The men's choral vocal ensemble Floriani has dedicated itself to safeguarding the Church's tradition of sacred music. Across the United States, they have sung at Masses and concerts in shrines, basilicas, and cathedrals. This summer, they had the remarkable opportunity to perform before thousands of pilgrims during Eucharistic adoration at the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis. "I don't think we understood the gravity of it prior to coming to the Eucharistic Congress," said the ensemble's founder Giorgio Navarini. "They put us on the stage in the Lucas Oil Stadium, and there were 60,000 people in front of us worshipping the Lord."

Floriani Performing at the National Eucharistic Congress

Describing the response they received as "tremendous," Navarini shared that this was the highlight of the entire congress. Many people had never heard the beauty of sacred music before. The group met while studying at Thomas Aquinas College in California and named after St. Florian. After college, they pursued different paths but eventually reunited and began singing professionally in 2021 for different parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.When they saw the response of congregations with modern and contemporary music to the beauty of the Church's tradition, they realized the importance of their mission. Since then, Floriani has been committed to bringing beautiful, sacred music back to life on social media, in parishes, in schools, and in homes across America. This honors St. Cecilia, the patron of music, whose feast is on November 22. It is said that she sang in her heart to the Lord during her wedding.

Essential Part of the Liturgy

The Church often emphasizes that its musical tradition is a treasure of inestimable value and an integral part of the solemn liturgy. By looking back at the early Church when everything was sung, Navarini explained that music is an essential part of worshiping God. There are rabbinical scholars who believe that Christ would have sung when preaching and quoting the Old Testament according to a specific melody.Mary Stone, the graduate assistant for music and liturgy at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., told the Register that sacred music is set apart for a sacred purpose outside of the secular realm. With the help of a choir of students she directs, she provides sacred music to help students enter more deeply into the liturgy. She noted a national and worldwide "rediscovery" of the Church's musical heritage and how it allows us to enter more deeply into the liturgy and its prayers.

‘To Sing Is to Pray Twice’

Dominican Father Robert Mehlhart, president of the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music in Rome, explained that when singing the sacred texts of the Bible in the liturgy, one penetrates them intellectually and lives the content through singing. "To sing is to pray twice" is often used to explain the role of music in the Church. Father Mehlhart served as choirmaster and organist of St. Cajetan Church in Munich before being appointed president.The Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music offers a wide range of courses and degrees to train church musicians and teachers. Father Mehlhart emphasized the importance of learning and familiarizing oneself with the great works of the tradition. Even if one is an organist, one must have sung certain pieces like Ave Verum by Mozart, Locus Iste by Bruckner, and Sicut Cervus by Palestrina. Music adds a beautiful and important layer to the meaning of the text and elevates one into the embrace of glory.When singing, we join the heavenly host of angels in praising God made man in Jesus Christ. Stone added that singing allows us to enter completely with both body and soul into the act of worship. Since learning about liturgical music, Stone has been moved to sing God's praises and the texts that proclaim the truth of our faith.

Powerful Tool of Evangelizing

While the first goal of sacred music for the liturgy is to sing the prayers and texts, it also has the power to evangelize on both an aesthetic and theological level. When singing antiphons and other sacred texts like the Adoro Te Devote by St. Thomas Aquinas, the theology is rich and can be reflected on throughout the Mass. Sacred music is a powerful tool that turns participants' hearts to God.Father Mehlhart added that choirs are a beautiful and effective way to draw people to God as every good choir rehearsal is also a catechesis. C.S. Lewis expressed that beauty is a strong tool of evangelization as we want to be united with the beauty we see. The books or music that we think hold beauty will betray us if we trust in them; the beauty only comes through them and what comes through is longing.

A Revival of Sacred Music

Pope Pius X's 1903 motu proprio Tra Le Sollecitudini emphasizes three criteria for sacred music: sanctity, goodness of form, and universality. Navarini underscored that sacred music evokes a sense of the transcendent and is accessible to everyone regardless of time, place, or culture. He stressed the importance of passing on this great heritage to future generations.There is a surge of other groups promoting the renewal of sacred music within the Church, such as the Catholic Sacred Music Project at Princeton University. Navarini said it is not surprising that young Catholics want to transmit the beauty of tradition and fire to the world. In a world of constant change, sacred music and liturgy provide something stable and firm that roots us in our Catholic identity.