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“We wish therefore and prescribe, that all observe the law of the Church, and that at home or in the church they shall always wear the cassock, which is proper to the clergy. When they go out for duty or relaxation or on a journey, they may use a shorter [coat] which is to be black in color, and which reaches to the knees, so as to distinguish it from the dress of the laity. They should reject the more elegant and worldly styles of garments, which are found today. We enjoin upon our priests as a matter of strict precept that, both at home and abroad, and whether they are residing in their own diocese or outside of it, they shall wear the Roman collar.”
— Third Plenary Council of Baltimore (1884)

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How To Chant The Readings At Mass
published 27 May 2013 by Corpus Christi Watershed

THE FOLLOWING VIDEO takes you step-by-step through the process of chanting the Gospel in English. Deacons might find this video useful, since many are called upon to sing the Gospel.


The video requires you to download:

      1.  A Score Illustrating Different Tones [pdf]

      2.  Instructions on this tone in Latin & English [pdf]

HE FIRST READING at Mass is often sung to the “Prophecy Tone,” which was reserved for the Old Testament Lessons in the Extraordinary Form. Here is a PDF document that explains how to do it:

How to chant the 1st Reading in English & Latin

The Second Reading is often sung to the tone that was used for the Epistle in the Extraordinary Form. This PDF document explains how to do it:

How to chant the 2nd Reading in English & Latin

My favorite Gospel tone is called “more ancient” by the Solesmes books:

Singing the Gospel in English & Latin (ANCIENT TONE)

Here is what some people the “more recent” tone for the Gospel:

How to chant the Gospel in English & Latin (SIMPLE TONE)

By the way, all the parts of the Mass are sung according to the “Toni Communes” in the 1974 Graduale by Solesmes. Generally speaking, these are identical to what Abbot Pothier published as the Editio Vaticana around 1908.

N.B. For these, I have borrowed from the work of Professor W. A. Jurgens (Saint Mary Seminary, Cleveland).

How does a priest know how to correctly chant the readings (1st Reading, 2nd Reading, & Gospel) using the Prophecy tone, the Epistle tone, and different versions of the Gospel tones (according to the rules in the Liber Usualis) in ENGLISH ?

Examples (written out) of the different tones for chanting (PDF)

Mp3 Audio Recordings of the different tones:

01 Galatians Chapter 5
02 Gospel (John 15)
03 Wisdom Chapter 3
04 Thessalonains Chapter 4
05 Gospel (John 11)
06 Romans Chapter 8
07 Gospel (John 19)
08 Exodus Chapter 34
09 II Corinthians Chapter 13
10 Gospel (John 3)

Written out examples of chanting the readings at Mass, with free MP3 recordings

Chanting the Readings in English



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