Preaching to the Choir: Claiming the Role of Sacred Musician

by Victoria Sirota

Sirota delves deeply into the reasons church musicians do their jobs in the face of poor pay and limited opportunities for advancement, offering the reader a pastoral understanding without avoiding the challenging questions that every church musician must consider. She has an uncanny ability to name that which lies at the heart of the sacred artist's craft.

Addressed directly and conversationally to the working musician in church or synagogue and those with whom they work, Sirota explores issues that are well-chosen for their understanding of "insider's information" and sensibilities to art, beauty, scripture, and pastoral care. Her personal reflection is balanced with probing questions from someone who's "been there" and is well-known to multi-denominational church musicians, as a gifted preacher and writer, a scholar, and a professional performing artist.

142 pages, Paperback

First published October 30, 2006

Reviews

[Curtis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of essays, most of which were published in The American Organist when she was the chaplain. Most are good. A couple great. Hardly any below average. It's a quick enough read that every church musician should read it. Even musicians who don't play in church can gain from reading it.