Attended Parish C today. Children’s Choir.
Parish C has, by far, the highest commitment to liturgical music of any of the local parishes. Adult choir, kid’s choir, two separate ethnic choirs, two excellent keyboard dudes, instrumentalists – it’s good to see that level of commitment and involvement.
They also seem to, you know, READ THE LYRICS before foisting them off on the congregation – while ‘lame’ happens sometimes, heresy is avoided. I love that.
For the last 40 years, children’s choirs have usually meant 1) suffering and 2) near occasion of sin. It is best not to even think about the smiley-faced abominations we’ve endured. So, I was very pleasantly surprised today when the children assembled in choir robes as if they were going to be a real choir. And, wonder of wonders, they even sang a *Greek* Kyrie, and not a wimpy one, but one with a little meat to it. Cool! (I was sitting up front, and the kid’s choir director mouthed ‘thank you’ to me, as I was probably the one person in the congregation that a) knew that Kyrie, and b) has a loud voice – otherwise, the poor kids would have not heard much of a response. as I mentioned, it wasn’t a super-easy Kyrie.)
The kids made a yeoman’s effort at a couple pieces that I’d never heard before, clearly written for children’s choir but also not silly. One sounded a bit like Faure, for crying out loud, with the kids having to follow that modal slippery-slidey-ness of that style. They weren’t great, but it was such a relief to hear them try some real music.
They did do a couple goofy songs – that Gloria *clap*clap* thing, Gather Your People, O Lord – but adult choirs inexplicably do those songs, too.
All in all, there’s still hope in the world. Kids singing chant – whoda thunk it?
