Hymnology, globalization and performance: a programme

In this article, I argue the case for a new approach in hymnology. Processes such as globalization and the shift from institutionalized religion to individualized religiosity are inescapable and need to be incorporated in hymnology. Hymns and hymnals are not the only topics within hymnology; singing as such, as a ritualizing performance practice, which sets apart time and place, is also relevant research topic for hymnologists. To keep its relevance in a changing world, hymnology needs a new program which affects the central object of study, the methods, the scholarly institutionalization and the applied theories and concepts.