Catholic Confirmation Service

[unknown-user]

What repertoire should/shouldn’t you play for a Catholic Confirmation
Service? I’ll be using my lever harp. It is going to be in the
Archbishop’s home with only close friends. Is Bach acceptable? or is he
primarily for Lutheran services? What about a contemporary sounding
piece by Kim Robertson? I asked the client if they wanted certain
pieces and he mentioned Ave Maria, but didn’t care which one. I will be
checking back with him, but would rather not make an ill informed
suggestion. This is what I have so far:

Service music;
Gounod’s Ave Maria
Bach’s Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring

Background music:
Robertson’s Searching for Lambs
Bach’s Siciliano
Mozart’s Andantino
Pescetti’s Andantino Espressivo
Challan’s Laura
Liszt’s Psaume from the Church at Geneva

[Connie Browning]

Julieanne-

I have a friend who is a cellist (spelling?) and college professor-he once told me that is it said that Bach said everything he wrote was to the the honor and glory of God-don’t think you could go wrong with Bach-but I’m not Catholic so it’s just my opinion.

Connie

[Briggsie B. Peawiggle]

When I was working as an organist in a Catholic church I played Bach all the time. There were no objections whatsoever. It’s commonly accepted nowadays.

Just probably you shouldn’t play, “Light My Fire,” I’m guessing. 🙂

[barbara-brundage]

There’s no objection to Bach, but I’d be awfully interested to know how you play the Sicilano and the Pescetti Andantino on a lever harp.

[unknown-user]

The Pescetti is an arrangement I made that doesn’t include the entire
work. It is the main theme of the Andantino stated twice and then moves into the ending.
I leave out the last triplet in the left hand for each measure to
accomplish the lever changes, and it is transposed to A minor. Now that
I have a better lever harp, I may try arranging more of it. We’ll see.
🙂

[barbara-brundage]

Thalnks, Julieanne.

I’ve messed around with the Siciliano, but I can’t come up with anything reasonable for the two measures before the recap, so I don’t go there, at least not without a flute.

[unknown-user]

HI JULIE , FOR ME AS A GREEK ROMAN ORTHODOX, ITS NOT ALLOWED TO PLAY MUSIC IN THE CURCH, BUT ONCE I PLAYED THE ORGAN IN THE LATIN CHURCH IN DAMASCUS, AND THE LETURGY BOOK INCLUDED BACH, I HAVE A VERY COMPLICATED MUSIC OF DE CABEZON, FOUR VOICES, FOR THE EASTER AND PASSIONS, BUT ITS FOR PEDAL HARP.

[brook-boddie]

Julieanne,

Bach will be just fine for the confirmation service.

[tonya-a]

Your pieces all sound lovely – a nice collection!

[Dorian Llywelyn]

Hi Julianne

I think I can reply to this, not only as a harpist, but also as a Roman Catholic priest….

There are very few hard and fast rules about music in Catholic services – a lot of priests have their own view about this, so musicians can meet a whole range of responses from priests and people in charge of liturgies.

One big principle is that the music is there to enhance the service, not dominate it. This means not drawing too much attention to the music (i.e. avoid flashy pieces), and also not holding up the sequence of events while you get to the end of a piece.

A good church organist has to work her/his way around what’s going on around the altar. This means some improvisatory skills, being familiar with the sequence of events in the service, and keeping an eye and ear open for the relevant cues. You might like to find someone who plays regulary for Catholic Masses. A Confirmation Mass is basically the same as a Mass on a normal Sunday, but with a chunk of extra bits put in the middle after the homily, when the Bishop confirms the person being confirmed by laying his hand on her head and anointing their forehead with oil.

Generally, things take a lot shorter than somne musicians realize, especially in small chapels like the one it sounds you are going to play in. And in a place like that, gentle, quiet is good, so a lever harp might well be the best choice.

The best advice I can give you had already been given: check with the priest. We priests all tend to think we are the ultimate authorities on church music.

Those of us who work in liturgical music know a whole series of jokes about church music and liturgists:

What’s the difference between a liturgist and a terrorist?
Answer: You can negotiate with a terrorist…

What is a liturgist?
A tribulation sent by God at times of absence of plague, to test the faith of the people.

Good luck!

[unknown-user]

I have had the experience of not being able to play a show-tune for a Catholic wedding, but the Preludes Intimes were allowed. It doesn’t look like your program has problems, except for the Robertson? And how can you do the “Gounod” on a lever harp?

[unknown-user]

I really appreciate the helpful replies! I think this thread is a good
reference for other harpists as well. 🙂 I spent most of the morning
today arranging the Gounod Ave Maria. I added the melody on top of the
Bach Prelude. It is rather busy with lever changes, but I think I have
something that will work. I keep the flow of 16th notes steady, but
modified harmonic voicing in some instances to allow the 2nd and 4th beats to always be
played in the right hand, so the left hand can stay busy with the
levers as needed. I think I have something that works now. I will
probably take the Robertson off, since it has a very contemporary sound
and will be an unfamiliar tune. Thanks again.

[barbara-brundage]

Hi, Julieanne. Don’t know if it helps any, but I’ve got the Gounod in Classics on Request, Vol. 3.

[Donna Germano]

You can also borrow a copy of the church’s hymnal and find some hynms you might already know.

[Briggsie B. Peawiggle]

Sounds like it will be a nice arrangement. Just be sure not to do any Marian tunes during communion in a Catholic mass. Liturgically speaking, communion should be reserved for music which puts one in mind of that part of the mass — the body and blood of Christ, and not tunes regarding Mary.

June (former Catholic organist)

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