Lutheran Kantor

What is the mission and responsibility of the Lutheran choir? Oftentimes we think the role of the choir is to sing choral anthems. Does the choir have some “higher” purpose?

Awhile back I came across the following quote in a book entitled Conduct of the Service by Rev. Dr. Arthur Carl Piepkorn which sparked my thinking.

The primary function of the Choir is to lead the Congregation in the singing of the Liturgy and the Hymns, and to sing the Propers when they are beyond the capacity of the Congregation. The singing of optional anthems and other compositions apart from the Ordinary, the Propers and Hymns is at best a secondary function of the Choir and should not be allowed to become its primary function or reason for existing.

How many of us have this understanding of the choir? The Lutheran choir is a Liturgical choir. I have a dear friend who reminds me several times each year that when she sang in the choir many years ago, they would chant the introit and gradual each Sunday (and that they sang lots of Bach chorales).

For the last month, my church’s choir has been learning Divine Service Setting Four from Lutheran Service Book and several new hymns. They have been teaching the congregation by example and supporting the singing in a way that I cannot do on the organ by myself. I can lead on the organ by my articulation, phrasing, tempo, and registrations, but the addition of the choir lends another helpful dimension.

There are a number of resources available to help the average choir director, with an average choir, and an average accompanist/organist to sing and lead the Propers.

• Acclamation is a new weekly resource from Concordia Publishing House which contains settings of the Introit, Psalm of the Day, Gradual, Gospel Acclamation, and Hymn of the Day. It is available to match the historic one-year lectionary or the three-year lectionary from Lutheran Service Book.
• Liturgy Solutions offers a number of helpful resources for the weekly singing of the Propers based on the one-year and three-year lectionaries.
• Concordia Publishing House will also be releasing Lutheran Service Book: Propers of the Day in January 2008. This resource will contain the Propers from the LSB Altar Book for each Sunday and festival in a convenient form for chanting and worship preparation/study. After some practice it becomes quite easy to learn how to chant with a LSB or similar chant tone.

Learning to sing the Propers, the Ordinary, and the hymns can be a rewarding way for the choir to proclaim the Word and the theme of the day to the congregation. Why not devote a portion of your choral time to practicing what may be the most important role of the Choir?