Contemporary Catholic liturgical music

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Contemporary Catholic liturgical music encompasses a comprehensive number of styles of music for Catholic liturgy that grew both before and after the reforms of Vatican II. The dominant style in the United States began as Gregorian chant and folk hymns, superseded after the 1970's by a folk-based musical genre, generally acoustic and often slow in tempo but that has evolved into a broad contemporary range of styles reflective of certain aspects of age, culture and language. There is a marked difference between this style and those that were both common and valued in Catholic churches before Vatican II.

Contents

[edit] History

Contemporary Catholic liturgical music grew after the post-Vatican II reforms, which called for the wider usage of vernacular language in the Roman Catholic Mass. Further reforms to the General Instruction to the Roman Missal allowed for new settings of chants from the Novus Ordo and new songs to be used in addition to the traditional psalms of the Graduale.

The reforms sparked a wide movement in the English speaking Roman Catholic church where an entire body of older Protestant hymnody and newly composed Contemporary Catholic Liturgical Music was introduced to the people through new hymnals such as World Library Publication's People's Mass Book, the Living Parish, We Celebrate and NALR's three volumes of Glory and Praise.

A great deal of the early composed Contemporary Catholic liturgical Music of the 70s was folk-based in genre and included songwriters such as Ray Repp, and Joe Wise and later members of American groups such as the St. Louis Jesuits, and the Dameans. Of this group, the St. Louis Jesuits music spread widely and many compositions continue to be popular today.

By the 1990's, and into the early 21st century, this style of music drew less on its folk roots but rather on a number of different styles and influences from contemporary society. In many areas of the United States, and regions throughout the English-speaking world, most or all of the music played during Sunday Mass was taken from this late 20th century body of work. As a result, traditional forms of Catholic music (such as Gregorian chant) had become rare in many churches, and unknown in some. By the year 2000 most Catholic Songbooks preferred Contemporary Catholic Liturgical Music, some hymnody, and a very small collection of Chant (which, at one point was the sine qua non of Catholic Church Music).

In addition to its spread within the American Roman Catholic community, a number of pieces from the body of late 20th century Catholic liturgical music had become commonplace among American mainline Protestants. This is true of Lutherans--particularly the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America--where both the more hymn-like assembly songs as well as portions of mass and psalm settings can be found among recent hymnals such as Evangelical Lutheran Worship and With One Voice. Marty Haugen, one of the commonly known composers, creates both Roman Catholic and Lutheran versions of his mass settings, as well as writing pieces for specifically Lutheran rites.

Although musical mass settings are not as widely used in most mainline Protestant denominations, a number of the more well-known hymns / assembly songs have been added to the traditional hymn repertoire of these churches, and appear in many late 20th century denominational hymnals. These include compositions such as Schutte's "Here I Am, Lord", Foley's "One Bread, One Body", Haas's "Blest Are They", and a number of Haugen's pieces, including "All Are Welcome", "Gather Us In", "Awake, Awake, and Greet the New Morn", and "Healer of Our Every Ill".

[edit] Musical style

The musical style of 21st Century Catholic Music varies greatly. Much of it is composed so that choir and assembly can be accompanied by organ , piano or guitar. Though it is often said that "This music is generally written for chorus with piano, guitar and/or percussion accompaniment, as opposed to the more traditional pipe organ," it should be noted that many classics including "One Bread, One Body" (Foley) and "Community Mass" (Proulx) were, respectively, arranged and composed to be accompanied by pipe organ. Contemporary Catholic liturgical music never excludes the use of the organ, and in fact often uses the instrument to its full potential. Although initially the late 20th century genre was "folk-sounding," it has matured over the last 30 years to a much more eclectic sound of its own.

Contemporary Catholic liturgical music is more often in antiphonal form (very much like Gregorian Antiphons), where a cantor leads the assembly in a refrain (antiphon) and then sings the verse solo, followed by the refrain again. This form is often called "Responsorial."

[edit] Popular composers

American composers of this music, including modern Catholic women, with some of their most popular tunes, include:[1]

  • Marty Haugen, b. 1950 ("Gather Us In", "Canticle of the Sun", "We Are Many Parts", many psalm settings)
  • Michael Joncas, b. 1951 ("On Eagle's Wings")
  • Rory Cooney, b. 1952 ("Bread of Life")
  • David Haas, b. 1957 ("Blest Are They", "You Are Mine")
  • Carey Landry, b. 1945 ("Abba, Father", "Hail Mary, Gentle Woman")
  • Suzanne Toolan, SM, b. 1927 ("I Am the Bread of Life")
  • Janèt Sullivan Whitaker, b. 1958 ("Here At This Table", "In Every Age")
  • The Dameans - Gary Ault, Mike Balhoff, Buddy Ceaser, Gary Daigle, Darryl Ducote ("Look Beyond")
  • Rob Glover, b. 1950 ("Abundant Life","Peace Child")
  • Bob Moore b. 1962 ("All Who Hunger", "Sweet Refreshment")

along with the former and current members of the St. Louis Jesuits, namely:

Notable composers of contemporary Catholic liturgical music from outside the US include:

  • Frenchman Joseph Gelineau, SJ, b. 1920 ("The Lord Is My Shepherd")
  • Australian Richard Connolly, b.1927 ("Where there is charity and love" etc)
  • Australian Chris Willcock, S.J. b.1947 ("Do not be afraid I am with you")
  • English Bernadette Farrell, b. 1957 ("Unless a Grain of Wheat", "Christ Be Out Light")
  • English Christopher Walker, b. 1947 ("Laudate Dominum")
  • English Paul Inwood, b. 1947 ("Center of my Life")

[edit] Publishers of this music

A significant percentage of American contemporary liturgical music has been published under the names of three publishers: Oregon Catholic Press(OCP), Gregorian Institute of America (GIA), and World Library Publications (WLP, of J.S. Paluch Publishing).

It should be noted that Oregon Catholic Press (OCP) is a not-for-profit affiliation of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon. In addition to Archbishop John George Vlazny of Portland, de facto head of (OCP), William Joseph Cardinal Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in the Roman Curia is a current member of the Board of Directors. [2]. In his former capacity of Archbishop of Portland, (1986–1995) Cardinal Levada led (OCP) during the company's expansive growth and this style of music became the principal style among many English-speaking communities. Francis Eugene Cardinal George, prior to his current position as Archbishop of Chicago was also Archbishop of Portland and and de facto head of (OCP). Today, (OCP) represents approximately two-thirds of Catholic liturgical music market sales. [3]

[edit] Controversies surrounding this music

As evidenced by the number of parishes which use this style of music, and the number of publishers that make it available, Contemporary Catholic liturgical music has become widespread throughout the English speaking and American Catholic Church. Still it sometimes draws negative reactions from professional, classically trained pastoral musicians, most notably members of the American Guild of Organists and from a lesser extent from those who feel the mass should return to its pre-Vatican II roots.

Music for worship, according to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops as well as by their qualified and appointed pastoral musicians, is to be judged by three sets of criteria: pastoral, liturgical, and musical. How contemporary Catholic liturgical music fares by these three criteria is a matter of training. [4]

Interpretation of these criteria are a place of much debate among pastoral musicians and their communities where often the issue becomes more about style; "high-church cathedral/classically trained musicians" versus "suburban parish/faith based volunteer musicians". Most bishops realistically know that most parishes could not afford full time, classically trained musicians and this style of music, usually being more accessible to lay musicians and their communities, is an appropriate form of music with proper guidelines [5]

[edit] Theological viewpoints favoring this music

Some of those who favor this music argue that it can reach out to Catholics in what they regard as the "inclusive spirit of the Second Vatican Council. They argue that this music is in keeping with the vision of liturgical reform and renewal set out by the council, and that this musically direct and accessible style places the participation of the gathered assembly higher in priority than did the aesthetic values which characterised earlier sacred music, perhaps best exemplified in the polyphony of the Renaissance. [6]

Some also point out that this style is supposed to be written to be sung by the assembly [7], unlike some forms of pre-Vatican II music which were written more for performance by trained musicians or those in sacred orders. On the other hand, many of the popular hymns in the first two-thirds of the twentieth century were in the vernacular and were sung by the entire congregation, and these more traditional hymns have also vanished in many parishes largely because local musicians can no longer perform them.

Many of those who favor late 20th Contemporary Catholic liturgical music point out that these songs contain many direct Biblical quotations, and at times are Biblical passages adapted so that they can be set to music. Many contemporary composers favour the scripture based emphasis of the lyrics of these songs

Some of those who favor this music[citation needed] argue that it is a proper outgrowth of the Liturgical Movement.

[edit] Theological viewpoints opposing this music

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Discussion of this nomination can be found on the talk page. (March 2008)

Some of those who oppose this music argue that the adoption of popular musical styles is profoundly alien to the Roman Rite, and weakens the distinctiveness of Catholic worship. [8]

Certain songs in this genre speak from God's point of view in the first person (for example, Suzanne Toolan's "I Am the Bread of Life", and the verses of "Here I Am, Lord" by Dan Schutte). Some argue that this is inappropriate, since the congregation traditionally sings to God rather than in the place of God. In rebuttal, supporters point out that in order for such settings to directly paraphrase scripture it is necessary for them to be in first person. It is also notable that musical settings in the first person abound from the high Renaissance of texts such as Ego sum panis vivus (from chapter 6 of St John's Gospel) by composers such as Byrd and Palestrina, or from 20th century classical sources like Maurice Durufle's "Tu es Petrus." In the official chant book of the Roman Catholic Church, Graduale Romanum, there are numerous examples of texts in the first person.

Others have found fault with this music for lack of a scriptural basis (in opposition to Sacrosanctum Concilium[citation needed], the Vatican II document on the liturgy that strongly urges such a basis). However, as mentioned above, defenders of this music point out it uses direct quotations from Scripture far more than traditional hymns do, although Gregorian Chant and Renaissance-style sacred music almost always are direct quotations from scripture.

Some critics[citation needed] object to the fact that some songs -- such as Marty Haugen's "Gather Us In" and Tom Conry's "Anthem" -- are about the congregation gathered in the church rather than about God. Those who appreciate "we-focused" music point out that that Sacrosanctum Concilium recognized that Christ "is present, lastly, when the Church prays and sings."

[edit] Dispute about musical quality

Supporters and detractors of this music agree that significant parts of liturgical music should be relatively easy for an untrained congregation to sing[citation needed]. But they disagree about whether this type of music is in fact easy to sing largely because the folk idiom is generally technically untrained and not easily appropriated for mass performance.[citation needed].

Some church musicians, especially those who are trained in composing and performing classical music[citation needed], consider the music of late 20th century popular composers to be shallow and trite (as Archbishop Weakland argued in America Magazine in 1999). Some supporters of this music[citation needed] have defended its quality, while others, focused primarily on their view of liturgical and pastoral judgments, argue that musical criticism is irrelevant to the music's purpose as a vehicle for the sung prayer of the assembly, most of whose members are not trained musicians. In rebuttal, the musically trained critics insist that there are musical standards even for an untrained assembly, and that this music fails to meet them — unlike, for example, the hymn tunes and folk song adaptations by Ralph Vaughan Williams in the 1906 English Hymnal.

Some of the most popular of these songs sometimes feature difficult rhythms, large intervals (leaps in pitch), and non-chordal tones. For instance, Michael Joncas' "On Eagle's Wings," a song that has transcended religious denominations in its popularity, begins on a note a tritone above the bass (C-sharp above G), and features three-against-two rhythms in the verses. These rhythms are rarely performed as written.

Many of these songs also have large ranges ("On Eagle's Wings" has a range of an octave and a half), which can be uncomfortable for untrained voices. Hymns written before Vatican II rarely had a tessitura exceeding one octave.

[edit] Dispute about the advent of this music

Supporters[citation needed] argue that this new musical style was quite welcome in most U.S. Churches, especially Irish-American parishes, where music, whether Latin hymns or Latin chants, was almost completely absent. In addition to this, supporters[citation needed] assert that the new music in the vernacular allowed Catholics to participate more fully in their Eucharistic celebrations, as called for by Sacrosanctum Concilium, for the first time in almost 500 years (since the Council of Trent).

Opponents[citation needed] of this music sometimes assert that this music was imposed on many parishes without anyone ascertaining whether the parishioners actually welcomed it.

[edit] Relation to other controversies

Some[citation needed] see the debate over the merits per se of this music as merely a tangent of the larger argument over the role in the Roman Rite of collective sung prayer by the entire assembly versus the traditional role of the choir. Others[citation needed] see it as part of the general controversy between "liberal" and "conservative" Catholics, or part of the general controversy regarding all the liturgical changes that have occurred since Vatican II[citation needed].

[edit] New Movements in Catholic Liturgical Music

Psallite - In 2005, Liturgical Press published a set of Antiphons in English influenced by the Gradual Simplex and the Lectionary for Mass named Psallite. These antiphons were written by a team of composers including Paul Inwood, Dr. Paul Ford, Catherine Christmas, and Cyprian Consiglio. These are eclectic in style, and can be performed in a variety of settings (a capella or with instruments).

[edit] See also

[edit] Sources

[edit] Hymnals and song collections

[edit] Opinion pieces

[edit] References

  1. ^ Dates of birth and religious affiliations taken from Gather: Comprehensive, eds. Robert J. Batastini and Michael A. Cymbala (Chicago: GIA Publications, 1994), from the Oregon Catholic Press website, and from the St. Louis Jesuits' news page on Dan Schutte's website.
  2. ^ Oregon Catholic Press [1]
  3. ^ Catholic Book Publishers Association [2]
  4. ^ The Snowbird Statement by American Church musicians [3]
  5. ^ [[United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Divine Worship [4]
  6. ^ [["Toward Ritual Transformation Remembering Robert W. Hovda" by Gabe Huck, Robert W. Hovda, Virgil C. Funk, J. Michael Joncas, Nathan D. Mitchell, James Savage, and John Foley, S.J., (Liturgical Press) ISBN 978-0-8146-6196-3]]
  7. ^ [[United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Divine Worship [5]
  8. ^ "Toward Ritual Transformation remembering Robert W. Hovda" by Gabe Huck, Robert W. Hovda, Virgil C. Funk, J. Michael Joncas, Nathan D. Mitchell, James Savage, and John Foley, S.J., (Liturgical Press) ISBN 978-0-8146-6196-3
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