"A good organist becomes harder to find"
From the Hartford Courant, word of another, less widely publicized vocations crisis.
Of the 17,000 Roman Catholic churches nationwide, only about 1,000 have been able to find full-time musicians, said Michael McMahon, president of the National Association of Pastoral Musicians. McMahon oversees a group of more than 9,000 musicians and clergy working to revive the liturgical life of the church.
Catholic universities need to create and improve music programs specifically for church musicians, and employed musicians should mentor young musicians, he said.
The shortage of organists is relevant to the jobs available, said James Thomashower, executive director of New York City-based American Guild of Organists. The guild serves more than 20,000 members in 343 local chapters throughout the United States and abroad.
“Professional musicians are reluctant to take a job where they work weekends and are modestly compensated despite their many years of schooling and master degree,” Thomashower said.
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I don’t know if I would say it’s a shortage. Most Catholic parishes have no need for a paid, full-time musician. While I agree we need organists, the fact is that most parishes cannot afford to hire professional ones, and rely, as they do in the rest of their music ministry, upon volunteers. I doubt if any but the largest cathedrals had paid musicians 50 years ago.
No, I knew many people who were professional (albeit under-payed,) Catholic church musicians in the 30s and 40s.
Actually, most parishes of more than 400 families or so do need a full time paid music director, though they may choose not to spend their money one them.
Their liturgies often reflect this.
Peace, all.
I’m with Gen. Any parish with a Mass needs a real musician on duty. If a parish is lucky enough to have high-quality volunteers, that’s okay, so long as the music budget is generous and the understandings are in place. I’d agree that any parish with a few Masses needs a staff person for music ministry. Sad to say, the places that don’t have them don’t think they need them and all too many parishes try to get away with as little as possible. It hurts ‘em and it hurts the church.
I’d wager some of those churches don’t have organists because they don’t want them. I know a couple of church organists who have trouble finding a job not because they aren’t needed, but because the church would rather have a pianist or a praise band.
Peace, Jane.
Don’t forget that some parishes have never installed real organs, or even electronic ones.
“Actually, most parishes of more than 400 families or so do need a full time paid music director”
This could be the problem in translating between our cultures. My diocese has an average of fewer than 850 Catholics per parish, which, estimating around 4 per family, is barely 200 families per parish. Sometimes I just assume that all pre-Vatican II parishes were like the small, rural, close-knit ones in which my parents grew up. My home parish has well over 400 families registered, and we do have a paid music director, but still only one person who can play the organ.
Two comments on the use of terms in this discussion:
professional: It is my thought that you don’t need a professional to play the organ, that is, someone who plays the organ for a living. If you set the bar that high, of course you’re not going to find anyone if your parish doesn’t have a budget for it. Hymn- and chant- playing is not that difficult to do on a basic level. If you say, “It’s an AGO member, or nothing, and we’re going to pay them $20 a Sunday,” you’re setting yourself up for failure.
play the organ: Almost anyone who plays the piano at a “praise band” level can play the organ well enough for most Sunday services (hymns, Ordinary, chant). It seems as if when people say, “We want someone to play the organ,” members of the congregation who play the piano hear, “We want the Widor Toccata every week” and run away.
Most (but not all) OCP-type music is not suited to the organ, and so, of course, no one likes to play it on the organ, most of all, “professionals”.
Hugh, you hit on an interesting point, that happens to be a sore spot with me. Very few “professional keyboard players” play the organ. But, since they are competent players, the churches bring them in, due to necessity. Further, the musical ear of a non-organist is attuned to hearing sounds other than the traditional organ. As a result, you get experimentation with a rainbow of electronic keyboard sounds, none of which is appropriate for Mass. For example, last Sunday, the keyboardist used a marimba (!!) sound, which grated severely against my liturgical sensibilities. I agree it sounded very “nice”, but he’s the one who made the leap that sounding “nice” made it liturgically appropriate. If you hear anything enough times, it becomes so familiar that you believe it is appropriate. This de-sensitization only paves the way to further, even more outlandish experimentation. I feel like starting a new organization for musically-disaffected Catholics. I’m going to call it POOBA, for Pipe Organ Or Bust, Already!
It’s sad about the plight of organs and organists, but there may be an upside. The Church has always emphasized that the human voice is the primary liturgical instrument; the organ was only permitted because it, more than any other instrument, affects some of the mechanics and sounds of the human voice. With or without instruments, there is still music at liturgy so long as there is singing.
Paul
Are you of Southern roots, as it were? People from outside the South often don’t realize how the word “nice” has traditionally been used as a very, very dry (but deep) cut.
No, Liam, I am not from the South, and I intended no ill-will by using the word “nice”. I only meant to convey that a sound may be pleasing to the ear; but that alone does not qualify it for use at Mass. There must be objective criteria. Pope St. Pius X was clear in Tra le Sollecitudini, Section VI. Rome has since allowed more flexibility, to account for cultural diversity; but in the West, there is no need for it. Such flexibility can too easily be interpreted as license for ongoing novelty. My reading of contemporary liturgical norms is a call for stability. Don’t you agree?
Lest anyone think I dwell in the past for quoting a 100-year-old document, it should be noted that the Second Vatican Council supports this position in Sacrosanctum Concilium, when it says, “In the Latin Church the pipe organ is to be held in high esteem, for it is the traditional musical instrument which adds a wonderful splendor to the Church’s ceremonies and powerfully lifts up man’s mind to God and to higher things.” I might add that “high esteem” does not mean up in the choir loft, gathering dust.
Peace, all.
While it is true that good musicians can come in and make the organ sound “good,” it is indeed a far step from being “good” to being “competent” as an organist.
Personally, I know enough about the organ to know I’m no organist, even though I’ve been a liturgical musician for over twenty years.
The organ is not the favored instrument of the Church because St Gregory or St Cecelia saw angels dancing on the top of the pipes. There are musical reasons why an organist who uses the foot pedals and has an ability to utilize the stops is more effective than any other single instrumentalist. And the reason is not “tradition” or even “Tradition.”
I would have no problem with a parish asking a good pianist to play the organ. But they would be doing the musician and the assembly a disservice to do so without offering to pay for organ lessons in the bargain. Having a pipe organ and a warm body at the console is not enough.
Two years ago, when I started working as choirmaster (NOT organist/choirmaster–we have an organist too), I felt fortunate to be working with a pastor who valued excellence in every aspect of the liturgy–including music. We had our 13-rank turn-of-the-century tracker organ renovated, and I took the raw talent of the parish choir and shaped it up! Our diocese has a program in which parish organists can receive training at a reasonable cost from very fine organ instructors. Our parish even completely subsidised this for one of our parish organists.
By the way, we are a small parish–about 300 families. Again, I am extremely grateful for a priest, and a diocese, who understands how important good music is for the liturgy!
Dear sir/madam
i am a young guy of 23 years of age and a talented
organist but a drauftmanship by profession. please i
have been playing organ for the past eight years in my
church and play at other programs or ceremonies. i
would like to continue my talented music career in
music so i want to under go a traing opportunity tour.
i can play all kind of music rythm that
you can think of in the music industry. I would like
you to help me in terms of promoting me to achieve
great things in my organ playing career. sir or madam
if your church or organisation is not capable to help
me you can recomend or foward my request to other
sister organisation that can assist me or need my
service. i shall tell you more
about my music career and about my self when i hear
from you. Hope to hear from you soonest
Chritopher Gawu writes
Liturgical Instruments
There has been a good deal of interesting discussion about organs vs. pianos vs. keyboards at the Recovering Choir Director blog. From the level of sophistication in the discussion, it was easy for me to see that most of the…
i am the officer in charge of music in my parish. i am
the choir director, incharge of any musical program in
my church. I started my music program when i was young
so it has become like a hobby to me and i have
develope more interest in it. I have perform at many
major programs for the past years. I can play all type
of music. examples classicals, hymns, anthems,choruses
and many more. i am currently a resident in Ghana West
Africa. I would be happy to be part of your music department.
Please i want to play my music with a church in USA for sometime to enable me know how to relate people of different culture.
Hope to hear from you soon.
CHRISTOPHER GAWU
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