Suggestions on how to get a congregation to sing

[Ruth_Catherine]

As a society, we no longer sing.

Years ago, people got together in homes and sang. People sang as they worked.

When I was a kid you got in the car, you sang. Get a bunch of kids on a bus, it was sing along to the destination - now, everyone plugs in earbuds and shuts the world out.

Growing up, mom and dad had to make a RULE “no singing at the table”.

Now, if you are not a great singer, we are going to mock you (how great are the ratings for the American Idol tryout shows?)

Start singing at home. Sing with your kids. Sing in the car. Sing at the table (sorry mom).

So true.

 

[bearer]

I wish more people would sing at Mass. That way I wouldn’t have to listen to myself. The choir could use some amplification to start. If the sound of good singing fills the church, others won’t feel so nervous at least to mumble along, if not give singing a try.

However, I’ve noticed at a lot of Masses that by the third verse, just about everyone has the melody down and is singing over eachother. I love that.

Pange, lingua, gloriosi!

 

[Usige]

I don’t like to sing when someone is looking at me, it’s embarassing, so I only sing when the priest faces Ad Orientem.

One thing I’ve never understood about Catholic hymnals is why only the melody is printed. Growing up Presbyterian our hymnals had SATB or at minimum SAB. While I’ll never sing certain songs on principle, I was trained to sing bass and well… choral basses don’t do melodies Giving people things that they can sing in their register can really help. This is especially true when they have people they can emulate. A soprano cantor does nothing to help me sing. Heck sometime I just harmonize or make up my own bass line, helps take my mind off the lyrics (plus our choir has 1 male and he sings a high tenor joined by a woman that sings… uh… I think she’s shooting for baritone, but she’s missing).

 

[Canto]

One thing I’ve never understood about Catholic hymnals is why only the melody is printed.

The older hymnals (from what I’ve seen) were SATB like the St Basil and Westminster hymnals.

The modern songbooks with songs post 1960 tend to have just the melody line (from what I’ve seen).

 

[Usige]

The older hymnals (from what I’ve seen) were SATB like the St Basil and Westminster hymnals.

The modern songbooks with songs post 1960 tend to have just the melody line (from what I’ve seen).

Thanks. I just checked out the St Basil hymnal on archive.org and you’re right. I wonder if it’s because publishers try to pack 800 songs in today’s song books, rather than the 250 or so in older hymnals.

 

[mariyka]

One thing I’ve never understood about Catholic hymnals is why only the melody is printed. Growing up Presbyterian our hymnals had SATB or at minimum SAB. While I’ll never sing certain songs on principle, I was trained to sing bass and well… choral basses don’t do melodies Giving people things that they can sing in their register can really help. This is especially true when they have people they can emulate. A soprano cantor does nothing to help me sing. Heck sometime I just harmonize or make up my own bass line, helps take my mind off the lyrics (plus our choir has 1 male and he sings a high tenor joined by a woman that sings… uh… I think she’s shooting for baritone, but she’s missing).

I wish they would print the parts, too. I hear most people drop out of the song when the notes get too high and then all we hear is a few soft soprano voices. If I could pick up the alto harmony, I’d be happy to back them up.

 

[ProVobis]

One thing I’ve never understood about Catholic hymnals is why only the melody is printed.

Sometimes the chords are printed and sometimes you’re lucky to get any melody, just the “[sung to the] tune of…”

But point taken.

 

[Sarabande]

I wish they would print the parts, too. I hear most people drop out of the song when the notes get too high and then all we hear is a few soft soprano voices. If I could pick up the alto harmony, I’d be happy to back them up.

Yes, I do too because I like singing harmony. Some of the newer hymnals do provide a choir hymnal as well, such as the Worship hymnals. But we have to assume that the congregation can read well enough to read the choral parts. If they can’t read, it’s a bit useless. It’s something that needs to start with the children. If they attend the Catholic school require learning how to read music, especially for hymns, instead of just giving music appreciation classes.