Sometimes you don't need accompaniment
Our music group plays at the Vigil Mass every fortnight. On the alternate weeks I lead the singing unaccompanied. Strangely, our small congregation often - though not always - sings more heartily when there is no accompaniment. I know that we are not alone in this. Talking with other music leaders, and reading liturgy forums, I know that this happens elsewhere. I'm not entirely certain why this is the case, and I'm sure that there are a number of reasons, but it does mean that we don't need to afraid of leading unaccompanied singing. Hymn singing is a recent phenomenon in the Catholic Mass. More traditional is the singing of Processional Songs or Chants. Put simply, these are similar to the Responsorial Psalm in that there is an antiphon (response) sung by everyone and verses from a psalm sung by a cantor(s). We use John Ainslie's " English Proper Chants ". If we had an organist we would doubtless make use of that; instead we sing the ...