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Criteria for Selecting Music in Worship: Insights for a Meaningful Mass Experience

This document outlines key criteria for choosing music in worship settings, as presented by Fr. Jan Michael Joncas. It examines the ritual dimension of music, including various textual genres like dialogues, acclamations, antiphons, and hymns. The analysis covers essential musical elements such as pitch, volume, duration, timbre, scale, texture, and form. It emphasizes the importance of aligning music with the spiritual and cultural context of the congregation, ensuring that it fosters group identity and collective worship while embodying sacred expression.

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Criteria for Selecting Music in Worship: Insights for a Meaningful Mass Experience

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  1. Choosing Music for the Mass 30 April 2011 Fr. Jan Michael Joncas

  2. Criteria for Choosing Musical Settings for a Worshipping Community

  3. Sing to the Lord: Music in Divine Worship (2008)

  4. Ritual Dimension

  5. Analysis of Ritual Dimension • Textual Genres (dialogues and acclamations, antiphons and psalms, refrains and repeated responses, hymns) • Musical Elements (pitch, volume, duration, timbre, scale, texture, form) • Ritual Settings (music alone, music + action, music + text, music + text accompanying an action)

  6. Textual Genres

  7. Dialogues and Acclamations (116a)

  8. Antiphons and Psalms (116b)

  9. Refrains and Repeated Responses (116c)

  10. Hymns (116d)

  11. Musical Elements

  12. Pitch • Congregation: C c // Abeb • Choral: melody probably placed in alto line // possible settings in which SB sing in octaves with T above the melody and A below the melody • Instrumental: emulate organ, i.e., bass BELOW range of congregational singing to ground harmony and establish meter; mid-range IN THE MIDST of congregational singing to establish harmony; descants ABOVE the congregational singing to offer contrasts • Volume • Congregation: Volume depends on genre (loud = acclamation; soft = litany) • Choral: when singing alone, follow score; when singing with congregation, adjust to assembly • Instrumental: when playing alone or accompanying choral ensemble, follow score; when playing to accompany congregation, adjust to leading instrument

  13. Duration (meter / rhythm) • Congregation: most comfortable with regular meters and rhythms • Choral: when singing alone, may be adventurous; when supporting the congregation, use regular rhythms and meters • Instrumental: when playing alone or accompanying a vocal ensemble, may be adventurous; when supporting the congregation, use regular rhythms and meters • Timbre • Congregation: love the sound of untrained congregational unison • Choral: when singing along, timbre appropriate to the style of music being sung (chant, Bach chorale, shape-note hymn, spiritual); when singing with the congregation, assume refined congregational timbre • Instrumental: when playing alone or accompanying vocal ensemble, timbre appropriate to the style of music being played/sung; when accompanying the congregation, sustain singing

  14. Scale/Melody/Harmony • Pentatonic • Diatonic (modal) • Chromatic (lightly) • Not dodecaphonic or micro-tonal • Texture • Monophonic • Heterophonic • Homophonic • Polyphonic • Form (congruent with ritual requirements) • Open forms (antiphon + psalm verses; mantra) • Closed forms (through-composed; hymns)

  15. Ritual Settings

  16. Music Alone • Bugler playing “Taps” at graveside • 3-part invention after psalm on Trinity Sunday • Music + Action • President Entering Room for a Press Conference • Wedding Procession • Music + Text • Edith Piaf in concert • Cantor offering Responsorial Psalm • Music + Text Accompanying an Action • “You put your right hand in….” • “Lamb of God” during Fraction Rite

  17. Spiritual Dimension

  18. Mediates Transcendence • Assists memorization of sacred texts • Facilitates group identity and action • Expresses and evokes emotion • Structures time and symbolizes eternity • Models ordered creativity

  19. Cultural Context

  20. Must bear the weight of mystery (i.e., express people’s faith without trivializing or making it inaccessible) • Must bear the weight of repetition (i.e., be able to be sung/played many times without becoming vacuous) • Must bear the weight of identity (i.e., give worshipers a sense of being “at home” in worship)

  21. Two Examples by Michael Joncas • “Retrojected” Setting: “Revised Sing Praise and Thanksgiving” (WLP) • New Setting: “Missa ad Gentes / Maryknoll Centennial Mass” (GIA)

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