Music is a beautiful part of Catholicism. We are blessed to have thousands upon thousands of beautiful hymns, psalms, and songs of worship to elevate our hearts and minds to the Lord. One of the greatest blessings of the past few months has been the reintroduction of communal singing at Mass! What a privilege it is to be able to fully participate in the Eucharistic celebration again.
Here's a little-known fact about Catholic music: did you know that the Our Father has won a Grammy award? It's true! In 2011, the song Baba Yetu won the Grammy award for "Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalists." This track was written for the video game Civilization IV, a popular PC strategy game. But there's more to this song than meets the eye.
Baba Yetu was composed by Christopher Tin and performed by the Soweto Gospel Choir and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. It's a beautiful track that we've linked below; do yourself a favor and give it a listen! The lyrics, as you might be able to tell, are in Swahili. That means that we might not discern their meaning on first listen, but it's worth a quick Google translate!
Spoiler alert: it's the Our Father. Yes, a musical rendition of the Our Father in Swahili was the first video game song to win a Grammy award! Now that's what I call a fun fact. Keep those singing voices warmed up for Mass, and check out Baba Yetu below!
Song: https://bit.ly/3xt2sDQ