Music at Mass

[Sally_Malkowski]

Is there any liturgically correct parameters for music at Mass, specifically, can it be recorded or does it have to be live?

 

[Tom]

Is there any liturgically correct parameters for music at Mass, specifically, can it be recorded or does it have to be live?

I’ve been to Masses with recorded music. I’m not a fan of “too much” music, I find it distracting to sing “Our Father… Who art in Heaven…” I find it much more meaningful to reflect on the words than try to stay in tune, but that’s just me.

 

[JustaServant]

Is there any liturgically correct parameters for music at Mass, specifically, can it be recorded or does it have to be live?

Doesn’t have to have music, it can be chanted.

 

[Big_Ro]

I know it’s wrong, but I’ve always been irritated by the music at Mass. I especially don’t like it when the choir sings the Our Father. I can’t carry a tune in a bucket. I know, I know people have told me not to worry about the quality of my voice in Church. Still, it seems like a terrible imposition on my fellow parishoners.

I always get a special feeling from reciting the Our Father along with my wife and kids as well as the congregation.

 

[baltobetsy]

Hi, Sally, and welcome!

Music at Mass must be live.

You’ll find good answers to this question and others regarding the Mass on the Liturgy and Sacraments Forum. The members who post there are very knowledgeable and ready to offer citations from official Church documents to answer questions like these. Go on down to “forum jump” at the bottom of this page and check it out!

Actually, you may find that a moderator moves this over there for you. Don’t be surprised if that happens.

Enjoy your time here!

Betsy

 

[benedictgal]

The music used at the Mass must be live. In other words, there has to be the involvement of the human element. The Congregation for Sacred Rites, now known as the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, issued this directive:

1. The use of automatic instruments and machines, such as the automatic organ, phonograph, radio, tape or wire recorders, and other similar machines, is absolutely forbidden in liturgical functions and private devotions, whether they are held inside or outside the church, even if these machines be used only to transmit sermons or sacred music, or to substitute for the singing of the choir or faithful, or even just to support it.

As late as 2003, I posed this question to the Secretariate for the Bishops Committee on Liturgy (now known as the Bishops Committee on Divine Worship) and the directive still stands. It has not been abrogated by the Holy See.