Shekinah Glory Ministry – Refreshed By Fire (DVD)

Shekinah Glory Ministry
Refreshed By Fire (DVD)
Kingdom Records 2011
http://www.kingdomrecordsinc.com/

By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog.

Directed by Joel Kapity (Blessed & Cursed), the DVD companion to Shekinah Glory Ministry’s two-CD set, Refreshed By Fire, captures the award-winning praise and worship ensemble in its tenth year.

The DVD is more compelling than the CD because SGM is, after all, as much a visual as an aural collective. Theirs is a finely choreographed church pageantry of psalmists, minstrels, karar (whirlers), banner-wavers, encouragers, lead singers, and the chorus. There’s even a painter in the film; Shawn Warren is seen painting a picture while a percussionist performs. The talented musicians who undergird all of the above are to SGM what the Funk Brothers were to Motown: rock solid and steady.

Valley Kingdom Ministries’ Apostle H.D. Wilson opens the celebration and then Phil Tarver comes front and center as praise and worship leader and MC. The first half of the program is buoyant and full of high energy, with selections such as “Reclaim Your Mountain,” “Dance,” and “Giant Slayer,” which brings Tarver and fellow suburban Chicago church leader Pastor Dan Willis together for an incendiary duet. The second half of the program is meditative, quiet and unhurried. The extended period of musical interludes and solos in the second half may have worked well in person, but on the DVD it seemed lengthy. I couldn’t wait to get to the final songs, including the single, “Just For Me.”

Since the DVD is a visual document of the celebration, it follows the order of the CD, although the main movie and the DVD’s bonus section include additional material not found on the CD. One of the behind-the-scenes segments is Apostle Wilson discussing the birth of SGM and its unintentional rise to international popularity.

Like the CD, the DVD booklet sometimes fails to indicate which singers and musicians led the various selections; this detail would have helped those unfamiliar with the many SGM personnel. Nevertheless, Joel Kapity does a stunning job capturing the swirling, colorful visual spectacle of the Refreshed By Fire program as it takes place on the altar, in front of the altar, and in the aisles. And the music, when heard in its totality, which is how I suspect it is supposed to be heard, is akin to a sacred opera or a praise and worship oratorio.

The Refreshed By Fire DVD rekindles Shekinah Glory Ministry’s leadership in praise and worship for the eyes and ears.

Four of Five Stars