I think this is a church I would have left a long time ago.

Why is it that Catholics can't get a decent choir together for major feast days, yet Protestants have great choirs all the time?

Fidem,

Do you mean that this parish schedules a Mass, intentionally, outside, so that it can have ice cream delivered within minutes of the distribution of Holy Communion?

Second question: is this a Mass which is intended as a kind of well-meaning outreach to non-Catholics (hence the band), or as an attempt to show the incompetence of its own musicians.... or ..... to humiliate certain members of the CMAA?

FUS does the praise “and worship” music extremely well on feast days & special Sundays. (During the week and on Sundays, it can be more miss than hit.) They also mix instruments weirdly. I don’t understand why someone being good at their instrument leads to automatically playing. We’ve had flute, cello, and Dulcimer hammer alongside piano and acoustic guitar. Last night, the violinist and baritonist were fantastic, and so was the pianist. But, and this is the same at FUS, they simply play the melody, with a little ornamentation, alongside vocals which are already too difficult for what is being sung. The Alleluia during a Gospel acclamation is a great example. So is the response to the “Per ipsum.” This is radically different from the way an organist accompanies chant. It was also irritating last night, because the space was mic'd but clearly it is very live (all wood or hard surfaces, a nice, rounded apse and a lovely organ in the loft) because the instruments totally drowned out the singers, and the people speaking were too loud.

For the record, P&W is something of which I am fond, and I do love my alma mater.

Chris, the parish musicians, according to FF, were not adequately prepared for the music from their own "domain." That is generally not a trait of CMAA confirmed musicians. Furthermore, if they're using the Schutte Mass, any association with CMAA would obviously be tenuous at best.
Perhaps I didn't read the situo correctly.
Regarding these "event" Masses, outdoors no less- there's a certain "When in Rome" (pardon pun) attitude necessary to endure possible fiascoes. "Chant" doesn't come to mind, even if attended by a digitally friendly PA system dialing in "Notre Dame Cathedral." I surmise that the P/W group wasn't prepared to lead the Ordinary, hence "My Little Pony." That's a crappy choice which should be laid at the feet of the PTB in the parish music ministry.
This reminds me of how "some folks" want Mariachi Grupos at parish Masses despite their inability to accompany the liturgical music of the Mass. It's a lose/lose.

@Chris Z: I don't believe it was set up to intentionally make our people look bad. But that's how it turned out. I have no idea who invited the praise band. Maybe they did it on purpose. I'll never know.

Nor do I believe the chair was intentional, but rather I shared the moment to further illustrate the shoddy planning. My husband gave his seat to our son and ended up having to stand in the back of the tent without us. And again this is the place that raised a million for the roof rebuild and can't maintain their organ, piano, and now decent folding chairs.

The Pony Mass is the ONLY Mass setting I've heard used here in the five long years we have been members.

And yes, they schedule the "ice cream social" (but it's not social because no one at this church talks to anyone else) for after the outdoor Mass. This year they hired an ice cream truck for the job.

Back in "the day", before I was a member, this church was the height of everything Good and Catholic. They had the largest church festival in town with the biggest fireworks, the best rides and food, people from all over came to have fun. It was the highlight of my summers as a kid/teenager, and even then I wondered what it would be like to attend church there. After our first year as official members, they discontinued this tradition, citing "liability" problems and flagging festival attendance. None of this was true. What WAS true was a change in the guard somewhere that decided people of color, teenagers, and anyone not fitting their expectation had to be kept out by an enormous temporary fence with a padlock on the gate, and an enormous cover charge for the festival. Thoughtful, intelligent homilies also went the way of the dinosaur, and apparently so did the music. If I knew who was behind all of this, I would likely say something, but I don't. They are also destroying the school with this same approach. I don't know who wants such a pillar of our community to go up in flames but they seem to be gaining ground in their campaign.

The Pony Mass drives me to distraction. I can endure most banal hymns, but it's the settings of the Ordo that are much more important to my sanity.

@CharlesW: I suppose so, but in a place this huge, even the pastor has limited influence. It's the people with the deep pockets who control the place. The pastor is too laid back and doesn't want to get involved with these people. He's happy just looking the other way.