How to sing Mass parts without alienating your congregation?

[FrGareth]

Six months ago, I moved parishes. In my new parish, as in the old, I introduced sung Alleluia (or Lenten Acclamation), Holy Holy, Eucharistic Acclamation and Great Amen, and for Feasts and above, sung Gloria (mostly using Mass of Christ the Savior in the new parish), at both weekday and Sunday Masses (though I do not yet have the congregation sing Holy Holy on weekdays unless it's at least a Feast).

In the new congregation, as in the old, anecdotal evidence is suggesting that significant numbers of parishioners are finding their way to neighbouring parishes because they either don't like having to sing, or want to attend a Mass which is as short as possible.

How does this compare with the experience of others?

Can anyone suggest strategies for helping congregations see the virtue of singing?

Am I being over-zealous in my interpretation of liturgical norms?

All feedback welcome, here or by PM.

[Southern Comfort]

Too much too quickly?

When dealing with a congregation that has never sung before (not sure from your description if that is exactly the case), it can take up to a year for them to get comfortable with Gospel Acclamation, Holy, Memorial Acclamation and Great Amen, and you'd build up using those in stages before moving on to Communion Psalm, etc — e.g. only one sung item for the first two/three/four weeks while they adjust. Patience is required! I wouldn't contemplate doing a Gloria with a non-singing congregation until Year 2, especially now that the text is so much less manageable.

And I wouldn't do any hymns at all unless I was sure that they actually knew them. I've been caught like that before. "Oh yes, the people know the usual hymns" when in fact they don't know any of them. Hymns is also a Year-2-or-later part of the project.

Do you have a cantor/song leader to encourage them?

[johnquinn39]

In my previous parish, the music group was asked to ' ... sing the psalm and everything'.

This caused consternation with many of the flock.

I was informed that singing the Alleluia was 'taking it away from the people'.

I heard of some people who phoned the parish priest in great anger and said that they would 'never go to Mass again' because the psalm had been sung.

We did have some success singing the 'Gathering Mass'. however, a rival music group was set up who felt that the music of the Thomas More Group / Farrell / Inwood et al. was 'dated', and re-introduced the Israeli Mass and Marian hymns.

A new priest arrived who banned the psalm and acclamations. (This was around 15 years ago).

I have heard that 'Kubayah' and 'Bring flowers of the rarest' are now sung, and that a song unrelated to scripture is sung by a soloist after the first reading.

[Nick Baty]

I did what SC suggests when I started in my present parish except we also had a gathering hymn. However, after the assembly warm up, I would ask them if they knew the hymn we were about to begin with – if the answer was "no" I'd have another couple up my sleeve just in case. It's really important to have something people can feel confident singing while they're getting used to new material.

Also, make sure you never use words like "teach" or "learn" – that's not what they're there for. Even now, eight years on, I will sometimes "remind" the assembly about the day's psalm response even though it's only just been written. Amazing how many people nod in recognition of a piece they've never heard it before.

The great advantage about starting with a previously non-singing congregation is that they haven't got into bad habits so the model Fr Gareth is presenting becomes the norm (although I agree with SC about leaving out the Gloria for now). What perplexes me is that there is a nearby parish which suits the refuseniks, somewhere where those things which ought to be sung are not sung.

If it's any consolation, Father, while I don't know how many (if any) we lost because of music, I do know of quite a few who came to our Sunday Mass simply because it's the latest in the pastoral area, liked what we were doing and came back.

So, no great strategies: It's all about getting to know the assembly, meeting them where they are and journeying with them.

[JW]

At Rainham, there has been some form of music at the main Mass since the church opened in 1959. The music in our parish at the 10.00 Mass has been steadily growing over the past 20 or so years, most recently we have started to sing the 'Our Father'. Yes, some do avoid this Mass, but others come because they like the music and they believe it enhances the celebration. However, it has been a long process. I believe the use of a cantor helps the congregation enormously, especially if there is unfamiliar music.

Because of the silence problem before Mass, the PP introduced an hour's adoration of the Blessed Sacrament beforehand, not popular among the more vociferous members of the congregation and music group. We've managed to get this removed by our cantor promising to rehearse with the congregation beforehand, then calling for silence in the few minutes before Mass starts. The problem is that we are having to introduce new music virtually every week, otherwise we are just re-hashing stuff that the congregation knows. This is far from ideal but it solves our immediate problem. Currently we use only two Mass settings so we have been focusing on hymns and Gospel Acclamations.

Last Sunday we introduced Sands' Sing of the Lord's Goodness and there were comments about the 'difficulty of the rhythm'. Our cantor's away this week so I'll go through the hymn again with the congregation break down the rhythmic structure for them and try to convince them it's actually 'simples'. I'll also go through the psalm response and 'Sing to the Mountains' which we haven't used for three years; the second verse always catches people out.

[FrGareth]

Thanks to all for the replies so far.

Let me unpack my initial compact statement...

In my last parish they already sang Mass parts at the Sunday morning Mass, but I introduced them - over time - into the Saturday evening Mass and the weekday Masses.

In the new parish the weekend music group was already current with an Alleluia and Holy Holy and Gloria, but I introduced the Eucharistic Acclamation and Doxology at weekend Masses, and the "top priority" Mass parts at weekdays.

Given that our bishops say the Gospel Acclamation and 3 sung parts of the Eucharistic Prayer are the highest priority for singing, do others take this to mean that they ought to be sung at ferial weekday Masses?

[Nick Baty]

I do, Fr Gareth, and my PP does that frequently.
However, it does need someone to lead, either the PP or a strong voice in the assembly. That's not always possible.

[Southern Comfort]

Given that our bishops say the Gospel Acclamation and 3 sung parts of the Eucharistic Prayer are the highest priority for singing, do others take this to mean that they ought to be sung at ferial weekday Masses?

These are normative for all Masses, whether Sunday or weekday, festal or ferial. In some parts of the world they do this as a matter of course. We do not yet, though I know a lot of parishes where the Gospel Acclamations is sung at all weekday Masses. We need to inculcate a culture of every Mass being a sung Mass. Low Mass is not envisaged as a preferential option in GIRM, but a second best.

Maybe when the Pope says that we have not yet done what Vatican II asked, this (among others) is the kind of thing he might be talking about.

[alan29]

despite having the Gospel acclamation sung at all weekday masses, we have one Sunday mass where there is no singing - it attracts those who avoid musical masses.
Should there be a place where folk like that can worship post Benedict's "a la carte" innovations? He seems to have opened the door to personal preferences dictating the kind of celebration one attends.