I conducted a little experiment with some of my singers last week. There were ten of them, and they first began learning neumes less than a year ago. As far as previous music experience, it was mixed -- some had never learned to read music before singing in choir, some remembered a tiny bit from elementary school, and some had quite a bit of experience and skill with "modern" notation. They've gotten used to seeing plainchant notation in various forms -- neumes, "blobs" (stemless modern notes), or (less often) stemmed eighth/quarter notes.

I distributed JMO's Mass in Honor of St. Ralph Sherwin (which he conveniently has offered in neumes and blobs in congregational booklets). We sang through various parts, reading from both types of notation, but starting with a different one each times (i.e., Gloria in blobs then neumes, Sanctus in neumes then blobs, etc.).

Without my disclosing the purpose of the exercise, the singers offered their opinions after we sang each movement. Seven said (to their own surprise, as well as mine) that the neumes were easier to read in every case whether we read from neumes or blobs first; two said the modern notes were sometimes easier; one said it didn't matter. Reasons cited were the following, all somewhat related: (1) neumes were less cluttered; (2) it was easier to understand the small rhythms and flow with neumes, (particularly where there was a two-note neume - podatus or clivis); (3) it was much easier to see the shape of the phrases with neumes (because the modern notes are necessarily spread over a larger area).

In general, with singers in my choirs, once they overcome an initial "Yikes!!" with neumes, they find them easier to interpret correctly than modern notes. I'm curious to know others' experiences, particularly comparing/contrasting beginner and experienced choristers. Also, do you give your congregation neumes, blobs, or both, and how do they do with them?

Jon