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Views from the Choir Loft

Mind, Senses and Recorded Music

Veronica Brandt · September 5, 2015

lots of tapes AST WEEKEND I was away from home and visited another parish for Sunday Mass. Instead of a choir they had recorded music. The lyrics were displayed on several screens along with parts of the Mass.

I know recorded music at Mass is generally discouraged if not forbidden. It got me thinking what the effect of this music has on people.

I stumbled across this example of understanding enhanced by subtitles which got me wondering about how much people understand of what we sing without screens to show them the words. At my regular parish Mass we don’t have screens and rely on people to pick up hymnbooks and turn to the right page, which doesn’t always happen.

Also this example shows how much our experience of music depends on what we already know. This could be used as an argument to stick to obvious, flat music and lyrics, but we have dozens of Catholic educational institutions across the city. We have so much infrastructure dedicated to education, surely we can manage to raise Catholics with that modicum of liturgical literacy to appreciate Catholic music.

You don’t need to be conversant in Latin to get something out of chant and polyphony in Latin. A little familiarity with some hymns and psalms in Latin goes a long way to understanding what the choir is singing.

Here is a study showing visual cues were more important than sound in determining the winners of a music competition. From what I can read in the supplementary material the competition was a more classical sort, so shouldn’t be relying on glitz and glamour for points. Watching the performers was a major part of the experience.

Many people judge Gregorian chant to be “boring” but how many people have heard it sung with love and care and skill? I think this may be part of why even an inexperienced choir singing beautiful music live can be an awesome, uplifting experience, which is sadly lost when you try to record them.

And if watching people sing enhances the experience, how much more when we join in the singing?

And how much is lost when we substitute a CD instead.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Recording Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Veronica Brandt

Veronica Brandt holds a Bachelor Degree in Electrical Engineering. She lives near Sydney, Australia, with her husband and six children.—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Simplest “Agnus Dei” Ever Published
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. I needed a relatively simple “Agnus Dei,” so I composed this setting for organ & voice in honor of Saint René Goupil. It has been called the simplest setting ever composed. I love CARMEN GREGORIANUM (“Gregorian Chant”), especially the ALLELUIAS, INTROITS, and COMMUNION ANTIPHONS. That being said, some have pointed out that certain sections of the Kyriale aren’t as strong as the Graduale or Vesperale. There’s a reason for this—but it would be too complicated to explain at this moment.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. However, on the feasts website, the chants have been posted for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C), which is this coming Sunday: 6 July 2025.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Bugnini’s Statement (6 November 1966)
    With each passing day, more is revealed about how the enemies of the liturgy accomplished their goals. For instance, Hannibal Bugnini deeply resented the way Vatican II said Gregorian Chant “must be given first place in liturgical services.” On 6 November 1966, his cadre wrote a letter attempting to justify the elimination of Gregorian Chant with this brazen statement: “What really gives a Mass its tone is not so much the songs as it is the prayers and readings.” Bugnini’s cadre then attacked the very heart of Gregorian Chant (viz. the Proprium Missae), bemoaning how the Proprium Missae “is completely new each Sunday and feast day.” There is much more to be said about this topic. Stay tuned.
    —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

“Edwin Fischer was, on the concert platform, a short, leonine, resilient figure, whose every fibre seemed to vibrate with elemental musical power.”

— Daniel Barenboim (1960)

Recent Posts

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  • Bishop François Charrière Vs. Hannibal Bugnini
  • 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • “My First Year with the Latin Mass” • A Music Director’s Perspective

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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.

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