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“A much greater source of anxiety to Us is the style of action of those who maintain that liturgical worship should shed its sacred character, who foolishly say we should substitute for sacred items & furnishings ordinary common things in daily use.” —Pope Saint Paul VI (14 Oct 1968)

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Views from the Choir Loft

Banish All Guitars and Pianos from the Church

Dr. Peter Kwasniewski · March 28, 2013

IVEN the increasingly obvious failure of much of contemporary church music to embody the spirit of sacredness and the link with Tradition that Vatican II demands of all new compositions for the liturgy, it is surprising that there are still so many places left in the Catholic world where one can find guitars and pianos, those quintessentially secular instruments, furnishing accompaniment and interludes. This is all the more surprising, given that it has never been difficult to discern the mind of the Church on this matter.

Summarizing the view of the Popes prior to the Second Vatican Council, Venerable Pius XII teaches in his encyclical Musicae Sacrae of 1955: “Besides the organ, other instruments can be called upon to give great help in attaining the lofty purpose of sacred music, so long as they play nothing profane, nothing clamorous or strident, and nothing at variance with the sacred services or the dignity of the place” (n. 59).

The post-conciliar Instruction on Sacred Music, Musicam Sacram, of 1967, hones this judgment as follows: “One criterion for accepting and using musical instruments is the genius and tradition of particular peoples. At the same time, however, instruments that are generally associated with and used only by worldly music are to be absolutely barred from liturgical services and religious devotions. Any musical instrument permitted in divine worship should be used in such a way that it meets the needs of the liturgical celebration, and is in the interests both of the beauty of worship and the edification of the faithful” (n. 63).

At the time this document was written, guitars played in the folk style were strongly associated with worldly music—the music of the counterculture—and not with sacred music in church, which was the hallowed domain of the pipe organ, and on special occasions, strings and wind instruments.

In an Address to the Italian Association of Saint Cecilia on 18 September 1968, Pope Paul VI had this to say: “The primary purpose of sacred music is to evoke God’s majesty and to honor it. … Since that is the essential function for sacred music, what ground is there for allowing anything that is shabby or banal, or anything that caters to the vagaries of aestheticism or is based on the prevailing excesses of technology? … Vocal and instrumental music that is not at once marked by the spirit of prayer, dignity, and beauty, is barred from entrance into the world of the sacred and the religious. The assimilation and sanctification of the secular, which is today a distinguishing mark of the Church’s mission in the world, clearly has limits; this is all the more the case when the issue is to invest the secular with the sacredness proper to divine worship.”

Now, the piano—or, to give it its full and telling name, pianoforte—is a percussion instrument, a concert hall and jazz festival mainstay, a lounge and bar-room fixture. It was developed exclusively in the world of secular entertainment music in the classical period by musicians like Beethoven who were looking for a penetrating sound that would carry well through a concert hall. The whole point of the “Hammerklavier,” the precursor to today’s instrument, was to seize the listener and pin him to the music for its own sake. We are dealing here with a worldly instrument that announces to its audience: “I’m playing now for your entertainment, so sit back and (—fill in the blank—-) [sip your drink; tap your toes; read the newspaper; chat pleasantly with your companion; or, in Liszt’s day, swoon before the virtuoso].

For its part, the acoustic folk guitar was never an instrument used in church. In the baroque period the theorbo and lute were occasionally used as accompanying instruments with strings and organ, but the solo guitar, even played in a classical style, was simply not part of the tradition—much less a guitar played in the strumming and syncopated style of folk-music or pop music. In the late 1950s this instrument meant one thing and one thing only: secular entertainment music. That is why the strictures of the documents quoted above (to which more quotations could be added) apply so unequivocally to it; and these are strictures than no Church document has ever repudiated or relaxed.

Let us recall a fine saying of Blessed John Paul II: “Christians should rediscover the newness of the faith and its power to judge a prevalent and all-intrusive culture” (Veritatis Splendor, n. 88).

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 Dr. Peter Kwasniewski

A graduate of Thomas Aquinas College (B.A. in Liberal Arts) and The Catholic University of America (M.A. and Ph.D. in Philosophy), Dr. Peter Kwasniewski is currently Professor at Wyoming Catholic College. He is also a published and performed composer, especially of sacred music.

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    “Music List” • 15th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (13 July 2025). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and propers for this Sunday are also provided at the the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    This coming Sunday—13 July 2025—is the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). All the chants have been conveniently assembled and posted at the feasts website. The OFFERTORY, Ad Te Levávi, is particularly beautiful.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Music Director Job • $80,000 per year
    Our readers will be interested in this job offering for Music Director at Saint Adalbert’s Basilica, located 40 minutes from where I live. My pastor was recently elevated to this basilica. He is offering $80,000 per year, plus benefits. I’m told Saint Adalbert’s Basilica is utterly gorgeous and contains one of America’s most magnificent pipe organs. It would be fantastic to have a colleague nearby!
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

“In the Latin Church the pipe organ is to be held in high esteem, for it is the traditional musical instrument which adds a wonderful splendor to the Church’s ceremonies and powerfully lifts up man’s mind to God and to higher things.”

— Vatican II Council

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