Folk Mass Revolution
Catholic Music Genres
November 17, 2025 - 3:28pm — Richard SchlettyThere are many categories and styles of Catholic music. Here is a list which is being fine-tuned as we go along. Some summaries are drawn from Google AI Overviews.
1) Gregorian chant: Church music sung as a monophonic (single vocal line) in free rhythm and a restricted scale (plainsong), in a style developed for the medieval Latin liturgy. Gregorian chant developed mainly in western and central Europe during the 9th and 10th centuries, with later additions and redactions.
2) Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque sacred music: Medieval sacred music, like Gregorian chant, was primarily monophonic and unaccompanied. The Renaissance saw the rise of complex polyphony, with more voices, larger choirs, and new forms like the mass and motet, often supported by the church and the printing press. The Baroque era introduced...
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November 16, 2025 - 3:08pm — Richard SchlettyKeep the Fire Burning is the forgotten and untold story of the Folk Mass. The influence of this movement is still felt today in the Catholic liturgical industry and in contemporary Christian music.
Keep the Fire Burning – the book (available from OCP)
ocp.org/en-us/collections/dg/626/keep-the-fire-burning
This fascinating book examines the place of the Folk Mass in Church history. Was it a well-intentioned but failed attempt at updating worship? Or was it a genuine movement of the people?
Hear, O Lord (Ray Repp)
July 30, 2025 - 4:03pm — Richard Schletty
Hear, O Lord was composed and recorded by Ray Repp (the father of the Folk Mass revolution with his “Mass for Young Americans”). Here is his original recording. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzBvsbRw1ak
Hear, O Lord by Ray Repp
From the album The Best of Ray Repp, Vol.1
Released on: 1966-01-01
℗ 1966 1967 1968 2004 OCP, 5536 NE Hassalo, Portland, OR 97213. All rights reserved. Made in USA. All selections BMI.
More songs by Ray Repp (playlist)
Article about the death and legacy of Ray Repp: https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-usa/2020/04/ray-repp-dies-wrote-allelu-hear-o-lord-i-am-the-resurrection
Download a PDF capture of above article
Learn more about the Folk Mass revolution (mid 1960s and onward) by listening to this excellent podcast which features Ken Canedo who wrote the book "Keep the Fire Burning."
