There's only one religious-message CD on billboard right now.

I can cite anecdotal evidence too. I had some involvement in the school at my last job and heard plenty of times what the kids thought: "We like the songs in the blue book (Glory & Praise) better, the other ones are boring!" "I don't want to learn Latin, it's stupid!" On the other hand, the 3-4 graders were always impressed with "cool" organ music, and the 5-6 grade, despite their distaste and discomfort for it, would do chant with gusto. I strongly suspect that many kids were influenced by anti-chant parents and teachers. And there's no sound like 1st and 2nd graders shouting out the chant Gloria or Pater! As for me, my favorite hymn in grade school was "O Come O Come Emmanuel". But still, that's all anecdotal. I want to see some hard evidence about 1) what liturgical praxis attracts which group to Mass and 2) which praxis develops the best Catholics. Ideology is really not relevant to this (no one's brought it up, it just doesn't help matters to assert "libruls r bad Catholics"). And that's one thing I will say for certain about all the kids I worked with, and I'm sure Charles has found the same thing: they really don't care about these ideological battles, they just want to go to church and do what they're told is right.

edit: I'm not bringing this up to argue with Charles or anyone. It just seems to me that it would be beneficial for David to have some hard data to refer to so he can say "the majority of practicing Catholics 18-25 attend Mass in Latin" or "those teens participating in Lifeteen liturgies have been shown to be more likely to defect from Catholicism later in life." There are people numbers may not sway, but David hasn't really described a team of idealogues, just people with misperceptions on the liturgy.

Absolutely right, Charles. At first I couldn't stand kids. Then after working with them, I really began to enjoy it. Then I dealt with parents. I can't think of any way to describe my dealing with parents that would not give offense to anyone on this board with children.

Hm. I'm a music education researcher, and it looks like I've got a good next study here.

And Gavin, I'm a former schoolteacher and a current parent, too… I, for one, would be happy to grant an indult here to let you express your feelings on the matter!

Michael, as you know, I'm still in the trenches as DM for the parish and the music teacher for the PreK-8 parish school. The shift we all desire with the faithful in their "progress towards understanding" is dauntingly multifaceted. Regarding the kids- one of those facets that I've found glaringly absent in an otherwise healthy and coordinated liturgical/theological/musical curriculum at our school is the simple presence of "the priest" on campus. "He" is virtually never found on the playground during recess/lunch; "he" is seldom ever found visiting classrooms, etc. "He" is seen by students (both in parochial schools/rel.ed.) primarily at Mass; occasionally at concert or fundraising events. So, in my scenario, can we agree that "he" presents to the young eye a remote, ornately costumed "other," somewhat larger than life and an unknown quantity? My point is that if the kids see the parish priests entering into their "real lives" on a regular basis, interacting with them in casual situations at school talking sports, their interests AND religion, and establish healthy social relationships with students, then when the student body assembles for school/RE Masses, they will recognize that "their friend" is knowingly changing his behavior to a solemn, ritualized standard. He won't be an "other," he will be truly "alter Christus" and that reality might just take root in the minds and hearts of kids.
Another facet that's important in the life-long process is an old saw for me: consistency, consistency, consistency. If the teaching staff, including the musical and liturgical specialists, are not all on the same page with "lex orandi, lex credenti," then the liturgical practices of that parish will pinball around according to personal tastes and preferred modalities of that staff, and not with the benefit of consultation with the celebrants (again, priests tend to just show up; their notion of planning amounts to knowing when to show up.)
So, if a parish has an experienced and/or knowledgeable "Go-To" authority for matters liturgical who'll stay put for years, the kids will have their musical and liturgical vistas expand organically/systematically. But another anecdotal problem tends to mitigate that progress- a kid who has learned, accepted and practiced so-called "progressive solemnity" in their K-8 years at parochial school can easily have most of that unravel simply by observing the behaviors of their parents and other adults around them in the pews on Sunday. It slays me when I see individual kids I've had for three years or more look like zombies when they're at Mass on Sundays as older high school students. The awe and mystery factor seems no longer evident in any way on their faces or their postures. That's not what I taught and shared and witnessed with them. That comes from somewhere else. And I'm pretty sure that "condition" didn't occur just because "sacro pop" is a part of their liturgical diet.
But every year I'll up the ante. This fall we'll be using that 1952 GIA sourcebook for kids, "The Story of Salvation for Children" that uses chant and psalm tones in modern notation and with English in grades 2-6. This will be added onto their already existing programs, which last year included Latin motets in grades 3-7, and arrangements of chant for bell choir in 8 (Bell Choir is a sort of reward reserved for the 8th grade class.) Who knows, I might even invite our parish schola to join a couple of Friday Masses and see if we get "shock or awe!"

David Andrew said: ... the cantor stands with his/her back to it when leading the singing

Oh no no. Since the people are hard pressed to find their way out of a paper bag, the cantor is leading the Tabernacle to the people! Cantor ad populum.

I briefly tried the "warm and welcoming" school of "song leading" when I got a Catholic Church job a few years ago. (No one in the Orthodox or Episcopal churches would even know what this is talking about.) I alternately felt like (a) a big phony or (b) a show pony getting high on thinking that all those folks are looking at me. By nature, I am actually (b) - a show pony of the first water. However, one day it dawned on me that, yes, it wasn't "all about me." When called upon to do this, I start them, face front and sing.

I dunno. I've started studying "Youtube" footage of Liberace being warm and personable, talking to the TV audience through the camera. Seems that's what people want. I guess when I announce hymns and songs I should announce them like it's a sing-along.

The music? Surely you jest, sir. ;-) All kidding aside, I have found some of the music requires a professional musician to sing. It's beyond the abilities of the average congregation. I could never get away with using some of the "new" stuff - not really new anymore, but a fad that has run its course. The pastor will not allow hymns to be announced - something about ruining the solemnity of the mass. The people get they number from the hymn board in front, and it better be something worth singing. Otherwise they shut the hymnals and look forward in silence. Sometimes you just have to be grateful to have a pastor and a congregation that won't put up with nonsense.

Why do not more churches use the hymn boards? I was just at one where none of the ordinary was listed, nor announced, nor posted on the blank hymn board! At my parish we have triple redundency at the beginning of mass: worship aid, hymn board and announcement all give the number of the opening hymn. I for one could go without the announcement.

I was joking a bit in the earlier post, but I long ago cut the number of mass hymns down to three. I do a traditional entrance and recessional hymn with either a choir anthem/motet, or organ piece during the presentation of the gifts - which will always be the offertory to me. But the communion hymns in Ritual Song are largely wretched. So I am often stuck with a sing-songy and sacharine communion hymn. I have given some thought to introducing psalms at communion with antiphons that the congregation could sing without hymnals. My congregation actually has pretty good taste. They won't sing the 70's stuff and put their hymnals away in protest. My predecessor mentioned that the congregation wouldn't sing. I found that they do sing the traditional hymns reasonably well.

I understand. If I were in your situation I would probably turn to drink as well. So much depends on the pastor. My pastor directed me to choose two traditional hymns, one for entrance and one for recessional. He said that if one of the two hymns was less familiar to the congregation, use it for the recessional. We do have the giant hymnboard up front with 4 inch numbers, but no announcements. For special occasions, we print a program with everything in it.

David, Stick to your guns. Eventually the traditional hymns will become "what we always do", which is, after all the strongest reason for doing anything.

I'm grateful for this line of posts because it reminds me - woefully, I'll admit - that all the wackiness in the Church is not confined to my geographical location. Personalized altar cloths, branches with masking tape and butterflies - and we wonder why no one has a taste for good music? Traditional hymnody and chant are totally incongruous in churches that behave as though everyone were still in primary school.

There's a lot of heavy lifting to be done - and most of it lies outside the reach of church musicians.

Well original G, that was the point of my fanciful musings: that "Father" would model behaviors appropriate to the social mileaus at which he would regularly be present. Alas, I suppose that would be nostalgia for the "Father O'Malley's" of the Bing Crosby/Bells of St. Mary's era. And of course, I omited mention of the Number One excuse "why" priests aren't generally visible on their own parochial school campuses: they're being sensitive and overly careful not to give the appearance that smacks of "familiarity" with young children. Uh huh.
Regarding David's shifting of the entrance/recessional literature to trad. hymns- one thing I've been trying to do at my place, both with my programming and advising other leaders, is to use trad hymns that have some direct resonance to the Introit Proper antiphon. It's not always possible to find those tendons of connection, but doing so provides us with an opportunity for a modest catechesis regarding "awareness" of the function of the Propers. I suppose one could do the same with contemp. songs as well. But I find the trad well much deeper to that purpose.

Charles: as per Fr. Weber, I think an old Scottish psalm-hymn would work where no alternative can be found. Just pick one in the same meter as a hymn your congregation knows (WINCHESTER NEW perhaps) and do it up on a handout.