Creating Local Arts Together

• Creating Local Arts Together helped me tremendously in my ministry in Africa. This manual helped me guide Fulbe and Hausa people on how to redeem their indigenous musical instruments such as the googe (violin) and bamboo flute. I have equally used the CLAT Manual to facilitate the crafting of local hymns which helped to decolonize Fulbe and Hausa hymnodies. Christians have crafted and performed songs that were not only for worship but for peacebuilding, reconciliation, and Christian witness. As such, this volume is not a mere manual but an instrument of life transformation.

  — Daniel Dama, PhD, President and founder, Africa Sings Ministries for Peacebuilding and Christian WitnessParakou, Benin Republic, West Africa

• In 2012 my wife and I found ourselves up in the mountains of northern Philippines conversing with the believers of a tribal group, introducing them to the possibility of using their indigenous musical forms and instruments in their worship. When they said yes to the idea, I began wondering, “How do I start the process?” Creating Local Arts Together is God’s answer to that prayer. I am a musician with little training in ethnoarts, but this material empowers me to do the work of the Lord in ways that will be meaningful and productive.

  — Roy Fabella, Philippine Ethnoarts Community of PracticeMinistry director and missionary, Windsong Worxtation

• The Creating Local Arts Together (CLAT) model has been a great creative research tool for both our undergraduate and postgraduate students at All Nations Christian College in the UK. Students have been able to develop meaningful creative projects for a wide range of communities and differing contexts. In particular, through teaching and hosting the Arts for a Better Future course each summer, we have been able to adapt CLAT for use in intercultural churches and communities in the UK, which has helped foster culturally conscious worship, diversity of creative expression, and deeper unity within the church.

  — Dr. Jill Ford, Lecturer and Programme Leader for Arts, All Nations Christian College (UK)

• The publication of Brian Schrag’s first edition of Creating Local Arts Together led to students deeply engaging with the material through our graduate courses in World Arts here at DIU and through Arts for a Better Future workshops all over the world. The results of these students’ projects attest to the usefulness and brilliance of the CLAT method. Its deep insight into how to humbly work with communities toward their goals has led to fruitful and powerful outcomes in a wide variety of cultural contexts, including urban and multicultural communities. In this revised edition, Schrag has incorporated user feedback, lessons learned, and additional stories of real-life use of these principles over the last decade. The result is a significantly updated and improved version—likely the most important book you’ll own for your ministry in the arts.

  — Robin Harris, PhD, Chair, Center for Excellence in World Arts at Dallas International UniversityPresident, Global Ethnodoxology Network

• The CLAT Manual was instrumental in helping my small group take steps toward cross-cultural understanding and reconciliation. The Creating Local Arts Together conversations helped us identify our collective strengths and leverage local resources to find creative ways to move toward a common vision. This manual was an invaluable and very practical guide as we created and improved original artistry to benefit our wider community. No resource has been as essential for creative, grassroots, kingdom-oriented collaboration in my arts advocacy work. Its proven methods and foundational insights are excellent for the work of building and sustaining flourishing communities.

  — Melanie D. Henderson, PhD Candidate, Board Secretary, Global Ethnodoxology Network

• Working among diverse people groups in the creation of contextualized audiovisual resources requires a flexible and adaptable approach. The CLAT method has been an invaluable tool in our journey with others towards realizing the Kingdom Goals of these communities. By encouraging deeper exploration of culture and Scripture, CLAT equips us with the know-how to empower communities to make informed decisions that align with their vision of reflecting the Kingdom of God. In my experience working with the people group in the Sahel, the CLAT method has provided valuable insights and guidance. The stories shared in the book have served as a roadmap, offering invaluable lessons on what to do and what to avoid. By learning from the experiences of others, we are equipped to navigate our path with confidence and avoid repeating past mistakes.

  — David Oluseyi Ige, MA, Director, Declare Global Outreach Mission, Worship from the Nations Initiatives

• The sheer breadth of this project speaks of the multitudes of peoples around the world longing to offer worship and witness drawing from their cultural wealth in ways that bring glory to God. Especially significant is how the dual volumes—an Ethnodoxology Handbook with a companion “make-it-happen” practical guide, Creating Local Arts Together—offer opportunities for continued growth in the ministry of the church worldwide.

  — Roberta R. King, PhD, President, Servant King Resources, Inc

• We cannot do without this! The CLAT Manual is the core resource of the World Arts program at Dallas International University. Most of our courses are built on its seven-step structure, making it an effective tool for ethnodoxology practitioners and scholars who want to see communities engage with God to the fullest in their local cultures. This book crystallizes decades of Brian’s ministry and academic experience: theologically sound, intellectually rigorous, and practically applicable to a vast variety of contexts. These cocreation principles facilitate kingdom transformation not only in the communities we work with but also in my own life.

  — Hsiang-Ning (Dora) Kung, PhD, Assistant Professor, Dallas International University

Author

• Brian Schrag
  Brian Schrag

  Brian Schrag is a Senior Arts Consultant with SIL International. He was SIL's ethnomusicology and arts coordinator from 2006-2019, and founded the Center for Excellence in World Arts at Dallas International University, where he serves as adjunct professor. 
  Brian has worked as a linguist, Bible translator, ethnomusicologist and community arts consultant in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Cameroon, and holds a PhD in Ethnomusicology (University of California, Los Angeles), an MA in Intercultural Studies (Wheaton College), and a BS in Cognitive Science (Brown University). Brian was vice president of Training and Education on the board of the International Council of Ethnodoxologists (ICE) from 2006-2019, and has been an active member of the Society for Ethnomusicology (SEM) and the International Council of Traditional Music (ICTM) for many years. He writes and presents on such topics as ethnoarts endangerment and revitalization, music criticism, applied ethnomusicology, Central African music, intersections of faith and scholarship, communication theory, and research as love. Brian has performed and recorded albums with Malian artist Cheick Tidiane Seck, Malawian musician Donald Kachamba, and Christian world music band Izibongo. Brian’s life purpose is to enact truth through music, words, and human organization in ways that open profound conversations with God, and to help others do the same. He encourages more people to create more things for more purposes in their communities, and tries to model this in his own life. He thus composes and performs songs for his family, weddings, funerals, anniversaries, and romantic and bluesy occasions. 
  Brian is active in the Huntington’s Disease Society of America, drawing on the arts’ power to spark hope and healing by connecting artists and sufferers of this illness. Brian also integrates off-kilter wit into many of his activities. He loves his wife, Barb, and children Mindy, Austin, and Lydia. 
  

  Visit Global Ethnodoxology Network HERE!

  
  

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