Singing or chanting, which is usually acapella tonal singing, in church began as a functional need. In the centuries before microphones and sound systems, worship leaders needed ways to be heard. If you’ve ever heard someone trying to yell over a crowd, you know that shouting can make it hard to understand specific words. Singing and chanting allowed people to be heard a greater distance clearly, even when the room’s acoustics weren’t that great. Today we value singing and chanting for their beauty and the way they connect us to our historic roots.