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Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

Setting an Example Through Funerals

Andrew R. Motyka · February 26, 2014

ET’S FACE IT: most of us are not making the switch to a Gregorian Ordinary and Propers anytime soon. That doesn’t mean that Gregorian Chant shouldn’t hold its rightful place of esteem in the Church’s musical treasury; it’s simply an acceptance of reality that will keep you sane. It also doesn’t mean that meaningful progress isn’t to be made here and there. There are concrete steps you can take to improve the music in your parish’s liturgy, and even some stealthy ways to sneak in some of the musical heritage that belongs there.

Yesterday, we celebrated the funeral of a priest in our Archdiocese. The family did not have any requests, so planning the music for the liturgy was up to me (NOTE: cherish these opportunities. It’s rare that you don’t have a grieving family’s requests to accommodate). I also saw this as an opportunity to model for many diocesan priests who would be in attendance what is possible for simple, approachable music at the average parish funeral. Here was our selection. Yes, I am aware that preludes are not prescribed for a funeral liturgy, but they have become normal as families gather.

PRELUDE: 1. Meditation sur “Dies Irae” et “Lux Aeterna” by Marie Joseph Erb 2. Requiem aeternam by Gerald Near

ENTRANCE ANTIPHON: Requiem aeternam, set metrically to LAND OF REST, from Christoph Tietze’s Introit Hymns. (Get that book. Some settings are better than others, but it is a very parish-friendly resource for easily working in some propers.)

RESPONSORIAL PSALM: Psalm 23, setting by Jeff Ostrowski from the Chabanel Psalms collection found on this very website.

ALLELUIA: Mode VI, proper verse.

OFFERTORY: O Jesus, Lord, Increase Our Faith (set to ERHALT UNS, HERR). A beautiful hymn text from GIA’s Hymnal of the Hours. If I had to repeat this funeral, this is the only portion I would consider altering, not because I was unhappy with this selection, but because there were several equally good options, including a few settings of the proper Offertory.

MASS ORDINARY: Chants from the 3rd edition of the Roman Missal. I wonder how many people even realized that it’s the normative ordinary for the Mass of the Dead.

COMMUNION ANTIPHON: My own setting, found here. While all of my antiphon settings match the Gregorian propers modally, this is the only one that sticks with the chant melody pretty strictly. I played the Lux aeterna from the Nova Organi Harmonia as an introduction to my setting.

SONG OF FAREWELL: Proulx’s setting of Saints of God. This one is an old warhorse, but there are few better vernacular settings of this text. If you don’t want to use the OLD HUNDREDTH version (who can get excited about that?), or shudder the “O Danny Boy” version, use this one. Many places don’t use the proper text at this point in the liturgy, and this is both an easy setting and quite a good harmonization by Proulx.

PROCESSION TO THE PLACE OF COMMITAL: In paradisum in English, then in Latin. The Worship hymnals have a decent harmonization of this by Richard Proulx, which is reminiscent of the Nova Organi Harmonia style. Also, this is a relatively short chant for a fairly long procession, so doing it twice helps.

POSTLUDE: I normally don’t play postludes for funerals, but I tagged the above piece because it takes quite some time to march the family and 50-plus priests out of a church. I used Gerald Near’s setting of In paradisum.

None of this, including the organ pieces, is beyond the reach of even an early-intermediate organist (I would not call myself advanced). All in all, we sang almost all of the proper and ordinary from the Mass of the Dead, and I wonder how many priests even realized it. Funerals are a good time to re-introduce the Church’s musical tradition, and I have literally had families thank me for using In paradisum. You just can’t beat it for a more appropriate piece.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Andrew R. Motyka

Andrew Motyka is the Archdiocesan Director of Liturgical Music and Cathedral Music for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Why A “Fugue” Here?
    I believe I know why this plainsong harmonizer created a tiny fugue as the INTRODUCTION to his accompaniment. Take a look (PDF) and tell me your thoughts about what he did on the feast of the Flight of Our Lord Jesus Christ into Egypt (17 February). And now I must go because “tempus fugit” as they say!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”
    My pastor requested that I write short articles each week for our parish bulletin. Those responsible for preparing similar write-ups may find a bit of inspiration in these brief columns. The latest article (dated 12 October 2025) talks about an ‘irony’ or ‘paradox’ regarding the 1960s switch to a wider use (amplior locus) of vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
    Those who don’t sign up for our free EMAIL NEWSLETTER miss important notifications. Last week, for example, I sent a message about this job opening for a music director paying $65,000 per year plus benefits (plus weddings & funerals). Notice the job description says: “our vision for sacred music is to move from singing at Mass to truly singing the Mass wherein … especially the propers, ordinaries, and dialogues are given their proper place.” Signing up couldn’t be easier: simply scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
    The American Catholic Hymnal, with IMPRIMATUR granted (25 April 1991) by the Archdiocese of Chicago, is like a compendium of every horrible idea from the 1980s. Imagine being forced to stand all through Communion (even afterwards) when those self-same ‘enlightened’ liturgists moved the SEQUENCE before the Alleluia to make sure congregations wouldn’t have to stand during it. (Even worse, everything about the SEQUENCE—including its name—means it should follow the Alleluia.) And imagine endlessly repeating “Alleluia” during Holy Communion at every single Mass. It was all part of an effort to convince people that Holy Communion was historically a procession (which it wasn’t).
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Canonic” • Ralph Vaughan Williams
    Fifty years ago, Dr. Theodore Marier made available this clever arrangement (PDF) of “Come down, O love divine” by P. R. Dietterich. The melody was composed in 1906 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (d. 1958) and named in honor of of his birthplace: DOWN AMPNEY. The arrangement isn’t a strict canon, but it does remind one of a canon since the pipe organ employs “points of imitation.” The melody and text are #709 in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Did they simplify these hymn harmonies?
    Choirs love to sing the famous & splendid tune called “INNSBRUCK.” Looking through a (Roman Catholic) German hymnal printed in 1952, I discovered what appears to be a simplified version of that hymn. In other words, their harmonization is much less complex than the version found in the Saint Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal (which is suitable for singing by SATB choir). Please download their 1952 harmonization (PDF) and let me know your thoughts. I really like the groovy Germanic INTRODUCTION they added.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“I ask that future priests, from their time in the seminary, receive the preparation needed to understand and to celebrate Mass in Latin, and also to use Latin texts and execute Gregorian chant; nor should we forget that the faithful can be taught to recite the more common prayers in Latin, and also to sing parts of the liturgy to Gregorian chant.”

— Statement by the Supreme Pontiff (Sacramentum Caritatis, 22-feb-2007)

Recent Posts

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  • New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”
  • “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)

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