A History of the Mennonite Brethren Church, Ja Toews

ennonite Brethren Church. Canada 31 John P. Wiebe (1868-1956) lived in Herbert, Saskatchewan. He conducted choir workshops (Saengerkurse) in the Mennonite Brethren Conference for many years. He may be credited with bringing an awareness of the worth of the congregational song form known as Mennonite Brethren Kernlieder — hymns whose melodies have qualities that are in a way unique to the Mennonite Brethren, and express a feeling of "hurt" but have a quality of hope which has served the Mennonite Brethren Church outreach in a powerful way. Aron Sawatzky (1871-1935) resided in Aberdeen, Saskatchewan, and later in California. He was a well-known conductor of music workshops (Kurseleiter) prior to the Mennonite immigration (1923-1929), teaching gospel songs both in English and German. He was also a composer of gospel songs, and the compiler and editor of two song periodicals, Der Saenger-Bote and Die Lieder-Quelle. These books were published in the United States and were extensively used by Mennonite Brethren choirs in the United States and Canada. Franz C. Thiessen (1881-1950) was one of the Russlaender who came to Manitoba in 1925. He was a highly qualified choral pedagog in the tradition of nineteenth-century Europe. His interests ranged beyond the restricted pragmatism of the Mennonite Brethren Church and included performances of complete oratorios, where possible with orchestral accompaniment. He may be credited with initiating the remarkable choral and instrumental music-making known today in Canadian Mennonite Brethren churches and schools. As an ordained minister his defense of the arts (Kunst), which up to this time had been somewhat suspect in the Mennonite Brethren tradition, began to be accepted. 252 HISTORY OF THE MENNONITE BRETHREN CHURCH K. H. Neufeld (1892-1957) was active as a conductor of music workshops (Kurseleiter) in both the Mennonite Brethren and General Conference Mennonite communities. He may be credited as having been the great "popularizer" of lay choir singing throughout the whole of Canadian Mennonitism. He embraced both the traditional Mennonite hymns as well as the classics. He wrote a handbook on conducting and was the compiler, arranger, and publisher of a collection for choirs, Liedcrsammlung fuer Gemischte Choere. The young people whom he motivated to study music was without parallel. United States J. J. Franz (1880-1947) is best known as the coeditor of Neue Zions Lieder and Zions-Klaenge together with D. B. Towner. He traveled as a singing evangelist for some time; taught at Corn Bible Academy, Corn, Oklahoma; and was voice instructor and choral director at Tabor College. Henry W. Baerg (1890-1968) was an early Mennonite Brethren musical pioneer who taught at Tabor College for eleven years (1919-1930) and founded the Tabor College choir. He studied at Pomona College, University of Hawaii, University of California, University of Kansas, and Juillia