English Chant Workshop at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Prattville, Alabama. Saturday, March 3, 2012. 10:00am – 4:00pm. Chant is sung prayer—if you can speak it, you can sing it! Whether you’ve never sung before, or are singing in a choir, this workshop is for you. We will learn techniques of singing and reading chant, and explore the Propers and Ordinary chants as well as Psalms. Our instructors are Jeffrey Tucker and Arlene Oost-Zinner, nationally recognized instructors of chant. This workshop is offered at not cost to participants. Lunch will be provided. To register, call Robin at 334.365.8680
Had you ever thought to sing Ave Regina Caelorum this way?
Should Lenten Music for Sunday Be…Dreary?
Here is a surprising fact about the Gregorian propers for Sunday during Lent: they mostly explore major keys.
Listen to the Introit for the first Sunday of Lent:
Lent – First Sunday: Introit from Corpus Christi Watershed on Vimeo.
That’s mode 8, which might be regarded as the lightest and most elevated, the most song-like, of all the modes. That chant is anything but dreary.
It’s not a fluke. Look at the Offertory chant for same day. It’s mode 8 too:
Lent – First Sunday: Offertory from Corpus Christi Watershed on Vimeo.
Now, if you are using hymns instead of Gregorian propers, there’s a good chance that you will be choosing music that might be seen as rather more depressing, such as “Forty Days and Forty Nights.”
What’s all this about? Perhaps the Gregorian tradition is reminding here that while Lent is a penitential season, Sunday does in fact remain a feast day – a real break in the fast. It is a mistake to try to cram the whole of the Lenten spirit into the Sunday Mass.
A very impressive Liber Brevior
Do you know the company Preserving Christian Publications? It’s been around a few years, but I’ve only now seen one of this company’s books. It is might impressive: price, quality, dignity, everything. The book I’m holding is the Liber Brevior, a book for the EF Mass for Sundays and feasts. It is far more handy than the Liber Usualis. It’s just perfect for a parish that needs to buy several dozen. The printing is clear. The materials are excellent. The paper thickness is just right. It is a highly professional product, as good and actually better than anything I’ve seen. This is the real deal. It is a remarkable value at $34.
And with Holy Week coming up, you can also get the book of Holy Week chants for the EF, in an edition that is much better than one I put up for print-on-demand a few years back. Don’t buy mine. Get this one instead.
This is certainly a company worth supporting in every way. If I hadn’t lost my favorite hat the last time I was at the theater, I would certainly tip it to Preserving Christian Publications. If these two books are representative, I think you can pretty well trust anything you buy from these nice people.
Mary Berry, preconconcilar photos (Mother Thomas More)
Chant in the “Domestic Church”
The NLM has posted a very nice by Jacob Tawney: “Introducing Chant Into the Domestic Church”