Does anyone else find it annoying when

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the priest decides to chant the entire Eucharistic Prayer? Personally, I think the EP, and especially the Roman Canon, begs to be prayed silently by the priest alone (which unfortunately isn’t allowed by OF rubrics; I wonder if they’ll make that an option sometime), and at the most, prayed out loud in a speaking voice.

The wording of the EPs in most parts is very beautiful, yes, but I hear nothing but monotonous droning when I go to a mass in which the priest chants the EP. Normally, I’m all for Gregorian Chant (or some other type of plainchant) in the mass, but there are some parts where it just doesn’t sound good, and the EP is the major part. I hope with this chant revitalization, priests don’t start chanting everything there is to be chanted. Bringing back chant as a common part of the liturgy is a good thing, and very important to preserve our liturgical patrimony, but it isn’t suited for every single prayer. It takes at least ten to twelve minutes to chant the Canon at a normal, un-quickened speed. By the time you’re done hearing a chant that long without much pitch change, your ears are ringing.

I thought at first that chanting the EP would be good. Then I went to a mass where the Canon was chanted, and I changed my opinion. It was awful! And the priest is an excellent singer! Chant the Preface, perhaps chant the Consecration (or don’t), but please don’t chant the whole thing.

:eek:
 
Catholic tradition is that the Preface and Eucharistic Prayer should be sung. The new edition of the Roman Missal provides music for the new translation of all the Prefaces and Eucharistic Prayers. These prayers may be said where this is more suitable for local custom and practice. What I find annoying is when my fellow Catholics prefer expediency and complain about those who conduct the liturgy correctly.
 
In my experience I love this. I wish I had the choice to experience it more often. I find in my area I do not know of any parishes which regularly have a fully sung mass. - If they did I would make a point to attend at least some times.

In your case you do have a choice to avoid the Mass where this is frequently done: I would be very surprised if it is at all mass times, or if it is at many of your nearby churches.

That is one of the beauties of the Catholic Church. There is so much variation which is properly permitted!
 
It’s traditional. It’s also traditional to chant the Gospel. You’ll see that at the Midnight Mass in Rome this Christmas.

Chanting highlights the Eucharistic prayer.
 
Miriam1947 said:
I love it when my priest chants the Eucharistic Prayers.
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Me too, it makes it more solemn somehow. 🙂 But then my priest has a nice singing voice. I think I would find it annoying to hear someone who can’t sing very well.
 
jimrob said:
Catholic tradition is that the Preface and Eucharistic Prayer should be sung. The new edition of the Roman Missal provides music for the new translation of all the Prefaces and Eucharistic Prayers. These prayers may be said where this is more suitable for local custom and practice. What I find annoying is when my fellow Catholics prefer expediency and complain about those who conduct the liturgy correctly.
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Amen
 
I love it. I’ve only experienced it a few times, but it was great.
 
seagal said:
Me too, it makes it more solemn somehow. 🙂 But then my priest has a nice singing voice. I think I would find it annoying to hear someone who can’t sing very well.
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Doesn’t matter. If chanting it is correct, then the priest’s voice should not be the defining factor. If chanting is optional, it is up to the priest to decide whatever the quality of his voice and we don’t get a vote. 😉
 
I get annoyed when the Eucharistic Prayer isn’t chanted. For me the chant adds an element of spirituality to the Eucharistic Prayer, and is one additional factor in highlighting its importance.

Having said all this, I find it is rarely chanted in most Catholic parishes - and even worse sometimes it even feels like the priest is simply rushing through it by rote.
 
YoungTradCath said:
the priest decides to chant the entire Eucharistic Prayer? Personally, I think the EP, and especially the Roman Canon, begs to be prayed silently by the priest alone (which unfortunately isn’t allowed by OF rubrics; I wonder if they’ll make that an option sometime), and at the most, prayed out loud in a speaking voice.

.
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actually it is preferred that the Eucharistic prayer, or at least the consecration, be chanted so I prefer it even though it is getting rarer that a priest wants to or feels confident enough to do it. to me this of all prayers begs to be sung or chanted

I am willing to bet that our pastor, who not only has a beautiful voice, is trained, and pays very particular attention to such things, is the first priest in the diocese to learn and use the chanted EP in the new “version” and a beautiful thing it is, too. And as usual he is training us to chant or sing our parts, but I have to say, we have a steep learning curve. We are pretty good with the words, having practiced since mid-summer, but just started working on music in Advent.
 
I don’t find it annoying at all. I think it is very beautiful.

I find all the complaining about Mass on these forums infinitely more annoying 😦

(And I’m not just singling out the OP. There is far too much of this).
 
What is the liturgical tradition of the Latin Rite concerning chanting the EP?
 
Annoying? We (most on CAF, not just the OP) complain about every little mistake the priest makes, and now are annoyed when they pray the liturgy faithfully?

Sorry if I seem harsh, but why would we want to pick at a priest for doing what the Church intends? The new Roman Missal has most of the priestly prayers set to music, which seems to me an indication that most of these prayers should be sung or chanted.

I think the entire Mass should be chanted. Our rector does just this, and it elevates the liturgy to where it should be. Heaven on earth. Our PV sings the Eucharistic prayer, which is nearly as nice, though I wish he would sing or chant the entire Mass.

I completely disagree that the Eucharistic Prayer “begs” to be prayed silently. This is where I think the OF outshines the EF, at least spiritually. I find it much easier to join my prayer to that of the priest when I know what he is saying and doing–by hearing him chant the prayer.
 
GwenL said:
Annoying? We (most on CAF, not just the OP) complain about every little mistake the priest makes, and now are annoyed when they pray the liturgy faithfully?

Sorry if I seem harsh, but why would we want to pick at a priest for doing what the Church intends? The new Roman Missal has most of the priestly prayers set to music, which seems to me an indication that most of these prayers should be sung or chanted.

I think the entire Mass should be chanted. Our rector does just this, and it elevates the liturgy to where it should be. Heaven on earth. Our PV sings the Eucharistic prayer, which is nearly as nice, though I wish he would sing or chant the entire Mass.

I completely disagree that the Eucharistic Prayer “begs” to be prayed silently. This is where I think the OF outshines the EF, at least spiritually. I find it much easier to join my prayer to that of the priest when I know what he is saying and doing–by hearing him chant the prayer.
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The main reason, the reason that can’t be reflected at all in the OF even as an option, that I prefer the EF, is not because of what you hear, but the lack of what you hear. The quietness and the use of the secreto voice adds, in my opinion, to the sacrificial solemnity of the mass. Silence, at least in some parts, in the presence of God is the most beautiful sound.

If my ear blood vessels could get red from too much sound as my eye blood vessels do from staying up too long and over-straining them, they would when I go to mass. Kind of a dumb analogy, but still. Whenever I go to a mass with everything set to music, it feels more like an exercise than anything, in my opinion. I think it’s wonderful to chant the mass, but not all the time and not every Sunday, because then what would there be to set a solemnity apart from the Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time?

There is a balance to strike in what we hear, and twelve plus minutes of straight chant is very hard for me, personally, to bear. I love chant, but that’s a lot to digest. When in the history of the Roman Rite or any part of the Latin liturgical tradition has the EP been chanted before?
 
YoungTradCath said:
The main reason, the reason that can’t be reflected at all in the OF even as an option, that I prefer the EF, is not because of what you hear, but the lack of what you hear. The quietness and the use of the secreto voice adds, in my opinion, to the sacrificial solemnity of the mass. Silence, at least in some parts, in the presence of God is the most beautiful sound.

If my ear blood vessels could get red from too much sound as my eye blood vessels do from staying up too long and over-straining them, they would when I go to mass. Kind of a dumb analogy, but still. Whenever I go to a mass with everything set to music, it feels more like an exercise than anything, in my opinion. ** I think it’s wonderful to chant the mass, but not all the time and not every Sunday, because then what would there be to set a solemnity apart from the Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time?**

There is a balance to strike in what we hear, and twelve plus minutes of straight chant is very hard for me, personally, to bear. I love chant, but that’s a lot to digest. When in the history of the Roman Rite or any part of the Latin liturgical tradition has the EP been chanted before?
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Reference the part that I bolded. The Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time celebrates the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of the Lord Jesus. Every single Sunday we celebrate Christmas and Easter! Why shouldn’t it be as “set aside” as any other Sunday?

What makes a solemnity different from the Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time are the propers.

Our rector chants every DAILY Mass, and I think it’s heaven on earth. Which is what the Mass is, each and every day.

If you prefer the EF for the silence, then by all means, go to the EF. We have an EF once a month, and I go also. It is reverent and beautiful. But I prefer knowing and hearing what’s going on, so that I can join my prayers. At the EF, it’s always an estimation…I think he’s about to do the epiclesis, but I’m not really sure, because I can’t see nor hear. This is why my ideal Mass is the OF celebrated ad orientem. The priest is pointed the right direction, leading us to the East. But I know what’s going on because I can hear him, not guess based on how he twitched his right arm.

I get plenty of worshipful silence at Adoration.
 
My former RC pastor chants the EP. I wouldn’t say he has a great voice but he indeed has a powerful voice and just him chanting the EP reverberates the words to the very depths of my soul.
 
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