Figure 1.--Martin Luther had been a choir boy as a youth and greatly appreciated music. He and his family of six children are often depicted singing at home. This is one of many examples. Notice here that only the boys are sininging. They would have sung mostly church music like hymns. Other Protestant reformers like Calvin has much more restricted views as regards to music as part of church services. This is from a German source. We thouht the artist's name was by Gemälde von Poetzsch. To avoid confusion the sentence under the picture of Luther and his family should be, this is a lithograph done after a painting by Poetzsch. It was indeed based on an earlier painting. The word Gemälde means Painting in English. We have not yet found much information on Poetzsch.

Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the church door and without really intending to do so launched the Reformation (1517). The result was fundamental changes not only in relgious life, but in European society writ large. Among the many fundamental changes were a range of minor developments and one of those were boy choirs and choristers. Some of the effects were negative, but, over all as a result of the Reformation European music culture became richer amidst the resulting social tumult. The Reformation did not just divide Europe among Catholics and Protestants. Protestants encouraged people to read the Bible. They did and all kinds of new ideas and denominations appeared. Roughly speaking there were three principal Protestnt branches. Of these, the Reformed Church founded by John Calvin in Switzerland had the most destructive effect on music in general, and church music in particular. Martin Luther in Germany had a much more open mind toward music. The diection of the English Anglican Church has particularly important consequences. The Anglicn Church has gone through both Catholic and Protestant phases and thus is not now always seen as a Protestant church. During the Reformation era there were major differences between Protestant anf Catholic choral singing. This has since declined because the Catholic choirs have accepted some Protestant reforms and the the Anglicn Church has since become more Catholic in its liturgy. There are, however, still major differences between mant Protestant and Catholic churches.

Luthernism

The Church that Luther founded is known as the Reformed Church in Germany. Perhaps because there are so many more Protestant (meaning reformed) denominations in America, the church in America is known as the Lutheran Church and there are several denominations. It is an important American denomination because of the large number of German immigrants. Germany has perhaps the stronget music tradition in Europe. Thus it is not surprising that Martin Luther appreciated music both within and outside the church. Luther was a choir boy St George's (Georgenkirche) in Eisenach so he was very knowledgeable about church music and appreciated it. He learned to play the flute. He would later return to Eisenach to hide from the Emperor. Luther not only loved music, but strongly believed it should continue to have an important role in the Reformed Church. He wrote, "Next to the word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world. It controls our hearts, minds and spirits. A person who does not regard music as a marvelous creation of God does not deserve to be called a human being; he should be permitted to hear nothing but the braying of asses and the grunting of hogs!" He did, however, redirect the use of music which had the impact of enriching ecclesiastical music. Luther wanted Christin worship to be conducted in the languages that common people spoke and understood rather than in Latin so they could understand what was being said. He thus appreciated the need for chorales (the melodies to which hymns are sunh). Luther actually composed some chorales himself, such as 'A Mighty Fortress'. He also used the plainsong (Gregorian chant) melodies used for centuries in Catholic worship and inserted a new German text. A good example is 'Christ lag in Todes Banden' based on the melody of the Catholic Easter Sequence 'Victimae Paschali Laudes'. Despite the major doctrinal and liturgical reforms, the Reformed Church in Germany was still the most Catholic of all the mainline Protestahnt churches. Luther retained much of the traditional Catholic liturgy in his new orders of worship. These liturgical texts played a small part in the Lutheran Church music. One of the primary reforms Luther ininiated was a return to the Gospels. This led to settings of many Biblical texts that drew from the drama of these scripture verses. We can see this in the new music created by Protestantg composers. A good example is the soaring with multi-choral settings of psalms by Heinrich Schütz. And we see more modest, small-scale works by Geistliche Konzerte for small ensembles of solo voices. While small, the musical impact could be stunning. Schütz was forced to use small vocal formats because of the Thirty Years War (1618-48) which desestated Europe, especially Germany. Society in general was disruoted and not only church choirs. Dramatic choral settings of the Passion story became popular, culminating in Johann Sebastian Bach monumental work, the St. Matthew Passion. Luther’s central belief that faith in Christ overcame personal bondage to sin was dramatized in music by Bach's cantatas. This became the central focus of of worship in Leipzig. Luther was a reformer, but not in areas involving women. He had no interest in allowing women to sing in church. Men and boys continued to provide the musical portion of worship services. This included the Dresdner Kreuzkirche and St. Thomas Church in Leipzig in addition to the court chapels of the Lutheran nobility throughout northern Germany.

Calvinism

Calvinism is another major branch of Protestantism. The most importabt actual church is the Presbyterian church, but many other denominations have been influenced to varying degrees by Calvin. The Reformed Church founded by John Calvin in Switzerland had much the most destructive effect on music in general, and church music in particular as well as artistic expressin in general. Calvinists banned musical instruments in Church as well as choirs. Only simple congregational singing was allowed, harkening back to the services of early Christans over a millenia earlier. Therevwas, however, a larger thological dimmension to Calvin's rejectiin of oppulent horal singing. His most important theological idea, namely predestination, tended to undermine the ancient Catholic belief in the free will with which God had endowed man at the creation of the world. Much of what might be called the 'gloominess' of Calvinistic Protestantism derives from the notion that only a few elite 'elect' will be saved while most of humanity is predestined to damnation because of the powerful depravity in human nature that was illustrated by the Fall (the expulsion of Adam and Eve from Eden as punishment for disobedience to divine command). For Calvin life offered little to celebrate because of the huge prominence of human wickedness--hence the Calvinist opposition to almost all forms of art (including music) that celebrate the glory of God's creation (emphasizing of course human creativity and genius since man was created in the image of God). Calvinist gloom of course reflected itself in attitudes to toward church liturgy. While Catholics, Lutherans, and Anglicans loved and promoted music in worship (think of Palestrina, Tallis, Byrd, Orlando Gibbons, J.S. Bach), and believed in enriching worship through various sensual means (vestments, candles, images of saints, even incense, and lofty architecture), strict Calvinists white-washed churches and reduced liturgy to the minimum, putting the main emphasis on long sermons and plain black gowns for the clergy. Calvinist sang mostly metrical psalms in church. Choristers living in the areas adopting Calvinist theology either had to stop singing or move elsewhere. The impact on music is, however, more nuanced. Calvinistswere not unsophsticated culture haters, although the ,ore austere fringe might be called this. The English Pilgrims sought to supress artistic exprssion, but this was not the main line of thought among Calvinists. While Calvinists rejected most forms of music in Church, they did not opose musical expression in general. Many appreciated music, but just did not want it in church as part of a worship service. They might cultivate music in their homes and secular communal venues. English Puritan leader Oliver Cromwell after creating the Commonwealth abolished choirs in England churches (17th century). Despite this he added two boys from banned choirs to in his entourage. They entertain him after dinner. We are not sure yet just what kind of music they sang. Despite their austere reputation, Calvinists actually took an important step towatd modernity. They help launch a surprising outpouring of secular music. Until the Reformation, sophisticated European music had been largely a province of the Chutch. So it is that the Calvinists laid the social groundwork for civic music ensembles that were to dominate the musical scene a couple of centuries later.

English Anglicanism

The English Reformation was launched by Henry VIII who like Europe had no intention of doing so. Thus not surprisingly the English Anglican Church retained many Catholic Church trappings, although it went through a series of Protestnt abd Catholic phases. Henry who Pope Clement VII honored as 'Defender of the Faith,' turned against papal control of the English Church. The issue was his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. Henry wanted a divorce so he could marry Ann Boleyn. The king was not interested in changing either the structures or litergy of the English Church. He did to close the monasteries, but primarily to lay his hands on their wealth. Henry left cathedral and collegiate choirs intact. Sympathy with Protestantism (both Lutheranism and Calvinism developed in England abd Scotland to the north). Henry's moves against the ppacy helped open up Protestant inroads despite his theological orientation. And Henry's death (1547) provided the opportunity to fundamentally changed the theology and litergy of the developing Anglian Church. Henry allowed his son Edward to be raised a Protestant. This seems strange for a monsrchb who took great interest in theological matters and was not a Protestant. Edward was not healthy. He died an early death (1553). But the 6 years of his rule was enough for Protestantism with a Calvinist hue to be deeply entrenched in the religious life of England. Religious culture wars would inflict the country for more than a century. Edward's reign threatened the musical history of the Anglican church because of Calvin's opposition to church music other than comunal singing. Catholic Queen Mary briefly returned the English Church to the papcy, but she also died early (1558) and left no their. She was unable to return the Anglican Church to Catholcism. Queen Elizabeth I pursued what is now called the Elizabethan Settlement that shaped the Anglican Church of England as a compromise between Roman Catholicism and Calvinism under the leadership of the Crown. Neither hard core Calvinists nor Catholics accepted the settlement. Elizabeth and James I who followed her and supported the Elizabethan Settlement became targets of assasins. This is celebrated annully as Guy Fawkes Day. Fawkes was part of the most famous such plot--the Gun Powder Plot (1605). He was part of a Catholic conspiracy to blow up Parliament and assasinate James as he opened Parliament. The great English public, however, did accept the Settlement and the Anglican Church flourished. The Stewarts sought to bring the Anglican Church back to the Catholic pole. This effort was stopped in it tracks by Oliver Cromwell and his Commonwealth. This in turn was reversed by the restoration of the SteWarts and again by William and MAry and the Glorious Revolution (1688). This and subsequent changes affected church music including choral singing.

Created: 7:01 PM 12/9/2012
Last updated: 7:01 PM 12/9/2012