Chant Café

Reading “It’s Time for a Nobel Prize for Mothers….” via Facebook and wondered, is there a Facebook button for lovelovelovelovelove?
And this goes for Fathers as well.

Which then set me to thinking, one of the aspects of the CMAA Colloquium closest to my heart, an aspect which I lovelovelovelovelove, is that in the offering of worship to the Trinity mystically occurring in the company of the angels and saints, it is when this is accomplished with, and accompanied by great music, devoutly sung that I sense most strongly and surely the proximity of my late parents, and not only of them, of my beloved parents, but of all who have gone before us in Faith.
I feel such unity, feel something so beautifully, profoundly to be true that I cannot even speak of it, my voice fails me, I can only think it or type it.
Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus!

Millions, billions, TRILLIONS AND TRILLIONS of voices….
And year after year at the Colloquium I have these experiences.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Thank you, CMAA members, Cecilia, Anne, Dr Mahrt, Janet, Wilko, Scott, Jonathan, Kathy R, Kathy P, Bishop Conley, that soprano who stood next to me, you mosaic artists from decades ago, Episcopal Cathedral of St Louis, David, ChantCafe contributors, Eric at the desk, you people who kept the organization going during the lean years, Arlene and Msgr. Wadsworth and everyone else from other years WHOIREALLYMISS, Fr Keyes, I’mrunningoutofbandwidth….

The message above the altar was plain enough:

and so the faithful did “go to Joseph”, returning to his shrine in St. Louis for the final Mass of CMAA’s 26th Sacred Music Colloquium.

The Holy Mass was celebrated according to the 1962 Missal, for the feast (3rd cl.) of St. William, abbot

Organist: Jonathan Ryan
Mass ordinary: “Sparrow” Mass, Mozart (with orchestra)

Introit: Os justi (women’s schola, Cole)
Kyrie: Sparrow Mass (Mozart choir, Buchholz)
Gloria: Sparrow Mass (Mozart choir, Buchholz)
Gradual: Domine, prævenisti (men’s schola, Brouwers)
Alleluia: Justus ut palma (chant improvisation, Mahrt)
Offertory: Desiderium animæ (women’s faculty master choir, Carr-Wilson)
Offertory motet: O bone Jesu, Ingegneri (beginning polyphony, Hughes)
Sanctus: Sparrow Mass (Mozart choir, Buchholz)
Agnus Dei: Sparrow Mass (Mozart choir, Buchholz)
Communion: Fidelis servus (fundamentals, Ryan)
Communion motet: O sacrum convivium, La Rocca (motet choir, Cole)

A moment from the homily by our chaplain, Rev. Robert Pasley, KCHS. (Photo credits: Rene Zajner)

As is our custom at the final Mass, the full complement of attendees joined in a motet under the direction of Dr. Buchholz: this time, the Ave Maria of Bruckner.

We’ll look forward to hearing some recordings and seeing additional photos from the Colloquium Masses and presentations over the next few days as they become available on the net.  I’ll post links here on Chant Café.

Next year the 27th Sacred Music Colloquium will be held in St. Paul, Minnesota, at the University of St. Thomas, June 19-24.

The Sacred Music Colloquium ended Saturday morning with a Mass at the Shrine of St. Joseph, but we have a few more items to share from Friday.

That afternoon, Bishop Conley of Lincoln joined the Colloquium attendees at the magnificent Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis for Holy Mass, on the solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist.

The bishop and concelebrants exchange the Pax. (Photo credits: Rene Zajner)

Thanks to the Cathedral’s media apostolate, you can view archived video of the Mass at YouTube.  (Alas, the video resolution doesn’t do justice to the glorious interior of the Cathedral Basilica.)

After the Mass, the clergy and laymen who served Mass during the week came together for a photograph:

After a break for dinner, attendees returned to the Cathedral for an organ recital by Ben Blasingame:

A beautiful day!

[UPDATE: The archived video is available at YouTube.]

A scheduling note: the Colloquium’s Mass from the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis will be streamed live on the internet, thanks to the Archdiocese of Saint Louis.  The Mass begins at 5:30 p.m. Central Time (6:30 p.m. Eastern), and the stream will be available at http://archstl.org/CMAA .

The music program for the liturgy follows, with the various choirs of colloquium participants indicated. The music repertoire book is available for download at the CMAA web site.

Friday, June 24, 5:30 p.m. (Central), Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis
Mass, ordinary form, Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist

Bishop James D. Conley (Lincoln, Nebraska), celebrant

Bishop Conley, at the plenary address he gave Friday morning.

Horst Buchholz, organist

Organ prelude: Fantasia sopra Ut queant laxis, Johann Jakob Froberger
Introit: De ventre matris (women’s refresher chant class, Mary Ann Carr-Wilson)
Kyrie: Missa Papæ Marcelli, Palestrina (Wilko Brouwers conducting)
Gloria: Missa Papæ Marcelli
Gradual: Priusquam te (chant improvisation class, William Mahrt)
Alleluia: Tu puer (women’s chant schola, Charles Cole)
Credo III (tutti) with Et incarnatus est from Missa Papæ Marcelli
Offertory: Justus ut palma (men’s faculty master choir, David Hughes)
Offertory motet: Iustorum animæ, Stanford (motet choir, Charles Cole)
Sanctus: Missa Papæ Marcelli
Memorial acclamation: Mortem tuam (tutti)
Pater noster (tutti)
Agnus Dei: Missa Papæ Marcelli
Communion: Tu puer (chant fundamentals class, Jonathan Ryan)
Communion motet: Iesu dulcis memoria, Victoria (motet choir, Charles Cole)
Organ postlude: Improvisation on Ut queant laxis