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Show - - , ; X ' , . V f , Y . " l ': W t ; p, ' . - - - ! ; ; - - , ... ,.. . k- ,, V - h .i ; ,,.. v... J, - i-is. ; - . ... .... 'itoiflaafl Emma Smith probably didn't foresee the future tension that would exist between music in the LDS church and that of the world when she helped organized the church's hymn book in 1 835. Church music hovers between worlds says BYU music professor visiting the wagons of the sick and entertaining the pioneers at the behest of Brigham Young, who kept the musicians' wagons near his own. "Every sweet musical sound that can be made belongs to the saints and is for the saints," said Young, who also insisted that "there is no music in Hell.' According to Hicks, those organized which are represented today to-day by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir symbolized to Young and the early Mormons "the beauty of cooperative co-operative effort, the founding principle prin-ciple of Zion.' Not all aspects of music were readily accepted by the early church, however. Young abhorred what he termed new, "dissonant" trends in music and spearheaded a move for simple, home-produced music as part of his campaign for self-sufficiency. Equally repulsive to many early members were the newest dances, which many viewed as "public embracing," em-bracing," said Hicks. "But Young seems to have tolerated and even encouraged dancing as a means of relaxation and, perhaps more impor tantly, of keeping warm at night. ' ' Hicks point out that church leaders gradually realized the advisability ad-visability of at least tolerating some of the new, more intimate dance forms in controlled environments since Mormon youth, denied the opportunity to dance such dances at church gatherings, would attend the local "Gentile" dances and thus risk ' straying from the fold. ' Hicks also draws portraits of the major figures in the church's early musical history, the majority of whom were European immigrants: C.J. Thomas, who organized the orchestra or-chestra of the Salt Lake Theatre; John Tullidge, Mormonism's first music critic; composer George Careless, who conducted the first Western U.S. performance of Handel's Messiah; and long-time Tabernacle Choir conductor Evan Stephens, who brought modem vocal and compositional methods to the Great Basin. Mormonism and Music has earned earn-ed Hicks several honors including the Award for Criticism from the Association for Mormon Letters and the Francis and Emily Chipman Award for Best First Book from the Mormon History Association. By SARAH HANSEN Brigham Young would probably roll over in his grave if he could hear the music of today. Like many religious people of his time, he grew up firmly believing that listening listen-ing to fiddle music was akin to dancing dan-cing with the devil. Later, however, he admitted that the admonitions against popular music only made him want to hear fiddlers all the more. Eventually he recognized, as did his predecessor Joseph Smith, the ability of music to rally and sustain sus-tain the early members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Latter-day Saints. According to Brigham Young University music professor, Michael Hicks, music in the Mormon Mor-mon Church has been dominated by the tension between the Church's desire for progress versus its fear of contamination by outside influences. in-fluences. "There's always been a controversy con-troversy about the role of musicor any of the artsin the Christian life," said Hicks, "since anything that smacks of pleasure could be considered sin or worldliness. All religions have a need to conserve the good, to preserve traditional values in the midst of changing times." Hicks notes that Mormons have a special need to progress. "We're always looking toward how we can adapt to new revelation," he said. "The Book of Mormon states that 'there must be opposition in all things' and the musical life of Mormonism bears that out." Hicks says his book is actually more about Mormonism than it is about music. "1 hoped to illuminate the character, and characters, of our faith by looking at how it has been entangled with the art of music," he said. Hymns and hymnals abounded in the early LDS church because many converts came from Protestant backgrounds with rich musical traditions. tra-ditions. One of the church's earliest revelations, Section 25 of the Doctrine Doc-trine and Covenants, concerned the creation of a hymnal "That revelation revela-tion firmly settled the question of whether or not to sing in church," said Hicks. "What the revelation did not do was also critical. It did not command the new believers to write new hymns. ' Hicks traces the origins of some of Mormonism's longest lasting hymns, many of which are adaptations adapta-tions of traditional hymns and folk songs reset to reflect Mormon themes. For example, John Taylor's tribute to Joseph Smith, "The Seer, the Seer, Joseph the Seer" was modelled after the then popular song by Barry Cornwall, "The Sea, the Sea, the Open Sea. ' ' Hicks also describes the development de-velopment of the various editions of the official church hymnal. The first was published in 1927 and marked a new church-led emphasis on more sophisticated musical techniques and aesthetics. Musical organizations were also important to the early Mormons. Singing schools and choirs regularly regular-ly rehearsed and performed for major church events. Joseph Smith organized a brass band in Nauvoo, whose major function in the summer months was ' 'to salute new immigrants and escort them through the city, a practice that persisted well into the Utah period," said Hicks. The bandsmen were a major force during the trip to the West, |
