HT: On Being

Of course, the song by itself is worth a listen – a good satire of suburban culture.

HT: Scottunder

HT: Bob Kauflin

Now, Lord, you let your servant go in peace:
your word has been fulfilled.

My own eyes have seen the salvation
which you have prepared in the sight of every people;

A light to reveal you to the nations
and the glory of your people Israel.

– Luke 2.29-32 (in Common Worship)

It has often been set to music, and here is my attempt to fit it to the lovely tune ‘Olwen.’ For better hymns do examine the work of Liam Beadle.

Thus Simeon praised God:
“O Lord, as you promised,
dismiss your servant in peace,
for now that I see with
my eyes your salvation,
contented, I’ll wait for my end.”

“This child in my arms, who
is born as our Saviour,
was prophesied time and again.
No people nor tongue has
been left without witness
that Jesus would come as God’s Son.”

“He’s a light to the Gentiles,
that they might believe,
and trust in the only true God,
and glory to Israel,
the people God chose as
the forebears of Jesus the Christ.”

Bless the Lord, O my soul: Blessed art Thou, O Lord. Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me bless his Holy Name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and not forget all His benefits. Who forgiveth all thy sin, and healeth all thine infirmities. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy, long-suffering and of great goodness. He will not alway be chiding, neither keepeth He His wrath forever. He hath not dealt with us after our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

Perhaps these words, or words like these, are familiar to you. (They are taken from Psalm 103:1-10.) They undoubtedly refer to the grace of God in saving us from the punishment we deserve. But more than that, in this psalm David adumbrates the character of a God who is gracious in all he does. He gives rain to the wicked and the righteous, and illuminates the whole creation with his glory. He creates us, fallen as we are, as capable of beauty and truth.

It is this grace of God that is shown in Genesis 4:22. Barely a sentence after the curse on Cain comes this news of Cain’s descendant Jubal: “He was the father of all who handle the harp and pipe.” It is a breath of fresh air in the otherwise suffocating tale of the Curse being worked out through mankind. (The immediate aftermath of the Fall is filled with these little graces of God.)

Not too long after Jubal would come another harp-player: David, son of Jesse, who wrote Psalm 103 and marvelled at God’s grace.

On that note, let me recommend to you Liturgy.ru. There is a wonderful collection of high-quality choral music there, free to download. The beauty of the music is a call to worship the God who has been so gracious to us.

There are a number of online radio stations that are worth listening to. But last.fm offers something unique. After you have selected some of your music preferences, last.fm is able to predict what other artists you might enjoy. What’s more, last.fm offers an online radio feed that will play those songs to you. Some will be newer, unheard-of artists. Others will be famous and well-known. But last.fm is generally very good, given enough information, at predicting what you like.

For a similar approach, look at the aptly-named iRate radio. The system downloads freely available music. You listen to each track and rate it. That information is then used to predict what other music you might enjoy.

Both iRate radio and last.fm are excellent chances to transcend traditional classifications of music. A statement such as “I like rock music” is bound to be imprecise for all but the most avid fans; most people do not like all rock music. Both radio stations try to look deeper than the “rock” genre to find what you really might like.

If you’re fond of folk music, there is some excellent music available at the Community Music Project. The performers come from varied backgrounds, some of which make themselves felt in the music. One is of the Bahá’í faith, for example. In general, a clear devotion to nature is transparently evident in the songs. Their vocal talents are often impressive, but the best way to listen to their albums is with the tolerance one shows for a younger sibling. That is their aim, after all: to expand our notions of community and family in a digital age.

Or, if your taste is for something more classical, the Fulda Symphonic Orchestra is worth a look. They are an orchestra of over 100 musicians (mostly amateur). They perform annually for charity, and publish their music online. You can listen to four years of their performances (2000-2003).