Dear
Parishioners,
It’s no
secret that I like music. I have been
exposed to a very eclectic assortment of music and songs from the time I was a
child. From listening to polkas, to Broadway musicals, to rock,
to pop, to country, to classical, to
easy listening, to various religious hymns, I have enjoyed a rather
diverse mix of music at varying times in my life.
And so, this
past Sunday--in a moment of weakness or temporary insanity--I turned on the 56th
Annual Grammy Awards to see what is happening in the music world.
Where do I
begin?
Ludwig van Beethoven has to be rolling over in his
grave. Or rather, he’s probably doing somersaults
and flips after watching Pink’s athletic
prowess as she twisted and twirled suspended high above the Staples Center in Los Angeles. If she ever gives up singing, she’s a shoo-in
for a position in the next Cirque du Soleil
production.
Some
performers were entertaining, some
truly bizarre, some scary, and some on the fringe of lunacy. Was there much musical talent—enough to receive an award? What is it they
say about beauty being in the eye
of the beholder? Is there such a
thing as temporary blindness (as there is temporary
insanity)? While I realize that so
many of these artists have the vocal ability and the deftness (a la "Deft" Punk) to play instruments beyond
the average human, the over-all content of what they choose to write or perform never ceases to disturb me.
Let’s begin
with pop star Katy Perry’s Dark Horse presentation. Dressed as a witch, being
burned by fire while clutching a broomstick that resembled something a
pole-dancer from a strip club might be gyrating around, she looked simply satanic.
The goats in the background, the
cross on her clothing, the red and black colors, the fire, and the pouring of sand around her, all have varying ties to witchcraft and/or satanic rituals. Katy enjoys
pushing buttons. From kissing other girls and liking it to
wearing cupcake tops on her breasts,
this should come as no surprise to anyone who follows her music career.
Take the
time to examine the uncensored lyrics of a popular song like Robin Thicke’s
Blurred Lines (particularly verse 3) or just try to decipher the
meaning of rapper Kendrick Lamar’s “m.A.A.d City.” His portion of a song could not be aired
without a continual censoring from the network. I actually thought that something
was wrong with the audio programming until I realized every other word was
being bleeped. And can’t you just imagine the profound meaning
behind Record of the Year winner Daft Punk’s (We’re Up All Night to) Get Lucky? So far, so nauseating.
The
culmination of it all was the actual wedding ceremony of both gay and straight couples
by Queen Latifah performed during
the song Same Love by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis. It reminded me of something the Moonies (members of the Unification Church who were followers of
the Rev. Sun Myung Moon) used to do
when I was growing up—minus, of course, the same-sex couples.
I didn’t happen to see pop stars Miley Cyrus,
Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga or One Direction
present during the evening’s festivities.
With or without this award ceremony, I guess they were busy doing
something else more important, perhaps twerking their
millions right to the bank.
Through it
all, I thought about Beethoven, Bach, Mozart, Tchaikovsky, and Chopin all
rolling over in their graves. I thought
about the choirs of angels making their heavenly music before the throne of
God. And I thought about the lyrics from
an old Don McLean song. I don’t know if it was the day the music died
this past Sunday, but I think that some of today's "music" may be barely on life support.
Fr. Ed Namiotka
Pastor
