deird1 | (Reply)

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Lol!

Unless you have an overly ambitious music director - my mother's church has run across a few - they didn't last long. One wanted to take the church choir to Rome and sing with the Vatican, also to Paris. Another did too. Keep in mind this is a small Catholic Choir on an Island in South Carolina that is 30% tourist, 30% old retirees, and maybe 40% everyone else. And the church choir is mainly old retirees in their late 60s to 90s. They can barely leave the state let alone travel to Rome.

NY, I can kind of see it. We have paid musicians at my church, they aren't volunteers - the section leaders are paid, and the music director brings in professional musicians from his own professional band. It has some of the best church music that I've witnessed (well also does Broadway Show tunes, popular songs, and well pretty much everything - we've had a lot of Leonard Cohen) - it is also Unitarian Universalist Congregationalist, and basically all they have going for them in their services is the music and the sermon. The only ritual is a meditation, candle lighting for joy and concern, and a wisdom story. I don't think anyone would come worship if they didn't have decent music? NY choirs are ridiculously excellent, some of the Catholic ones charge admission at Christmas.