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Views from the Choir Loft

Have We Lost The Church Music Battle?

Jeff Ostrowski · September 8, 2014

897 Keep Calm ERNADETTE FARRELL once argued that Church musicians like James MacMillan should choose the “selfless path” and stop insisting upon our Church’s traditional music, but her argument was erroneous. Those of us who work in parishes know that nothing is easier than giving people “the music they want”—and I suspect many of us are guilty of playing inappropriate music to avoid conflict (especially at weddings).

On the other hand, standing up for music corresponding to the Church’s criteria requires bravery and strength. I’ve received hundreds of emails from our readers, and many have shared their heroic stories. They are trying to implement the music they feel called by God to implement, but often encounter fierce opposition. Many have burning questions:

“Why isn’t there a Schola Cantorum in each church? Why aren’t the Propers sung everywhere? Why do so many parishes allow such horrible music? Why am I persecuted for trying to follow Church teachings in this area? How did we lose the battle over good church music?”

My answer may shock you. I feel our movement HAS BEEN SUCCESSFUL BEYOND OUR WILDEST DREAMS. Now, let me explain why I say this.

WHILE IT’S TRUE THAT TOO MANY Catholic churches employ inappropriate music, the good news is that—against all odds—the traditional music still triumphs in one important area: parishes run by “no-nonsense” priests. Whenever I encounter serious parishes, I notice they choose authentic Sacred music without exception. 1 Moreover, new resources are added constantly. I recently mentioned eleven collections of Mass Propers, and we’ll soon be posting a review of the new English Gradual by Belmont Abbey.

Why don’t more churches choose authentic Sacred music? For one thing, it’s difficult; and we tend to avoid difficult things due to human nature. However, there are deeper reasons, and it’s crucial that we become aware of them. It’s imperative that we know “what we’re up against.”

Listen to this brief excerpt from Disney’s Lion King :

      * *  Mp3 Audio File: Lion King (Disney, 1994) — “Stampede”   2

The soundtrack here is absolutely superb. Perfectly composed, flawlessly performed, skillfully mastered—it fits this film like a glove. The director knew what music was suitable (to borrow Bugnini’s favorite word) and no one disputes this. Yet, when it comes to Church music, it has been forbidden over the past four decades to discuss what type of music is suitable for Mass. A drafter of the USCCB document on Church music even said publicly that Church music “need not sound Catholic.”

Now, consider an example from Barney & Friends :

      * *  Mp3 Audio File: Disgusting Sprechstimme (Barney & Friends)   3

Did you notice how the soloists spoke their lines, instead of singing true pitches? Such a technique can be acceptable on occasion—like when Rex Harrison does it—but it’s become a plague. In fact, this technique is abused so often, it has contributed to the erosion of our culture. Children no longer understand what it means to sing. By the way, the banal lyrics to that Barney song remind me of much contemporary Church music. 4

The next example dates back to 1999, when I was in 12th grade. At that time, I was rehearsing a Mozart concerto in a practice room:

      * *  Mp3 Audio File: Mozart Concerto No. 23 — Practice Session Excerpt (1999)

      (Please excuse any errors. At that time, I lacked experience playing concerti.)

Mozart wrote that beautiful concerto for just one reason: the delight of the listener. I am so grateful that I had parents and teachers who taught me to value such music. I had disavowed by that time all the music I used to love—Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Green Day, Foo Fighters, and so forth—because I had found something better. In fact, I smashed all my rock’n’roll tapes with a hammer.

Pop music has done much to erode our culture. So many pop songs are obscenely simplistic and excessively repetitive. For instance, consider Viva la Vida (a wildly popular song by Coldplay). The entire piece is set over a four-bar phrase that repeats for the entire song. Should we really be shocked that good Catholic people have difficulty appreciating more sophisticated art forms like Gregorian chant & polyphony?



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   For the record, the same thing applies to the Catholic Church’s “hard” teachings. For instance, down the road from us, a young “traditional” priest was recently assigned as Pastor. He has refused to “water down” the Gospel. For example, they have glossy pamphlets at each door explaining Catholic teaching on artificial contraception. Yet, this doesn’t drive anyone away. The pews are packed each Sunday, tithing has more than quadrupled, and the free Bible study courses are packed. It seems people are hungry for the truth!

2   I’d prefer that you listen, but if you absolutely must watch, click this link.

3   You can see the video by clicking this link. For the record, this isn’t the best song for Barney, since his facial expression remains the same no matter what.

4   If you think I’m exaggerating, Google the lyrics to “Bread Of Friendship, Bread Of Love,” written by Owen Alstott (husband of Bernadette Farrell).

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Owen Alstott Bernadette Farrell, Secular vs Sacred Music at Mass Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Jeff Ostrowski

Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004). He resides with his wife and children in Michigan. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!
    A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Booklet of Eucharistic Hymns” (16 pages)
    I was asked to create a booklet for my parish to use during our CORPUS CHRISTI PROCESSION on 22 June 2025. Would you be willing to look over the DRAFT BOOKLET (16 pages) I came up with? I tried to include a variety of hymns: some have a refrain; some are in major, others in minor; some are metered, others are plainsong; some are in Spanish, some are in Latin, but most are in English. Normally, we’d use the Brébeuf Hymnal—but we can’t risk having our congregation carry those heavy books all over the city to various churches.
    —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

“Partly on account of these alterations, and partly because I have been unable to ascertain the authorship of many compositions—which have come to me either in manuscript or through other collections—I have thought it right to publish the volume without appending the names of writers to their works. This, however, I confess to be a defect…”

— Benjamin Hall Kennedy (1863)

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