ELICOPTER PARENTS. Do you know what those are? They’re parents who ‘hover’ around their children, never letting them out of their sight. While supervising children is praiseworthy, it becomes unhealthy when children fail to learn independence. As of the year 2025, a new phenomenon has emerged: viz. parents who go overboard supervising their children in real life but neglect to watch over their children’s online activity. (The internet is replete with dangers.) Our blog reaches all kinds of people. Some are malicious,1 filled with hatred. That’s the “cost of doing business” when it comes to the internet. But we’re not publishing for their benefit. We publish for the good Catholic musicians out there—and they do indeed exist. These generous, happy, righteous members of our readership keep us going. They give us strength! Their benevolent support is what prevents us from becoming discouraged and depressed.
Today, I’d like to offer some reflections on why some choir directors fail. Obviously, this will not be an exhaustive list. (If you want that, you should consider attending Sacred Music Symposium 2025.)
I’m not sure 100% of my colleagues will agree with my list. But that’s okay—because online articles allow each reader to take what’s valuable and discard the rest!
➕ Reason #1
Lack of Laser Focus
The conscientious choirmaster must have a laser focus on the upcoming performance. Monsignor Robert Skeris used to talk about “the coach and the music teacher.” Out of all who teach in a school, only the coach and the music teacher have to display their results publicly. Nobody wants to be humiliated; and that’s where a “laser focus” comes into play. From the first instant, the conscientious choirmaster must realize his choir will have to perform in public very soon. To give an example: a few days ago, our choir sang for Easter Sunday Mass. For that particular Mass, 580 people showed up. (Each Sunday, our parish has four Masses—but there aren’t usually 580 for each Mass.) The church was absolutely packed, and people even crowded into the choir loft because there just wasn’t enough room.
But our volunteers rose to the occasion. They really hit it out of the park. They weren’t nervous to sing in front of 580 people—because they had been prepared. In the following excerpt, notice how splendid they sound when the SATB harmonies enter:
But many choir directors lack this “laser focus.” Instead, they spend weeks doing vocal warm-ups, wasting time passing out music, working on pieces which will ultimately be abandoned, telling stories about composers, talking about politics, and so forth. And then they wonder why their choir sounds weak, unsure, and nervous when they sing in public!
When it comes to this “laser focus,” we’ll discuss some crucial techniques during Sacred Music Symposium 2025.
➕ Reason #2
Advice from the Unqualified
A serious pitfall which must be avoided is the chorus of terminally-online “experts” who inhabit social media, internet forums, blogs, and so forth. Each day, these folks spend hours proffering unsolicited advice to anyone willing to listen. The problem is, 99% of these people have never stood before a choir in real life. (Otherwise, they wouldn’t have hours of free time to pontificate online, because conducting a choir is hard work.) Their advice—which they assert with unshakable confidence—is almost always reprehensible and dangerous. The quickest way to learn whether someone is legitimate is to ask: “Can I hear a recording of your choir singing that piece?” Once the person admits he has never conducted a choir in real life … what more is there to be said?
Such online “experts” frequently encourage directors to program music too difficult for church choirs, and often don’t understand the importance of tessitura. Furthermore, because they have never stood in front of a choir in real life, they don’t realize singers can become nervous. The conscientious choirmaster must search diligently for music which sounds fantastic but isn’t too difficult. A good example would be the INNSBRUCK HYMN, which Sebastian Bach loved so dearly. My volunteer choir sang this on Easter Sunday during Communion—in front of 580 people!—and you can hear how glorious it sounded:
➕ Reason #3
Inconsiderate
Some choir directors fail because they’re inconsiderate. They don’t realize their singers are busy! They have their own lives; they have obligations; they have jobs; they have wives and children; they have personal difficulties and health issues; and so forth. Their lack of consideration can frequently be observed during Holy Week. Inexperienced choir directors will fail to plan ahead. Then—because they didn’t plan ahead—they force their singers to participate in lengthy rehearsals during Holy Week. A few years ago, I remember a choir director bragging online about how his choir had a 4-hour rehearsal on Palm Sunday! And then such people wonder why their singers don’t come back…
When there’s just too much music to learn, it’s okay to let singers with more experience handle some of the selections. On Easter Sunday, for example, we had a mother and daughter—both excellent singers—handle the INTROIT. You can hear how wonderful it sounded:
I mentioned that our 10:00am Mass on Easter Sunday had 580 people. I asked my assistant, Kaitrin Drost, to sing the Chabanel Responsorial Psalm with her daughter. (I accompanied them on the pipe organ.) They weren’t nervous at all. In the following excerpt, you can hear parishioners whispering all around them. That’s because—due to the large attendance—there were literally members of the congregation standing in the choir loft:
One reason they sound so good is because they contrast with the large choir. In other words, everyone sings their part: Priest, deacon, congregation, soloists, cantors, and full choir.
➕ Reason #4
Failure to Steal
Some choirmasters fail because of their “lack of theft.” Let me explain what I mean by that. I believe a successful choirmaster should go everywhere possible and observe excellent conductors. They should sing in as many choirs as possible. They should steal every technique they can. But instead of observing what others do, some choir directors spend all day on the internet. They type hundreds of comments each day: giving unsolicited advice; telling others about their approach; trying to get other conductors to program their compositions; revealing intensely personal details about their job and themselves; telling hundreds of anecdotes; and so forth. But succeeding as a choir director requires 100% commitment. There just isn’t time to spend hours on social media every day! And then such people wonder why their choirs sound bad…
When it comes to “stealing,” I try to steal from the very best. For instance, here’s a fabulous polyphonic extension I stole from Father Francisco Guerrero (d. 1599). The congregation sings the first part, and at the end there’s a little ‘extension’ which our priest really likes. Our volunteer choir sang that on Easter Sunday—in front of 580 people!—and they did a fine job:
When I arrived in Michigan during the summer of 2024, Saint Mary’s did not have a choir. My heart is filled with joy to hear this group singing polyphony so well.
➕ Reason #5
Reluctance to Record
Very few choir directors are willing to record their choir singing—and then go back and learn from it. This is especially true when it comes to musicians who consider themselves “ultra-traditionalists.” Even when they only have 1-2 singers, they insist on singing enormously lengthy pieces like the TRACT on Lent’s 1st Sunday (Qui Hábitat In Adjutório Altíssimi). I’ve heard such performances; and most are ghastly. It’s not enough to simply “get through the notes.” A piece like that demands an artistic rendering by skilled singers. If such people would listen to a recording of themselves singing at Mass, they’d agree that what they’re doing is actually hurting (not helping) sacred music. But very few are willing to do that … which is a real shame. The Instruction on Sacred Music (“De Musica Sacra”) issued under Pope Pius XII on 3 September 1958 said:
It is better to do something well on a small scale than to attempt something elaborate without sufficient resources to do it properly.
Consider this excerpt from Easter Sunday, as sung by our volunteer choir:
Even a brief little section like that requires meticulous rehearsal, allowing each phrase to have shape, finesse, and direction.
➕ Reason #6
Lack of Variety
Some choir directors fail because they “didn’t realize what they were signing up for.” The director at a typical Catholic parish will be teaching singers whose expertise varies greatly. It’s not like singing in a conservatory choir, where everyone is a trained musician. Some of your singers will be brand new to music. Others will have sung in numerous choirs, for decades. The conscientious choirmaster must make each rehearsal enjoyable for every singer. Each singer must be challenged—though each is at a different level. Achieving success in this area is no small task. That’s why Sacred Music Symposium 2025 is dedicated to providing a whole bunch of crucial tips, strategies, and techniques to assist the conscientious choirmaster “in the trenches.”
Monsignor Robert Skeris always encouraged church musicians to attend the finest conservatory feasible for them. A professional music degree is important because “you don’t know what you don’t know.” At the same time, a degree—even a doctorate—is the beginning of one’s career. In other words, only after you earn your degree does the real work begin.2
How can you make sure your singers “keep coming back” for more? One key ingredient is a diversity of musical styles. At our church, we use: medieval music; plainsong; Renaissance polyphony; masterpieces by superb modern composers such as Kevin Allen; modern psalmody (such as the Chabanel Psalms); and so forth.
Sine Qua Non • The sine qua non of our choral program is the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal, which our singers love. Indeed, I’ve never heard congregational singing like I did on Easter Sunday, when 580 people were singing with gusto the English translation of Surrexit Christus Hodie.
We are adding more and more polyphony each week. On Easter Sunday, for the very first time, we sang an ALLELUIA by Palestrina. There were a few little imperfections—but it will improve with time:
* Mp3 Download • PALESTRINA ALLELUIA (extension)
—The polyphony begins after the verse.
I wish you could have heard that final chord: it sounded absolutely glorious. Here is a picture of our volunteer choir taken by my wife after Easter Sunday Mass:
➕ Addendum
Not an exhaustive list
The list I compiled above isn’t exhaustive. I didn’t mention anything about the fact that most choirmasters aren’t paid a just wage. I also didn’t mention how (broadly speaking) the choirmaster is only given criticism; never appreciation. In other words: when the choir director does well, people are silent … but when somebody wants to complain, they “let loose” freely!
1 Indeed, we have a number of people who have become obsessed with attacking our blog. They spend their time attempting to defame us, spreading every lie you could possibly imagine. The odd thing is, this entire cadre consists of unmarried men—every last one of them—and I have no idea why that is. Perhaps we need to work with greater diligence to attract some “haters” who are female! I mention this not to elicit pity, but to remind readers that once you release your music on the internet, you must anticipate nasty comments. As Archbishop Sheen used to say: “A reputation is like a ball in an alley; once it gets rolling, everybody loves to kick it around.”
2 In and of itself, a degree is neutral. Its value depends on many factors. Three of the most execrable parish music programs I know are run by conductors who brag about their terminal degrees. On the other hand, some university programs—especially those with large orchestras, large bands, and huge faculties—are superb. Personally, I only know a handful of outstanding church musicians who didn’t graduate from the conservatory—in other words, it’s possible to succeed without a professional degree, but seems less likely.
