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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

The Choir Isn’t Everything

Richard J. Clark · September 23, 2016

USIC AT MASS is all about the choir, right? Wait, the cantor on a microphone? Really it’s all about the organist who can play the loudest. The musicians provide all the music that is important or that is needed, right? But the most obviously element to sacred music is often the most overlooked.

What happens when a priest sings the Greeting? Intones the Gloria? Sings the Collect? The Preface Dialogue and Preface? The Institution Narrative? The Lord’s Prayer? Etc.?

What is going on here?

The priest is singing more than the choir. The priest is singing the Mass. The people are responding to the dialogues. The choir sings. The people sing even more. Fitting are the words of the Exsultet: “Let this holy building shake with joy!”

Where appropriate, the choir sings. The choir has its role—a very important one: sometimes to simply sing with the congregation or enhance, fostering the unity of the faithful and exterior participation. Other times it is to sing alone to foster interior participation.

The choir’s role is indeed important, but it is only a part of a larger unified role. Ideally, sacred music is a wider effort that goes well beyond the choir loft. It emanates from the choir loft and from the sanctuary. It comes to fruition in the pews and resonates in song and in the heart. Music—hence prayer—is unified throughout the sacred space.

The priest’s musical role is enormously influential for the congregation. But not all priests are comfortable singing. Remember, a small amount of singing from a priest will yield enormous dividends. This can not be emphasized enough. Even singing recto tono (singing on one note only) for the Greeting or Collect can energize a congregation. (Keep it simple!) This in turn can kick start a congregation to sing everything else more robustly.

I encourage all priests to sing even a little bit. I encourage all music directors to work with and encourage their clergy. A few notes at Mass will be a mustard seed that will yield great fruit.

At all times, all sacred music—whether sung by the priest, choir, or congregation—the role of sacred music is to help the faithful pray the texts of the Mass. Ultimately, whatever our individual role is during the liturgy, all are working towards the same goal: the edification and sanctification of the people—the salvation of souls.

PRIESTS! DEACONS! CHOIRS! Want to sing the Mass and learn the chants of The Roman Missal? Here they are:

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: ICEL Chants, Singing the Mass Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Richard J. Clark

Richard J. Clark is the Director of Music of the Archdiocese of Boston and the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    “Music List” • 17th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (27 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 Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Communion • “Ask & You Shall Receive”
    All of the chants for 27 July 2025 have been added to the feasts website, as usual under a convenient “drop down” menu. The COMMUNION ANTIPHON (both text and melody) are exceedingly beautiful and ancient.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Jeff’s Mother Joins Our Fundraiser
    To assist our fundraiser, Mrs. Kathleen Ostrowski has drawn several beautiful sketches which she offers to all our readers free of charge. If you have a moment, I invite you download them at this link.
    —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

“The plan to definitively abolish the traditional Tridentine Mass … if it is true, seems to me to be an insult to the history of the Church and to Sacred Tradition, a diabolical project that seeks to break with the Church of Christ, the apostles, and the saints.”

— The Vatican’s chief liturgist (appointed by Pope Francis) from 2014-2021

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