Catholic Hymns Now on Free Audio Streaming

by CNS · July 29, 2019

The banner for Great Catholic Music, a service which streams a variety of faith-filled music via an app.

By Mark Pattison – Catholics hear hymns in church and on Catholic stations, but rarely on commercial airwaves. Now they can augment their weekly diet of hymnody through a new free audio streaming service called Great Catholic Music.

The service, which can be accessed through the “Great Catholic Music” app, plays a mix of pre-and post-Vatican II hymns and liturgical music 24/7.

“The response so far has been absolutely amazing,” said programme director Michael Roberts.

“Part of this [project] is to inspire. It’s not just music, we want to inspire people,” Mr Roberts said, adding the service also takes breaks for psalms, Scripture readings and prayers.

“We have some quotes of St John Paul II, and Archbishop Fulton Sheen and Mother Teresa,” he said, adding that a priest does a daily reflection of the Mass readings for the day.

The website promises: “From the meditative chants of cloistered Benedictine monks to the traditional hymns of Sunday Mass like “How Great Thou Art”, to the contemporary Catholic songs of Matt Maher and Audrey Assad, we have the music to bring you peace, lift your spirits and transform your soul.”

Compiling playlists can be tricky. Mr Roberts said he has received requests for both more chant and less chant. He fielded a complaint from one listener on Good Friday that the music was “too dirge-y”.

Mr Roberts declared that Christmas music would not be heard on Great Catholic Music until Christmas Eve, but would continue to play until the feast of the Baptism of the Lord, the end of the Christmas season.—CNS

The Great Catholic Music app can be downloaded free through Google Play or the Apple App Store