It’s like a great oak that rises up from the center of the human race and spreads its branches everywhere

~ Live & Learn

Choral music is not one of life’s frills. It’s something that goes to the very heart of our humanity, our sense of community, and our souls. You express, when you sing, your soul in song. And when you get together with a group of other singers, it becomes more than the sum of the parts. All of those people are pouring out their hearts and souls in perfect harmony. Which is kind of an emblem for what we need in this world, when so much of the world is at odds with itself…that just to express, in symbolic terms, what it’s like when human beings are in harmony. That’s a lesson for our times and for all time. I profoundly believe that.And musical excellence is, of course, at the heart of it. But, even if a choir is not the greatest in the world, the fact that they are meeting together has a social value. It has a communal value. And I always say that a church or a school without a choir is like a body without a soul. We have to have a soul in our lives. And everybody tells me, who has sung in a choir, that they feel better for doing it. That whatever the cares of the day, if they maybe meet after a long day’s school or work, that somehow you leave your troubles at the door. And when you’re sitting there, making music for a couple hours at the end of the day, that’s the only thing that matters at that moment. And you walk away refreshed. You walk away renewed. And that’s a value that goes just beyond the music itself.

Of course, as a musician, I put the music at the heart of it, but all of these other values just stand out as a beacon. I think our politicians need to take note…my gosh do they ever! [laughs], and our educators, those who decide education budgets, church budgets, just need to remember it’s not a frill. It’s like a great oak that rises up from the center of the human race and spreads its branches everywhere. That’s what music does for us. And choral music must stand as one of the supreme examples of it.

– John Rutter, The Importance of Choir

Thank you Beth @ Alive on All Channels

28 thoughts on “It’s like a great oak that rises up from the center of the human race and spreads its branches everywhere”

  1. From chorus in grade school, through performing in college, to singing under the elevated trains in Queens – it has remained my release, my home, my home inside my soul. A great oak yes, with the flexibility of a willow.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  2. Yes to all of that. I did it to be with my friends then it became much more. Individually we were bad but the instant we started sent shivers up my spine.

    Being born to parents of different religion we were not accepted in any public schools. The only private school available at the time was The Rosery Sisters Catholic school. They took choral music seriously. And what a great place it was.

    Brought back memories. Thank you for sharing David!

    Like

    Reply

      1. Laughing. It was beautiful David. All of it. We never stopped to think, ” life gave us …., what do we do with it?”

        We never looked at ourselves from the outside in. That was a blessing.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply

  5. Lovely post, David.
    No doubt, you’ll be horrified to hear that I was told to mime when our school choir was being examined lest I cause a loss of marks. It put me off joinng a choir but not off choral music, which I love.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  10. Pingback: alexankarrbooks
  13. Pingback: It’s like a great oak that rises up from the center of the human race and spreads its branches everywhere — Live | Maximum Bradley
  14. Pingback: It’s like a great oak that rises up from the center of the human race and spreads its branches everywhere | Maximum Bradley

Leave a Reply