Mass standard Music

[fmrbaptist]

Good Morning! My question is about the traditional music used during Mass (Memorial Accumulation, Amen, Lamb of God et al). Recently our Parrish has changed the melody of all of these standards. While sometimes change is good, tradition is also comforting. Was there something from Rome that changed these standards or is it up to each Parrish as to how these are presented.

Thank you in advance!

 

[edward_george1]

Nothing from Rome, and actually, the music for these things isn’t standard, even in previous times. If you look in the missal for the older form of the Mass, you’ll see a handful of different options for the tunes for the parts of the Mass. The kind of music used is at the discretion of the pastor.

-Fr ACEGC

 

[1ke]

There are many musical settings for the parts of the mass. Perhaps your parish’s musicians/organist/choir preferred or only knew one. And now they have learned another, or the pastor asked them to vary the settings, etc.

You’d have to ask them.

 

[fmrbaptist]

Thank you! I appreciate your fast and informative response!

 

[HeDa]

I checked my hymnbook and there are at least 10 in the vernacular and 10 different tunes to the Kyrie in Greek alone. During the Masses since Christmas night we have sung Missa de Angelis and Missa Simplex (both Latin) several times and then Ordinarium 6 in the vernacular maybe 3-4 times.

During Advent we sang the tunes for Advent in both Latin and vernacular. The Rorate Masses were Missa de Angelis.

Usually it is the cantor who chooses the tunes and the priest lets the cantor know which Mass he is celebrating if there are options in the book Ordo, like a saints memorial or a martyr.

Edit: Added Greek in the first sentence. Yeah, we sing a lot in my parish. Thursday Masses are “supposed” to be more quiet without a lot of hymns but we end up singing the Mass parts on those to and a couple of hymns.

 

[Cor_ad_Cor]

In our Archdiocese, every parish is asked to familiarize their congregations with two: a relatively new composition and plain chant. These are the standards for all official Archdiocesan Masses. Then, the parishes are free to make their own choices beyond that. Most around here change the melodies seasonally.

 

[Loud-living-dogma]

Usually from what I have seen, an average parish uses 3-4 different versions of these. I think it’s up to music director to choose them, and to decide when to change them out. There is a standard ICEL one that all American parishes are supposed to know and use, but not exclusively. http://www.ccwatershed.org/icel/

 

[GospelOfMatthew]

There are hundreds of different mass settings for the Gloria, Holy Holy Holy, Mystery of Faith, Agnus Dei… you can listen to them on YouTube here:

MassSettings

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I must confess, I am very nerdy when it comes to mass settings, and I listen to tons of them daily. I have way too many of them memorized that I visit different Catholic Churches to see what settings they use, since I can pick out the setting as soon as the Gloria starts

 

[OraLabora]

There are in fact 18 Mass settings in Latin Gregorian chant, as well as a number of ad libitum Kyries, Glorias, etc.

So there never was a “standard” melody, though some are indicated for specific days, feasts and times (e.g. Kyrie IV for feasts of the Apostles, IX for the BVM, I for Easter time, XVII and XVIII for Advent and Lent, XI for Sundays of Ordinary time, etc.)

 

[fmrbaptist]

Thank you. The melodies that are being Used currently I Our Parrish were written by our Music Director