PCG Lays Down the Law on Congregational Hymns

from Twitter

From a PCG source:

In the PCG a new policy has been implemented which has changed the way hymns are sung during Sabbath services.

As many PCG congregations are small and typically don’t have piano players, during Sabbath services hymns were sung accompanied by pre-recorded piano-only versions of the WCG hymnal, either in MP3 or CD format.  Effectively this practice gave small congregations something to sing along to, and although not ideal, it was a fairly effective way for small groups to be able to participate and contribute meaningfully during their Sabbath services.  Whether or not you like the COG hymnal, this arrangement meant local groups could have their own song service.  Song leaders could lead the members and the people singing could hear their own voices.   In other words, each Sabbath there could be some semblance of a song service even in a small group of only a few people.

For some inexplicable reason this situation was recently deemed unsuitable by PCG musical director Ryan Malone, who set about re-recording the entire WCG hymnal using a full-blown choir.  These recording were then sent to all congregations worldwide with strict instructions for them to be used in place of the piano-only versions.

For those who don’t know Ryan Malone is the individual who has singlehandedly taken over, and together with his wife Paula, come to dominate every aspect of music in the PCG.  Whether it’s the spectacular failure of Ryan’s embarrassing church-financed musicals, his tedious and repetitious compositions, or his and his wife’s ubiquitous presence in the musical life of the church, everything and anything musical in the PCG has to be controlled, sanctioned and dominated by him.

The sad irony here is that the man who supposedly is the PCG’s musical director, ostensibly an individual tasked with the development and growth of music in the church has allowed his obsessive control over all things musical get to the point where he has now destroyed the member’s sole opportunity to contribute musically and handed it over to and a handful of pre-recorded PCG HQ elites, featuring of course the stupefying voice of his wife Paula. 

A very poor aspect of these choir recordings is that at the end of each verse the singers sustain the notes far too long which effects the timing into the next verse and makes them even more difficult to sing along to.  However, the worst aspect of all is that although the recordings are of a full male-female choir, each song is mixed in such a way that Paula Malone’s voice literally stands out and dominates over all the others.  If you have heard Paula Malone sing you will know why this is bad.

So now not only do PCG field members have to witness the exclusivity and self-indulgence of headquarters from afar, due to this musical micromanagement they are now no longer able to even participate meaningfully in their own song services.

What this all means is that each weekend a handful of ageing PCG members have to stand hymnals in hand and be drowned out by what sounds like a mutation of the Stepford Wives and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

A sad spectacle indeed…