Book Description

Choir schools have been an intrinsic part of the Catholic Church since the fourth century. While the Holy See has instructed that such schools and training be diligently promoted, few programs exist, and even less is known about them. This paper provides much-needed research on Catholic choir school programs and the benefits they offer to the twenty-first-century Church, particularly in bringing the musico-liturgical goals of the Second Vatican Council to fruition. Using a multi-case-study approach, I investigate the only known Catholic institutions in the United States currently employing a traditional choir school education of rigorous daily instruction in choir and sung liturgy: St. Paul's Choir School (Cambridge, MA), The Madeleine Choir School (Salt Lake City, UT), and The Atonement Academy (San Antonio, TX). To formulate the framework for this study, a survey of related literature was made encompassing musico-liturgical directives of the Second Vatican Council, Church documents calling for chorister formation, papal writings, scholarly sources addressing sacred music within the Catholic Church, and various sets of education standards. From this, a research instrument was developed against which to investigate each school according to eight standards: placing importance on the teaching of music, giving pride of place to chant, preserving and fostering the singing of polyphony, promoting the full treasure of sacred music, cultivating new compositions, facilitating active participation, providing liturgical training, and fostering spiritual formation. Data related to these standards was collected from each school through interviews with music and pastoral staff, field notes from on-site observations of classes and liturgies, and a variety of school documents and sources. Results show that all three schools were highly successful in achieving these standards. Secondarily, the research instrument created for this study contributes a set of benchmarks from which other Catholic institutions can assess their own progress in achieving musico-liturgical objectives. Because of their exemplary adherence to Vatican II directives, choir school programs should be advocated as models for use in other kinds of Catholic institutions. The potential benefits these types of programs can contribute to Catholic education and the New Evangelization are worthy of substantial investigation by the Church.