Morning and Evening Prayer: An interview with Bobby Fisher

This week, I continue in interview mode – and have the pleasure to present the talented guitar player extraordinaire Bobby Fisher. Bobby has appeared on many recordings as accompanist to such luminaries as David Haas, Marty Haugen as well as new comers Lori True and Tony Alonso.

Bobby Fisher has many collections of his own including Season of Peace [G.I.A Publications] and If We Dare To Hope [OCP Publications]. He has written books on liturgical guitar playing and is a seasoned workshop clinician.

Check out more info on Bobby Fisher at OCP [here] and at GIA [here].

Now…here’s Bobby to talk about his experiences on Morning and Evening Prayer.

Lucernarium: Do you, or have you, used music in celebrating Morning and Evening Prayer? What has been your experience of these ‘hinge’ hours of prayer? How has music enhanced these times for you and the gathered assembly?

Bobby Fisher: Yes, we currently celebrate Morning Prayer at my parish every Saturday at 8:00 A.M. I find both Morning and Evening Prayer to be excellent ways to begin a day and to reconnect spiritually in the evening. Music enhances these experiences by drawing one deeper into the prayer through the singing/chanting of the texts. We use simple chant tones at Morning Prayer and more familiar hymns/songs for our Advent and Lent Evening Prayers. Our Saturday Morning Prayer has been fairly well attended.

Lucernarium: What do you see as the challenges facing Morning and Evening Prayer in a parish setting? Are there other settings where it can be celebrated?

Bobby Fisher: The challenges of having Morning and Evening Prayer in a parish setting primarily deal with issues of time and the busyness of people’s lives. Other settings where Liturgy of the Hours can be celebrated would include individual prayer time, small group or community settings. I’ve had some wonderful experiences of this form of prayer at conferences, workshops, retreats with people of a number of ages. When celebrated well, I have found youth and young adults to enjoy this form of prayer.

Lucernarium: Is there a saturation of Eucharistic celebrations throughout the duration of any given week in a parish setting? Is there scope to balance the liturgical diet of the faithful by replacing weekday Masses with Lauds and Vespers? Comment.

Bobby Fisher: Given today’s climate with a growing shortage of priests, celebration of Lauds and Vespers is a most viable alternative. However, there are still a number of people who are used to attending daily Eucharist. At my parish when a priest is not available to celebrate weekday Mass, we have offered Communion Services, led by a deacon or other parish staff person, myself included.

Lucernarium: The developments in scriptural and liturgical music since Vatican II have been quite remarkable. In your opinion, where will we be in 10-15 years time? What developments do you think will occur, given present liturgical understandings and practice?

Bobby Fisher: At present there is a great deal of tension within the Church, liturgically and musically. After the initial renewal and growth brought about by Vatican II we see the institutional church pulling back on the reins in response to what has been perceived as some of the “negatives” brought about by this renewal. It’s hard to predict where we’ll be 10 to 15 years from now, but as a composer and liturgist I tend to mix the old with the new and my hope is that we’ll see a balance which celebrates both our rich heritage of traditional forms of music along with an ever expanding repertoire of new quality music for liturgical celebrations. I also hope to see an increase in tolerance and recognition that what might be deemed “inappropriate” stylistically in one culture might be appropriate and accepted in another culture.

Big thanks to Bobby for taking the time to do the interview. Next week - Tony Alonso!