I am an organist in two churches (in Ireland) - one is a big cathedral and the other is a much smaller parish church. In the cathedral there is a cantor and the hymn words are printed on the missalette. The hymns are always well known & liturgically sound. However, I notice that very few in the congregation sing. I am convinced that a major reason for this is the sheer vastness of the building and the small number of parishioners attending (it is a small parish with a huge cathedral-church!). Therefore at this Mass there is often only one or two people in each pew, which means that people can hear themselves singing… I know this sounds absurd; but the majority of people don’t feel confident singing out if they think themselves and others will hear their singing. I believe that most people actually do long to sing but fear they will be embarrassed if they do, and unfortunately this overrides the fact that they should be singing to praise God.
However, in this same Cathedral we have a novena each year to our Mother of Perpetual Help (it is one of the biggest gatherings in the country -religious or secular). Up to 15,000 people attend each day (six sessions daily) and the place is packed to the rafters. The difference when the cathedral is full is amazing - everyone sings. People are bursting to sing out to praise God, and (paradoxically) in the packed atmosphere no one feels exposed.
In the other church where I play, the church have invested in hymnals (quite rare in Irish churches). The Reverend Curate leads the congregation in singing a few hymns, and indeed everyone sings. I feel this is in part due to having the hymnals, partly due to the more intimate size of the church compared to the Cathedral.
A few posters have criticised the organists on this topic. While the hymns should be at the forefront rather than the organ, contrary to what some have said, the organ IS there to lead the congregation - if an organist is simply accompanying the congregation there is a danger that the congregation will start setting their own tempo and everyone ends up singing at a different pace, and then no one feels confident if the hymn is falling to pieces! A properly trained organist will be able to encourage strong singing if they choose and stick to an appropriate tempo - it is important that the beat remains definite. If the organist is slowing down and speeding up, who will sing if they don’t know what to expect?! Also, the properly trained organist will play with delicate phrasing - breaking in places to indicate breaths etc… if the organist can prove they are a confident and competent player, then the congregation will be more at ease & willing to join in singing. Someone also criticised organists who embellish the music - while the melody should be clear, I think it is appropriate in some cases such as last verses to add different chordal combinations, this usually serves to give the last verse a much needed boost after singing to the same harmonisation for several verses!
I also think the Church (clerical & laypersons) have not valued church music as much as they should. We tend to have a very relaxed attitude to it - for example, since the entrance hymn covers the procession to the altar, we often don’t sing all the verses - normally it’s two or three (depending if there’s incence!), the choir’s jaws hit the floor if one suggests they should sing three rather than the usual two verses at the recessional. We are not using the hymns for their purpose- it’s not about the words, expressions, but rather how many verses can we fit in at the offertory before the priest goes to the ‘pray brethren…’. If we don’t value the hymnody as an art form, as a form of prayer, it is no wonder people don’t sing…
It is possible too that some cantors are to blame. For example, some cantors act as if they’re on Broadway or the West End - it is a big performance and this is not what cantoring is about. It does not encourage congregational singing. Sometimes if the cantor has such a sweet voice, people don’t want to join in lest they spoil the cantor’s beautiful singing - this is true; I know of a parish where the Curate used to sing but no one would join in because he was such a good singer. He was then moved to another parish and the Parish Priest took over the singing. He hadn’t a great voice but he lead them anyway, and now they all sing. So cantors need to be leaders, but not performers, I think.
Many more reasons beyond these…but I’ve ranted for far too long. Basically if hymns can come to be regarded as a valuable, worthwhile and effective form of prayer, then I think there will be a Renaissance in Church music… Don’t forget to encourage Gregorian Chant (it is making a comeback you know…)
There is also interior participation that is just as important. The hymns, especially the ancient ones, are supposed to be “far removed” from “real life” because we are in the presence of the Wholly Other. It is supposed to be “out of the ordinary.”
Seriously, I think I will borrow that book from the library. It sounds good.