Near Disaster during Cantoring..

I must relate this incident during last Sunday's mass where I was cantoring. We practiced the psalm before mass so I was trying to remember to tune and make sure I get my lines right, because every verse had a different number of lines.

This was my third time cantoring and I was more adept at composing myself and making myself not nervous. So I went up and sang the psalm without incident. I thought it went well though Chris Ow commented that I still sounded nervous.

It was only after I finised the psalm that I realised something was amiss. I turned to return to my choir when I realised that no, I was supposed to sit down, sit down so that I can sing the gospel acclamation!! We had not practiced it before mass and I did not know the tune (even though its sung every week, I really couldn't remember it on the spot)! Close to panicking, I rifled through the options in my head, knowing that the 2nd reading (which had by then begun) was very short.

I tried a few unsuccessful seconds to remember, then gave up. I said "invent something" but couldn't. I reached into my pocket and dialled my choirmate's handphone but changed my mind and put down. Shall I ask the altar boy? too obvious.. Argh! I thought, and called my choir mate. I saw him jump, look at the phone, and gingerly pick up. I planted my face against the pillar and whispered: "The gospel acclamation! How to sing!!" Pomp! My friend lept out of his seat out of the side entrance of the church. "What page?!" he asked. "79!". A few tense seconds of trying to remember, then he sang it. "I got it!", I said and put down. "The word of the lord..". the second reader proclaimed.

I went up with the tune fresh in my head, and sang the gospel acclamation. Thanks be to God! Many things could have gone wrong and it was a near disaster indeed! Surprisingly, I remained very calm through and even after the whole thing.