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MUSIC--God's Gift for Worship
“Speak to one another with Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians 5:18-19) “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” (Colossians 3:16)
Trinity is a singing congregation! Many people remark after visiting on a Sunday morning how strong is the congregational singing and how inspiring the music portion of our worship.
That may be because we believe that the congregation is the primary choir. Sunday morning worship is not a place for the congregation to listen to the professionals up front! Rather those who lead up front are there to inspire and help the congregation in its singing.
To that end we use a choir instead of the "praise team" as has become standard in many churches. While a few select singers, each on microphones, may produce great sounds and give powerful presentations, it often discourages a congregation from singing. Sometimes that is because the music is too loud so that the congegation can barely hear itself and sometimes would rather just listen.
The congregational music at TPC is largely drawn from the PCA Hymnal, “The Trinity Hymnal.” Although it predominately includes the historic hymns and songs of the last several centuries of Protestant worship, there are a large number of more contemporary hymns and songs. We also supplement these with a constantly growing list of more recent carefully chosen songs that meet our convictions of what qualities should be in the songs we sing as our offerings of praise to God. These include texts that focus more on the attributes and character of God than on our personal experiences with God. The melodies must be singable and attainable by both young and old, and composed according to high standards of excellence of accepted professional compositional practice. We believe it is optimal and entirely possible to balance or converge the older music with the new.
The music is led by a choir and the instruments of piano and organ, regularly supplemented by various acoustical instrumentalists from the church body including guitar, cello, flute, brass instruments, etc. We believe that the music should be majestic and joyful but not overpowering with percussion and electronics.
TRINITY CHOIR
We meet on Wednesday evenings from 7:30-9:00 PM in a choir room located in the far west wing of the building. To join the choir, please contact Dave Leeman, director of music.
Offering praise!
Creating beauty!
Developing friendships!
Declaring your witness!
Q. Who can join choir?
A. Anyone high school age and beyond.
Q. Do you have to be able to read music?
A. No, it helps, but many in the choir do not read music. However, everyone learns the basics of music reading over the course of a year or so.
Q. Do you have to have experience in a choir?
A. No!
Q. Do you have to have a great voice?
A. No!
Q. Do you have to audition?
A. No!
Q. What do you have to be able to do to join choir?
A. You have to love music and singing and be able to carry a tune. You have to love God and His people and be willing to grow in both loves. You have to be willing to commit yourself to a ministry that meets weekly, plus Sunday morning!
Q. When do you rehearse?
A. We rehearse every Wednesday night from 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM.
Q. Is that all?
A. No, we also have a few special rehearsals throughout the year to help prepare for special events such as Christmas and Easter. Those usually take place on Saturday morning or Sunday afternoon. We try to keep these to a minimum.
Q. What if I cannot be there every Wednesday or every Sunday?
A. No one is there every Wednesday and every Sunday! In our busy world we know that is unrealistic. However, we also know that to do something with excellence takes discipline and hard work—which begins with faithful attendance. Talk to the director about your specific issues, and together you will be able to determine if your schedule will work.
Q. What do you do for an hour and a half at rehearsal?
A. First, we warm up our voices and often stretch our bodies to prepare for using them for singing. At the same time we work on developing choral tone and blend. We sometimes work on choral techniques such as phrasing and diction. Then we prepare the hymns and liturgy for the coming Sunday. We learn special parts for the service such as descants or choral introits. Most importantly, we work on music 4-6 weeks ahead that we will be singing as the Musical Offering—the anthem. We also work on special event music, a little each week for several months.
Q. That sounds like a lot to do in 90 minutes! Don’t you have any fun?
A. Yes we do! The director tells corny jokes, and the choir groans. We laugh a lot! But we also share needs from the choir and pray about them. We are often challenged spiritually by the words of our music, and we talk about what that means in our lives.
Q. Do you sing all year, nonstop?
A. No. We rehearse and sing about 40 weeks out of the 52—taking a couple of months off in the summer and a week or two off about every 8 weeks.
Q. Do I have to join for the entire year?
A. No. You can join for a season of 3 months—see how you like it! Join for whatever your schedule will permit—but we’re hoping you’ll like it so much you’ll want to be there always!
Q. Above it says something about “Declaring your witness” What does that mean?
A. That in singing before the congregation you
are "testifying" to your faith. It also means we we have occasions to declare our faith outside the Trinity walls such as in retirement and nursing homes.
Q. If I want to join, do I just show up to a rehearsal on Wednesday night?
A No. Please contact our director, Dave Leeman—either by talking to him after a morning worship service or go to CONTACT US to send an email or call the church office.
TRINITY INSTRUMENTALISTS
Strings, Brass, Woodwinds, and Percussion are used from time to time by invitation and special rehearsal arrangements. Contact Dave Leeman to let him know of your interest and availability.
A Ministry of the Choir and Instrumentalists In The Worship of God; A Biblical History
David and all the Israelites were celebrating in the presence of God. With all their strength they were singing and playing lyres, harps, tambourines, cymbals and trumpets... David spoke to the chiefs of the Levites to appoint a choir of singers to sing songs of joy to the accompaniment of lyres, harps and cymbals. Keneniah was in charge of the singing. He gave instruction because he was skillful... and the rest were chosen, designated by name, to give thanks to the LORD because His loving kindness is everlasting... some to minister before the ark of the LORD, to make petition, to give thanks and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel, some to play the lyres and harps, to sound the cymbals, and to blow the trumpets and other instruments to accompany the songs of praises to God…David said, 4000 are to praise the LORD with the musical instruments... under the supervision of 288- all of them trained and skilled in music for the LORD.
All the Levites who were musicians- Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun and their sons and relatives- stood on the east side of the altar dressed in fine linen and playing cymbals, harps and lyres. They were accompanied by 120 priests, sounding trumpets.
The trumpeters and singers joined in unison, as with one voice, to give praise and thanks to the LORD...accompanied by trumpets, cymbals and other instruments, they raised their voices in praise to the Lord and sang:
"He is good; His love endures forever."
Then the temple of the LORD was filled with a cloud, and the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the temple of God. After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the LORD and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying
"Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever."
As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated... "Your procession has come into view, O God, the procession of my God and King. In front are the singers, after them the musicians; with them are the maidens playing tambourines." Praise God in the great congregation; praise the LORD in the assembly of Israel.
I Chronicles 13:8, 15:16,22; 16:4-6, 42; 23:5; 25:7; II Chronicles 5:12-14; 20: 21-22; Psalm 68:25, 26