November 6-7, 2015 — Kristine Haglund

We are pleased to have LDS author and editor of Dialogue: a Journal of Mormon Thought, Kristine Haglund, as our November, 2015, speaker.  Kristine has a long-time personal and academic interest in Mormon music and hymnody, and her presentation will be MESG Texas’ first exploration in to the music of Mormondom.  You won’t want to miss what promises to be one of our most entertaining and informative meetings ever.  There’s a good chance you’ll want to sing along!

DATES AND LOCATIONS:

Friday, November 6, 7 pm (McKinney)
(at the office of Dale Drake)
110 E. Davis Street
McKinney, Texas 75070

Saturday, November 7, 7 pm (Arlington)
3804 Indian Springs Trail
Arlington, Texas 76016

THE TOPIC:

“We’ll Sing or We’ll Shout (or possibly croon, lip-sync, holler, clap, rock, warble, or auto-tune): the Past, Present, and Future of Mormon Hymnody”

Beneath the tranquil harmonies of Mormon hymn singing, there are decades of quiet controversy that illuminate major tensions in LDS theology and practice. A quick romp through the history of Mormon hymnody, with plenty of singing along the way, will offer a glimpse into these historical thought currents and their possible effects on the future of Mormon music-making.

THE SPEAKER:

Kristine Haglund is editor of Dialogue: a Journal of Mormon Thought. Although her degrees (Harvard, University of Michigan) are in German Studies and German Literature, she usually spent more time in choir rehearsals than in classes. Her first foray into Mormon Studies was a paper on Primary songs as the locus of women’s contribution to the formation of LDS theology. Kristine’s other research interests include Mormon women’s history and religion in social media. Her work has appeared in Slate, Religion & Politics, Patheos, Mormon Studies Review, and on the LDS blogs Times and Seasons and By Common Consent. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband, Brad Woodworth, and spends most of her days trying to figure out what to feed their five large and extremely hungry teenaged children.