Awesome attendance, nobody singing

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So this evening (New Year’s Eve), I went to the Solemnity of Mary vigil Mass at a different parish. I was excited when this massive church completely filled up, and then some… eyeballing the size of the rather large church I’d guess easily around 600 people.

But when it came time to sing, I was in for a big surprise! With so many other attendants, I expected to hear at least some other voices around me, but virtually no one aside from the small choir sang… for the entire Mass! I hate to admit it, but it actually ended up distracting me a little, as hearing my one voice as the sole singer anywhere around me made me a smidge self-conscious.

Now I’ve been to some parishes in the past where the singing was weak, but usually those parishes were struggling with attendance issues also. So I guess I’m just confused how a church that crowded is so… pervasively quiet. Especially in this relatively active and orthodox Diocese of Arlington.

Has anyone else seen a well-attended Mass be so quiet? I’m hoping it’s an anomaly. 😦
 
We had the opposite tonight ay our parish. AWESOME music, singing around me, very few people verballying participating in the mass. It was weird.
 
Some parishes just aren’t particularly receptive to singing. Like mine.
 
At weekday mass in our parish there is no music ministry.

However, our spirits are singing! 🙂
 
The Mass tonight was really well-attended, and the singing wasn’t that great, either. It was surprising because we sang a lot of familiar Christmas hymns: “Good Christian Friends, Rejoice”, “O Little Town of Bethlehem”, “Angels, We Have Heard on High”, etc. It depends on the congregation, I guess. Some groups just don’t sing. I have to go again tomorrow morning for the 8:30 a.m. Mass, and I’m not expecting it to differ from last night.
 
We had good attendance at our Holy Hour AND the Midnight Mass (and the breakfast buffet afterwards 😃 mmmmm…). So many young women wearing lace headscarves I have not seen before in my life. I counted 4 or 5.

But we sang well, we were very reverent. It was an amazingly good Ordinary Form Mass done by the Pro-Sanctity Movement of Nebraska. Plenty of incense. A great homily. Eucharistic adoration before Mass. So reverent.

I loved it and I want to do it again next year. Great way to start the year.
 
our early morning Sunday mass RARELY sings, almost never, and when we do it’s a bit awkward. ( I think all those not blessed with a singing voice attend this mass lol).

When I first started going to this mass I wasn’t so sure if I liked it, but much to my surprize I now prefer it. 🤷
 
The singing is hit or miss in our parish…response mostly depends on the attendance of a choir to keep us all on key. Unless of coarse it’s an old standard that everyone knows.
 
It might be about time to put into action St. Pius X’s call to teach the congregation how to sing/chant. 😃
 
Our main Sunday Mass this morning was around half full or slightly less than that which is poor in my eyes and a lack of children, hungover?

Hardly any singing either, I don’t think many people sing anymore although the hymn books with new hymns and new tunes don’t help.

Why do we need 1000+ hymns?

Oh, some woman (40-50) decided to answer her phone which was ringing and said “I’m at church!” which was annoying as she took a while to answer it.

Hopefully next week will be back to normal as it is the Epiphany and I have a bottle of mulled wine that I have been saving for this day and want to make it a personal tradition. 😃

I have noticed though that when I sing, whichever baby I am holding goes quiet, they must think I am talking to them. 🙂
 
Havard said:
So this evening (New Year’s Eve), I went to the Solemnity of Mary vigil Mass at a different parish. I was excited when this massive church completely filled up, and then some… eyeballing the size of the rather large church I’d guess easily around 600 people.

But when it came time to sing, I was in for a big surprise! With so many other attendants, I expected to hear at least some other voices around me, but virtually no one aside from the small choir sang… for the entire Mass! I hate to admit it, but it actually ended up distracting me a little, as hearing my one voice as the sole singer anywhere around me made me a smidge self-conscious.

Now I’ve been to some parishes in the past where the singing was weak, but usually those parishes were struggling with attendance issues also. So I guess I’m just confused how a church that crowded is so… pervasively quiet. Especially in this relatively active and orthodox Diocese of Arlington.

Has anyone else seen a well-attended Mass be so quiet? I’m hoping it’s an anomaly. 😦
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You are not alone. At my own Parish in north London that has weekly attendance of 900 over 5 masses, I’d say that overall 20% sing, 20% hold the hymn book but just don’t bother singing, and the other 60% clearly have no intention of singing. A few more join in the congregational Kyrie, Gloria, Alleluia and Sanctus, but not many. It does vary from mass to mass, people tend to sing more at the 9am and 12.15, but the evening masses are hopeless.

The pattern is the same at almost all the Catholic churches I have attended apart from one neighbouring parish and Westminster Cathedral. At both they verbally instruct people to join in the hymns and congregational responses before mass begins, and this seems to make a difference.

I assume you have heard of the book “Why Catholics can’t sing?” by Thomas Day. It’s well worth a read.
 
Havard said:
So this evening (New Year’s Eve), I went to the Solemnity of Mary vigil Mass at a different parish. I was excited when this massive church completely filled up, and then some… eyeballing the size of the rather large church I’d guess easily around 600 people.

But when it came time to sing, I was in for a big surprise! With so many other attendants, I expected to hear at least some other voices around me, but virtually no one aside from the small choir sang… for the entire Mass! I hate to admit it, but it actually ended up distracting me a little, as hearing my one voice as the sole singer anywhere around me made me a smidge self-conscious.

Now I’ve been to some parishes in the past where the singing was weak, but usually those parishes were struggling with attendance issues also. So I guess I’m just confused how a church that crowded is so… pervasively quiet. Especially in this relatively active and orthodox Diocese of Arlington.

Has anyone else seen a well-attended Mass be so quiet? I’m hoping it’s an anomaly. 😦
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I don’t think a quiet congregation is a bad thing at all. Enduring the banal, pedestrian tripe that passes for Catholic hymns is a major distraction. The Mass is supposed to be a time of deep contemplation on the paschal mystery unfolding before you in the sanctuary. Being forced to sing (other than chants that are directly part of the Ordinary of the Mass) seems to me to go against that whole idea.

So, let me ask you this:
  • Were the congregants attentive and focused on the Liturgy, or did they appear to be bored (looking around, fidgeting with their iPhones, talking among themselves, etc.)?
If they were attentive, then thanks be to God. You were at a really good Mass.
 
liturgyluver said:
You are not alone. At my own Parish in north London that has weekly attendance of 900 over 5 masses, I’d say that overall 20% sing, 20% hold the hymn book but just don’t bother singing, and the other 60% clearly have no intention of singing. A few more join in the congregational Kyrie, Gloria, Alleluia and Sanctus, but not many. It does vary from mass to mass, people tend to sing more at the 9am and 12.15, but the evening masses are hopeless.

The pattern is the same at almost all the Catholic churches I have attended apart from one neighbouring parish and Westminster Cathedral. At both they verbally instruct people to join in the hymns and congregational responses before mass begins, and this seems to make a difference.

I assume you have heard of the book “Why Catholics can’t sing?” by Thomas Day. It’s well worth a read.
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As I read your message I was thinking of the book “Why Catholics can’t sing”, and there it was in the last sentence of your message! Someone had loaned it to me and needed it back; I had only gone about 1/5 of the way through it. There was humor in it!
 
liturgyluver said:
I’ve noticed it makes no difference whatsoever whether the hymns are traditional or more modern. “O come, O come Emmanuael” and “Sweet Sacrament Divine” are two hymns recently listed and both met with stony silence.
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An enthusiastic choir, no matter how small, can help a lot.
 
Havard said:
So this evening (New Year’s Eve), I went to the Solemnity of Mary vigil Mass at a different parish. I was excited when this massive church completely filled up, and then some… eyeballing the size of the rather large church I’d guess easily around 600 people.

But when it came time to sing, I was in for a big surprise! With so many other attendants, I expected to hear at least some other voices around me, but virtually no one aside from the small choir sang… for the entire Mass! I hate to admit it, but it actually ended up distracting me a little, as hearing my one voice as the sole singer anywhere around me made me a smidge self-conscious.

Now I’ve been to some parishes in the past where the singing was weak, but usually those parishes were struggling with attendance issues also. So I guess I’m just confused how a church that crowded is so… pervasively quiet. Especially in this relatively active and orthodox Diocese of Arlington.

Has anyone else seen a well-attended Mass be so quiet? I’m hoping it’s an anomaly. 😦
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Some parishes are like that. In my birth parish you are expected to keep your mouth shut and let the choir do the singing. No hymnals in the pews, no overheads, and a constant change of settings for the Ordinary guarantees that the choir will be given it’s ‘proper attention’. Only sometimes they will sing something I know from another parish I’ve been in and I’ll join in only to get dirty looks from those around me.

The only time I’ve ever heard positive comments on someone in the congregation singing is when a stranger with a particularly beautiful voice happens to attend Mass. Otherwise we’re expected to listen and not join in. It’s also seems to be that way at a neighboring parish where I’ve happened to be for Midnight Mass a few years ago. They invited the congregation to join in on one of the hymns but otherwise it was a listening moment.
 
I went last night to the Vigil Mass, and everyone participated in the singing, very enthusiastically. It was really nice, since I think there were about 900 people in attendance - I bet they could hear us over at the Baptist Church. 😃

I remember years ago, people in our Diocese were shy about singing, but they seem to have gotten over it - most people nowadays sing out quite well.
 
Filii_Dei said:
It might be about time to put into action St. Pius X’s call to teach the congregation how to sing/chant. 😃
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HAHAHA I could see our early mass congregation now… :bigyikes: :bigyikes: :bigyikes: :bigyikes: :bigyikes:
 
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