Make Musical, Liturgical Decisions...Not Personal Ones

Continuing on last week’s theme, I thought I’d expand on some questions and comments I’ve consistently heard from liturgical musicians regarding planning and performing music at liturgy.

1. Teens don’t like old songs.
Well, that’s just a broad, false, statement. The reality is that teens don’t like songs that don’t engage them. No one does. Don’t discount a song just because it was written a few (or many) years ago. If the song is a good song…use it…period! In the same way that you like to hear music on the radio that you know…songs that are familiar…songs that remind you…songs that are ‘old’…your assembly will embrace, often with enthusiasm, familiar songs with solid texts and melodies that enhance the liturgy.

The challenge is to choose a balance of old and new, familiar and unfamiliar, fast and slow. Make musical decisions; liturgical decisions, not personal ones. Remember, the assembly doesn’t think about these songs every day; they hear them once a week. You might think it would be too soon to repeat a song you did last week…but if it was brand new, and it went well, and it could support the liturgy…do it again. They will sing even more.

2. All of the planners and websites recommend this song over and over, but the assembly doesn’t seem to be engaged when we sing it at my parish.

Why doesn’t this song seem to be working? You like it, you enjoy playing it, but no one is singing the way you would expect. This is where it gets tough: sometimes we need to evaluate if our performance is affecting the song.

Tempo: Are you playing it too fast? Too slow? Are you rushing through the rhythms? Is the tempo dragging, putting everyone to sleep? BEFORE you start the song, sing through part of it in your head. Remember: the vocal part is crucial. Let that determine your tempo.

Vocal sound and style: How we sing/lead certain songs can really effect the overall presentation. Are you singing a pop-style song with a classical voice? Or are you using too many pop-style ‘licks,’ (turns, scoops, runs, etc.) distorting the melody so that the assembly can’t even recognize it? Or, simply, are you singing out of tune? It’s difficult to sing along with an out-of-tune melody. Setup a video camera and record your group. Listen back and evaluate your performance.

How is the balance of the instruments? Are the drums too loud? Is the piano too soft? Can you hear the singers? Too much guitar? All of these things can affect the overall presentation and invitation to sing. Listen and make appropriate adjustments.

Again, as we present and lead music week after week at our liturgies it’s important to constantly evaluate and re-evaluate our music and our musical performance. This is not to simply be critical of ourselves, but rather to be sure we are leading our assemblies the most effective way we can.