Homeschool Conversations with Humility and Doxology The Harmony of Learning: Greg Wilbur on Music, the Quadrivium, and Loving God Through Beauty
In today's episode we welcome Greg Wilbur, founder and president of New College Franklin, award-winning composer, and passionate advocate for the recovery of classical education's Quadrivium.
Greg Wilbur shares how his lifelong love of music began in his family home where his mother taught piano lessons and his father pastored their church. His journey led him from teaching in classical schools to founding a college where the seven liberal arts—the Trivium and Quadrivium—work together to form souls through wisdom and beauty.
We discuss what the Quadrivium truly is and why its recovery matters for Christians today. Wilbur explains that music isn’t just emotional expression; it’s a reflection of divine order. “There’s a moral, ethical, formative content to the Quadrivium,” he says. “It’s utilizing number, but it leads to philosophical and theological discussion.”
Throughout the conversation, Wilbur explores how harmony reveals God’s nature:
“Harmony is how you hold things together in tension—justice and mercy, peace and order.”
From the cosmos to the human heart, music helps us perceive and participate in creation’s design. He connects Augustine’s and Boethius’s ancient insights with modern Christian life, inviting us to see harmony as “living according to the way God created the world to work.”
You’ll hear reflections on:
- Why music education forms the soul, not just the ear
- How classical learning shapes imagination and worship
- The difference between live and recorded music
- How beauty teaches us to love God and neighbor
Wilbur encourages parents and teachers not to be intimidated: “You don’t have to know all the terms. Just listen. Pay attention. Beauty is an attribute of God.”
Find show notes and full transcript here: https://www.humilityanddoxology.com/harmony-of-learning-greg-wilbur/
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