Do you play for Spanish Weekend Masses and the Quinceañera Mass?
  • SacredMusicLibrary
    Posts: 113
    We are wondering how many here do or did participate as organist.
  • CharlesW
    Posts: 11,934
    NO!
  • irishtenoririshtenor
    Posts: 1,296
    Yes
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    What is your involvement and what do you play? With instruments? For the singing? It'd be nice to know for those who are accustomed to a family bringing in their instruments and playing and cannot envision the organ playing...thank you for posting.
  • irishtenoririshtenor
    Posts: 1,296
    I play for the 8am Spanish Mass at our parish. I play organ and sing from the choir loft in the rear of the church. There is a Mexican-American lady who (does EVERYTHING for the parish and school and) chooses the music (mostly) and also sings along with me at the 8am Mass. I am not fully bi-lingual / fluent in Spanish, but I am fairly competent as a speaker, and I don't think most parishioners know that I'm not bi-lingual based on my pronunciation of Spanish hymn and psalm texts.

    The organ is the only instrument played at the 8am Mass. There are occasionally strings (not guitars) at the 12pm Spanish Mass, but I'm not the organist for that Mass.

    We use Flor y Canto 2nd Edition for the music, though we sometimes use a few songs from FyC 3rd Ed.
    Thanked by 1noel jones, aago
  • ContinuousbassContinuousbass
    Posts: 357
    I sometimes play the Sunday Spanish mass as a ringer. Music is typically from United In Christ and Flor Y Canto. Greatest part of participating in the Spanish mass was convincing the Spanish-only-speaking cantor to broaden his horizons and learn the English mass as well. Now he has more chances to serve the mass and can fill in for our flakier cantors!
    Thanked by 1noel jones, aago
  • TCJ
    Posts: 966
    I work as the organist at the Spanish Mass. Mostly we use FyC3 (ugh!) with a piece from another source on occasion. Slow introduction into some simple chants.
    Thanked by 1noel jones, aago
  • TimTheEnchanterTimTheEnchanter
    Posts: 195
    I currently play the piano at one Spanish Mass, for which I do not pick the music (from Flor y Canto II), although the congregation gets a worship aid and the pastor, who does pick the music, likes to add stuff from (sigh) the original Flor y Canto and (double sigh) his own (bad) translations of English hymns. I've used that experience to figure out what I would do when I have the chance to be in charge of a Spanish music program. (For one thing, the pastor will not get to pick the music.)

    And so that opportunity may come in the next year. I recently started as English DoM at a different parish, but I'm a backup for Spanish Mass; the pastor would like me to take it over at some point, as the regular accompanist is 76 and casually mentioned to me that she's had a couple of strokes. Okeydoke, then. Here, they have Flor y Canto III. There's enough in there that I can use the organ a fair amount, and I intend to. (The Jubilate Deo Latin chants are in there, as well.)

    I don't speak a significant amount of Spanish, but I can sing it fine, so most people are none the wiser. I know a lot of folks appreciate that I do my best to serve the Spanish-speaking community with my music.
    Thanked by 1noel jones, aago
  • henry
    Posts: 241
    I played in a Hispanic parish with two Masses in Spanish and one in English. Organ was used at all the Masses, including Quinceaneras. In the last few years a guitar group sang once a month. The people sang well and the organ was quite suitable for the music. We used Flor y Canto II.
    Thanked by 2SacredMusicLibrary noel jones, aago
  • Matthew
    Posts: 31
    I play organ for 2 of our 4 Spanish masses. The other 2 use piano and guitars. As the MD I choose the music from FyC II, Oramos Cantando, and the St. Michael Hymnal. I also provide music for all Quinceñeras and weddings in Spanish. Our Hispanic members seem to appreciate the use of the organ. We're the diocesan Cathedral, so I try my best to set a good example in all aspects of our liturgical music, including our masses in Spanish (we also have 3 English masses and an EF mass).
    Thanked by 2noel jones, aago eft94530
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    All who responded with their experiences, please email me with your address so that I may mail you complimentary copies of:
    26 Acompañamientos Fáciles de Himnos y Preludios para Órgano o Teclado
Add a Comment