About New Heart

NEW HEART'S VISION 異象

新心音樂事工成立於一九九七年秋季。我們的異象是憑著神的大能,藉著音樂來帶領信徒敬拜神,在神的同在中與祂親近。我們希望能透過音樂訓練及敬拜讚美的聚會與眾弟兄姊妹一起分享學習如何更有效地用音樂來敬拜神,藉敬拜來建立基督的身體。

我們深信唯有在基督耶穌裏重生,蒙神賜一顆「新心」才能坦然無懼地到父神寶座前敬拜祂,因為只有一個新造的人才能對主唱新歌。我們也期望這些新歌能把人引到基督面前,好叫基督的光能照啟他們的心靈。基於此,我們為這事工命名為「新心音樂事工」。神的話語是我們的力量:「當剛強壯膽去行。不要懼怕,也不要驚惶:因為耶和華神,就是我的神,與你同在;他必不撇下你也不丟棄你,直到耶和華殿的工作都完畢了。」(代上28:20)

耶和華殿的工作,豈不就是敬拜音樂事工!

New Heart Music Ministries is a non-profit organization committed to ushering and inviting God's people into the holy Presence of the Triune God by means of music in Christian Worship. Since there is no true worship unless a person is saved by faith in Jesus Christ, New Heart Music Ministries is committed to bearing witness for Christ through excellence in music education with a Christian distinctive in the community.

Many churches face the challenges of how to make the worship celebrative yet reverent, how to integrate the younger generation of worshipers with the older ones, how to blend newer praise choruses with more traditional hymns. On top of these challenges, Chinese churches in the United States also face the difficulties of integrating different language or dialect groups into the same service, and the lack of Chinese music resources, or Chinese translation of new hymns.

We believe God has called the New Heart Music Ministries to tackle some of these challenges and to meet some of these needs. For more than four years, God has developed the worship team in the Houston Chinese Church and He has blessed them with a ministry that makes impact. As we are starting to make some in-roads toward meeting the needs, we realized that it will take more than one or two people working full-time to develop this ministry. It will take the concerted effort of the whole team. But realistically, there is not a lot of churches that can support a worship team working full-time. We need a center where the musicians can work to provide for their livelihood and at the same time serving God through the development of this ministry.

We thank God for gifting our team members not only with first-rated musical skills, but also teaching skills. Therefore, the school is a center where the worship team members will be employed to teach and to develop the music ministry. We are not only a group who goes to different churches to lead worship and to share what we have learned in worship leading, but we are also a school which excels in quality music education with a Christian distinctive.

NEW HEART'S GOALS 目標

Goals in Worship

We are committed to encourage engagement of the whole person, both intellectually and emotionally in the act of worship.

  1. We will select and compose music towards accomplishing this goal.
  2. We will blend traditional hymns and contemporary choruses in a given worship.
  3. We encourage worshipers to pursue freedom in expression during worship.
  4. We will develop corporate, celebrative worship without losing its reverence.
  5. We will develop a smooth flow of worship surrounding one single, unified theme.
  6. We will balance both instrumental and vocal music in a worship, with the singular purpose of aiding worshipers to seek God's face.
  7. We will encourage each worshiper to pursue a vibrant personal worship and family worship at home, and to live a holy and obedient life before God.
  8. We will seek to create a suitable environment for christians and truth seekers, young and old alike, to worship God and dedicate their lives to God.

Goals in Equipping the Church

We hope that our contributions and impact to a church will last beyond the worship concerts. We hope to share our learning experiences with all christians so that they can benefit from them and develop their own style of worship suitable for their own church environment. We believe in sharpening our musical skills so that we can glorify God with these skills. As a result,

  1. We see the need of developing the next generation of Christian musicians who will serve the Lord with gladness in the local church. We are currently offering classes for worship leaders, piano or keyboard players and drum players with the sole purpose of improving the worship.
  2. We will publish music and materials for congregation and small groups with more limited resources. We will serve as a resource center for smaller congregations. We are committed to train musicians for other churches in order that they may serve their own church better.
  3. We will concentrate our effort to translate and compose new songs for use in the worship services so that the need for new and more updated materials may be fulfilled.
  4. We will work closely with pastors of different churches to achieve a worship that takes into consideration the worship tradition of the church and sensitive to the denominational needs.
  5. We will record and publish CDs and tapes of worship concerts for the congregation to use in their personal worship.
  6. We will organize workshops and short-term (one to two weeks) summer training camps to train worship leaders and church musicians. We will also work with individual churches to expand their worship ministry as needs arise.
  7. We will develop a Manual which details our worship philosophy and practical ways to achieve those objectives. Topics will include:
    1. How to design a successful worship as a worship leader.
    2. How to organize the songs into one coherent theme.
    3. How to master musical skills such as composition, transitions, modulations, and orchestration pertinent to a smooth worship.
    4. How to work with your pastors.
    5. How to work with volunteers and musicians.

Goals in Education

We see the need of a Christian Music School that will provide quality and all round music education to the community by employing qualified, Christian music teachers who not only excel in their own area of expertise, but are committed to treat the students with Christ-like love, honesty, and patience.

We strive to:

  1. maintain a Christian distinctive in the school and hire only Christian teachers who will exemplify and communicate Christian and biblical values with their students and also serve as a worship musicians.
  2. develop materials with a Christian perspective for the technical development of the students in different instruments or voice. It may take the form of hymn arrangements or new compositions that highlight certain biblical concepts.
  3. develop the student with a holistic approach in order that they will realize their full potential to God's design. We also hope to communicate our belief that Music will fulfill its ultimate purpose when it is used to glorify God.
  4. provide the necessary disciplines in music education as we believe that the acquisition of a musical skill is one of the most beneficial disciplines in the formation of one's character especially among children and young people.
  5. reach out to the next generation through music because we believe music can touch them at a much deeper level.
  6. provide a service to the community through which the church can serve and meet the community. The school will thus function as a liaison between the church and the community.

NEW HEART'S HISTORY 新心音樂事工發展史

我們大都是一群在古典音樂領域中各有成就的音樂家和有特別音樂恩賜的基督徒。雖然來自亞洲各地,卻在不同的時間裏先後來到休士頓。一九九二年底,當我們在休士頓中國教會負責主領崇拜時意識到敬拜讚美的重要性,並開始尋求一些突破與改進的方式。但卻立即發覺,除非自己透過個人的敬拜讚美生活來與神親近,否則怎能帶領會眾集體敬拜呢?接下來的五年裏,我們這一群崇拜小組的人開始經歷到屬靈的復興和神的同在,並開始積極地裝備自己。在事奉上,在音樂技巧的琢磨上,更重要地,在學習與研讀神的話語上,我們忙碌的穿梭在音樂學院,神學院,和教會裏。

帶著一顆熱愛神與願意被神使用的心,我們了解到神給他們一個異象,要透過他們在音樂上的恩賜來將人帶到神的面前。在長時間的禱告和準備下,我們在一九九七年成立了新心音樂事工。我們深信唯有在基督耶穌裏重生,蒙神賜一顆新心,才能坦然無懼地來到父神寶座前敬拜祂,因為只有一個新造的人才能對主唱新歌。這也是這個事工被命名為新心音樂事工的由來。

在創辦人鄭浩賢牧師的邀請和召集下,一個來自不同教會的牧師們和對敬拜讚美有負擔的弟兄姊妹們而組成的董事會也同時成立。一九九七年八月,甫自萊斯大學小提琴演奏博士學位畢業的余遠淳弟兄回應神的呼召,毅然放棄進入大學擔任小提琴教授和一個職業演出的生活,而成為新心音樂事工的第一位全職同工,策劃安排事工所需。一九九九年 八月,集音樂,工商管理,圖書管理,及達拉斯神學院教牧學博士學位於一身的鄭鎧賢姊妹,也應邀加入成為全職同工,在行政、製作、帶領讚美團隊、樂譜和敬拜手冊出版上,擔起繁重的工作。二零零二年8月,吉他好手曾以撒弟兄從巴西遷至休士頓並加入事工負責有關錄音工程、協助產品管理、和教授吉他與低音吉他等課程。事工創辦人鄭浩賢牧師,也在回應神的呼召下,離開在教會的全職音樂主任工作,於二零零三年加入事工,負責牧養、講道、和帶領聚會的工作。另一位全職同工李維孝弟兄則於二零零五年九月加入新心,主要負責教授小提琴、發展英語敬拜事工、及協助敬拜資源的創作。

我們藉著音樂來帶領基督徒敬拜神,也藉著音樂來將福音帶給未信主的人。從成立到現在,我們的足跡涉及北美、南美、歐洲、澳洲及亞洲各地的華人教會、退修會和校園。不論是敬拜讚美會或是音樂佈道會,我們一次又一次地經歷神的同在與帶領的大能。

藉著音樂教育來培養更多能投身在不同教會以音樂事奉的人才是事工發展的另一重點。新心基督教音樂學院同時在一九九七年成立,已為許多的華人教會培養出音樂事奉的人才。我們也把研習會和各式的教學帶出休士頓,並針對教會的需要作密集式的訓練和提供定點培訓,藉以延伸學院的教育課程。

事工另一發展重點,在於創作適合這世代華人教會使用的敬拜資源。我們至今巳發行了十五張國語敬拜專輯-『你是我神』、『看哪!你的神』、『竭誠獻上』、『真愛的代價』、『專心愛你』、『敬畏你的榮耀』、『讓全世界知道』、『主我要信靠你』 、『登上耶和華的山』、『牽我的手』、『心的歸屬』、『敬拜權能主』,『我定意跟從祢』,『英雄』,『盼望不熄』,八張粵語專輯-『燃燒為主』、『洪流砥柱』、『無盡感恩』、『全靠恩典』、『如鷹展翅』、『聖潔榮美』,『美好的仗』,『昂然起步』,聖誕專輯-『聖誕新心』,兩張純樂器詩歌演奏專輯-『心弦1-深長的愛』、『心弦2-與你同走過』,精選光碟『今天為主活』、聖詩光碟『聖詩新唱』、兩套團契/小組敬拜伴唱光碟『同心敬拜』、國語敬拜伴唱影碟『來敬拜!』、一套國語影碟『主領敬拜者訓練』、兩本收集了一百首聖詩的歌本『心頌』、新心國語詩歌簡譜版、及敬拜實況影碟。在我們創作或改編的詩歌裏,處處顯示出深厚的古典音樂基礎,再加上融合各式現代音樂的曲風處理,讓我們走出了傳統和現代敬拜音樂的藩籬。為著教會敬拜生活,我們也特別出版了合唱歌譜、樂器伴奏譜和伴唱光碟。

近幾年,我們更是投入完成一系列七本的敬拜手冊,期盼利用這些集敬拜神學和音樂技巧於一處的著作,來幫助個人或教會發展一個合乎聖經教導的音樂敬拜生活。七本手冊的主題是『主領敬拜者』、『敬拜團隊』、『鍵盤樂器』、『獨奏樂器』、 『吉他與貝斯』、『鼓』、及『編曲技巧』。

我們親身經歷神的呼召,透過音樂敬拜,發覺自已的生命有了一個特別的意義。音樂,不再是譁取聽眾及為自己帶來名聲與財富的東西。音樂,卻成為讓人經歷到神同在最好的管道。這一條漫長,艱辛卻美麗的道路,我們選擇了與神同行。

We are a group of musicians with classical music background from different countries and God brought us together in Houston. In December of 1992 while we were serving at Houston Chinese Church, we began to have a new awareness of the importance of worship and seek to improve our service. Besides equipping ourselves with more musical training, we devoted, more importantly, more time to personal worship. Our conviction is that unless we become worshiper of God, we will not be able to become good worship leaders. How can one lead the way without knowing it?

We experienced tremendous revivals in our lives in the following years and we also witnessed changes in the lives of our congregation. God's Presence becomes very real and, to us, He is not only a God whom we know intellectually but also a God whom we adore with our whole beings. This encounter propelled us to a relentless pursuit of personal holiness and the removal of all things that was obstructing our path to worship God.

In the summer of 1994, our worship leader Rev. Ephraim Cheng answered God's call into full-time ministry to be a music minister at Houston Chinese Church. During his personal worship, God spoke to him through the words of David to Solomon, "Be strong and of good courage, and do it, do not fear nor be dismayed, for the Lord God, my God, will be with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you, until you have finished all the work for the service of the house of the Lord. . . . and every willing craftsman will be with you for all manner of workmanship, for every kind of services." (I Chron. 28:20) The words "DO IT" urged him to offer his life as a sacrifice to Him for the specific task of worship-leading.

God was faithful to add to the worship team different godly and able members. As the ministry flourished, our team prayed for ways that we can be used by God to expand our ministry and to share our experiences with other churches. In November of 1995, all of our team members committed to a day of fasting and prayer to ask God for future direction. When Pastor Brian Lam of Fort Bend Community Church suggested that we should start a music ministry, we believed that this was an answer to our prayers.

We named this ministry as "New Heart Music Ministries" because we are convinced that no one can come to the Lord in worship unless a "new heart" is given to him by grace through faith.

By the grace of God, "New Heart Music Ministries" was established as a non-profit organization in 1997, and a board of trustees was also formed. In August of the same year, Dr. Yenn Chwen Er became the first full-time staff of the ministry. As the director, he oversees the ministry, and concentrates especially on composition and arrangement of songs. In August of 1999, Czarina Cheng, with a background in music, business administration, and library science, also answered God's call and joined the ministry. Her chief responsibilities include administration, publications, worship-leading, teaching and training. Isaque Tseng joined the ministry in August of 2002 as the Sound Engineer and Bass Guitar and Acoustic Guitar Instructor and Performer. With his diversified background in different types of music, he will be heading the recording department of the ministry. In January 2003, Rev. Ephraim Cheng, who was the founder and previous chairman of the Board, joined New Heart as the Music Pastor. He will oversee the spiritual life of the staff as well as serving as the worship leader and preacher in New Heart events. In September 2005, Jonathan Li joined us as the Music Instructor, his main responsibilities include teaching music lessons, developing and arranging music for youth and English worship, and editing materials for New Heart publications.

NEW HEART STAFF 同工檔案

余遠淳 Yenn Chwen Er, DMA

yenn@newheartmusic.org

小提琴家、作曲家、編曲家,美國萊斯大學音樂博士。多年在英國及美國學習小提琴演奏,並在歐洲、亞洲及北美國家參與各大音樂節及音樂會的巡迴演出,在過去十年間受委託創作多首大型樂曲;新心的敬拜詩歌大多是他的創作及編曲。二零零二年擔任新加坡國家交響樂團的駐團作曲家,作品「Symphonia Anamneseos」在二零零二年十一月在新加坡舉行世界首演。一九九七年回應神的呼召,成為新心音樂事工創辦人之一,並出任總幹事一職至今,認為此乃神所賜他最高榮譽。

Violinist, Arranger, Composer. He spent many years in the United Kingdom and the United States perfecting his skills as a violinist, performed in festivals and concerts in Asia, Europe and the United States. He served as the Composer-in-Residence with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra in 2002 with more than a dozen commissions in the past ten years. In 1997, he was called to devote all his musical gifts in the service of God the Creator as one of the founding members and the Director of New Heart Music Ministries, which he has always considered the highest honor bestowed upon him.

鄭浩賢牧師 Rev. Ephraim Cheng, DMA

ephraim@newheartmusic.org

牧師,聲樂家。香港出生長大,早年留美求學,於德州休士頓大學取得聲樂博士。新心音樂事工創辦人之一,曾在休士頓地區多間學府教授聲樂,擁有十多年的教學經驗。回應神的呼召,全時間投身事奉,並取得達拉斯神學院道學碩士學位,致力藉著敬拜帶領人認識和回應神。曾任休士頓福遍中國教會全職崇拜主任,在二零零三年加入新心音樂事工任音樂牧師至今。

Pastor, Baritone. Born in Hong Kong, and educated in the United States, he received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Houston. He has accumulated over 10 years of teaching experience in various colleges and university in Houston. He is one of the founders of New Heart Music Ministries. In response to God's call, he dedicated himself to full-time Christian ministry leading people to know and respond to God through worship. He graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary with a Master of Arts degree in Biblical Studies. He served many years as the music minister of Fort Bend Community Church before he joined New Heart Music Ministries as a full-time music pastor in 2003.

鄭鎧賢 Czarina Cheng, DMin

czarina@newheartmusic.org

主領敬拜者、鼓手、鋼琴/鍵盤手、及新心『敬拜手冊』系列總編輯。她在香港出生及長大,畢業於香港大學音樂系。一九八九年赴美國深造,取得工商管理碩士、圖書管理碩士,及達拉斯神學院的教牧學博士學位。她曾任香港大學合唱團的指揮,多年來一直參與教會敬拜團隊及詩班等聖樂事奉。在一九九九年蒙神呼召加入新心音樂事工成為全時間同工,以神所賦予的恩賜在教學、創作、錄音、出版、編輯、及行政方面服事。

Worship Leader, Drummer, Piano/Keyboard player, and New Heart "Worship Manual" series editor. She was born in Hong Kong. She received her bachelor degree in music at The University of Hong Kong, master degrees in business administration and library science in the United States. She also has a Doctor of Ministry from Dallas Theological Seminary. She has served at the conductor of University of Hong Kong Union Choir, and she has also been actively involved in the worship ministries. She was called to dedicate her life in full-time Christian service in 1999. She is now utilizing the skills given by God in teaching, composing, recording, publishing, editing, and administration in New Heart Music Ministries.

曾以撒 Isaque Tseng, BS

isaque@newheartmusic.org

吉他/貝斯手。出生於巴西,取得聖保羅大學工業工程學士。自小受南美音樂薰陶,彈奏吉他多年,是一位出色的吉他手。父親是牧師,自小便有機會在教會事奉並帶領敬拜。回應神的呼召離開巴西,於二零零二年八月參與新心音樂事工全時間服事。專責新心基督教音樂學院教授吉他和 貝斯課程,並為事工錄音工程師。

Guitarist and Bass Guitarist. Born in Brazil, he received his bachelor degree in industrial engineering from the University of Sao Paulo. He grew up under the influence of South-American music, and he is a remarkable guitarist. Since young, he has been actively involved in the church, in which his father is the pastor, serving as a worship leader. In August of 2002, he joined the New Heart Music Ministries as a full-time staff, serving as guitar & bass guitar instructor, and sound engineer.

李維孝 Jonathan Li, BA

jonathan@newheartmusic.org

小提琴家、吉他手、編曲家,在紐約出生,在休士頓成長。他於德州大學奧斯汀分校取得藝術學士學位,主修理論作曲。在休士頓大通銀行工作三年時,也同時擔任新心基督教音樂學院的部份時間小提琴老師。於二零零五年九月加入新心成為全職同工,主要負責教授音樂課程、發展英語敬拜事工、及協助敬拜資源的創作。

Violinist, Guitarist, Arranger. Born in New York but raised in Houston, he received his bachelor of the arts degree in music theory from the University of Texas at Austin. He served as a part-time violin instructor at the New Heart School of Music while working at Chase Bank for three years. In September of 2005, he joined New Heart as a full-time staff member. His main responsibilities include teaching music lessons, developing and arranging music for youth and English worship, and editing materials for New Heart publications.

蔡鈞聖 Joshua Chua, MMus

joshua@newheartmusic.org

出生於馬來西亞,蔡鈞聖自五歲起開始接受音樂培訓。他分別於2003和2005年考獲英國皇家音樂院第八級樂理文憑和高級專業演奏文憑。之後他師從Timothy Hester,並獲頒休大音樂系鋼琴協作碩士文憑。他擁有超過十六年的鋼琴教學經驗,並幫助了許多學生在英國皇家音樂的鋼琴和樂理考試中考獲佳績。此外,他也擁有超過十五年的鋼琴伴奏經驗,曾在各項專業考試、演奏會、和比賽中與許多音樂人合作演出,並長期參與敬拜團隊的服事。他也曾到休斯頓和亞洲地區的不同教會中教授鋼琴伴奏和電子鍵盤課程。

Born in Malaysia, Joshua Chua started his musical training at the age of five. He was awarded the “A.B.R.S.M Grade 8 Music Theory” in 2003, and the “Licentiate of the Royal Schools of Music” (L.R.S.M) in 2005. He also received his “Master of Music in Collaborative Piano” from Moores School of Music under Timothy Hester. He has more than sixteen years of piano teaching experience, and has helped numerous students achieve excellent results in A.B.R.S.M piano and theory exams. Besides, he has more than fifteen years of experience in collaborative piano performance, and has worked with numerous vocalists and instrumentalists in diploma exams, concerts, and competitions; as well as serving in worship music team. As an experienced church pianist and keyboardist, he had conducted workshops at different churches in Houston and Asia.

Ministries 事工

Ministry through Worship 敬拜讚美事工

新心藉著音樂來帶領基督徒敬拜神,也藉著音樂來將福音帶給未信主的朋友。我們的足跡遍及北美、南美、歐洲、及亞洲各地。負責主領敬拜的鄭浩賢牧師,結合詩歌與證道的事奉,帶領新心團隊在各地分享敬拜的異象及邀請人回應那位呼召的神。不論是敬拜讚美大會或是音樂佈道會,我們一次又一次地經歷神的同在與祂帶領的大能,看到許多生命被改變及更新。

New Heart has led praise & worship concerts, evangelistic meetings, conferences/retreats, and Sunday services in many Chinese churches throughout North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. Through worship, we have witnessed God’s power to transform lives and renew minds in Christ.

Ministry through Education 音樂教育事工

教育事工的推廣藉著新心基督教音樂學院在美國德州休士頓及新加坡開辦許多的個人與集體課程得以落實。學院從一九九七年成立至今,每年均在北美和亞洲,與華人教會和神學院同工,聯合舉辦敬拜研習會、聖樂營、弦樂營、和定點培訓課程來裝備各式音樂事奉的人才,直接訓練與栽培有心以音樂來服事的信徒們。

Through classes offered at the New Heart Christian School of Music in Houston as well as our Singapore and Taiwan offices, we strive to equip Christians with musical skills so that they can serve in their respective churches with sensitivity and humility. We also partner with various seminaries and churches to offer classes, seminars, and music camps.

Ministry through Publications 錄音及出版事工

在敬拜資源方面,新心主要的製作包括國語、粵語、聖誕、及純樂器詩歌演奏等敬拜專輯,結合古典聖詩的改編和全新詩歌,創作適合這世代華人教會敬拜的音樂。每一專輯並出版各樣歌本、樂器譜、和伴唱光碟。其他的資源包括為團契/小組灌錄的伴唱光碟『同心敬拜』系列、佈道光碟、『來敬拜!』影碟、主領敬拜者訓練影碟、聖詩本『心頌』等。一系列敬拜手冊乃是集敬拜神學和音樂技巧於一處的著作,幫助個人及教會發展一個合乎聖經教導的音樂敬拜生活。

One of our primary goals is to produce CDs, songbooks, and other resources that will help churches and individuals to worship God. To date, New Heart has produced numerous Mandarin, Cantonese, Christmas, Instrumental, and Evangelistic worship albums. In addition, we have also produced DVDs, hymn books, worship manuals, and worship resources designed specifically for small groups.

OUR INCOME 收入

he New Heart Music Ministries derives a portion of its income from the tuition it receives from the Music School and the distribution of its publication. The balance comes from contributions.

We will establish strict limitations on the way our resources are used.

We pledge not to try to raise more money than we need.

We will ask people not to support New Heart until their obligations to the local church have been met.

_