Is is rude to sing the whole responsorial Gloria?

[CatholicZ09]

I was never a big fan of refrain-verse-refrain Glorias. Those compositions leave the verses to the cantor while the assembly just stands and stares. While some compositions in that format are nice and musically beautiful, they “drag” out the Gloria and make it longer than it needs to be.

I can understand the want to sing the verses along with the cantor, but when I hear people do this at my parish, it doesn’t sound good because the verses are not usually written for “congregational singing.” Oftentimes, the pitch is too high or too low (usually too high) for the assembly to sing properly.

 

[chezel1984]

Sorry but I don’t really know if it is or not but, in my parish, we say the Gloria. It is so beautiful, I really enjoy reciting it at Mass. Took me a while to memorise it but got there in the end hehe.

 

[Phemie]

Sorry but I don’t really know if it is or not but, in my parish, we say the Gloria. It is so beautiful, I really enjoy reciting it at Mass. Took me a while to memorise it but got there in the end hehe.

I can sing it without looking at the lyrics but I still have to look at the book to recite it.

 

[pianistclare]

The Gloria, like the Psalms & should be sung if at all possible.

 

[HelenRose]

I sing the whole Gloria too.

If I am not mistaken, the congregation is supposed to recite the Gloria. I dislike Masses where they have the cantors singing the whole thing and just having us chime in on certain parts. Probably as a result of this, some parishes now have the problem where the entire congregation just sits there like mute statues during all the hymns while the choir sings everything alone.

Except on Christmas and Easter our choir, with the congregation, sing the Gloria straight through without repeating the first part. My personal thought is, the Gloria is quite long as it is, repeating the first part make it just make it way too long (especially if it is not sung up to tempo).

For the Gloria, our choir sings only what the congregation sings - no parts or additions - so our congregation follows the choir real well. We aren’t up to Assembly of God standards as far as congregation singing goes, but we aren’t doing all that bad either. (I love my congregation. You can often see smiles when they sing the Gloria)

 

[ccmcmg]

My wish (prayer!) is that we remember that we are praying, whether the Gloria is sung or spoken. I get tired of hearing people saying that they are saying the Lord’s Prayer or the Gloria or Rosary (or anything that is actually a prayer), instead of praying the Lord’s Prayer. Semantics, I know, but it would serve as a better reminder that we are not just reciting ‘meaningless’ responses or songs or words; we are praying, praising, our Lord.

 

[ProVobis]

Once in a while though, on special occasions, they will use the Gloria from Mass VIII (the one in the videos) and encourage the laity to participate, in which case it really is the first version.

My personal thought is, the Gloria is quite long as it is,

Actually, if anything, it’s too short. Traditionally, it has inspired a great deal of beautiful music including these:

youtube.com/watch?v=5k3bfqQ1SpU

youtube.com/watch?v=9KYeRqv38Yw

And yes, they can be and have been used at an English OF. At least the last one has in my experience.