Just A Song Sunday: Music as Part of Ritual
I am getting ready to go to church for an early service and an Easter celebration. In my role as church music director, I am aware of the role of music in ritual. As a music therapist, that role is not as obvious, but present just the same. In the book, Music In Therapy by E. Thayer Gaston, Gaston started the book with a chapter on "Man and Music." During the chapter, Gaston discusses the various roles that music plays in the lives of human beings. Starting on page 19, Gaston starts to identify the different ways humans use music. The two elements that really make me stop on this day - the ones that make me think deeply about being a musician, a human, and a music therapist - are Music and Religion Are Integrally Related and The Potency of Music Is Greatest in the Group (please note, all italics and capitalization are Gaston's, not my own). Before I go to the early Early Easter Service and the Easter Celebration (at a later time), I am going to think through these ...