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Views from the Choir Loft

Can Church Musicians Learn From An Online Role-Playing Game?

Jeff Ostrowski · September 15, 2014

861 Flame Wreath WOULD LOVE TO EXPLAIN to you World of Warcraft, but I haven’t the first clue how to play. Yet, tons of my friends have been obsessed with it for years. I can tell you it’s time-consuming, expensive, and impossible to “win.”

I’ll never forget my surprise shortly after moving to Texas, when I noticed polyphonic music emanating from my roommate’s section of the house. One of the WoW players had gotten sick of his comrades moving after “flame wreath” was cast (which causes the raid to blow up). This clever guy composed & recorded a 15-second song to chastise them:

      * *  Mp3 Audio: “I Will Not Move When Flame Wreath Is Cast Or The Raid Blows Up”

Each repeat, ANOTHER VOICE is added to his catchy tune. (You heard it?)

But watch out … once that tune gets in your head, it’s quite difficult to forget. 1

WHAT MAKES IT SO INTERESTING, of course, is that he “layers” each successive voice upon the previous one. I took a few measures from my St. Arrowsmith Mass to illustrate the same concept:


Perhaps I should “expose” snippets like that more often, to help people appreciate the polyphonic textures. This “richness” helps assure that Church music never gets old—new treasures always await the patient listener! To learn more about the Arrowsmith setting, please click here.

Incidentally, when I was in college, Dr. Mark Holmberg—a KU professor of Music Theory—visited our office (since we were working on a project together). My brother was playing Everquest, which is similar to WoW. At that moment, he was chasing a frog and hitting it with a sword, causing the frog to emit gold coins. Dr. Holmberg was absolutely fascinated by this, especially when the frog started swimming and my brother’s character followed him into the lake.



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   Perhaps someone would be willing to compose & record a similar song for the difference between “Sung” and “Spoken” Propers—after all, some good folks still don’t understand this concept.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: I Will Not Move When Flame Wreath Is Cast Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Jeff Ostrowski

Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004). He resides with his wife and children in Michigan. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Simplest “Agnus Dei” Ever Published
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. I needed a relatively simple “Agnus Dei,” so I composed this setting for organ & voice in honor of Saint René Goupil. It has been called the simplest setting ever composed. I love CARMEN GREGORIANUM (“Gregorian Chant”), especially the ALLELUIAS, INTROITS, and COMMUNION ANTIPHONS. That being said, some have pointed out that certain sections of the Kyriale aren’t as strong as the Graduale or Vesperale. There’s a reason for this—but it would be too complicated to explain at this moment.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. However, on the feasts website, the chants have been posted for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C), which is this coming Sunday: 6 July 2025.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Bugnini’s Statement (6 November 1966)
    With each passing day, more is revealed about how the enemies of the liturgy accomplished their goals. For instance, Hannibal Bugnini deeply resented the way Vatican II said Gregorian Chant “must be given first place in liturgical services.” On 6 November 1966, his cadre wrote a letter attempting to justify the elimination of Gregorian Chant with this brazen statement: “What really gives a Mass its tone is not so much the songs as it is the prayers and readings.” Bugnini’s cadre then attacked the very heart of Gregorian Chant (viz. the Proprium Missae), bemoaning how the Proprium Missae “is completely new each Sunday and feast day.” There is much more to be said about this topic. Stay tuned.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

“In condemning us, you condemn all your own ancestors—all the ancient priests, bishops and kings—all that was once the glory of England, the island of saints and the most devoted child of the See of Peter. For what have we taught, however you may qualify it with the odious name of treason, that they did not uniformly teach?”

— Father Edmund Campion (to the Anglicans about to murder him)

Recent Posts

  • Simplest “Agnus Dei” Ever Published
  • Bishop François Charrière Vs. Hannibal Bugnini
  • 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • “My First Year with the Latin Mass” • A Music Director’s Perspective
  • Boston Auxiliary Bishop: “In offering the Traditional Mass for the first time, after removing the vestments, I knelt in the back pew and wept.”

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Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.

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