Happy Monday! This week’s Magnificat is by Juan de Araujo (1648-1712), and it was written for 11 voices.
Magnificat Monday: Gabrieli
This Monday’s magnificat is by Giovanni Gabrieli (1555-1612). Love your mother! If you have suggestions for future Monday Magnificat compositions, feel free to send them to me by clicking here.
Simple English Propers Accompaniment Editions now Available
As many of you may remember, Adam Bartlett’s Simple English Propers was a product of this blog right here, the Chant Cafe, as Adam posted them weekly, received feedback, and people began using them. Then after they were published, Jeffrey Tucker posted weekly rehearsal videos for quite some time.
Now, organ accompaniment editions have been born out of another one of the CMAA’s sites, the MusicaSacra Forum.
Thanks to the tireless work of Ryan Dingess who has also been posting files of accompaniments weekly, the full year’s cycle is now complete. It is split into two editions: one containing Advent, Christmas, Lent, Holy Week, and Easter, and the second with Ordinary Time, Feasts & Solemnities, and Ritual Masses.
And just like Adam has done with his editions of SEP, Ryan has also released the editions to the world.
The revolution of sacred music marches on!
Magnificat Monday: Farrant
Now, time for a dignified english setting! This one is by Richard Farrant, and directed by a CMAA figure who has directed previous Monday Magnificats, Horst Buchholz.
Sheet music is available here, and as always, if you have suggestions for future Monday Magnificat compositions, feel free to send them to me by clicking here.
Magnificat Monday: Victoria
Happy Monday! This Magnificat is by Victoria. Stay tuned for more next week!
Love your mother!
The Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John
I’m sure most readers are familiar with the normal Roman Rite passion tones. Recently, I have discovered the dominican tone, which is more melismatic.
Have a blessed Good Friday.
Vast Majority of Younger Priests Appreciate New Roman Missal – Why I Like It too
Recently, I received the findings of a recent study that the CMAA sponsored (along with a few other organizations), which finds that 72% of young priests (under 50) like the corrected translation that we are now using. I am very heartened by this news, and I am happy to see it.
I have been likewise very encouraged by the heightened sense of awareness and reverence for the sacred mysteries, brought about by so many of these wonderful young priests and the new missal, particularly the new emphasis on sacred music that I have been seeing in many places, focusing on a new dignity, upon the singing of the prayers of the celebrant and the congregation, and the proper antiphons of the Mass being more frequently sung, as the council intended.
Often when I hear the prayers of the Mass, I am appreciative of their newfound dignity, with a style which elevates them above our everyday speech (which is what singing the prayers also does, by the way), making clear to us that we are not just talking to a buddy on the street, but that we are engaging in worship of the omnipotent creator of the universe.
One of the texts in the new missal that I think has been particularly improved is the Exsultet, the Easter Proclamation. Take a good look at this section below:
| New | Old |
|---|---|
| The sanctifying power of this night dispels wickedness, washes faults away, restores innocence to the fallen, and joy to mourners, drives out hatred, fosters concord, and brings down the mighty. |
The power of this holy night dispels all evil,
washes guilt away, |
| On this, your night of grace, O holy Father, accept this candle, a solemn offering, the work of bees and of your servants’ hands, an evening sacrifice of praise, this gift from your most holy Church.
But now we know the praises of this pillar, which glowing fire ignites for God’s honor, a fire into many flames divided, yet never dimmed by sharing of its light, for it is fed by melting wax, drawn out by mother bees to build a torch so precious. |
|
| O truly blessed night, when things of heaven are wed to those of earth, and divine to the human |
Night truly blessed when heaven is wedded to earth and man is reconciled with God! |
Do you see that whole paragraph that got skipped? Look at this beautiful wording: “this candle, a solemn offering, the work of bees and your servants’ hands […] for it is fed by melting wax, drawn out by mother bees to build a torch so precious.” The language of worship has always been elevated and beautiful, separating it from our everyday speech, which the Exsultet does particularly well.
Some have said that the old ICEL translation is superior because it is simple and people can understand it. I’m not here to discuss those right now, they can be discussed in other places, or maybe in a future post. Right now, I’m trying to point out the superiority of the new translation by pointing out how the old translation left out many of the concepts in the Latin texts in many cases, but also in more than a few cases where they simply omitted entire paragraphs! This is not the only example, it also happened in the prayers for Ash Wednesday, and quite possibly many other cases.
What are your experiences with the new translation? Has your quality of music improved at your parish, or your have you noticed a change in people’s attitudes toward the Mass since the new translation? Talk it up below!