Why do we sing at Mass, or to make the question more basic: why do we sing at all, ever? Why has the human animal developed this particular art-form? Animals have their cries and birds chirp, but why do we humans sing? What is found in the act of singing that makes this a unique property of the human species? Yes, it is said that whales and dolphins “sing,” but maybe that’s because their brains are larger than our own! (Does this imply that the “smarter” a creature is … ?)
What is it, in the act of singing, which cannot be expressed by any other means? All vibrating objects create sound by displacing the air molecules next to them, which displaces the air molecules next to them, etc. These moving air molecules finally travel to our ear canals, which convert these vibrations into electrical impulses, and our brains translate these into sound. If the vibrations are recognized between certain speeds, and the vibrations are sustained, we hear them as music. When we sing, air is passed from our lungs through the vocal folds (“cords”), causing them to vibrate. In this case, not only are we generating these vibrations, but we both hear and feel them, because the vibrations also travel through our own bodies, allowing us to “hear” on the inside, too.
So singing can produce a pleasurable experience in our ears, and, as an added benefit, give us a type of “massage” from the inside as well. Remember some well-sung performances, whether of large-chorus size, a small quartet, or an excellent soloist. Did the hairs on the back of your neck “stand up” to applaud? Was this not a response to the pleasurable sounds you received at that experience? And were you not “changed” when you left the concert venue? Music changes us, both outside and in. Singing changes us even more so because we are generating the vibrations.
Our Gospel today speaks of “changes.” Jesus’ face and clothes were changed to dazzling brightness, which we call “transfiguration.” Will singing at Mass transfigure us? Probably not, on the outside, but maybe a little bit, on the inside, every time we sing. Remember "bene cantat, bis orat," which means "well sung, twice prayed.”
Paul J. Prochaska, Parish Musician