Dr Phil Moody, The Journey of Musical Decisions

Dr. Moody has a long career in education and performance. He detailed the many degrees and conducting jobs that he has had. He is currently in Holland as the director of the Holland Chorale.

He talked about how a music director goes about programming a concert. You need to determine the theme to convey and the timeframe of the music. These decisions determine the size of the choir, the instruments required, and the performance space. 

He gave the example of the evolution of keyboard instruments through the centuries. The harpsichord was the first instrument. In a harpsichord, the strings are plucked, and there is no ability to vary the volume. The next generation was the pianoforte, where the strings are hit with a hammer, and volume can be controlled. The modern piano adds even more capabilities. In order to hear the music as it was composed, you need to use the correct instrument.

After the decisions of chorale and instrumental performers are made, you need to select the individual pieces. Songs have stories behind them. They may have been commissioned for a particular event. Sometimes a poet and a composer work together to create a song. Sometimes the composer sets a poem they really like to music. Until modern times, poems were often sung to multiple tunes. The meter of the poem might have been 4 beats to a line and two lines to a phrase. In the past, there were usually no breath marks.

Dr. Moody then used the song Amazing Grace to illustrate different choices. The poem was written by John Newton, who was a slave trader caught in a ferocious storm. He promised that if he survived the storm, he would give up slave trading and become a pastor. The poem has been set to many different tunes over the years. Phil asked us to all sing the song using the tune with which we were familiar. We all sang the same tune. He then helped us to sing it in different ways to understand the choices that can be made.