‘What does it mean?’

Over the last few years, I have been undertaking some research into the spiritual experience of music in the liturgy. Whilst this has made me aware anew of the richness of what music offers to us, it has also led me to confront the reality that in our world we tend to approach almost every question from the perspective of the individual – ‘what do I feel?’ or ‘what do I experience?’.

One of the findings of my research was that each individual had a very individual approach to what music meant for them when they heard it or performed it in a church service. Whilst people could be grouped together into some broad types – there was still a huge amount of individuality – the music speaks to each person in its own way. However, when asked what it meant for the wider group within which they heard the music, there was a striking difference – the variety of individual experiences were drawn together in a shared understanding…