NE of the greatest experiences I had this past year in the South is meeting some new friends. I had the privilege to visit the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Chattanooga, Tennessee, this past weekend. Fr. David Carter, the rector of the basilica, and Maria Rist, the Director of Liturgical Music, are two of those amazing people I met. (And by the way, Fr. Carter was the keynote speaker for the Summer Sacred Music Workshop.)
Fr. Carter started to offered Masses according to the 1962 Missale Romanum when he was assigned to the basilica. And recently, he started to celebrate monthly Sung Masses and I was invited to sing with the choir a few times. It has been great to see the growth of the parish and the choir, especially the children’s choir. If you are in the area and would like to attend a Extraordinary Form Mass, Fr. Carter celebrates a Low Mass every Monday at 7am and a Sung Mass on the fourth Sundays of the month at 5pm.
Making connections is very important, especially now that people are starting to rediscover true Sacred Music. Even though we might still be the minority and are spread out, but try to find a “partner in crime”! Trust me! It is a joyful and encouraging experience when you collaborate with priests and musicians who share passion for the Liturgy and Sacred Music.
This visit was my last visit before I move to Ohio. I sang the Missa Cantata with the schola and the choristers on Sunday afternoon. And we had a simple Sung Mass on Monday morning, a Requiem Mass for Fr. Patrick J. Ryan. I was the cantor for that Mass and below is an excerpt of the Offertory, Domine Jesu Christe.
The video was taken by Maria Rist and you can see Fr. Carter on the right. And please pardon me for my mistakes, it was 7am in the morning and I was reading from my phone. More videos of the Basilica Choirs can be found on their Facebook Page.
