It happens every once in a blue moon. Some convert who came out of one of those small, tightly-nit Protestant churches - population approx. 150-300 - wonders why Catholics don't sing hymns in four part harmony. Never mind the fact that most main line Protestants don't/can't do that. He (or she) wonders why what seemed so natural in childhood cannot happen, and immediately, in his (or her) new Catholic parish.First, one could enter into that whole discussion about the difference between liturgical music and 'popular religious music.' Even though hymns can and should be a part of people's popular religious devotion, they are not, per se, liturgical music. But add to this the fact that most Catholics in America do not have that tradition of hymn singing in the home, except maybe some Christmas carols. Add to this the fact that most Americans do not sing - not regularly - except "Happy Birthday" and maybe a college fight song, and a few other pieces when they are schnockered. (Listen to the quality of singing in most Catholic parishes. You are lucky if you can get any sort of sound for the melody, let alone for four parts.)
Finally, in the handful of places where I have heard four part singing from a congregation, I don't like it past a certain point. I would never say this to a devotee as I would quickly be accused of being a snob, but I tire of it quickly. It is like a perpetual fourth choir rehearsal. Things reach a certain level of competence, but, without a director, it stays at about the same mediocre level ad infinitum. Every verse of every hymn has the same harmonies without variation, AND the sopranos are slightly sharp, the altos slightly flat, the tenors, too loud, etc. over and over and over . . .
Purgatory.
It doesn't lift my mind up to God.
6 comments:
Hymns are nothing to chant. Still, I wish more of us knew hymn harmonies to use on normal, non-liturgical occasions. They can sound pretty.
Speaking of four-part harmony, would it be permissible to bring a certain toddler to the crypt at the end of choir practice tomorrow for a special choir surprise? He will be in costume as a ferocious beast.
Of course, Alaina!
Nothing as fun as that one familiar voice breaking into harmony on the closing hymn. . .That was another good reason to banish hymns altogether!
Maybe there's a limited amount of what can be done with hymns, and maybe they're not everyone's favorite style, but a final maybe says that we could do more to embellish them and make them beautiful. I always wondered why the hymns were so much of an afterthought at Christendom--I only remember working on a hymn once in choir, "Who Is She That Stands Triumphant," and I really liked how it turned out! If we have to do hymns, we might as well do a good job and not a nasty one. My $0.02 today. :)
Heh, in a different extreme, I noticed you didn't mention the Bible/Gospel parishes where everyone really gets into the music and you have the church jiving to music of the spirit, complete with hand-clapping, the random voices doing their descants (which, very amazingly, almost always blend), and the preacher/choir/choir master who practically crowd surfs. But I go too far since we are Catholic, and approve of only real sacred music.
But this does bring up an interesting question:
If David can dance before the Ark of the Covenant and Psalm 99 (not Psalm 100!) reads what it does, it is kind of humorous how most Catholics cannot sing, or are too embarrassed to do so...
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