Worship music should be good, but not too good

A post over at Semper Reformanda has got me thinking about the quality of worship music again. I have always been of the opinion that part of what glorifies God in worship is not only the words being sung, but also the skill with which the songs are played (ie David's exhortation to "play skillfully before the Lord").  God is glorified when we know how to make good music, no question.  But how good can worship music really be?

The fact is that worship music has limitations, and these limitations are a blessing.  For instance, good worship songs are singable and easy for people to learn quickly. The songs are both immediate and universal so that the singer can take what is being sung and use it to edify themselves and build up the Church. This leaves little room for performance because the worship leader must automatically ask introspective questions like "is this helpful"  "is it distracting" "why exactly are we doing this."  These questions need not be asked for non-church musicians because the easy answer is that they are trying to make the most impressive sounds possible...and for that we are thankful, because we all like good sounds.

When it comes to the church though, people are looking for edification, solidarity with believers, and something different. No church that I know of can provide entertainment like going to a Decemberists concert.  Most people/churches that try to mix really good, entertaining music with church music usually end up on the CCM charts and ruin both genres.  But the point is that people increasingly are not looking for that kind of entertainment in churches.  There is a general disenchantment with churches that have faux worship that is trying to appeal to the masses.

Even if its less good, or hardly good at all, people will appreciate a genuine attempt at meaty worship music.  We should produce music that is relevant and regional.  We should spend time on the best chord progressions, interludes, key changes and even solos.  But, overall, we should try to produce good music insofar as it helps people open their mouths, engage their minds and incline their hearts.