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Mike Rowe is in a position to comment about music, as he sang for a while with the Baltimore Opera.

Maybe the problem is that our liturgy insists on all of this congregational singing in a culture where there is practically no formation in singing outside schools.

Success in artistry will breed and build more success. At whatever point of tenure, every DM/choirmaster has to have identified, contacted, exploited every avenue towards available talent, cajoled/persuaded/co-opted every individual at whatever serviceable age, to join him/her in a well-articulated plan for that success in artistry. It can't be winged or bounced from week to week. There has to be an achievable standard that everyone buys into. If that pact is kept solid for a year, the program will survive to a chance to thrive.
I see the real problem not in terms of lack of talent, but in very real conflicts about making commitments. We probably have hundreds of RC kids singing in literally top level choirs in five high schools. Dozens in local college. A handful join parish ministry, even when we can sing Victoria, Lauridsen and whatever pretty much their school directors are teaching. Why so few? They're also the kids taking 5 AP classes, playing extra curricular sports, doing musical theater in AND out of school, doing club sports, mock trial, and whatever else (a lot) that it takes to fill out a killer resume for college. What are their parents doing? Why aren't they singing? They're driving them to and from, they're already involved in RE/RCIA/or more than one parish ministry or activity already, especially if they've got kids in the parochial school. None of that goes away until the last Junior graduates or otherwise is finished with upper education. The good ones are spent already. So, who's left. Seasoned seniors....karaoke stars who think church is a fast track to a captive audience....well meaning but ill-equipped amateurs that will require a lot of one on one for years, even in the middle of choral time.
But, it can be done. You will be a hero one day, hated like Bin Laden another, misunderstood, left high and dry when you've programmed a piece that's just within reach and half your altos decide to fly to Cabo on a whim. _ _ it happens.
Best model: do what the Madelein does, what MACW does at St. Ann's in San Diego, what a number of our CMAA heroes do and focus on getting them when they're in the third grade, or earlier if you have the skills.
But have a plan and know your talent pool.

I studied organ at a 150+ year old Baptist university with a strong tradition of the very best in church music. One thing I noticed was the Baptists had a development program beginning with small children through adult years for future musicians in their churches. If you were 8-years-old and could play three hymns, you got that opportunity and were encouraged to develop your talents and put them to future use. In contrast, our local Catholic parishes do nothing much to create future musicians. When church positions become vacant, they are advertised and often filled by people with no real experience with Catholic worship. Maybe that is not the case with parishes in larger cities, but it is certainly true where I live. I have lost track of the number of times I have had to teach mass parts and music to new musicians in Catholic parishes.