CELEBRATING THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION

MUSICAL OPPORTUNITIES
The general practice for celebrating the sacrament of Confirmation in Arundel and Brighton is that the Bishop conducts the ceremony on a Deanery basis. In reality, this may take one of several forms: a celebration in the Cathedral only; two celebrations in the Cathedral on the same day; one in the Cathedral and one in the Deanery; or a celebration in the Deanery only. Whatever the plan, the director of music is faced certainly with a large-scale project. But don’t regard it as a problem; rather see it as an opportunity to bring together musicians from all over the Deanery for a stimulating and enriching liturgy. This brief article may give you some pointers to consider and I hope it will be helpful to those responsible for the music.

PLANNING THE LITURGY
This will be done in consultation with the Deanery co-ordinator who will also give you the chosen readings. As with any liturgy, the presider will always wish to be involved. In this case, of course, this is the Bishop. Bishop Kieran is always delighted to have good notice of what is being planned, so please do send him a copy of your draft liturgy before you go to print. Apart from being common courtesy, it is only right that Bishop Kieran himself is well-briefed so keep him fully informed - he really does appreciate it!

WHAT SHOULD WE SING?
Confirmation day is a great day out for families, friends and sponsors of those being confirmed, as well as the candidates themselves. Almost every family group will organise a meal out or some other form of celebration for themselves, so the liturgical celebration itself should reflect the importance of the day. The music you choose should be good, effective music which will encourage participation amongst the congregation. Respect the liturgical priorities by concentrating on the acclamations first, then build the rest of the “programme” around that. Remember to strike a balance and do not try to sing absolutely everything, as this will make the liturgy cluttered.

Acclamations
As the assembly is likely to be drawn from all over, it is probably best to opt for either responsorial acclamations or a very safe through-setting which most people will know. You will, no doubt, hold a short practice with the people beforehand; be sure to go over the Gospel Acclamation and Eucharistic Acclamations if nothing else.

The Psalm
This should always be sung. Usually there is only one non-Gospel reading at our Confirmations, so the Alleluia will then immediately follow the psalm. You may like to consider singing an extended Alleluia setting with Psalm verses (such as the Celtic Alleluia with verses) so you are in effect telescoping the two together. As most confirmations occur during the Easter season, try the song “Alleluia, alleluia, give thanks to the risen Lord” especially with verse 2.

The Gloria
This should also be sung and perhaps a dignified impressive setting should be chosen; and fine though it is, may I suggest that we give the “clapping” Gloria a bit of a rest!

The Penitential Rite
This lends itself well to the “call-response” style and so will only require minimal teaching to the congregation. If you wish to use a Rite 3 setting, do check with the Bishop about the celebrant’s part.  It can often be quite effective to have spoken “tropes” over quiet organ or keyboard chords.

Lamb of God
This accompanies the fraction. Usually the clergy of the Deanery or the Cluster are present so you will need a few verses or tropes to accompany the rite. Choose an open-ended setting which you can bring to an end when you need to.

Hymns
Now (and only now) we come on to the question of hymns. Do not feel that everything you utter must be centred on the theme of the Holy Spirit. Remember the candidates have been preparing for months (or all their lives really!) so they know why they are there and what is going to happen. It really is not necessary to stick to “Spirit” hymns exclusively as the whole celebration keeps us well- focussed. Why not choose hymns that people really like and always sing well? A good rousing entrance hymn can be most uplifting (especially in the Cathedral) and always finish the celebration on a high!

Anointing
Music is of course needed for the Confirmation Rite itself, while the candidates individually present themselves before the Bishop for anointing. It is perhaps a good idea to allow the rite to begin without music, so that all can see and hear what is taking place. After, say, half a dozen have been confirmed, let the music begin. Two items should be enough here; the first a set piece (a hymn or song) and the second an open-ended piece, so that you can sing it for as long as you need. Taizé is particularly appropriate here, or Chris Walker’s Veni Sancte Spiritus. The same consideration may apply at Communion; two items, the second being of flexible duration. Indeed, the first item could even be a tasteful solo, choir piece, or instrumental.

A moment of relief?
Finally on hymns, consider dropping the song at the Preparation of the Gifts and let the organ take over. This is not a particularly high point at Mass, so the organ can effectively reflect the transition between Word and Eucharist, especially with subtle improvisation. If you play a set piece you risk holding up proceedings when the Bishop is ready to continue, and this creates an unnecessary intrusion.

Don’t re-invent the wheel!
The congregation attending the ceremony will probably be completely different from last year’s. There is no reason why you should choose a completely different music programme from year to year. If you know something works particularly well, stick with it! Conversely, if you know something has not gone well, then change it, or change its position. For the sake of the musicians - who may well be the same every year - it is probably best to change about half the music, so that there is plenty of fresh music to challenge them.

RESOURCES
A celebration such as this is an opportunity to involve musicians from all over the Deanery. You will already be liaising with the Deanery coordinator and you can always ask him/her to consult parish contacts for possible names. Then you simply get on the phone! It will take time and trouble, but the more the merrier, especially if you are drawing in new people. Try to involve the schools also - indeed this may well be the starting point.

Getting the right balance
Wherever the celebration is to take place, choose music which will appeal to all. If you have a wealth of resources available to you, it is a good idea to have roughly half led by the organ and half led by other instruments. Because of the location and eccentric pitch of the Cathedral organ, you will not be able to combine the two there.

The minimal resources are a cantor/animator and organist. You will of course be able to assemble more musicians than this. You’ll have a choir (unison or 4-part) and some instrumentalists. The “band” should consist of a rhythm section (bass guitar, guitars and keyboard) as well as a number of melodic instruments. In the Cathedral, drums can be rather booming and their percussive function will be almost lost. It is surprising how the bass guitar can keep things moving along, as well as provide the foundation to the whole sound.

Location
You will locate the music group at a liturgically appropriate place; at the Cathedral this could be in the north transept by the shrine of St Philip Howard. You will find the Cathedral staff enormously helpful and you will be offered two or three microphones. One of these will probably be used by the cantor/animator and the others for the choir/music group. If you have amplified guitars and/or keyboard, place the various amplifiers close together and position a microphone near them. Then you may have a chance of relaying their output through the Cathedral’s loudspeakers. Don’t have these amps too loud at the front - the sound will become a mush halfway down; aim for clarity rather than volume. This whole question of amplified instruments in the Cathedral is a difficult one and you may need to try different permutations, but it is possible to achieve a good sound in a building whose acoustics are perhaps better suited to polyphony!