Religious Music And Its Influence On The Music Industry

Music is a tool that touches the world and does not require anyone to understand the words to hear its voice. It is something innate to every living human being that does not have to be taught, but is just felt or expressed. Music has been appreciated by people throughout time, enjoyed and celebrated from Beethoven, Bach and Mozart to AD/DC, Beyonce and Prince and will continue to be revered so long as man is free to play it. Music is also feared by many as it can unite a people, prompt the march of an army, express the feelings of the repressed, create an entire new group of people, or even be the tune to topple a dynasty. This was proven by the people known as the “Hippies” as this class of people rallied behind bands such as Janis Joplin, The Who or Jimi Hendrix, with none being more prominent than the Beatles. Music has an influence on society in a greater way than any can imagine, just take a look at the sixties and their figurehead The Beatles and how they did not make people hate the war in Vietnam, nothing in their lyrics says anything about the war. They just brought together like-minded people who started a revolution and changed the perspective on an entire altercation. But like Steven Stark says, “’Why on earth would anyone need another work [book] about the Beatles?’” and this is quite true if it wasn’t for the fact that most works written on this innovative group are bibliographies or dissections of the musical prowess. Instead,

While gazing at a statue of Isaac Watt in Westminster Abbey, the great English poet Victor Longfellow once quipped, "He only did better what no man has ever done well!”  Professor Edward B. Reed voiced a similar opinion, "In this great mass of poetry (hymnody) there is little that shows artistic excellence.”

Art has undoubtedly become a decisive aspect of our culture; embedded in the way we learn and grow on a daily basis. Art forms such as music, television and dance dominate our society as an outlet of freedom of speech for humanity. The evolution of music has rapidly exceeded its original classifications, developing new genres with greater appeal to an audience, hence its influence on society has expedited. In recent times, lyrics (specifically rap lyrics) have been introduced into the court room as a form of documented confessional evidence, evidently challenging law’s authoritative nature. This essay will closely follow the genre of rap and its relationship with law, through cases based in the United States of America (USA). In addition, the trial of Simon Bikindi in Rwanda and Smith v The Queen will be used to form an acute analysis on the influencing factors of relevance, identity, freedom of speech and current constitutional law.

From the beginning of times, music has played an important role in everyone’s life. At first, it started with drum-based and percussion instruments made out of what was available as rocks and sticks. Our ancestors proved that human beings have an innate need of music. Nowadays, no one teaches a baby to follow the beat of a song, he just naturally lets his body get involved with the rhythm. Since the prehistoric era to Christian times, several forms of music have developed leaving a trail to new genres of music. For Christianity, hymns and plainchants were the first forms of music considered as a worship to God. As time passed by, Christian music has evolved giving way to new and fresh sounds.

There is no other culture on planet Earth more oppressed throughout human history than the Jewish people. From their hardships in the Middle East recounted in the Torah and Bible to the infamous event known as the Holocaust, the suffering that the Jewish people have faced is incalculable. One of the few silver linings that forms through oppression is the strong expression of culture. Jewish culture has grown exponentially since 1900, and the events of the Holocaust brought the Jewish community as close as it was in the ancient times.

The article talked about how gospel and dance have been around since the 17th century in the western hemisphere. It gives information on how gospel and dance was pass down from generation to generation. It shows how slaves had faith to push on, because they would one day be free. The topics “gospel” and civil right movement in song and dance are broken down to give more detail where it all started from.

During the renaissance, Europe went through many changes politically, socially, and psychologically. Most of this change was due to the reformation of the church, and the humanist movement. The humanist movement focuses on revisiting Greek ideas, and the church supported these thinkers, artists, and musicians (Oxford). The church slowly became morphed with politics, to the point where the church was also the law. Different churches wanted to attract new patrons, so they tried to impress others through the use of art and music, and no longer just their words.

In my opinion, the role of “soul” in the Jazz-Gospel connection is subjective to the definition of soul and how the individual uses the term. Over time, when differing cultures coalesce, old words take on new meanings. According to the Old English Dictionary (OED), the noun soul dates prior to the 11th century and continues to change its definition to this day. What I mean by this, is that the word “soul” has different denotations in Black culture than the Old Frisian word did centuries ago. However, the term “soul” and jazz go as far back as the 1920’s (OED). Nonetheless, “soul” became synonymous with the sociopolitical African-American identity in the 1950’s when recording artists such as Ray Charles were promoted as “soul music.” “Soul”

While many people would easily agree that music is an art form that comes from the emotional complexity and passions of human beings, Aristotle’s truth that “music that rouses ignoble passions distorts a person's character” is debatable. The claim that “the wrong kind of music makes the wrong kind of person, and the right kind tends to make the right kind of person” is a paradoxical statement that changes meaning and credibility depending on the reader’s perspective. While morality has been an integral part of religious music throughout history, there is no direct correlation that a person’s listening choices reflect their personal belief structures or that the mental health or character of the listener is defined by their choice of music

Secular music can be very entertaining. There are many secular songs that have catchy melodies, thoughtful insights, and positive messages. However, my friend has just attended a seminar that said secular music id from the devil. Yet, I have not found the evidence of this anywhere in the Bible. In determining whether Christian should listen to secular music.

As a way to fight against such evils, evangelical groups began to create alternative choices to the satanic unholy offensive music. The cultural phenomenon known as “Contemporary Christian Music” features Christian rock music, which includes Christian heavy metal, among many other styles of music that reintroduce themes that reinforce the five fundamentals. With songs of Christ’s divine forgiveness and personal salvation that are backed up by similar musical accompaniment that their secular counterparts sing but minus all the sex, drugs, parties, and other worldly activities. However, the music industry has made newer developments that tone down they blatant Christian themes.

Music has always been a big part of our culture. People sing and listen to songs for entertainment and for encouragement. Explore folk songs or Negro spirituals for instance. Many slaves sang spirituals for encouragement and hope to carry them through the rough times they experienced. Even today, most people enjoy listening to music because they can relate to the things about which the artists sing. Often artists sing about things that either upset or please them. These days, much of American music exposes problems in our society. In a song entitled, Can’t Take God Away, the Christian rock group Audio Adrenaline sings about how God is

Before hearing this lecture, I had no concept of the types of music in concentration camps, much less a sense of the music within World War II. The lecture taught me how music and the arts are something that can’t ever be stopped. Even though it’s not mandatory for human life or a lucrative career it has permanently etched a place inside of culture and the continuation of history.

Being exposed to electronic dance music, house, and Christian music was a gateway to become involved in the admiration of these genres. Through religion Christian music was expanded in one’s horizon, and started to enjoy different classes of genre within this category. The songs in Sunday School, worship hour, and concerts depicts the type of content that one should follow. Thus creating the preference of staying afar from music with cursing, perverseness, and un-meaningful content. In addition, parents instruct their inheritance as well into the preferences one should seek, and being influenced as a child is what in some cases the behavior they will lead throughout the life

Music plays a significant rule in our lives. It’s a melody and rhythm we live in. It plays a very essential rule in our day to day to life when it comes to expressing feelings, passing time and for other uses as well. Though we in general may not think about how music has changed so much in the past few decades we must acknowledge the fact todays music is the outcome of the various change in the past. Today’s majority of music we hear is what we define as more as a “westernized” music. Considering other cultures in the world, a huge impact of western music is seen within them. Westernization and modernization are two different words with different meanings and they have two different impacts on a society. Modernization is used to define the improvements and show a progressive transition from one stage to another. Westernization is the concept of being influenced by the customs and techniques of the western society and reflecting them in a non-western culture. This essay will discuss furtherly about the impact of the western society on music cultures of North India and Korea by looking from both the positive and negative point of this impact.