Music/Song
Welcome All Wonders: A Service of Lessons and Carols

Advent is a season inspired and guided by the Bible’s many apocalyptic texts—texts that candidly describe tribulation and gloom, prophesy stunning reversals and vindication, and evoke unsentimental hope and sturdy joy. These texts tell of stars beginning to fall, plead for the heavens to open, and portray choirs of angel armies singing. 

November 4, 2024 | 8 min read
Jazz Psalms

Jazz Vespers at Calvin College provided a worship service that combined art, music, and prayer to offer a creative and contemporary service for worship. These services ended in an evening Psalm that was offered responsively.

July 10, 2024 | 1 min read
Psalms Unplugged

This CD features fresh and contemporary settings of the ancient biblical psalms combined with contemporary versions of 16th century tunes from the Genevan Psalter. It was produced by The Psalm Project with partial support by the Calvin Worship Institute.

July 10, 2024 | 1 min read

Music and Prayer in Worship

Music and prayer are prominent elements in worship liturgy. How does the culture of the worship community influence these worship practices? How should we engage culture and yet be countercultural in our practice of music and prayer? Engage with this panel from four continents as we explore how cultural values form and inform worship practices.

June 30, 2024 | 58 min video
Benjamin Brody on Writing New Hymn Tunes

You might think that hymn tunes must always be in four-part harmony. But hymn tune composer Benjamin Brody includes many music styles for congregational singing in his new hymn collection - At the Weaving of Creation: 50 New Tunes.

June 7, 2024 | 6 min read

Brian Reichenbach on Including Band and Orchestra Students in Church Music

Playing his trumpet in worship alongside adult instrumentalists profoundly affected Brian Reichenbach’s Christian faith and church life. He works to help congregations give school band and orchestra students a similar grounding.

May 31, 2024 | 7 min read
Seven Tips for Choosing Contemporary Worship Songs

Does your worshiping community sing contemporary worship songs from the CCLI Top 100 list? If so, maybe you wonder how these songs are forming worshipers’ views of God and the life God calls us to. Worship leaders and contemporary worship experts offer seven tips for evaluating your song choices and filling in gaps.

May 21, 2024 | 11 min read
Vetting CCLI Worship Songs for Faith Formation

Several denominations have created or are creating rubrics for vetting CCLI Top 100 contemporary worship songs. Vetting sparks conversations that help worship leaders make faithful decisions about which songs to put on congregations’ lips.

May 21, 2024 | 10 min read

Robert Feduccia on the CCLI Song Select Liturgy Section

Churches around the world seek permission to use contemporary worship music from Christian Copyright Licensing, Inc., or CCLI. Late in 2018, CCLI Song Select quietly introduced a liturgical section to help churches select contemporary music that fits the classic ordo, the four-fold pattern of worship. Robert Feduccia explains why.

May 21, 2024 | 5 min read
Brian Hehn on an Ecumenical CCLI Top Songs List

CCLI (Christian Copyright Licensing, Inc.) hugely influences what many congregations sing, so the United Methodist Church began vetting CCLI Top 100 songs in 2015. Since then, song leader Brian Hehn has been encouraging other denominations to vet these popular contemporary worship songs so he can eventually create an ecumenically approved list of CCLI Top 100 songs.

May 21, 2024 | 6 min read
Traditional Keerthanai Concert with English Translations

This Manamahizh Keerthani Kuzhu concert in India includes Tamil-language Christian keerthanai praise and devotional songs sung in the traditional manner. Group members sang in Tamil but translated the lyrics into English.

May 2, 2024