HRC Youth Ministry

Well, to set the record straight, Msgr DL did not ban drums only after seeing them play in mass. In fact, when Msgr DL first joined HRC, he gave instructions to the Music Ministry that he doesn't want drums in the church. But he says keyboard/organ drums is ok. And I knew about this all the while also.

And so, when I saw the electronic drums in church, I was like, ok... cool.. let's see what happens next.. and true enough, there was some debate as mentioned in the main post there.

And IMHO, actually, there is a difference between an electronic drumset played by a human and the keyboard rhythm. And I told my sis Fiona about this also. And the difference is that the human played e-drums has an "ego", and the keyboard does not. Basically, the person who plays the e-drums will obviously want to be heard, or at least, hear him/herself. So, it really depends on the drummer's requirements/attitude/skill etc.

But let's say if the drummer does have all the characteristics of just playing at the right volume and balanced with the rest of the music, just like the keyboard rhythm, then the only fault that I can think of would be that Msgr DL doesn't want the physical presence of the drummer in the church. I guess the drums have taken over the guitar as the new "evil" instrument??

I guess there are no specific rules of music or worship in the Catholic Church (unless I am unaware of it). And the bible does mention about people praising God with clashing of cymbals and trumpets etc (sorry if I quoted the bible wrongly, do correct me). So I guess it's a matter of preference. Some people like lively music, some like more solemn and conventional atmosphere. And at the end of the day, we can't please everybody. But as for now, Msgr DL is the boss.

And from the younger generation's point of view, of course, liberate from tradition and jam some groovy beats! But the "old-skool" generation are hoping that we preserve the sacredness of the mass, where the body and blood of our Lord is present.

And in a way, no one on earth has the right to judge if drums or whatever musical instrument it is, should be played in church. I think the important thing is the sincerity between the musician and God. How sincere is the musician in playing the instrument as an act of worship to God, and want to bring others to worship God. Cause as a musician myself, I do know that we often tend to get carried away and try to do flashy musical skills that in all, doesn't primarily serve as a tool to praise God.

Well enough of "preaching", in practical terms, my opinion is that for now, normal Sunday masses, we can keep to what we have been doing all this while, that is, surviving with keyboard rhythms. But for youth animated masses, the rule of drums should be relaxed. The reason being, as mentioned in the main post, to create a lively atmosphere to encourage the youth. Then slowly, as we pray about it, maybe one day in the future, the drums will be accepted as a decent instrument in our church.

Other options? We can either place the drummer playing from outside of the church (the first parking lot behind the piano is excellent), and camouflaged so that the priest can not see him from the altar, and see if there are any comments. Or, turn-tables anybody?

i must say, that's a pretty long comment...enough for a post actually! u sure u don't want to blog as well??
thanks for sharing your opinion, which is..rather detailed :D

anyone else?

A humble comment... Could the general dislike for drums and other "modern" musical instruments be due to the fact that our sound system SUCKS? It's true... In the main section of the church, its really quite annoying to sit nearby the speakers, the bass is overpowering, and can really see some of the older folks show their irritation and annoyance... Which is probably what Monsignor DL is talking about when he mentions "loud and unsettling sound".

This is just something I noticed standing at the back of the church when I want to do some quiet reflection by myself (read: come late for mass).

Perhaps if the sound system was improved, maybe slowly we can get the church to accept more youthful music?

IMHO, our sound system is not that bad. Still salvageable. Just need to do some tweaking and maybe expand a bit on the current system, and things to should start sounding better.

A few constraints to better sound in HRC:-

1. The structure of the church is not exactly acoustic-friendly.

2. Certain frequencies are boosted in the current EQ settings, which causes the feedback and hum and annoying resonance. This setting was given by a "sound engineer" and has been safe guarded since by the PIC. And any suggestions/changes made by us musicians were not well-received.

HI GAB HERE,I WOULD JUST LIKE TO ADD SOME COMMENTS,I HAVE NOTHING AGAINTS DRUMS IN CHURCH AND I FELT THAT HAVING AN EXTRA EQUIPMENT IN CHURCH IS NOT THAT BAD.THE PURPOSE OR AIM OF HAVING MUSIC OR INSTRUMENTS IN CHURCH IS TO GLORIFY GOD IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER.AS WE CAN SEE IN EXODUS WHERE MOSES CROSS THE RED SEA WITH THE HAND OF GOD, THEY PROCEDED TO PRAISE GOD WITH NUMEROUS INSTRUMENTS AMONG THEM ARE CYMBALS,LYREE,TAMPOULINS..........
WELL, THIS CLEARLY SHOWS THAT EVEN IN BIBLICAL TIMES MAN HAVE LEARN THE ART TO PRAISE GOD IN NUMEROUS WAYS.SOMETIMES THE HUMAN SOUL COULD NOT EXPRESS ITS GRATITUDE TO GOD BECAUSE OF THE JOY THEY FELT.HENCE WE CAN SEE INSTRUMENTS ARE USED TO EXPRESS OUR JOY TO GOD.IN MY OPINION WE SHOULD SING A NEW SONG TO THE LORD AS IN PSALM 92.........POPE JOHN PAUL THE SECOND ONCE SAID THAT MUSIC MUST BE A BRIDGE THAT CONNECTS OUR SOUL TO GOD, A LINK BETWEEN GOD AND MAN, MUSIC IS LIKE AN INCENSE (PRAYER) TO GOD, AND THEREFORE EVERY MUSIC IS SUNG TO THE GLORY OF GOD.


PAUL WAS COMMENTING ON THE SACREDNESS OF THE EUCHARIST, AND I THINK THAT ONLY CERTAIN FORMS OF MUSIC SHOULD BE PLAYED TO ENSURE THE SAREDNESS OF THE BODY OF GOD.HAVING SAID THAT THE DRUMS REMAIN AN IMPORTANT INSTRUMENT OF WORSHIPPED.I SHALL END HERE AND THAT THESE ARE ONLY MY OPINION.AMEN -MAY THE BLESSING OF GOD BE UPON YOU.