The pews are alive: U.S. Catholic readers on parish
music
Published March 17, 2014
Whether the sound of music has them
singing to the mountains or running for the hills, U.S. Catholic
readers agree that Mass to the sounds of silence would just be flat.
St. Augustine said
that singing is praying twice, but for every angelic voice that touches our
hearts there’s sure to be an off-key crooner who only hurts our ears. With the
wide variety of musical genres present in American parishes today, you never
know whether the sounds reverberating through the pews will inspire people to
lift their voices or to simply head for the exit. While some are thrilled with
electric guitars amping up Mass, the same tunes leave others feeling caught
between a rock song and a hard place. Praise bands in some parishes get
parishioners clapping their hands and swaying to the beat, yet others wish
they’d just beat it. U.S. Catholic readers have heard it all
before, and like most churchgoers, they find that one parishioner’s song of joy
is another’s dreadful noise.
Eighty percent of
the more than 750 readers who responded to a U.S. Catholic reader
survey claimed that the music at Mass was very important to them, but only 13
percent said that they thought the current state of liturgical music was
“wonderful.” Jean Gibbs of Ashburn, Virginia says, “Music is very important to
me in my worship. But that form of worship has to happen outside of Mass
because of the weird stuff we sing there.”
Patti DeWitt of
Buffalo, New York emphasizes that music at Mass is only good insofar as it
really becomes a part of the service, not something set apart: “Music at
liturgy can and should be part and parcel of the prayer.”
“Music is only one
element of a liturgical celebration,” agrees Suzanne Harris of Spokane,
Washington. “I believe it is important and, when done well, can truly enhance
the worship experience. But if it becomes the emphasis and focus of the
celebration, something is out of order.”
Many people
commented that the music is especially distracting when it is too loud. James
Swagzdis of Holland, Pennsylvania particularly objects to “modern-day
overamplification and enough percussion to shatter stained glass windows.”
He’s not the only
one who thinks that modern music falls flat. Karen Karn of Plymouth, Minnesota
says that in her parish, “The teen band often sings pieces that I think are
frankly unsingable.”
“There was a lot of
jiving and clapping,” says Linda Kelley of Greenbelt, Maryland, describing her
experience of hearing gospel rock during Mass. “I ended up with the worst
headache and couldn’t wait to get out.”
Not everyone
objects strongly—or even at all—to modern music at Mass, however. Many readers
find contemporary music to be more accessible, and if their parish does not
provide it, they yearn for a little more zest. Joe and Kate Gile from
Ellsworth, Maine can’t stand “the really old-fashioned pre-20th-century somber,
formal music.” Mary Janowak of Brookfield, Wisconsin, even goes so far as to
ask for “a little less liturgical correctness and a lot more spirit.”
In fact, more than
half of survey respondents think that contemporary songs written since Vatican
II have tremendously improved the quality of liturgical music. Bradley Leger of
Estherwood, Louisiana says he’s not a fan of “old hymns which have an
outdated or inappropriate spirituality, especially if they are disjointed with
the scriptural readings and the liturgical season.”
“I really favor
contemporary liturgical music, as well as music from the folk music era, such
as the St. Louis Jesuits,” says Daniel Gandert of Chicago. “I am fine with
parishes having Masses with more traditional music, as long as they also have a
Mass with more contemporary liturgical music. I feel that music directors who
use primarily traditional music should use contemporary liturgical music at
least some of the time.”
The dissonance is
not only about contemporary versus traditional music, however. Only 19 percent
of U.S. Catholic reader survey respondents find that at their
parish the congregation sings with gusto. Fifty-three percent say that people
sing occasionally with 10 percent reporting no singing at all. Some readers,
like Franklyn Busby of Charleston, South Carolina, think that the culprit is
“not because they are bad songs, but because they are often bad theology and
doctrine.”
There are a few
people, however, who accept no such excuse. More than a quarter of readers who
took the survey think that everyone in the congregation should sing every song.
“Mass is public prayer,” says Bob Brady of Gaithersburg, Maryland. “There is no
time for private prayer during Mass. Each person should unite themselves with
the congregation by singing.” But try telling that to Henry Bailey of Winthrop,
Massachusetts, who admits, “While I agree in principle [that the congregation
should sing], I don’t sing at all and I’m not about to start.”
In addition to
thinking that people should be singing, many readers just enjoy singing during
Mass because it helps them feel united with the congregation, even when they
feel they don’t have the best singing voice. “My previous parish had the people
in the pews only listening to the choir as they performed,” says Ginny Garza of
Cincinnati. “I like to sing even though I don’t have the best voice in the
world.” In fact, 85 percent of readers claim that their singing voice does not
keep them from belting out a tune. Charles Wolf of Altoona, Pennsylvania says,
“I was raised a Methodist. The expectation was to sing. The quality of one’s
voice was not as important as the effort.”
Some respondents
think that bad or poorly executed music just does not measure up. It not only
discourages people from singing, but detracts from the purpose of the Mass.
Cathy Stepanek of Minneapolis says, “Cringe! It distracts too much from the
liturgy. No music would be better so it wouldn’t distract from a prayerful
experience.”
Still others note
that some services have too much singing, regardless of the quality. “If
anything, it takes away from the Mass,” says Denis Nolan of Daly City,
California. “Our priests sing many parts and it all blends together so that
there are days when I don’t know if we’ve had the consecration yet.”
Quite a few people,
while insisting that music is important to the liturgical experience, also felt
that it was important to distinguish between Mass and a performance. After all,
Mass is not the time or place to audition for American Idol.
Thirty-one percent think that applause following a musical performance at Mass
is never appropriate. Says Cindy Engler of St. Louis Park, Minnesota, “The
reverence of the passion of Jesus is more important than show business.”
Some readers
revealed that their parishes had attempted various types of music during Mass
that were not in tune with the desires of the parishioners. “I don’t want
either a square dance or polka Mass,” says Robert Mallinger of Clinton, Iowa.
“If I wanted to stomp my feet and dance, I would find a dance hall. I come to
Mass to pray and communicate with God through the Holy Spirit in the sacrament
made possible by Jesus Christ. I don’t come to be entertained by wannabe
country and western stars.”
Most people are
generally happy with the music at their own parishes, and many have been moved
by the music. Tom Zimmer of Sussex, Washington says that his most powerful
musical experience was “singing with a choir from a homeless shelter and
standing in awe of the bass section.” For some readers, the music connects them
with a particular event, like James Reinke of Duluth, Minnesota who remembers
“the funeral for a dear elderly friend—singing ‘When the Saints Go Marching In’
as the congregation prepared to go out to the cemetery.” Sometimes, though, the
powerful music is just another hymn sung at Mass. For Maureen Sheehan of
Lynden, Washington, “Hearing the hymn ‘Here I am, Lord’ covers exactly what I
want to say at Mass.”
At the end of the
day though, most people feel that the music is necessary as a complement to the
prayer and contemplation of the liturgy. So while different parishes do music
differently, the important thing is to do music that works for that community.
Elizabeth Begley of Suffern, New York says, “The primary focus needs to be the
community celebration of the liturgy—anything that complements that is fine
with me.” As Glen McCoy from Winter Springs, Florida, puts it, “We are indeed
one body, and I love a Mass that has something for everyone, every age, every
taste, and every spirituality.”
And the survey says…
1. As a person in the pew, I would
judge the state of liturgical music to currently be:
44% – Pretty decent.
26% – Not so great.
13% – Wonderful.
10% – Dreadful.
7% – Other
2. The music is a very important part
of my experience at Mass.
80% – Agree
14% – Disagree
6% – Other
3. My parish has:
77% – An adult choir.
53% – Soloists.
37% – A children’s choir.
22% – A youth choir.
15% – Other
Representative of “other”:
“A contemporary praise band and an orchestra, and other special music on
feast days.”
4. I think every single song at Mass
should be sung by the congregation—there should be no “just listening” to choir
or solo performances of music
at Mass.
27% – Agree
60% – Disagree
13% – Other
Representative of “other”:
“Just listening can make for a nice reflection, especially at communion. But
it carries with it the risk of becoming a performance, especially at the
offertory.”
5. The type of music that is most
appropriate for inclusion in the Mass is:
71% – Piano and other instruments with a small group leading the
congregation.
63% – Organ music with a
cantor leading the congregation.
61% – A formal choir that
might perform a song or two on its own and otherwise sings with the
congregation.
56% – Classical music.
55% – Latin songs such
as Panis Angelicus.
35% – Electric guitars with
drums.
6. I think clapping after a musical
performance at Mass:
47% – Is not ideal but is understandable sometimes.
31% – Is not appropriate
ever because we are not at a performance.
17% – Is a great way to
show appreciation.
5% – Other
7. The contemporary songs written
since Vatican II have tremendously improved the quality of liturgical music.
52% – Agree
28% – Disagree
21% – Other
Representative of “other”:
“Some contemporary music is good. Some is not.”
This article
appeared in the March 2014 issue of U.S. Catholic (Vol. 79, No. 3, pages
26-29).
Kira Dault is a former associate editor at U.S.
Catholic.
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