Snare drums and tinnitus

Snare drum

As CCM goes our church is relatively innocuous. We don't rely on amplification. Many of the songs we sing are our own. The praise leader generally has an acoustic guitar, we have a grand piano and several excellent pianists, the possibility of bass guitar and trumpet depending on availability of players, a congregation that sings well. And a drum kit (next to the piano).

I experience mild tinnitus and loud sounds can distort. This is partly age related and partly due to angle grinders in my earlier years of stupidity. In retrospect I earnestly tell the youngsters to look after their bodies - we don't generally get replacement ears (or eyes or backs) and they can be so easily permanently damaged.

Looking at this diagram, and adding the blood and gore that doubtless accompanies it, it is frankly amazing that my or anyone else's ear works at all. I am so very thankful that I can hear as well as I can, and for my other senses too.  We are fearfully and wonderfully made.

The cacophony of noise that is our praise is bad enough on my ears but the snare drum beats it all. One internet sufferer writes from bitter experience: The sound of a snare-drum hit is one of the worst types for the ear.  The fast attack comes too quick for the ear to defend itself by closing down a bit, so the ear closes too late. Bad news for the ears. This guy recommends that all drummers wear ear plugs. Not that I am telling anyone to do anything in this post - I am merely relating my own feelings and I do not intend to offend.

The "snare" is a number of springy wires that are stretched across the lower drum "head" and thus jangle against it when the drum is hit. There is a lever that adjusts the tension and thus allows the snare to be disengaged.

It's not that I dislike drums per se. But to my ears the snare drum sounds a bit like a drawer full of metal pots and pans being tipped from about head height onto a concrete floor. On every beat. I don't particularly like this sound, let alone its volume. And whilst on this hobby, I hate the way the snare resonates when I play the piano (outside of meetings) and generally get annoyed enough to warrant getting off the stool and disengaging it. I've toyed with somehow permanently crippling it but I think this would be noticed.

Maybe I should wear ear plugs. But I don't want to make it obvious. Instead I tend to stand as far away from the drum kit as I can.

Piano or Forte?

The piano, or more properly "pianoforte" which translates as "soft-loud", was the first keyboard instrument whose intensity could be controlled by touch over a large range. This variation is called the dynamic range and by it the musician can evoke emotion. You will probably never experience the awe inspiring 70dB dynamic range of an orchestra unless you attend a live concert. Sadly, when recorded the dynamic range is artificially compressed to make it easier to listen to in today's noisy environments. Popular music is generally designed to have inherently limited dynamic range for the same reason. Such is the demise of hi-fi.

The young woman who usually plays piano in our church - let's call her Rachel - took lessons when younger but more recently has been self-taught. With our style of worship playing by ear and improvisation are necessary skills and the piano is often the lead instrument. Rachel reads music well but knowing what harmony to play has not come naturally to her. And yet she has persevered and as a result her ability in this respect has improved remarkably over the years.

The piano is classed as a percussion instrument and Rachel makes good use of it in this way which suits our worship - our voices provide the melodic line. One thing that Rachel does particularly well is to use the full dynamic range of the piano - she can sensitively accompany the quietest nervous soloist or make the piano roar during high praise. So much so that I have often stopped singing myself to listen in awe to the sound she produces. And for this I bless her!

Song of Albion 3

Historically the concept of musica universalis described the way in which the heavenly bodies were thought to relate harmoniously - the "music of the spheres". Likewise the terms musica divina "music of the gods" and musica humana - of the human body suggest that order exists in all these areas. That the music we listen to is somehow based on, indeed caused by this intrinsic "music". I have already mentioned how this idea is suggested in the Bible, is the theme in the Song of Albion trilogy and the creation of Narnia.

In the darkness something was happening at last. A voice had begun to sing. It was very far away and Digory found it hard to decide from what direction it was coming. Sometimes it seemed to come from all directions at once. Sometimes he almost thought it was coming out of the earth beneath them. Its lower notes were deep enough to be the voice of the earth herself. There were no words. There was hardly even a tune. But it was, beyond comparison, the most beautiful noise he had ever heard. It was so beautiful he could hardly bear it. (The Magician's Nephew, Lewis).

So - what is music and why or how is it important to us?

In effect it might be "Vocal and/or instrumental sounds combined in such a way as to produce beauty of form, harmony and expression of emotion". Mechanically it is true that the pitch and timing of the sounds that make up music are related by whole-number ratios, indeed these ratios are almost synonymous with the term "harmony".

Many people say they listen to music for its emotional effects but I think it can go deeper than that.

Michael Card has noted that "Socrates once said, "when the soul hears music, it drops its best guard." That, for me, is one of the best descriptions of the power that music has. With music it is 
possible to open a door in the heart of the listener... It has the power to transport us, can rob us of ability to listen to the lyrics... Therefore, we must pass on to our children a biblical value system which is shaped by an awareness of the power and true purpose of music. We must listen along with them."

Some would say that the primary purpose of music, or when music does its best, is in worship of God. 

Considered a simpleton by his contemporaries, the composer Bruckner showed remarkable boldness when he said "They want me to write differently. Certainly I could do, but I must not. God has chosen me from thousands and given me, of all people, this talent. It is to Him that I must give account. How then would I stand there before Almighty God, if I followed the others and not Him?" 

Music is a major part in the activities of most Christians (and those of other religions) - in our church meetings we typically start with half an hour of "praise and worship" followed by the "word" or preaching. Why would we want to spend all that time messing with music if it were not a vehicle for our convictions?

And yet not all music has the same effect. Music can be constructive or destructive, can lift our spirit or push us down, can evoke peace or incite trouble. What makes the difference? Do a web search and you will come up with all manner of conspiracy type theories about back beat, rock music, backmasking, but my quest was to find what works or doesn't work for me. I am not at all sure that I have found my quest but I found some interesting stuff along the way...

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