Martin Luther is mainly known for his significant contribution to the Great Reformation. So the title to this article is rather unexpected. The Musician? He was an instrument in God's hand and has always been regarded as one of the great leaders of the Reformation. Indeed, it is true that he will always be remembered as the one who rediscovered the doctrine of justification and salvation by faith alone (Romans 1:17). He will also be rightly remembered for his noble work in the faithful transla­tion of the Bible into the German language, the language of his own people. In fact he was such an important man in the history of the church that the King of Prussia had a monument made for him in 1821. If you visit Germany you will find the monument, in memory of this Reformer, in the market square of Wittenberg. In 1868 a magnificent monument was erected for him in the City of Worms.

Yes, indeed, he will be remembered as the great Reformer, who did not weaken when asked to recant his writings. Surely one of his most important contributions to the church was the translation of the Bible. However, many of us would not immediately think of Luther as a musician. Yet music played an important role during Luther's life.

Luther himself said this about music:

Music is a fair and lovely gift of God which has often wakened and moved me to the joy of preaching. I have no use for cranks who despise music, because it is a gift of God. Music drives away the devil and makes people happy; they forget thereby all wrath, unchastity, arrogance, and the like. Next after theology I give to music the highest place and the greatest honour. I would not exchange what little I know of music for something great. Experience proves that next to the Word of God, only music deserves to be extolled as the mistress and governess of the feelings of the human heart. We know that to the devil music is distasteful and sufferable. My heart bubbles up and overflows in response to music, which has so often refreshed me and delivered me from dire plagues. Bainton, 266-267¹

Luther will be remembered for his 37 beautiful hymns of which "A mighty fortress" is one. "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God", based on Psalm 46, is certainly Luther's most well known hymn. It was one of his major musical contributions. Half a millennium after Luther's death we are still singing this hymn in our churches. Luther's hymns had a great influence on the develop­ment of singing in churches. Luther was convinced that music was to be continued in the worship services because music is a gift of God. By that he did not mean to belittle the importance of the preaching. Music is not a human invention, but it is from God. The music was given to the people so that they may praise God with it. And he said because it is a gift from God it is to be received joyously. "Music", Luther said, "creates joyful hearts".²

Luther became known in particular for these things: the doctrine of salvation by faith alone, the belief that scripture should be translated into the people's language, and the birth of congregational singing. He felt that music was of God, not of man and he was determined to restore congregational singing in the German language to the church.

The 1524 Hymn Book was commissioned by Luther in four part harmony "in order to give the young men something in place of their drinking and fleshly songs".³

He published this hymn book together with his associate Johann Walther. According to Luther the hymns become the property of the church. They were no longer Luther's hymns but belonged to the church. We are, therefore, thankful for the gift Luther was to the church. His hymns are one of the greatest legacies he left to the church. Isn't it amazing that God raised up men such as Luther soon after the invention of the printing press? This timing was no coincidence but is to be seen as God's care for His church so that not only the Bible and other writings could be printed but also the hymns could be printed for the benefit of the believers and the benefit of the church.

Luther considered music so important that would be pastors were required to demonstrate musical competence before they were accepted for the training of the ministry. He also wanted all children to have a musical education. Even before he had children of his own he advocated the study of music for all children. Luther liked the noise of children, especially the singing of children. That's why he also wrote hymns for children so that they could sing the praises of our God and at the same time by singing the hymns, defy the devil.

Luther's first contact with music was from his mother. At the Latin School, aged seven, he already had a privileged exposure to music. By the time he was a young man he was regarded as a skilled singer. He considered himself to be a tenor. In fact he had a very high voice. He was not only able to read music but also had some skill in composition. He was also a very accomplished player on the flute as well as the lute, a plucked string instrument, much like the guitar. Though it is not known when he began playing the flute and the lute, by 1505 he was quite accomplished, particularly on the lute. It is impossible to picture family life in Luther's time without music.

It was required that nearly everyone could sing, and essential that they find great joy in doing so. So strong was Luther's belief about music and worship that he wrote these fiery words:

next to the Word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world. It controls our hearts, minds and spirits. A person who does not regards music as a marvelous creation of God does not deserve to be called a human being. He should be permitted to hear nothing but the braying of asses and the grunting of hogs.⁴

If music, and particularly, Psalms and hymns, are so strongly disliked by the devil how important is it then that we as Christians fill our homes with Christian music. Luther already realised in his time how important it is to make Christian music in our homes. It drives the devil away. Satan can't sing himself, he doesn't even want to sing, and he doesn't want to hear it either. He simply loathes listening to Psalms and hymns and would rather flee than listen to the praises of the children of God.

Let us continue to remember what Luther has given us, not only in his theology, but also for his theology in his hymns. Let us continue to sing in the homes, in the churches and in our schools and learn the Psalms and hymns. And when we sing either at home, in church or at school, by ourselves or in a group, let us think of the words and sing them joyfully. If we still see the urgency of driving the devil away, let us sing some more. May I, therefore, take this opportunity to encourage all of us to arrange more 'singalongs', either in small groups or larger groups, within your family or with your friends, around the organ or the campfire... You will find great delight in singing the praises of our Covenant God. Let us not be merely observers and listeners to music, although we can enjoy that as well, but active participants in this joyful and edifying activity. In this way, too, we will show thankfulness to God for the gift of Psalms and hymns to the churches. Remember that when we sing we never sing alone, because we sing with the saints of all ages, including those of Luther's time.