Awesome attendance, nobody singing

[EvelynEVF]

i have been to many parishes and they run the gamut. it seems to be cultural. In my own parish, if you want to sing, and sing good music (not always traditional, but more than other Mass times) come Saturday evening. The Sunday 11am is the most non-traditional. (I remember the first time I encountered a thread here that communicated pretty directly that Saturday evening attenders were just lazy cheaters who wanted to sleep in on Sunday morning. It really shocked me, because in my parish it’s only Sat pm where Latin makes an appearance.)

 

[Mrs_Sally]

Especially in this relatively active and orthodox Diocese of Arlington. (

Isn’t is wonderful here!

We are a singing family, so we sing even when no one else does. However, it does seem like there are different singing cultures at different parishes, or perhaps between Mass times. Maybe this parish hasn’t had a strong choir/cantor in the past so the congregation has just gotten used to not singing? In general, Catholics don’t sing as much as protestants, but even so some places have great music ministries, cantors or choirs that lead well, and enthusiastic singers!

Do you mind PMing me the parish? I’m curious now…

 

[Phemie]

This morning for the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God we had a visiting Scarborough Father, who’d just arrived from one of our missions where he’d celebrated Christmas Masses. He celebrated a reverent Mass but unfortunately there was no choir, so no singing at all. That’s always a given for our parish on Jan. 1, even though Mary, Mother of God is one of the only 2 Holy Days of Obligation for our country.

There were less than 100 in attendance, in a parish of 1500, and several of those were visitors. Poor Fr. got confused at the Consecration and only consecrated enough wine for himself and the EMHCs. Then he found himself with 2 EMHCs who were expecting to be handed the Chalices with the Precious Blood, so we ended up with 3 people giving out the Body of Christ, something that would normally be only the priest. It’s too bad the EMHCs didn’t know to just go sit down but they were surprised to be handed ciboria and didn’t really know how to react since they’ve never been in this situation before.

 

[Juliannarose]

I don’t sing to songs I don’t know. It doesn’t matter if it’s traditional or modern. Once I know, and grow to like the song, I sing it.

 

[CatholicZ09]

This morning’s singing was actually more noticeable than last night’s. People seemed to like “Good Christian Friends, Rejoice”, “O Little Town of Bethlehem”, and “Angels, We Have Heard on High”. The last hymn was “O Sanctissima”/“O Most Holy One”, and the congregation sang it pretty well.

 

[terrig]

People have quit singing at my parish during the Mass I attend because the hymns are awful and no body knows the songs. This choir used to sing beautifully last year which is why I started to attend this Mass. Now they’re singing such awful songs that no body can sing. It’s very distracting to me that sometimes I feel like screaming. It’s like the choir is putting on a show but believe me no one would applaud. (I can tell that I’m not the only one that doesn’t like the music.) I know I am a music snob at Mass but I just long to hear something with beauty. Please pray for me that I can overcome this distraction at Mass.

 

[whipp711]

I assume you have heard of the book “Why Catholics can’t sing?” by Thomas Day. It’s well worth a read.

Outstanding read. Though he wrote the book in 1990, much of observances are still spot on for today. Especially at my parish.

Oh, and the full title of Day’s book is “Why Catholics Can’t Sing: The Culture of Catholicism and Triumph of Bad Taste.” The later is almost a book unto itself. It’s not a complaint book. Day does point out where we get it right. Also, he is a musician.

 

[YoungTradCath]

People have quit singing at my parish during the Mass I attend because the hymns are awful and no body knows the songs. This choir used to sing beautifully last year which is why I started to attend this Mass. Now they’re singing such awful songs that no body can sing. It’s very distracting to me that sometimes I feel like screaming. It’s like the choir is putting on a show but believe me no one would applaud. (I can tell that I’m not the only one that doesn’t like the music.) I know I am a music snob at Mass but I just long to hear something with beauty. Please pray for me that I can overcome this distraction at Mass.

What sort of music, specifically, are they singing?

 

[nickybr38]

Just noticed this thread…

Anyway, for the first time in a long time I sat in the back of the Church instead of in the front near the choir and I was bothered by the silence. It seemed like only myself and one other lady were singing with the choir. It was unnerving.

I honestly feel it’s because the songs the choir choose are often difficult to sing. They hit at the high end of a soprano range (the average soprano that is, not a well trained one ), have confusing rhythmns and often the accompanist doesn’t know them well enough to lead properly.

It’s very frustrating. At times I sing with the choir and I have been frustrated up there as well but this is the first time I realized that the congregation seems to be just as confused by the music.

I honestly feel as if the lady who chooses the music (we have one lady who chooses the music every week) is choosing music she personally likes to sing. The problem is she’s a strong soprano and the majority of the congregation is not. sigh

Ah well. Good thing I’m not there for the music.

 

[CB_Catholic]

The acoustics in my church are very poor, and even if people do sing, it sounds like no one is. But people don’t sing all that much anyway.

They used to sing the Gloria pretty well, then the new translation came, and the setting that was chosen is absolutely awful and difficult to sing, now nobody will sing it, including me. The Gloria was always a high point for me at Mass, now I get depressed, because it sounds like a funeral dirge. I will not miss it during Lent, but I dread it reappearing at the Easter Vigil. Some things were better off left untouched when they retranslated.

Now in my daughter’s small country parish that doesn’t even have an organ, they sing like there is no tomorrow, like they really like being there, and they choose music that is singable and teach it very well to the congregation. Masses are SRO and you can feel the joy when you walk in. Amazing.