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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

Youth Choristers – Formation Beyond Singing

Patrick Torsell · February 10, 2020

F young people are to be instrumental in restoring and supporting truly beautiful, dignified sacred music in our churches, they need to learn more than just how to sing well. If you are blessed with any sort of youth/children’s choir program, or teach music in a Catholic school, make some time in your rehearsals or classes to go beyond the pedagogy and note learning. This can be difficult because it always seems like there’s so much music to learn, and so little time. But if we really want to develop not just future church singers and musicians, but also an informed laity who appreciate sacred music, we have to get beyond the “how” to the “why.”

In our Chorister program (which comprises about 80 students ages 6-18) we make a point to ensure that each student walks away with a solid grasp not only of the forms and types of music that fit the criteria of “good” sacred music as taught by the Church’s legislation on sacred music (e.g. chant, polyphony, traditional hymnody), but also the underlying reasons. We discuss Pope St. Pius X’s Tra le sollecitudini, and review the teachings of more recent church documents and popes. We listen to dozens of examples of music, both fitting and not fitting for the liturgy, and analyze what makes it appropriate or inappropriate for the Mass.

We give the students criteria to consider and questions to ask when assessing the fitness of a piece of music for the liturgy. First, we ask with St. Pius X: “how closely does it resemble Gregorian Chant?” Not that all church music has to sound like an imitation of Chant; but does it share that otherness which sets it apart for the worship of God? Does it flow in a way that orients the heart and mind to prayer, avoiding jarring and overly dramatic elements?

Next, we like to do a little experiment by asking the choristers to express the first thought or idea that comes to mind when they hear a piece of music. For example, I’ll play an excerpt of a “jazz Mass,” and often get a response like: “it sounds like a movie scene in a smoky bar.” Or I’ll play one of the folk-style songs played by a guitar group, and they respond: “it sounds like the music grandpa listens to on the radio!” Then maybe I’ll play a bit of Palestrina’s Missae Papae Marcelli, and we finally arrive at: “it sounds like Church,” or even: “it’s like what the Angels would sing in Heaven!” It usually only takes a few seconds of listening to determine whether a piece of music calls to mind Heavenly things or earthly things, and even the youngest choristers can tell the difference. This, of course, is not a fool-proof measure of the fitness of music, as it certainly involves subjective elements, and is impacted by experience and conditioning. But it’s a good starting point to get them asking the right questions.

Finally, we break it down into three criteria: 1) Style: is the style of the music holy and sacred? That is: is it truly set apart for worship of God, or does it imitate secular, popular styles?; 2) Content: are the words truly sacred and doctrinally sound, oriented upward to the worship of God rather than downward toward man and worldly things?; and 3) Delivery: is the musician or choir presenting the piece in a dignified manner, accurately, skillfully, and oriented toward God’s glory? Is the instrumentation appropriate?

By asking these questions and encouraging the choristers to think critically about the qualities of the music we sing at Mass, we hope to send them off to adulthood not only with improved singing skills, but also with a heightened awareness of what makes sacred music “sacred,” and why it matters. It may take a little time away from rehearsal, but it’s time well spent.

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

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Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: February 10, 2020

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About Patrick Torsell

Patrick Torsell is a staff substitute organist at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Denver, CO, and associate organist at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel (FSSP), Littleton, CO—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    “What Martin Luther Said…”
    My pastor asked me to write little columns for the bulletin each week. The article for 20 July 2025 has been posted, and it’s called: “What Luther Said…” Martin Luther (an ex-priest and apostate) was an infamous heretic whose ignorance of JESUS CHRIST was only exceeded by his filthy and disgusting vulgarity.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 15th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (13 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 propers for this Sunday are also provided at the the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    This coming Sunday—13 July 2025—is the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). All the chants have been conveniently assembled and posted at the feasts website. The OFFERTORY, Ad Te Levávi, is particularly beautiful.
    —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

“In case of urgent danger of life anyone may baptize, even a heretic or pagan. It is sufficient that he administer the essential matter and form and have the implicit intention of doing what Christ instituted. Naturally a Catholic must be preferred, if possible. A man is preferred to a woman; but anyone else to the parents.”

— Father Adrian Fortescue (1917)

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