament meeting music work in your neck of the woods? Does your ward have a strict, hymns-only policy? Do you have a good ward choir? Could you ever imagine a guitar being used in your ward's service? What have been some of your favorite Sacrament meeting performances? Is there anything you think would work well in a Sacrament meeting that you've never heard?

There's all kinds of music that works really well. A couple of weeks ago they used Daughtry's "What about now," for example, tied into a lesson about getting involved in community missions.

You have excellent taste in music, btw.

[I.J. Reilly]

I have played classical guitar, acoustic electric guitar and hard body bass guitar in sacrament meeting, usually to accompany other people people but once my friend and I did a duet of silent night with two guitars and no vocals. My oldest son once played an arrangement of hymns he and I put together which included a 'sample' of morning has broken (the Wakefield intro and accompaniment) but I think that only about 20-30 people caught it, to be honest.

I like Cat Stevens a lot too, btw. THe words on that song are tradiional, but I dont think the tune is, abd I know the emotive 70s style singing isnt.

The tune is the original, supposedly a Gaelic tune called Bunessan. The intro is all Wakeman (the keyboardist from Yes). He actually claims to not have been paid or attributed for his contribution. And the singing is definitely pure 70's.

On another note, looks like I should join your ward. Bass guitar?!? That is radical

[I.J. Reilly]

There's all kinds of music that works really well. A couple of weeks ago they used Daughtry's "What about now," for example, tied into a lesson about getting involved in community missions.

You have excellent taste in music, btw.

There are all sorts of tunes that I think would work well in a Sacrament meeting, but almost any contemporary, "secular" music would surely be verboten in LDS chapels.

[creekster]

The tune is the original, supposedly a Gaelic tune called Bunessan. The intro is all Wakeman (the keyboardist from Yes). He actually claims to not have been paid or attributed for his contribution. And the singing is definitely pure 70's.

On another note, looks like I should join your ward. Bass guitar?!? That is radical

wow. Wakefield from wakeman. My bad. I knew that. really embarrassing. He was not attirbuted, but my guess is at the time he was too stoned to notice.

To be honest, When I played bass it was part of an ensemble I had put together and it really need a bottom and so showed up early, placed the amp strategically unfder the piano, nad played the bass from a low chair behiond the clerk's desk. Not that many people could see it. No Gene Simmons antics to distract from the meeting. ANother time I did the same thing with a guitar and poeple kept asking me what recording I had used. This was good for my ego, as you might imagine. In my expeirence, most peopel are not very obervant about music. btw, the most radical thing we did was a brass quartet to accompany the choir. ANd it was an upbeat tune, fast and perky.

[faith]

I have performed on an acoustic guitar in sacrament meeting in almost every ward or branch that I have attended. I have played solo and duets with either other guitars or violins. Mostly I have performed hymns such as "Come thou Fount of Every Blessing", "I Need Thee Every Hour", or "Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus". It never occurred to me that it might not be acceptable for me to play beautiful hymns to praise the Lord on a guitar during Sacrament Meeting. With the various issues that I have had with the LDS church, being discouraged from playing my guitar in church has never been one of them.

[pellegrino]

How does Sacrament meeting music work in your neck of the woods? Does your ward have a strict, hymns-only policy? Do you have a good ward choir? Could you ever imagine a guitar being used in your ward's service? What have been some of your favorite Sacrament meeting performances? Is there anything you think would work well in a Sacrament meeting that you've never heard?

Our current Bishop is a hardass, good man, but an orthodox hardass. He was a counselor when we moved into the ward and last summer he turned down our request to sing a duet arrangement of "Amazing Grace." It was funny because when I told him what song we wanted to sing his response was "Hmm, we'll have to think about that. Great song, Amazing Grace, I play it on my guitar all the time." I could tell from his response that we wouldn't be singing that song in sacrament meeting. He emailed us with the answer, copied the Bishop on it and invited us to choose another song. I responded saying that I was disappointed in their decision as Amazing Grace clearly fell within the guidelines established by the handbook, but nonetheless I would respect their decision The bishop responded by saying that they would reconsider it.

Long story short that counselor was released because he had a grant that took him to Europe for three months, the bishop gives the green light for Amazing Grace and then two weeks before we were scheduled to sing he gets released and his former counselor (freshly returned from Europe) is the new bishop. I didn't bother asking if we were still scheduled to sing, we were invited to sing another song. I still laugh about it.

[wuapinmon]

My branch president would allow anything, even drums, as long as he could see it performed first and make a judgment call. I never saw him say no, but he insisted on seeing it first. We had a guy who played tuba in the NOLA symphony in our branch once. We got tuba hymns every once in awhile. Others played violins, french horns, guitars, etc. As long as it was reverent or moving, he didn't mind. As about half the ward pre-Katrina was converts, and most of them were Gospel enthusiasts, the hymnbook was always "supplemented."

In my current ward, I'm not kidding, if you brought a guitar into the chapel, I bet some of the old-timers would get up and leave.


A story from my mission......I love this one so much:

La Tropicana Ward, Alajuela, Costa Rica, August 1993. I sit in the chapel reading something as I listen to my companion, Elder Brent Reed Jensen of Mountain Home, Idaho playing the piano before Sacrament meeting. Elder Jensen was a very strong piano player, a decent hard-working guy, and a lover of classic rock....especially Led Zeppelin.

He had played a fair number of hymns that morning, transitioning flawlessly between numbers without even pausing, so I was only half-listening when I heard some bars out of the pianoforte that confused me as I tried to place them in the hymnal, thinking perhaps he was playing one of the many hymns not found in the Spanish hymnal that we have in English (e.g. "God Save the King"), when what should my wondering ears suddenly hear but the opening notes of "Stairway to Heaven." I shot him a glance of "DUDE!" met by his mischievous back-at-ya grin. He didn't get past "what she came for" when he ended his "set" and stood up to start putting the hymn numbers in the placard. Several members came up to him and asked, "Elder, ¿Cuál himno era ése?" to which he responded, "La escalera al cielo." The name saved him because the members were used to hearing hymns played by him that aren't in the Spanish one..........I'll never forget that moment.....Led Zeppelin in sacrament meeting......I'm smiling about it right now.

[il Padrino Ute]

Led Zeppelin in Sacrament Meeting. Awesome.

Perhaps he could have gotten away with Ain't Nothin' Matters too.

[LA Ute]

Now that "Morning Has Broken" is on a Tab Choir album maybe a guitar-accompanied version in Sacrament meeting would fly. (The subtle subversive influence of Mack Wilberg manifests itself once again.)

[Moliere]

I'd love to hear this version sung in sacrament meeting:

[Sullyute]

I'd love to hear this version sung in sacrament meeting:

That dude is good.