Other Places: #10Hymns: Advent Hymns

Over at The Beautiful Music Challenge, I am continuing my #10Hymns Series with another two hymns for Advent (with an extra bonus hymn thrown in for fun!)

Of course, as a choir director, I have to say, I've been practicing Christmas Carols since October and I've been listening to them all year. That's just how it works when you direct a choir.

In my opinion, it is never the "wrong" time to meditate on the Incarnation of Jesus or to anticipate his coming again in glory. But I could be wrong...

During Advent, we meditate upon the three ways that Jesus comes to us:
In History (in His Birth at Bethlehem)
In Mystery (in the Sacraments)
In Majesty (at the Final Judgment)

This week we're going to talk about all three...

This week we're covering "O Savior Rend the Heavens Wide," "Behold a Virgin Bearing Him" and "Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence". Find out where these hymns came from and learn how to sing them here.

Manners

I have been thinking a lot about manners recently. Going beyond the simple "please" and "thank you", and the art of eating with silverware instead of your hands is really rather rare these days, it seems to me.

Manners used to be taught in schools as part of a well-rounded curriculum. Sometime in the 1970's or 1980's, manners ceased to be important enough to address as a subject of education in the classroom (and indeed, in some cases, were scorned as old-fashioned) and were relegated to the ranks of "things we learn at home". At the same time, parents, who had always been responsible for instilling and developing social skill training were being told to let their children be "free to be who and what they wanted to be". In addition, many families were coming apart at the seams and families who previously had a parent at home to administrate and supervise the children gave way to a culture of "latch-key kids" and unsupervised teenagers. There was no way to transmit the culture of "mannerly behavior" that sustains our restraint and charity (or kindness toward others) as a society, because there was no one around to teach or enforce it. And now, those kids are the parents of today.

Today we have two problems in society that are, I believe, directly related to this lack of social training or "manners". The rise in bullying (and its cousin: violent crime) and the rise in violent political debate correspond with shocking clarity to the decline in the importance of manners in our schools and homes. Why?

There are a couple of reasons. Manners are a set of rules that give a person something to fall back on in unfamiliar situations. It's a framework of what to say and do (or what not to say and not to do). But, it is like using a tool in an emergency. When your car has a flat, if you have never tried to use that lug wrench or jack when it is not raining and dark, it's going to be really hard to use for the first time it when it is. Practicing manners, then, is a way to use a set of tools that will stand you in good stead when the unexpected happens.

For example, if you are at a dinner party where you know only your host, you have a set of rules governing what you talk about with your fellow partygoers and how to go about it so you don't offend anyone. That seems pretty esoteric, but imagine that you are the new kid at school and all the same rules apply (to everyone). Suddenly, you have a structure for how to act and what to say (and so do they), that, if enforced, could save you embarrassment and a lot of grief.

The second reason that manners are important, is that they give you a sense that you are not the most important thing in the room. It demands respect for your fellow man. From a Christian perspective, each person is created in the image and likeness of God and that is enough to keep us from harming another in body mind or spirit, but in the world of secular society, we had to legislate it. Hence, manners. And, if followed as the societal norm, the type of respect that comes from adhering to manners could save kids' lives. Heck, it could save your life.

"But what about my right to say what's on my mind?" You wouldn't believe how often I hear this from kids who are caught saying something inappropriate to a peer, or worse, an adult. Each of us has the right to Free Speech in this country. I realize that this is a hotly contested freedom right now. Where does that right end? 

When I was very young, my mother told me that I had my rights as long as they did not interfere with another person's rights. That means, that as long as I allow another equal time and do not personally attack (physically or verbally) another person, I am within my rights to speak my mind as regards my political values and ideals. And they are within their rights to speak theirs. So, why do we have all of this politically based violence? I can only assume it is a complete lack of manners. There is no way that a gentleman or lady would ever lay hands on another person if he or she disagreed with that person.

So it seems to me that these are pretty basic rules to teach and enforce:

1. Keep your hands to yourself.
2. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
3. If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.
4. Do not whisper in a public setting. Anything you need to say to your neighbor can wait until you are alone.
5. Do not interrupt people when they are speaking. Your turn will be next.
6. Never talk about religion or politics at a dinner party (or in the lunchroom).
7. Do not address private matters in public. (I do not want to know what goes on in your bedroom. Did you want to know what goes on in mine? I didn't think so.)

If these seem simplistic let me share a story. I had a couple of children in my choir that were bullying another child. They weren't using their fists. They were using their tongues. They were teasing this young man because he was overweight and it was getting to be a weekly occurrence to find this young man in the car crying. This kid was a "tough guy", but he'd never lay his hands on a girl and he wasn't witty enough to take them in a battle of wits. It was very frustrating and hurtful.

Finally, I asked my husband to address the problem with the girls' mother and the girls themselves. He asked them if they knew the "Golden Rule". They replied that they did not. He taught it to them, had them explain what they thought that meant, and then explained that they needed to abide by it whenever they came to practice. Pretty basic manners, right? Yet, the mother was furious, saying that he had humiliated her children and sent their father to me to complain. He told me, "We just don't do things like that anymore." I responded, "Maybe we should." Let me further explain that these girls were not young hoodlums, they were middle-class suburban dwelling girls. They definitely, in my opinion, should have known better.

I know that I am certainly guilty of treating people with a lack of respect when they displease me. I have gotten very sloppy with my manners in the past few years and I did not enforce them adequately with my children. But I intend to redouble my efforts.

What about you?

Just a little plug for one of my favorite children's manners books: "Miss Manners' Guide to Rearing Perfect Children". Not only is it hilarious (and, therefore, a good read,) it's invaluable information for every age your child will pass through all the way through college. Let me also say that when we follow Miss Manners' advice things really do run more smoothly around here.

A Day of Repose

I wish it was summer for a little longer this year. Only in the last couple of weeks have I actually gotten to do any real resting from my ultra-insane year. But, in just two weeks, Kinderchor begins practice again. I can't believe it's already almost Fall!

Over the summer, we all decided that I needed one full day off of all work per week. This is a good thing. All winter I was working 7 days a week. The decision was made to make Saturday my "day off". I must say that I am quite relieved to have it. I think I was really burning out.

As a result of taking this day off, my youth choir at the parish, who previously practiced on Saturdays, is going to have to have their practice bumped to another night during the week. This is going to make for 3 evening practices with three totally different choirs per week.

The biggest issue facing me with this schedule adjustment is prep time. The choirs are all working on completely different material (one is a German choir, one is an adult church choir and the third is a bi-lingual Spanish/English children's choir). Research and practice time are not easy to come by as it is.

It is truly a matter of good organization and good planning, though. I really need to get my practice space and times organized a little better so that I am not wasting time clearing music off of my piano to practice and searching for all my materials every time I go to practice or prep practice plans for them. Everything is a huge mess. Which means that I need to spend a couple of uninterrupted days cleaning and organizing. And because I am working Monday through Friday, that probably means a Saturday work day.

For right now, though, I am being very jealous about my Saturday day of rest. I am being very particular about how I spend it. I have to fight the urge to work on music or schedule meetings for planning committees. Actually, I am trying not to spend it cleaning either. I don't want to be like the proverbial Grasshopper and say there's plenty of time to do it later, but I just need that break in the action right now.

In music, the rests between notes are as important at the sounds. They create dimension and color for the piece. Rest is just as vital in life as it is in music. So, I am hoping I to keep that day clear for as long as I can.


BTW - the graphic above can be purchased as a button through CafePress, here. I think every choir director in the world should own at least one.

Liturgical Music and the Mass

Monday night I went to a party and during the course of the evening, one of the discussions I had was with a liturgical musician, a cantor, from another parish. We were talking about music and its place at Mass, specifically as pertains to hymns.

In her parish, the hymns are used as "traveling music". It covers the action of the Mass. Verses to hymns are only sung for as long as it takes Father to get from the back of the Church to the front and to get into place. That's how her Pastor prefers it. In my parish, we sing all the verses to the hymns, as we consider a hymn to be a complete prayer and, as such, it should not be truncated. Recently, my friend had an experience at her parish that brings into sharp focus the issue with Music for the Liturgy as opposed to Music at the Liturgy.

A younger organist was playing for Mass and insisted that they do all the verses of all the hymns; to the point that he actually kept playing when Father was ready to begin Mass. This action not only brought attention to himself as a musician, but also made all the people in attendance uncomfortable (especially the cantor, who was stuck between a rock and a hard place).

I understand the organist's dilemma: I feel uncomfortable not finishing a hymn to the Holy Trinity having only sung the two verses talking about the Father and the Son (the heck with the Holy Spirit, I guess...). But, the fact of the matter is, as a Liturgical Musician, you must do what Father asks you to do as long as it is not morally reprehensible and I don't think not finishing the hymn falls into that category. Annoying and uninformed (in my humble opinion), but not a sin, by any stretch.

Her retelling of this story opened the discussion about what the place of music in the Liturgy is.

Music for the Mass is supposed to expand the Mass; to bring it to a new level; to enrich the prayer of the people gathered in the church. It is not supposed to draw attention to itself (for its own sake) but, instead, to turn your thoughts and heart toward God and what he has done and is doing for us. It is a physical manifestation of your interior prayer life.

"He who sings, prays twice"is a quote by St. Augustine and I believe this is true. When one sings, one is not only using the words of prayer, but also the "inexpressible groaning of the spirit". There is no way to express some things but by music. Setting these prayers to music and then singing them speaks to the trinitarian nature of our being: Body, Mind and Spirit. This is a way to more fully reflect the mystery of the Trinity in our worship. Our goal as liturgical musicians is to assist the faithful in their prayers. The job of the liturgical musician, then, is to place a premium on the music being well-done and the hymns being well-chosen to consort with the prayers of the Mass and the Readings.

So this now brings me back to Music for the Mass as opposed to Music at the Mass. It is my belief that if a composer took the time to write 6 verses, he had a thought in mind for where he wanted the prayer to go. To cut off verses, simply because Father has reached the altar or he sat down or whatever, defeats the purpose of the hymn. The hymn itself is a prayer, and when prayed with heart and mind and voice, it assists in the prayerful attitude of the Mass as a whole. It involves our whole being in the worship of God. That is what I mean by Music for the Mass. Typically, each verse of a hymn is about 30-45 seconds long. If you are cutting off 4 verses, you are only saving yourself about two minutes.

By using Music as a "traveling music" or "incidental music" it becomes ancillary to the Mass; a cover for movement; a convenience. It does not serve to extend the prayer to the mind, soul and body through active particiaption. It merely gives the congregation "something to do" while they wait. That is Music at Mass. And that is not the job of the Liturgical Musician. That's what Theatre Organists do.

Are you going to go to hell if you don't do all 7 verses of "Hail, Holy Queen Enthroned Above"? Nope. Will your Mass be a richer experience if you do? I think so.

If Jesus hung on the cross for 3 hours for your sins, the least you can do is give him two more minutes of sustained prayer that involves your whole being. This is Music for the Mass.

Raising a choir: Part 1

One of the things I run into often with conducting choirs is building and rebuilding. Building a choir is almost easier that rebuilding one. Rebuilding a choir is like getting your stick shift car up to 4th gear and then having to stop at a stop light, so you have to start all over again in 1st gear.

One thing remains the same between the two, however. You must strike the balance between too difficult and too easy. As a musician, I have done quite a lot of choral work. I have a large repertoire to work with, but most of it is too difficult to spring on a "seedling choir". It's like watering seedlings in the heat of the day. If you water them at 4 in the afternoon, all that water is going to boil the leaves as it evaporates. You water in the morning and the evening, when the sun won't make them in to boiled greens. So it is with a choir.

Start with the basics: good vocal exercises and practices. Teach them to breathe and then teach them how to hold their mouths. They will always be better off for this. Always remember to reference exercises that you did during the rehearsal to reinforce that those exercises are important to their skill building.

Move slowly toward parts singing. Even if you only have two or three people, you can sing in parts. If they have never sung in parts before, teach them to sing a round, first. A really good resource for sacred and secular rounds (in a few different languages) is 'The Kemp Family Collection of Rounds, Canons and Songs". There are varying degrees of difficulty within this collection to keep you happy for a while. Also, another valuable resource for sacred musicians are the collections from Taize. These, again, are varied in their degree of difficulty and get people into the habit of hearing their own part.

Be careful not to move too slowly or too quickly. It is not advisable to go from a rousing rendition of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" to "April is in My Mistress' Face". Unless your choir is full of prodigies, there will be a few years of separation between these pieces. But, you don't want to be doing "Frere Jacques" the second year of your choir, either. Progress. Let them grow.

There's nothing like planning ahead....

I have a friend who once told me "There's nothing like planning ahead, and this is nothing like it." I imagine that he was quoting or paraphrasing someone else, but, Oh, was he right!

When I sing for an event or conduct a choir for an event or for a mass, I like to know ahead of time what's going on. I like to have a plan laid out and presented to me (or have planned things myself and present them to the presider, as the case may be). It eases the worry and nerves I feel when I am working. Honestly, I don't know a soul who prefers to always be flying by the seat of their pants. Yet, so often, that is what happens you are in charge of music for the mass. You are subject to the priest's whims, the cantor's whims, the unexpected can always happen....
But, somehow, when there is a good solid plan, those things don't seem to be so bad to handle.

When I go to Mass and I am singing or conducting, I have found that the better prepared I am to meet the Mass (in terms of the nuts and bolts of my work), the better I can pray the Mass, and hopefully, not distract the faithful in the process. If I am not prepared, then I am jumpy and unfocused and prayer falls out of the focus of the mass for me. At that point, I am not best able to assist others with their prayers (which is my job). It seems so simple to me to lay out all of the details of your Liturgy Planning in a sheet that encompasses 5 or 6 weeks and then everything is all set weeks in advance.

A brilliant friend of mine (a music director at a big parish here in town) always uses a Liturgy planning sheet. These sheets detail everything that gets done with music (or that COULD get done with music) in the mass. That way, she and Father can go over the minute details of the mass music before she ever starts rehearsing her choir, weeks in advance. Then everyone knows the plan. If something happens, rather than having stress added onto stress, you just have to handle the situation and get back to the plan.

I just came from a mass where it seemed that no one was in charge. I was told that everything was planned, all I had to do was show up and direct. Not so! The priest hadn't been told what to expect. I hadn't been told what to expect. There was no reader for the Psalm, but I hadn't been asked to sing it. And furthermore, had no way to get the words to do it. So, after the first reading, we all sat there for several silent moments of "reflection", while Father and I (over the the entire length of the church and 2 flights of stairs) tried to telepathically decide what to do. Finally, he got up and read the Psalm. This was all completely unnecessary! All that was required was a liturgy plan and then everyone would have known what was going on before we ever sounded the first chord of the opening hymn.

So here's the final analysis:
Planning= Good

Church Musician or Not?

You know, when I started this blog, I thought I would be writing more about my music and what I do with it, but I quickly realized that this was just a catch-all for all my reflections on life in general and that music was just one part of that, but...

I recently had a friend over to my house who told me that I could not label myself a Catholic Musician. That to imagine myself "above it all, looking at the back of people's heads and baby faces" was ridiculous. That being a Catholic Musician was just one part of what I do and it certainly was not the largest part of what I do. And, that the music program that I am helping with (I am NOT in charge of it) wasn't ever going to be a program I could hang my hat on or base my reputation on. After I could breathe again (because I was so angry, I lost my breath), I began to think about what my friend had to say.

First of all, I am not imagining myself "above it all". In fact, I imagine myself very much a part of the congregation from the choir loft. It is wonderful that all our focus, every person's, is on the true meaning of the Mass, The Eucharist.

It is true, that this program will never be the Catherdal's program. It doesn't have to be. Being a Catholic Musician, by definition, means using the tools that God has provided you with the bring forth the BEST worship that the congregation can offer. In fact, the documents of Vatican II tell us that the faithful have a RIGHT to a Mass presented with dignity and reverence and to have it presented to the best abilities of the parish.

That's being a Catholic Musician. Taking the resources you have and bringing them to the height of their abilities, whatever those abilities are. So, if your choir is only capable of singing in unison, then you sing in unison, and do it the very best that you can. If they can do Palestrina, then do Palestrina. Your job is to gauge what the abilities of your choir are and how you can best present them to give the Mass dignity and beauty. It's all about the Mass...it's not really about the music.

Am I a Catholic Musician? Yes. I think so. Am I a good Catholic musician? Yes. I think so. Can I hang my hat on the music progam of my parish? Yes. And I am proud to, because our music program is an honest Catholic music program. We may not be the splashiest. We may not be the most skilled, but we are honest in our worship of God. Are we in a choir loft? No. But every week, we stand facing the Blessed Sacrament. There is a peacefulness in being able to sing directly to the object of your adoration. In the final analysis, it is a prayer. Have we prayed when we leave Mass? Has our music helped the congregation pray? If so, then we have done our job. Remember: It's all about the Mass!

So, yes, I am a Catholic Musician. It is all I want to be. It consumes me. I constantly search for music for the choir. I constantly strive to better myself and to help the others expand their knowledge, as well. I consistently point and re-point the choir back to the Blessed Sacrament; the focus of the Mass. I try to bring their best out, and they continually humble me and forgive my foibles.

Oh, yes, my friend! That is WHO I AM!
I AM A CATHOLIC MUSICIAN!

From the choir loft

I was in a choir loft again today. Most of the time, I spend my Masses in the front of the church right next to the sanctuary. It is very distracting to me to be "on display" to the entire congregation. I think that's what I like most about choir lofts. You are facing the Sanctuary, and you are a part of the congregation, but yet, you are not performing or on display to them and you are still able to lead them.

A couple of years ago I found myself burnt out and wanting a change: wanting to be in the spotlight, so to speak. I was tired of being in the choir loft and only seeing the backs of peoples heads and baby faces. I wanted people to know what I could do as a musician. So I quit church music. But, you know, I am so chicken that I couldn't do it. I have to my credit, one solo on an album that I will never allow anyone to listen to if I can help it. It's so awful.

Now, I am longing for the anonymity of the choir loft. It really calls to me; strongly. I feel incomplete without singing at church. But, I still feel a bit incomplete even singing for church, when I am up front. Being in the choir loft, brings a totally new dimension to my music. In the choir loft, you can tune all the fussy kids and shuffling people out and really concentrate on Mass. I feel like I am not really praying at Mass unless I am singing from a choir loft. It has been a real challenge to learn to pray without being in the loft.

There is a point at which my music, which is a part of me, becomes my prayer. Not just in the words, but also the sounds that I make and the breaths that I take. The gift that I give to God is the entirety of my being. And that gift helps to inspire others to give their entirety.

I still want to do something splashy with my music someday, but honestly, it is going to have to be in God's time. It is God's gift. I may never do anything splashier than sing from a choir loft or sing on a CD that I will never let anyone hear. Maybe or maybe not.

What does this mean?

I am a Catholic church musician. I always threatened to write a book about my life story, and this is the venue that presented itself.

The backs of people's heads and baby faces are virtually all you see from a choir loft. I can keep myself entertained for hours watching all the babies and trying to figure out who is attached to the front of that head.

One day, while I was doing a particularly long stint at mass, I spotted my nephew below me. He was an exceptionally cute baby. He was laying across his mom's lap looking up at the ceiling (or whatever) and caught sight of me. In true "auntly" fashion I commenced to making faces at the baby who obliged with giggles and smiles. My friend, an inveterate baby lover, joined in, too.

I guess it never occurred to me that while all I can see are the backs of people's heads, Father can see all the fronts (including ours). I guess we were quite a distraction. Needless to say, we heard about it.

Another thing about standing above and in back, is that you can observe "mob" characteristics among the faithful. Not like pitchforks and "tar and feathers" or anything...no, more like evertime a child gets fussy, you can tell who the Mommies are. They rock gently back and forth, whether they are holding a child or not. Another thing you can observe is how good the homily is. Watch for the nodding, drooping heads. If a missionary strikes a chord you will know by the speed at which every woman reaches for her purse for the collection. Usually, they have that check filled out before the end of the Homily.

I suppose you are wondering what this blog is going to be about, ultimately. Well...I don't know. I'll just have to wait and see what comes up for me to write about. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy the ride!