[cothrige]

...I never thought I’d see the day that we had an electric bass guitar in the sanctuary...

Well, we have had drums, electric guitars, and many other such things, but thank God they have yet to put any of that in the sanctuary. So far it has always been with the rest of the choir or musicians. How would they even fit it in there? Wouldn't they be afraid of knocking things off of the altar?

[Constitutions Grandchild]

Our lovely little parish is very open. What used to be seating to the left of the altar has been pretty much turned over to the choir. This was a first time for an electric guitar. We've had a keyboard before which seems redundant when a baby grand and an organ are there. I assume the skill set is not the same, so the group used what they could play.

I'm not putting down bringing in instrumentation. We've had violinists, flutists, cellists from the St. Louis Symphony play and it was magnificent, I was simply referring to the “jazz” rifts which, again, were simply unsettling. We've also enlisted the Bach Society to sing in the choir on special occasions — like Christmas and Easter. I simply grew up in choral groups and sang all the Bach, Beethoven, Handel — all the great choral works which, to me, were a thrill to sing and uplifting beyond all measure.

Another thing, Catholics need to learn how to sing. The congregation sounds like shy three-year-olds. Now and then, you'll get someone who belts it out (i.e. making a joyful noise to the Lord) and the heads turn and the stares start. When God commands make a joyful noise, he's not referencing murmuring.