How Often Should We Introduce New Music?

I get a LOT of questions from musicians who are leading ensembles/bands at different liturgies in their parishes. I thought it might be a good idea to share some of the most common ones here, along with answers that seem to stay consistent from  year to year.

How much new music do you do at your Mass?

Let’s face it– there are new songs being written every day. Some are incredible; some are average; some (like a lot of mine) never make it past the 1^st draft. Still, the library of songs from which we can choose continues to grow leaps and bounds. That’s a great thing! We should celebrate that musicians are being moved by the Holy Spirit to share their gifts. So, how do we comb through all of it and choose what’s right for us? To what degree do we need to keep updating our repertoire?

Tough question. Obviously, we want to keep our music fresh, but not so that people don’t recognize the music when it comes time to sing. Too many new songs at one mass might be new and “fresh,” but it would also be a lot of unfamiliar music. Every song would be a challenge, maybe even intimidating; there would be nothing they knew. People would tend to sing much less.

At the other extreme, never introducing new music would assure the assembly knows the songs, but there is the danger of becoming stale. Even the best songs played every week will get old, not to mention the fact that you would be depriving your parish of some wonderful, new music.

So what’s the answer? How much new music should we do at Mass? Only you can answer that question. Every parish is different. Every music ensemble is different. Every liturgy is different. We need to constantly evaluate and re-evaluate how well we are performing our ministries, in this case, music. One suggestion would be to keep an ongoing chart of the songs played at a particular liturgy. Every week add a new column with the song titles. This way you can see ‘at a glance’ what songs have been played in recent weeks. Also, TALK TO YOUR PARISHIONERS! Casually ask them about the music. Ask them what they think of the songs. Do they feel invited to sing? Etc.

Keep track of what new songs really stand out; seek out which new songs are the most popular. Follow the publisher’s websites: OCP (spiritandsong), WLP, GIA, CCLI, etc. Which songs are they highlighting? Which songs get strong reviews? Which songs are consistently listed in the planners? Usually, this means the songs are solid, singable, and very useable for liturgy. But, check them out for yourself. Choose the ones that will work well for you.

Consider choosing a balance of songs for every liturgy: 2 solid stand-by’s, something leaning toward traditional, something contemporary, and something new. It’s a start­-­ a rough template to work from. It won’t always work, but it can be a good guide to get you thinking consistently and more balanced.

As we present and lead music week after week at our liturgies it’s important to constantly evaluate and re-evaluate our music and our musical performance. This is not to simply be critical of ourselves, but rather to be sure we are leading our assemblies the most effective way we can.

For more on choosing music, check out my January 20th blog, "A Lot to Consider." (scroll down to the list below)