29th Sunday Ordinary Time – C Not everything that can be sung should be sung, nor should it be sung the same way every time. We need to follow a principle of “progressive solemnity.” Think of it like musical dynamics … Read More
28th Sunday Ordinary Time – C We’ve focused on what to sing from the Mass ordinary and propers. Let’s take a look at what you don’t sing. This happens mostly in Advent and Lent. For some background, we turn to … Read More
27th Sunday Ordinary Time – C This week, we look at the Mass “propers,” which, as the name suggests, are proper texts for a specific occurrence. In the Roman Missal and the Lectionary, each Mass has specific prayers and texts … Read More
26th Sunday Ordinary Time – C Music ministers are the liturgy’s time-keepers. At the most basic level, making music requires that we “keep time,” establishing pace by the number of beats per minute and dividing beats per measure into rhythms. … Read More
25th Sunday Ordinary Time – C If time is one way we encounter Christ, then that relationship deepens over time even if—perhaps because—we do the same rituals and tell the same stories year after year. It grows because we are … Read More
24th Sunday Ordinary Time – C If you want to be an excellent music director, you need to master the Mass’s ritual book, the Roman Missal. Along with the Lectionary, the Roman Missal gives you the structure, rules, and guidelines … Read More
23rd Sunday Ordinary Time – C Catholics primarily engage the Bible not as individuals but through communal hearing of Scriptures within the assembly on a schedule determined by the liturgical calendar. The Catholic Lectionary organizes three or more biblical passages … Read More
Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time We often fail to realize how powerful the liturgical calendar is. Beyond determining the day’s Mass, it shapes our Christian faith. When we attend to the liturgical calendar, we are formed by the mystery of … Read More
21st Sunday Ordinary Time – C There are three liturgical tools you need to master to be a competent and credible liturgical music director, especially if you are in charge of choosing music for Mass or other sacraments. We’ll take … Read More
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Songs for Catholic liturgy need more than just religious words. They need a specific “orientation.” Even when we focus on Mary or the saints, our liturgical orientation is always toward Christ in praise of … Read More