SONGS TO THE CREATOR
- Indigenous Music Program for First Nations Peoples -
- BC, Canada -
INDIGENOUS
MUSIC - SONGS TO THE CREATOR PROGRAM
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'Jim and Kristy Miller have worked for
14 years on the west coast of British Columbia, Canada, with the Nuu-Chah-Nulth
nation. Throughout their years of Church planting and counseling they focused
on contextualizing the Gospel for the First Nations people. Jim is now the
director of the "Songs to the Creator" Indigenous music program,
developing Indigenous Cultural expression through music, dance and drama for
the First Nations people. This involves encouraging Native believers to write
their own music for worship and evangelistic outreach. Several ways they will
implement this will be through Intertribal music gatherings.
Jim & Kristy have worked together with some of their First Nations friends
to put together a beautiful CD: "SONGS TO THE CREATOR: First Nations
Songs of Praise and Worship".
For more info, contact: Jim & Kristy
Miller - miller@naim.ca - Songs to the Creator, 180 Rockland Rd., Campbell
River, BC V9W 1N6, Canada 1-250-923-0531'
Following are excerpts from "Indigenous
Music - Songs to the Creator Music Program by Kristy Miller. For an email
copy of their entire article by Kristy Miller, you may contact the Miller's
directly
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"In ministry, we should be constantly
asking ourselves the question "What touches the hearts of the people
I am serving?". Yet often, we ask the question wrong..... What we catch
ourselves doing is asking "What really touches MY heart" and when
we answer that, we try and figure out how to make those things connect with
the people we are ministering to. We try and connect them with the things
that are precious to us.... with the literature that is precious to us...
with the music that is precious to us.....
…the question I should have asked myself is, what would be most meaningful
to HER! If you are working in a cross cultural setting... there will be two
very different answers!
Understanding that is the key to successful
ministry.
At this point let me also say that this
is NOT just for missions! This is for anyone in ministry. When ever you cross
geographical lines, denominational lines, or generational lines... you are
making a cross cultural step. If we do not take the time to find out what
will be meaningful for THEM... we run the risk of having a 'two by four' ministry.
That's when we go around telling everyone what should be meaningful to them,
based on what is meaningful to us.... demonstrating, that what WE like or
appreciate is the true measure of Godliness. Like 'what Bible translation
is best', or how to have devotions 'the right way', or what music is 'appropriate
for Sunday worship services'... But in reality, what we are actually doing,
is going around with our opinions, and cultural baggage and wielding them
like a two by four aimed at people's heads! We are leaving people feeling
wounded not blessed!
In Native ministry and in most cultures
world wide, this has translated into us sharing the 'White Man's Gospel'
People need to understand that the Gospel
of Jesus Christ is for ALL cultures! But to communicate that effectively,
WE need to understand that if this statement is indeed true, then the Gospel
sure better not just look like OUR culture!
My husband Jim went to a Pow Wow in Pasadena
CA a couple of years ago. It was hosted by a large Christian organization
as a gesture of respect towards the Native community and these very issues
being discussed. On Sunday morning a group of native and non-native singers
led the arena in worship music. Interestingly enough, they chose for their
material, Vineyard type chorus'. As they sang, Jim wandered around the arena
doing his 'participant observation' and observing how the music was connecting
with the people. Everyone was pretty much going on about their business, setting
up their vending booths, working on their dancing costumes, visiting... and
every now and then glancing up at the stage and the worship team.
Finally, after an hour and a half, the
worship team stopped and started packing up their instruments. From the crowd,
a man yelled "Hey, sing an Indian song". The group kept packing
up and left the stage. A few minutes later, a Creek man from Oklahoma got
up with a simple traditional hand drum and said "I'd like to sing a song.
It's a Creek hymn" As he began to sing the song, in a language few in
the huge arena understood.... every head turned and every eye focused on him.
You could have heard a pin drop. When he was finished, the crowd burst into
cheering and applause. What was the difference?.... he sang an Indian song.....
…So…how do we as artists, musicians,
and missionaries decide what to use to share the Gospel with the people God
has called us to? Well...you use what works....Sounds simple...but it's so
true. The hard thing is finding out what works!
You need to find out what motivates the
people you are reaching out to. What is it that seems to compel and draw them?
Just like at the Pow Wow, those were traditional minded native people who
were drawn to the cultural expression of who they were. Vineyard music, or
contemporary western expression didn't connect, but the music of their own
heritage sure did!
At Songs to the Creator, our goal is to
see indigenous music and expression used by indigenous people to express their
hearts before the Lord. To see them have the freedom to worship with what
comes from their heart and affirms their identity.
We are doing this through various means.
1. DEVELOPMENT OF NEW INDIGENOUS HYMNODY
This is music for the emerging First Nations Churches. These songs are not
translations nor are they re-worded traditional songs. These are written as
a result of recording, transcribing, and analyzing ancient traditional songs,
then re-creating music that is accurate musically and linguistically to that
people group.
We are finding it to be critically important
that music be authentic within the local geographical area both musically
and linguistically. One woman told me once as we were listening to a cut of
a new song. "I like this song, and I like the way it is worded..... it
sounds just right." It reminded her of how her mother would have said
it. Knowing what it is that makes that emotional and personal connection is
one of the keys to creating effective new music.
Now having said that, we are finding that music from one area to another area is appreciated even when there are no musical or linguistic similarities. It is important for people to know though that it is an accurate representation of a specific people group. Klemtu people need to know that this is Kyuquot music. With that understanding comes credibility and respect. The music becomes far more of a blessing because of the cultural affirmation it contributes to. Klemtu people will say "Those Kyuquot's are really lucky, they have their own (Christian) music."
2. DEVELOPMENT OF NEW INDIGENOUS MUSIC
AND EXPRESSION FOR EVANGELISM
When creating new music, it is important
to have a goal. To know who your audience is going to be. This may seem to
be a 'given' among experienced composers, but as we begin to work alongside
musicians and poets who are just learning to compose, it is important to help
them define what they are desiring to communicate and to whom.
Ella wrote a song that describes the point when she surrendered her life and heart to the Lord. She describes herself as being tossed about by the waves, filled with tears and sorrow. Then says " It wasn't until I fell on my knees in prayer before God that He took away the tears and brought peace to my heart." This song was written after a conversation between us where her heart was breaking for the pain others in her family were going through without Christ. She said..... "I wish I could communicate it to them.... what God can do.... what prayer does....." A few minutes later as we were talking about generating new music she said "I don't know what I'll write about next....." I told her, "write about what we've been talking about Ella...." Two nights later, she called with the song almost finished. Her goal was to get the message of the hope and peace of Christ to her nephew and sister...... I believe she hit the nail on the head! The song is called "Out of the Mist"
3. MUSIC EDUCATION
As we work to develop new indigenous Christian music. Our goal is to be the catalyst not the creators. We work with musicians, poets and elders to help them create what is in their hearts. With the breakdown of culture that exists from residential schools and forced integration, the idea of writing new music is very intimidating. Little new music has been written in the last 100 years. I compare the task often to asking one of us as young musicians and composers to write something that will be performed along side Handle's "Messiah".
This new material will be performed at traditional gatherings with ancient songs hundreds of years old... the 'classics' so to speak! Yet we are finding that as we work with composers, and they begin to see the success of the finished product, they 'light up' with the excitement of writing more. After Ella finished her first song, 'oosoomsch' she said "I don't think I'll ever write another song. This one is so good, I think it's all I had in me." I assured her that there were many more where that came from and that God would lay more thoughts on her heart to share. Within a few days, I got an excited phone call at about 11:00 at night. "I've got an idea for another song.... it's going to be great!..."
4. RECORDING AND PRODUCING
To get the music out to the First Nations Communities, we need to record it. Working among an oral culture it is important that the music be accessible with or without music literacy. We feel strongly that if we're going to do this, we must do it well. We are definitely still on the learning curve, but God has blessed the dept. with good recording, and editing equipment that allow us to record and produce CD's on a regular basis. Our first one has just come out and is a mixture of several different styles. This CD is geared to be a test sampler. The feed back we receive from this project will help determine the direction of future recordings. Our goal is to create 1 new CD a year that will be the basis for the new hymnody and evangelism music.
5. CREATION OF SONG BOOKS
Each CD will have available a song book of the material. In this way the Churches and fellowship groups can learn by ear and or by written method. Along with this of course begins the development of music literacy as people request it. (It is important to remember that it is not our job to 'push' music literacy on a people group that wishes to maintain their oral tradition. We are finding though that some communities are asking for music literacy workshops so they can create and maintain the accuracy of the music over time.)
6. TRADITIONAL CULTURAL EXPRESSION
For many First Nations people, dance, ceremony,
music and significance cannot be separated. To do so looses the integrity
of the whole thing. One elder in Kyuquot once told me that we should write
a dance to go with the hymn Silent Night. My first thought was "right
on!" my second thought was "the non-natives bordering the community
will have a fit!". Pat said as she talked about the significance of the
song and the message of Christ's Birth, "It (the song) doesn't feel right,
if you can't _____(hands held up as if dancing)" To her, the song was
not complete with out the dance. The significance was in the whole package
together. It bothered her that something of such import was not given its
proper due.
To that end, as the traditional songs are
completed we work with the dancers in the community and create new dances
that affirm the message of the song and pull the significance of the experience
together.
The world of Christian applied ethnomusicology
has opened doors to ministry through the gift of music that has phenomenally
far reaching potential. We are seeing here in the Nuu-chah-nulth communities
a spiritual awakening taking place. There is much to be done. The doors are
literally opening faster than we can respond to them. We are thrilled to be
doing a job that encourages Indigenous people to create what comes from their
heart and to know that God delights in the voices of the nations raised to
Him!"