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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

Kids Are Colorblind But Adults Are Not

Dr. Alfred Calabrese · May 3, 2017

AST WEEK in my article, I mentioned my daughter, so I thought this week I’d reference my son. When he was about three years old we lived in Atlanta and he was in a daycare with children of many different races. His best friend there was a Chinese boy. My son never asked about the color of anyone’s skin or the shape of their eyes. To him and all the other kids there, they were just kids—all the same. They didn’t have any prejudices or biases. Here’s a beautiful example of what I’m talking about.


Isn’t this kind of colorblindness always the case? Until, of course, adults and society get involved, and begin to inflict their biases on children. I’ve often thought that this is what happens with music, especially music in the Church.

ANYONE INVOLVED WITH TEACHING music to children, especially very young children, will know that they’ll gladly sing anything you put in front of them. If they know you like it, they’ll like it. If you tell them, “this is what you’re supposed to do,” they’ll gladly do it. It’s been wonderful to hear the first and second graders in our school sing hymns like Jesus, My Lord, My God, My All (SWEET SACRAMENT). They absolutely love it! It’s equally great to know that my choir kids love Panis Angelicus and Fauré’s Ave Maria.

Too often, however, adults (parents, teachers, older children) tell them that’s not the music they’re supposed to like. It’s not cool. And besides, aren’t kids supposed to be cute? What normal kid would like Latin? What modern Catholic kid wouldn’t want to sing something exciting, with fun things like clapping and stamping and raising up their arms? It’s when they experience these prejudices that kids start to think twice, biases set in, and we’ve lost them.

What’s both interesting and sad is when adults with these prejudices hear children joyfully singing traditional music, they dismiss it as an aberration. Further, they often stereotype these kids. They’ll say that the little ones are too young to know better, or that the choir kids are just a little “different” (weird, or worse). “Just wait until they become teenagers,” they say, “then they’ll really rebel.”

I’m convinced that kids and teens have been taught by adults with an agenda to dislike solid hymnody, chant, and anything that smacks of tradition in the Church. So many adults find it necessary to inflict their prejudices on these children instead of just staying out of it. I think I know why. Do you?

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. Alfred Calabrese

Dr. Alfred Calabrese is Director of Music and Liturgy at St. Rita Catholic Church in Dallas, TX. He and his wife have two children.—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    “Music List” • 22nd in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 31 August 2025, which is the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). 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 spectacular feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “The Worm That Dieth Not”
    My pastor asked me to write a column for our parish bulletin with reflections on the sacred liturgy and church music. In my most recent article, I discuss “The Worm That Dieth Not.” At this website, you can access it conveniently; simply scroll down to the one dated 31 August 2025.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    A Nice Hymn In Spanish
    In my humble opinion, this is a really beautiful hymn in Spanish. If I practice diligently, I’ll be able to pronounce all the words properly. If you’re someone who’s interested in obtaining a melody only version (suitable for your congregational ORDER OF WORSHIP) you can steal that from this.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Solemn “Salve Regina” (Chant)
    How many “S” words can you think of using alliteration? How about Schwann Solemn Salve Score? You can download the SOLEMN SALVE REGINA in Gregorian Chant. The notation follows the official rhythm (EDITIO VATICANA). Canon Jules Van Nuffel, choirmaster of the Cathedral of Saint Rumbold, composed this accompaniment for it (although some feel it isn’t his best work).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    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

Random Quote

I feel the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a direct war, a direct killing—direct murder by the mother herself. And we read in the Scripture, for God says very clearly: “Even if a mother could forget her child, I will not forget you: I have carved you in the palm of my hand.”

— Mother Theresa (11 Dec 1979)

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