Well, all of the participants in the 2011 CMAA Chant Intensive arrived safely in New Orleans for the start of the first session this afternoon. Many attendees greeted each other as old friends while others met for the first time. Two Chant Café bloggers, Charles and myself, encountered each other in the flesh for the very first time. And several others are simply seeking the chant intensive with the sole desire of increasing their skills in sacred music to be better equipped for their service to the Church.
Dr. Mahrt’s advanced session began with topics that ranged from a discussion of the different schools of thought in Gregorian chant interpretation, the relationship between text and melody, the role of memory in singing chant, and the nature of chant as an aural tradition.
Most of us are exhausted after a long day of travel and acclimation to the area. I am personally exhausted and can hardly keep my eyes open long enough to finish this post. I will continue to provide day-end updates, though, on the happenings of the intensive. We have a great group of people, a beautiful church, wonderfully hospitable hosts, and a wonderful urban setting. It’s sure to be a great week for us all!
Rock on Adam! (A truly Petrine sentiment 🙂 Looking forward to any & all sacred music souvenirs you can bring back from the Crescent City…get some coffee dude.