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

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Views from the Choir Loft

Appropriate Music for the Sacred Liturgy

Lucas Tappan · December 20, 2016

LMT Mosaic WEEKS AGO, David Clayton wrote a piece at The New Liturgical Movement about the push in church music over the last 5 decades to “connect with people by giving them music that is derived from already popular forms.” As he correctly notes, “The problem with this approach is that it can only connect to those people who actually listen for enjoyment to that style of music out of church.”

I often observe this phenomenon at work in parishes and in dioceses—the desire to reach various groups with tailored liturgies and music to boot, whether it be the wee tots in parochial school Masses singing “This Little Light of Mine,” pimply faced youngster at Sunday evening Teen Masses strumming on guitars and shouting “Yes Lord, Yes Lord, Yes, Yes Lord,” or any number of graying adults singing at either the contemporary or “traditional” service on Sunday mornings. Gone are the days of the Sunday High Mass that brought together the entire parish family, young and old alike. Clayton also rightly noted that both Ordinary and Extraordinary Form communities fall prey to the trap of “old music” vs. “new music” within Mass—which begs the question, where do we go from here? Where indeed!

To begin with, this is not a problem that begins and ends with church music. It is very difficult to implement a program of truly sacred music, focused on the Lord, when so many of our Masses and other services are celebrated as if God were a side note, a somewhat supreme being who is content to stay in the background and ensure that we go no further than feeling good about ourselves and supporting each other in whatever lifestyle we might choose.

Still, there must be a way to claw ourselves out of such a mess. I would suggest that we need to once again discover what the Sacred Liturgy is. If we really believe that God has called us first (and not the other way around), then we have to realize that the work of the Sacred Liturgy is His first. Not to say that He doesn’t allow men to shape the way the it is celebrated in different places and times (we see this in the differences between the various Rites of the Catholic Church). Nevertheless, we must find out His plan. We need to become familiar with the Liturgy in the Ancient Temple of the Israelites as well as the Holy Mass as celebrated in the New Testament. We need to become familiar with the Book of Revelation and the Eternal Liturgy of Heaven. We also need to read Ratzinger’s The Spirit of the Liturgy, for there is no better source for discovering God’s plan for the Sacred Liturgy. Only then will we be able to approach the question of what music is appropriate for the Mass and Divine Office. Only then will we see in Gregorian chant the archetypal music of the Roman Rite and only then will we be able to compose truly modern music (as opposed to recycled pop music with quasi Christian lyrics). We have a lot of work ahead of us.

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 Lucas Tappan

Dr. Lucas Tappan is a conductor and organist whose specialty is working with children. He lives in Kansas with his wife and four children.—(Read full biography).

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PDF Download • Trinity Sunday (22 pages)

Feel free to download this Organ Accompaniment Booklet for Trinity Sunday (Second Vespers). Notice how the modes progress by number. Psalm 1 is mode 1; Psalm 2 is mode 2; Psalm 3 is mode 3; Psalm 4 is mode 4; Psalm 5 is mode 5. I am told by an expert that other feasts (such as Corpus Christi) are likewise organized by mode, and it’s called a “numerical office.”

—Jeff Ostrowski
10 June 2022 • “Official” rhythm of plainsong

I continue to search for the most beautiful way to present the “pure” Editio Vaticana scores. (Technically, the “pure” rhythm of the official edition is what everyone is supposed to use.) You can download my latest attempt, which is the Introit for this coming Sunday: Feast of the Most Holy Trinity. Because this is not an ancient feast, the Introit had to be adapted (perhaps around 750AD). Prior Johner says the adaptation is “not an entirely happy one.”

—Jeff Ostrowski
7 June 2022 • FEEDBACK

From Chelan, Washington: “CCWatershed is a God-sent resource that I can’t function without! Such great work by the team to bring beauty back to our liturgy!” From Gainesville, Florida: “I am so appreciative of the work, of my brothers and sisters in music!” From Troutman, North Carolina: “Keep up the excellent work in service of the Liturgy!”

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“After the Second Vatican Council, the impression arose that the pope really could do anything in liturgical matters, especially if he were acting on the mandate of an ecumenical council. Eventually, the idea of the givenness of the liturgy, the fact that one cannot do with it what one will, faded from the public consciousness of the West.”

— Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

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