• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)

  • About
  • Symposium
  • Hymnal
  • Jogues Missal
  • Site Map
  • Donate
Views from the Choir Loft

The Church Music Director: Job or Vocation?

Andrew R. Motyka · February 27, 2013

he college professor whom I respected most was the director of music at the cathedral in Albany, New York. He had been the director there for over forty years before he retired, fighting through multiple sclerosis for thirty years. One of his most common pieces of advice was “don’t go into music.” Naturally, as I neared graduation and expressed my desire to continue my studies, focusing in liturgical music, he had some great wisdom.

He reminded me that working for the Church can consume your whole life. With what was obviously a bit of regret, he warned me to never let your work interfere with your family life. Your whole weekends can be gone, you can spend extra hours or days at the office, church, or organ console, and before you know it, your children have grown up without a parent.

There is a balance that all of us who work for the Church need to find, especially those of us who have families at home. For myself, I constantly remind myself that music in the liturgy is my job. Yes, it is a job that I love, and its connection to my faith naturally gives it a deeper meaning in my life than another job might. However, it is not my vocation. My vocation is to be a husband and father, and if my job interferes with that, then something is amiss.

The best way to do this is to be jealous with your days off. I’ve found myself, on more than one occasion, thinking that I’ll put in an extra day at the office, and I’ll shift my day off to later in the week. This never happens. Without fail, there will be a funeral or some other emergency that comes up and you will lose your time with your family altogether. Take days off when they come, and spend them with family. Make time to pick the children up from school, even if it means going back to work in the evening or bringing work home with you. Remember that you work for your family; your family doesn’t revolve around your work.

I always tell people that I am blessed to be able to do what I truly love for a living, to have a relationship with God and offer praise to Him through music. At the end of the day, though, there needs to be a separation between job and vocation. If I had to do the most vile jobs to provide for my family, I would do it. Thank God if you can do what you love and make money doing it, but do not let it consume your true vocation.

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

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Subscribe to the CCW Mailing List

About Andrew R. Motyka

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

Primary Sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

Quick Thoughts

14 May 2022 • “Pure” Vatican Edition

As readers know, my choir has been singing from the “pure” Editio Vaticana. That is to say, the official rhythm which—technically—is the only rhythm allowed by the Church. I haven’t figured out how I want the scores to look, so in the meantime we’ve been using temporary scores that look like this. Stay tuned!

—Jeff Ostrowski
14 May 2022 • Gorgeous Book

If there is a more beautiful book than Abbat Pothier’s 1888 Processionale Monasticum, I don’t know what it might be. This gorgeous tome was today added to the Saint John Lalande Online Library. I wish I owned a physical copy.

—Jeff Ostrowski
Sound Familiar?

1 June 1579: “The chapter passes a rule that anyone ascending to the new organ without official permission shall be fined a month’s pay.”

26 October 1579: “The altar boys remain always separate and distinct from choirboys—the one group learning only plainchant and assisting at the altar, the other living with the chapel-master and studying counterpoint and polyphony as well. Father Francisco Guerrero postpones his departure for Rome and instead spends the entire year in Seville making ready for the trip. In the meantime he neglects his choirboys. On 16 November, after considerable complaint against their unruliness and ignorance, he engages an assistant, Bartolomé Farfán.”

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“Those who teach Latin must know how to speak to the hearts of the young, know how to treasure the very rich heritage of the Latin tradition to educate them in the path of life, and accompany them along paths rich in hope and confidence.”

— Pope Francis (7 December 2017)

Recent Posts

  • Prayer of Abandonment,  Saint Charles de Foucauld
  • Worst Chanting I’ve Ever Heard
  • 14 May 2022 • “Pure” Vatican Edition
  • 14 May 2022 • Gorgeous Book
  • Musician-Saints Throughout the Ages

Copyright © 2022 Corpus Christi Watershed · Gabriel Lalemant on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.