Violinist and vocalist Rosemary Siemens, and her husband Eli Bennett, are in the midst of filming a mini-documentary about the creation and explosion in popularity of their YouTube program "Sunday Hymn Serenade". It will be called "Bringing Back the Hymns: My Journey to 100 million Views".
"Eli wanted to do something to celebrate some milestones, and so we had reached 100 million views, and so he thought we should do a documentary," explained Siemens who noted there was a time when they considered stopping the musical ministry. "We started, and literally did a video or two videos a week for two to three years, and really didn't see much happening. Then, when we were basically ready to quit, (and) they always say, 'just keep going a little further and you'll see the success of it,' and that was truly our story."
Siemens noted the time they were able to dedicate to Sunday Hymn Serenade during the pandemic allowed them to focus essentially exclusively on the program.
"It's really worked out perfectly for us, and so we wanted to show people the journey and how it all came to be," she added.
Siemens' passion for hymns has driven the project.
"Since I was a baby, those were the first songs I've played, and they've never left me," she said while pointing to the analytics of who is watching the videos making it clear young people are wanting hymns, too . "A lot of people in church think hymns are just for older people. You know, we need to bring in the new, the current, the modern, the stuff that's on the radio. But these hymns have stood the test of time, and we see in our analytics that actually half are young people, and that is so encouraging."
Siemens noted one of her next goals is to speak to a room full of pastors, and share what they are seeing with "Sunday Hymn Serenade" and how the songs aren't only for "old people."
"We don't want to lose these hymns," she said. "We need to teach them to the next generation. People are wanting them and they're touching lives. They're making a difference, and these hymns have stood the test of time."
She admitted, neither her nor Bennett expected to be doing Christian music.
"It was so God ordained, and God has put this music ministry in our laps," she explained. "We had to put in the blood, sweat and tears, but it truly feels like it came from Him, and that we're on the right path. When you see those numbers, you realize this is what we should be doing, what we want to be doing, and when you can do music and actually touch people's lives, there's nothing better."
"Bringing Back the Hymns: My Journey to 100 million Views" is still being shot, with a good amount of the filming happening in August while the family was home in the Plum Coulee area. Additional filming will be happening later this month in their Vancouver studio. Siemens expects the mini-documentary will be released some time in October.