Martin Luther

Yes, the monk in the 1500s...not the King Jr., and both equally respectable. But I have been doing a lot of reading lately...comes with the whole grad. school thing...and I came across a Forawrd he wrote to Georg Rhau's Symphoniae, a collection of chorale motets published in 1538. Avid music lover, you might like this as I paraphrase a bit:

 I, Doctor Martin Luther, wish all lovers of the unshackled art of music grace and peace from God the Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ! ... The riches of music are so excellent and so precious that words fail me whenever I attempt to discuss and describe them...In summa, next to the Word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world. It controls our thoughts, minds, hearts, and spirits...A person who gives this some thought and yet does not regard music as a marvelous creation of God, must be a clodhopper indeed and does not deserve to be called a human being; he should be permitted to hear nothing but the braying of asses and the grunting of hogs.

 I was eaing lunch in one of the dining places at ECU while I read this, and I burst out laughing. It was one of those moments where folks look at you and wonder...surely those moments are quite common for me. Hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed sharing!

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