At the Point of Intersection between East and West: Lutheran Church Music in Transylvania

Due to historical developments, Evangelical church music in Transylvania has changed significantly in recent decades. Major events that had an impact on this development are the establishment of the communist regime in Romania and the mass exodus of German-speaking Evangelical congregation members from most Transylvanian towns and villages. This poses a challenge for the Evangelical Church, who has to conserve and maintain largely unused and empty churches, as well as their assets, such as organs, sheet music, and other musical paraphernalia. However, the changed situation also has its benefits, since it requires an opening of the small Evangelical Church toward others. Music is particularly useful medium for this opening towards the non-Evangelical world, as it is not language-bound.