Theology in Music

A blog considering theology as illustrated by Western Art Music

Resurrection

  • With a pure heart, fervently

    Samuel Sebastian Wesley, grandson of hymn-writer Charles Wesley and son of Sebastian Wesley, a celebrated organist though socially ostracised for leaving his wife for a servant, served four cathedrals and provided original and stimulating music for services. His verse anthem Blessed be the God and Father has precedents beyond his own earlier works in the… Read more

  • The light of life in the midst of death

    Though it appears as I write (8 April 2026) that a cease-fire in Iran may have allowed for some deferral of escalation in that part of the world, I have been reflecting on power and threat in the same week that the Church has been celebrating the resurrection. Doing so reminded me that the composer… Read more

  • Of death, desire and Resurrection

    The German Lied is an essentially secular genre, but there are enough of them that deal with sacred themes, broadly construed, that it is possible to include at least an example in this blog. And so we turn to Fanny Hensel (née Mendelssohn – her brother Felix was also a composer, and the song we… Read more