Guidance on how to form a parish music program and encourage the parish to observe copyright laws.
  • LadyIslay
    Posts: 6
    became a Catholic four years ago, and since that time, I have struggled to find a ‘place’ for myself in the parish. I am a paid singer and choir director at a Protestant church. My gift area is obviously music, and the parish priest has asked me to take over leadership of the ‘choir’ at the Sunday anticipation Mass. I want to say ‘yes’, but it appears as though the parish has no resources committed to music (doesn’t even show up in the budget), and the volunteers that lead the various groups act completely independently of one another with very little communication.

    After some prayerful consideration, I came up with a vision of the music leaders in our parish coming together to meet once a month to share in a time of fellowship, prayer and discussion with the intention of:
    · Supporting one another’s individual ministries by sharing spiritual gifts, resources, and fellowship
    · Finding ways to equip, encourage, and recruit other people sharing in the music ministry in the parish (singers and musicians)
    · Ensure that all our music is full of the life, joy, and dignity befitting the celebration of the Eucharist

    Is this reasonable? When getting the contact information for the various musicians and ‘choir’ leaders from the parish admin, she became very hostile and suggested that bringing the musicians together would never happen. Our dear priest (God bless him) is apparently clueless. He can’t seem to understand why I might have reservations in getting involved.

    I have it in my head that if the various musicians could get together once a month, we could do things like create a calendar showing exactly who will be leading music at which Mass, create a contact sheet with information on all the leaders and singers, intentionally plan to have a ‘mixed’ choir at a Mass for a special occasion, identify resources we could use and find a way to get them, plan a workshop for parish singers (myself and the leader of the children’s choir are voice teachers), and update the illegal ‘youth’ songbooks in the pews (more on that later).

    I must have missed the session during RCIA on how parish politics work, because I’m at a complete loss as to who ‘runs’ things in the parish. I don’t think that there is anyone overseeing the music or other parts of the Mass to ensure that they are licit.

    I could also use some guidance on how to approach the parish about updating the illegal songbooks in the pews. A year ago, I emailed the parish admin, the treasurer and the priest to ask what license the parish had, and if I could help bring the books into compliance with the terms of the license. The parish admin. tersely replied that the parish was fully compliant. At the time I didn’t pursue the matter any further, but now that I have taken one home and carefully examined all the contents, I’m not content to let the parish continue to use them as they exist. There are no license numbers on any of the imprints, in fact quite a few of the pieces don’t even have an author listed, a number of the pieces are not covered by CCLI (they are GIA or OCP), and there are even some secular pieces in the book (“You Raise Me Up”, though covered by CCLI, surely can’t be appropriate for use during Mass). The parish admin. advised me that the parish doesn’t have money to reprint the books (would cost about $100 in paper, and ideally another $100 to buy a SongSelect license for a year to get clean imprints instead of lyric sheets with chord symbols) and that the volunteer leading the youth choir might quit if he is told that he can’t use all of this music. Do I let this go because of the conflict that it could create? Am I suitably motivated in wanting to see the parish respect the commandment to not steal and to respect the Church’s long tradition of being a patron of music? If the priest (God bless him) is clueless and the parish admin. is hostile, how do I proceed?
  • chonakchonak
    Posts: 9,160
    Welcome, LadyIslay.

    First, a tip:
    Secretaries' Day: I mean, Administrative Professionals Day, is April 27.

    If the parish is doing wrong by violating copyright, but the license would only cost $100/year, the wrong is (let's say) a venial sin: $2/week. If you were to insist on correcting it right away, the results might be worse than letting the problem slide for now. (Sometimes confessors have to treat their penitents similarly.) At some point, if you're hired as music director and get a job description, it can include the task of tracking music orders and copyrights. There will probably be a diocesan policy on music copyrights, which you'll want to implement.

    Until then, just do the right thing for any new music you add at the parish. Since you've informed the pastor of the problem, he has responsibility for it.
  • LadyIslay
    Posts: 6
    Hired as a music director? Hahaha! No, this parish has no such thing. No one is 'in charge'.

    I don't know about your reasoning with regards to the degree of sin. Shouldn't what a parish does publically should always be above reproach? The Church should lead by example, no? They may have a license, but the books themselves do not comply with it due to lack of correct copyright notices in the books, and because they don't have licenses for everything in it. I'm fairly sure that some of the songs aren't covered by any license (they have stuff from "Godspell" in there).
  • Adam WoodAdam Wood
    Posts: 6,451
    If you've been asked to run things at the Saturday evening Mass, you ought to take that as an opportunity to build an exemplar music program in miniature.
    If your parish is typical, the Saturday Mass is the "Early Bird Special" crowd, and is not big into congregational singing. If that's the case, you'll likely get little pushback on the gradual elimination of hymn sin favor of propers.

    Strictly speaking, the music most suitable to your situation is all either Public Domain (because it's old) or Creative Commons (because the contemporary composers have offered it as a gift to the Church). This fact gives you a "two birds with one stone" reason for moving towards the "ideal." The (I'm guessing limited) instrumental and vocal resources at the Mass you've been asked to take over is another reason to avoid the habitual music of the Roman Rite, which usually calls for ENSEMBLE(Cantor, Backup singers, piano, guitar, mandolin, flute, congas, tambourine).

    My strong advice:
    Take position offered to you.
    Immediately replace the Offertory with Simple English Propers.
    For the other three "hymn slots" (ugh) select good, traditional hymns in the Public Domain. (With a strong preference for Gregorian hymns, especially at Communion).
    Continue using whatever Mass setting they're currently sining. Replace with ICEL chants on first Sunday of Advent.
    Do not, under any circumstances, program music that requires copyright permission, since you don't have it.
    Gradually replace hymns with other Proper settings as able.
    Try not to get noticed by those in authority.
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    Saying Catholic churches never get sued for copyright infringement is like saying no one ever gets struck by lightning.

    It's rare, but if it happens you'll never forget it.

    Habitual music of the very ordinary form of the Roman Rite, I'm sure you meant to say!
  • Jeffrey TuckerJeffrey Tucker
    Posts: 3,624
    You can toss a shilling to the king, but this sounds like the least of the problems in this parish. I personally doubt that there is anything under copyright in this instance that is worth keeping around in any case. MusicaSacra has vast music resources available for free and that are not under copyright, and you should avail yourself of those.
  • Jeffrey Quick
    Posts: 2,046
    "I’m at a complete loss as to who ‘runs’ things in the parish."
    Well, the priest does, always, but apparently he is running musical things by not running them, perhaps because he feels he doesn't understand music, or he doesn't want to get into style wars. A certain amount of benign neglect can be to your advantage. It's hard to better Adam's suggestions. What you have here is an opportunity to measure market forces in the Mass. If you develop a traditional program, and increase the number of people coming to your Mass (particularly if those people are generous givers, ahem), he's going to notice that that seems to work better.
  • Francesca
    Posts: 51
    Welcome to our side of the Tiber, LayIslady!

    I made the swim a few years ago, myself, and I deeply appreciate your questions. Much is done in the Catholic church that is simply 'public knowledge', i.e., all Catholics know things that are not written down anywhere, you don't and you can't find out easily. Don't be surprised if this lack of common practice is used against you as people try to maintain their fiefdoms. I found an elderly nun who acted as my 'advisor' and you might want to identify a sympathetic person who can tell you about these Catholic traditions and how they work.

    The Pastor/priest has absolute authority over everything. Don't expect to see a budget or to manage one, as in most Protestant churches. If you need something, you'll have to go to him and ask for it, even money for tuning instruments.

    You've gotten into a nest of what I call 'empire builders'. Each one has their own show and God help the person who wants to organize them, or even talk to them. I have a couple of these pockets. Some people can become friends eventually if time is spent with them, as I've found with the Hispanic (actually Ecuadoran) choir. Others - not. Discernment is needed. Common ground might be found over a lunch - it won't be during meetings where people perceive their fiefdoms are in danger. You'll waste time, energy and may get beat up in ways that will undermine any authority you have. So...

    Take Adam's advice. Take whatever Mass is in your hands and transform it. When I first arrived at my church, before being hired as Music Director, I was a sub, then I had the 7:30 am Mass. My husband is a professional singer and instrumentalist. Together we began to introduce music.

    It was dynamite. People referred to us not as musicians or the organist and cantor, but 'the singers' in a tone of respect. No screaming Cantor a la Catholic tradition, as in the other Masses. We found public domain hymns, chants, duets, even the odd Contemporary worship song as long as it was deeply worshipful. (I keep an old Methodist and Episcopal Hymnal in my arsenal in the Loft.) A few (very few, but extraordinary for the Catholic tradition where people don't tend to 'fellowship' after Mass like Protestants do) came up to the Choir Loft, some with tears in their eyes, saying how the music had moved them. One man wanted to join the choir we didn't have, and with training has become an excellent Cantor and leading member of our new Schola. If this is what God wants for you, He will bless it and you'll see the fruit.

    I'm not saying you won't experience push-back from the other empires - you will. But then the Pastor will have to make some decisions and he's more likely to come down on your side when the good comments start to come in.

    Remember, above all, it's for Him, our Dear Jesus.
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    Beware of people who attempt to get you to talk against or agree with them in talking against the pastor. This often happens. You need to stay above that at all times. He is the only person who makes decisions, as Linda has said. Too many musicians in the Catholic church treat him like an adversary and tremendously undermine themselves with the people.

    If he happens to be an idiot, which can happen, he will appreciate the respect even so.

    And, I should add, your respect for him may change him as well.
  • LadyIslay
    Posts: 6
    Thanks for the advise, folks. I don't think I there are resources to reproduce public domain stuff for a weekly hand-out for the congregation to sing. I'll speak with the woman that usually plays the 'organ' on Saturdays tomorrow: whatever I do, I have to do it with her because she would be playing for me.
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    Having reread your initial message:

    After some prayerful consideration, I came up with a vision of the music leaders in our parish coming together to meet once a month to share in a time of fellowship, prayer and discussion with the intention of:
    · Supporting one another’s individual ministries by sharing spiritual gifts, resources, and fellowship
    · Finding ways to equip, encourage, and recruit other people sharing in the music ministry in the parish (singers and musicians)
    · Ensure that all our music is full of the life, joy, and dignity befitting the celebration of the Eucharist

    Working in a Protestant church, which I have done in the past, I can see you are applying what you see in your job, to a Catholic parish.

    As you have also mentioned, some people are going to be dead set against anything/everything you want to do. For no good reason, if that helps at all.

    The best way for you to accomplish this is to do your Mass the best that you can and let the rest of the parish go on as it is. If you do a good job, there will be interest in knowing why things are "better" at your Mass and you will have an impact on the entire parish.
  • noel jones, aagonoel jones, aago
    Posts: 6,605
    The parish administrator, by not insisting that all music printed be printed with permission, is putting the parish in a very weak position if the copyright police drop by.
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