Walter Buszin on the Lutheran Masters
Earlier this week the Concordia Publishing House music department celebrated the 60th anniversary of hiring its first full-time head of the music department – Edward Klammer. That hiring happened at the recommendation of Walter Buszin. During the 1940’s, Buszin, in the midst of his other teaching responsibilities, organized the music department catalog, served as an editorial consultant, and finally recommended that CPH appoint Klammer as head of the department. (For more information on Buszin, get the biography published by The Good Shepherd Institute).
In 1948 CPH published an “Anthology of Sacred Music – Chorale Preludes by Masters of the XVII and XVIII Centuries” selected and edited by Buszin. It is the Foreword of this volume that I’d like to share with you. First, it provides insight into what CPH was publishing at that time. Second, it gives some guidance for parish musicians today. Third, it will provide a segue into another piece I’ll be posting in a few days.
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The music world today is making wide use of the chorale preludes written by the Lutheran masters of the 17th and 18th centuries. We are convinced that this is not merely a passing fad, but rather an indication of the rapid rise of musical standards in America and a recognition of the superiority of this music for worship purposes. From a purely musical point of view one may rightfully refer to the chorale preludes of the Lutheran masters as tone poems in miniature; from a liturgical and ecclesiastical point of view, however, they are more than tone poems, for their real purpose, as intended by their composers, was to incite people to worship and to create an atmosphere of worship in services of worship.
On the whole, a more uplifting atmosphere has been maintained in the services of worship conducted by church bodies which recognize the values of a well-ordered and dignified liturgical service of worship. Nevertheless, while the music used in these churches may have been churchly, it was often not the best worship music available. Thus in the Lutheran Church it was soon discovered that not the compositions of the great Lutheran masters, but the works of the rather inferior nineteenth and twentieth century composers were used. This music did not militate at all times against good taste; it was, on the whole, churchly, but it was at the same time quite uninspiring; it was not written by composers who possessed the genius, skill, talents, and spirit of men like Walther, Pachelbel, Buxtehude, Zachow, various members of the Bach family, and others. In fact, the music of the really great Lutheran masters was quite unknown to Lutheran church musicians until recent times, and there are still many serving as organists who are not acquainted with their real great heritage.
The present collection has been prepared and published not only to acquaint organists with works by the Lutheran masters, but also to encourage organists to use music of this type in services of worship. Since it is the intention of the editor to prepare for this series a volume which will include only works by Johann Sebastian Bach, compositions by this great master have not been included in the present volume. It is hopes that thereby attention will be called to the undeniable and important fact that the musical heritage of the Lutheran Church in particular, and of the Christian Church in general, is great even without the works of the greatest composer of organ music the world has ever known.
. . .
It is important, of course, that these preludes be played in the spirit in which they were written and in the spirit of a beautiful and dignified service of worship. This spirit, however, I am unable to communicate to others through the medium of words, numbers, or other signs. The spirit of music is intangible and will come to those who wholeheartedly dedicate themselves, their ability, and their musical talent to the Giver of every good and perfect gift. From Him will come the spirit of consecration and genuine musical understanding.
– Walter E. Buszin
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