Helping the Transition

bkenney27

In September, I took over at a Parish with a very liturgically, traditionally minded Pastor. He and I are almost certainly 90% in line with our goals and ideals for Mass - not just with regard to music. However, he has only been Pastor there for three years, and I'm given to understand the Parish was in a DIRE liturgical state before he made certain changes. When I started, all I saw was a very reverent Novus Ordo, retaining bits of tradition that many Parishes don't. (Ringing of the bells at the epiclesis, ringing the bells thrice at the consecration, use of patens at communion, etc...)
What I didn't quite realize was how out of sync the music was from his liturgy.

That said, the choir has been doing very well and has been very receptive to chant and sacred polyphony, but their starting to long for some of the music they've come to know and love under their previous director of 24 years. (Think "The Summons.") It seems the congregation is really rather happy with the new music, so this is really just for the choir's benefit.
They are a capable group, so I'm mostly looking for choral settings of SAB or SATB nature.

In order to help this transition, I will need to work in something of that style every so often, but am having a hard time coming up with titles whose texts are "passable." Any ideas? Any insight from those of you who have managed this transition before?

Thanks!

CCooze

If you have the St. Michael Hymnal, it's amazing how "that sort" of music managed to get slipped in, here and there. There have definitely been some songs (I wouldn't call them hymns) that would appease many non-traditional-minded choristers and congregants, alike (and annoy the more-traditional-minded ones who thought they'd gotten away from that music).

bkenney27

Unfortunately, I'm working exclusively out of the Ignatius Pew Missal which either has the worst of the schmaltz or... Taize (which might actually work.) The selection in the IPM is pretty limiting for a Parish like ours which is rather stuck in the middle.

eft94530

Leaving a candy dish out does not help someone avoid temptation.
You are their will until they develop their own.

"our goals and ideals"

Perhaps recast as The Mind Of The Church
and showing how pastor and you are submitting to it
will make it easier to guide others along in the same direction.

bkenney27

So what do you suggest?

M. Jackson Osborn

Some approaches which could or may be helpful are -
The pastor working teaching about liturgy and music into his homilies when apt.
Having a standard liturgical column in the parish newsletter written by the pastor or the choirmaster.
Having a standard choirmaster's column in the parish newsletter.
Are there Bible classes or devotional activities in the parish throughout the week?
Some such could be offered to catechise the true liturgical mind of the Church, the history, symbolism, and spirituality of the Church's liturgy and music.
Get people to think and know their historic liturgy as a living and evolving tradition rather than as that stuff that is old fashioned that we no longer do (or that VII 'did away with'), and this stuff which is 'relevant' to contemporary times.
When people are informed about and formed by their heritage they will treasure it.
Focus intently on the young, and see that healthy and meaty liturgy and music are worked into their activities, social functions, and spiritual formation.
Above all, stress the relevance of our heritage of liturgy and music.
The fundamental error of our time is that such information and formation have been quite consciously (often viciously) all but destroyed by many, many of all ranks of holy orders and all strata of the laity - including, sad to say, many of those who think that they are church musicians.

francis

pastor must have backbone
choirmaster must have backbone
they must be securely tied together with a rosary

IF pips breaks backbone of pastor
pastor usually has to break backbone of choirmaster

IF choirmaster remains with backbone
he may possibly have backbone surgically removed by pastor
or is exiled
in the end, the church suffers pain and confusion

IF pastor remains with backbone
he may suffer pain for short term
and possibly have backbone surgically removed by bishop
or is exiled
in the end, the church suffers pain and confusion

this is the VII modus operandi of sacred music management--
church suffers pain and confusion

solution: pope, cardinals and bishops must go back to GR or the cycle continues ad nauseum

Reval

No reason they can't have a singing party (not at the parish) and revisit all those retro favorites...

chonak

That might just increase their wish to sing the lousy stuff in church.

bkenney27, the Taize songs would be OK. And "We Walk By Faith" is a decent Haugen song. Maybe you can find a few tolerable pieces by such people and fit them into the schedule.

Can you find out what hymnal was in place before the Ignatius Pew Missal was adopted?

matthewj

Do they have a filing cabinet full of old octavos? If so, look through those and you're likely to find a few old favorites that can be tolerated.

JL

If "The Summons" and similar folky-style stuff appeals to them, why not explore the American folk tradition? There are many fine shape-note and similar tunes with orthodox and liturgically appropriate texts (CPDL has several), and as music written for "regular people" to sing they are generally within the reach of the average parish choir. As a bonus, if you're in New England, you can probably find a piece written by a local, which might be a selling point.

Aurelio_Porfiri

Another idea would be to look for well done arrangements of some of these melodies, so that they still can enjoy the melodies but with a complete new flavor that should help the transition to more sounding liturgical music.

bkenney27

@chonak: I think it was the WLP Word & Song........ ......... But your response is exactly what I was hoping for. Thanks for that example. I'll take a look.

Thanks, too, to everyone else. Your ideas are getting my wheels turning.
Fortunately, my predecessor wrote an Adoramus Te which isn't terrible and the choir really likes, so I can throw that in, too.

Chris Garton-Zavesky

BKenney,

Here's another idea: take some text they like, and show them an actual hymn which has a similar idea. For example, if they like On Eagle's Wings, have them chant psalm 90 using a psalm tone, or show them the tract from 1 Lent.

If they like Taize, introduce organum. No, I realize they're not the same, but it will give them the chance to make a transition.

Teach them some beautiful hymns to sing at Communion. (Jesu Dulcis Memoria, can serve to get them focused on God, rather than on each other.) Let them fall in love with the text, even if you sing it in English.

CCooze

Jesu Dulcis Memoria

If the chant is too much, this one is very pretty:
http://www3.cpdl.org/wiki/index.php/Jesu_dulcis_memoria_(Cornelius_Schmuck)

bkenney27

I'm actually doing Jesu Dulcis (chant) this week!
We did the Ubi Caritas this past week, but they weren't crazy about it. They had a harder time with the Latin pronunciation than I had expected.

Those are awesome parallels, too, though. Thanks for those ideas.

bonniebede

If you have a website, or build one, put the new stuff, especially Latin stuff online so they can practice at home during the week, to build confidence in Latin pronunciation.

Also, working wih children, I teach things in Latin and english to the same melody, like Adoro Te Devote, for example, so that having learnt it in English, when it is encountered in Latin it is still accompanied by helpful mental images of the meaning of the text.

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