Author: Adam Bartlett

Posted on by Adam Bartlett

The Liturgical Institute: Toward a New Era of Liturgical Renewal

Here’s a wonderful new promotional video from the Liturgical Institute of the University of St. Mary of the Lake in Chicago:

Watching this is very sentimental for me because it was filmed during the summer session of this past year while I was on campus as a student at the Liturgical Institute. It truly is a remarkable place and I believe that the vision of the institute is the way of the future in the liturgy and in the Church.

I strongly encourage anyone who seeks to be thoroughly imbued with the Spirit of the Liturgy to consider studies at the Liturgical Institute. Though not a school of music I find that it offers something to church musicians that they will not find anywhere else–a thorough study of the theological foundations of the liturgy; a training perhaps not in the how of sacred music, but a firm grounding in the what and why of the liturgy, and of the sacred music that is in service of it. Highly recommended!

(By the way, did you catch Kevin Allen in the video who has directed the institute’s sacred music retreat over the past two years?)

Posted on by Adam Bartlett

Simple Propers for All Souls

Download them here

Note that the chants for the Feast of All Souls are the same as the Requiem (Funeral) Mass. What if we were to sing these instead of “On Eagle’s Wings” and “Amazing Grace” at our parish funerals? Probably would make quite a difference.

I would also love some feedback on the Offertory “Domine Iesu Christe”. This is a tricky one to handle!

Posted on by Adam Bartlett

Simple Propers for All Saints

Download them here

Note in this offering a couple of things:

Firstly, that the Offertory chant is set in a new melodic formula that hasn’t been seen here yet. And secondly, that all three propers are in Mode 1. This allows for a nice quick comparison of the 3 different melodic formulas that are in the first mode, and also allows us to ask ourselves how tired we would be of Meinrad tone 1 after hearing it for an entire liturgy if the second, “Simple Setting”, were sung! This is definitely good food for thought!

Posted on by Adam Bartlett

Graduale Romanum Trivia

Did you know that there are only two Offertory chants in the entire Graduale Romanum that are in the 7th mode? I didn’t until just now. And they aren’t exactly prominently featured chants either: Eripe me for Wednesday of the 5th week of Lent, and Confitebuntur caeli for the Common of an Apostle or Martyr. There’s not a single mode 7 Offertory found anywhere else in the entire Gradual.

I really have nothing else intelligent to say about this right now, but thought it would at least be an interesting curiosity to our readers. Do any of the scholars among us know why this is? If nothing else this tidbit can come in handy the next time you play a round of Graduale Romanum trivia!

Posted on by Adam Bartlett

Dom Saulnier goes Open Source

Dom Daniel Saulnier, current director of paleography at Solesmes Abbey and successor of Dom Mocquereau and Dom Cardine has placed his course materials for the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music online, in the common domain for all.

Granted, most of this is in Italian, but I find it striking that Saulnier has chosen Google Sites and Google Docs as the means of sharing some of his material in the commons. When first visiting the site a “translate” box in the lower right hand corner immediately pops up for the user. Perhaps not offering a scholarly translation, but it can certainly be helpful in getting a general understanding of the material for those who do not read Italian.

Just briefly browsing his dispensae has been fascinating. There are some very interesting studies here of cantillation, of word accent, of timbre.

I look forward to exploring these resources more. What a gift that he has shared these resources freely for all to benefit from–we don’t even have to wait 70 years after he is dead to freely access his knowledge and wisdom!