An urgent letter from the president … please read this!
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Four Eucharistic Motets for the Year of the Eucharist
Forced abstinence from the Eucharist in 2020 heightened for many the appreciation of the sacraments that one can take for granted.
[Live Rec.] • “Do You Know This Eucharistic Hymn?”
Including seven (7) examples of musical diversity.
PDF Download • “Polyphonic Creed Extension” (Perfect Canon Between Soprano & Alto)
This fabulous technique is common in Germanic countries…
A “Must Read” for Choir School Enthusiasts
I also feel this is the reason that many church musicians in England don’t matriculate into doctoral programs—their choir schools imparted more than a doctoral program could ever give.
Free Online Movie! • “Scarlet and the Black” (1983)
Telling the true story of Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty, a Catholic priest who saved thousands of lives during WW2.
“Talk Is Cheap” • Advice For Music Directors
If you fail to carefully plan your rehearsal, you’ll be eaten alive. And rightfully so!
Organ Improvisation: To Record, or Not to Record?
If you missed it, you can hear my iPhone recording on YouTube. But will it be quite the same?
PDF Download • Pentecost Sequence In English! — Gregorian Notation w/ Organ Accompaniment
Does plainsong work in English? It actually can!
PDF Download • Colossally Stupendous “Missal for the Faithful” — 1,142 pages
This is a large file (172 MB), but trust me! You will love it.
Hidden Gem: Tantum Ergo II (Kwasniewski)
If you enjoy juicy dissonances and hearing the sun dart in and out of the clouds, you’ll love this modern setting of an ancient text.
Hymn Translations That Don’t Rhyme?
The Fulton J. Sheen Missal (1961) does something rather puzzling…
Attack on “Female Organists” • (Not Kidding)
This liturgical controversy lasted for fifty years!
“Te Deum Laudamus” • Booklet fits on a single page!
Don’t ask me how this booklet works … but it does.
Hymn • “Christ is King” (Father Ivor Daniel) + Rehearsal Videos!
“Once there were lost islands, but most of them have been found…”
1975 • Jerry Brown Vs. William F. Buckley: “Was Thomas Aquinas Liberal or Conservative?”
Ronald Reagan stopped being governor of California in 1975; then Jerry Brown was elected. Bizarrely, Brown ended his final term in 2019.
PDF Download • “Agnus Dei for Three Voices” — A Perfect Canon (Nanino)
A perfect canon is the hardest thing to compose—and this is one!
YouTube • “Latin Mass in Scotland”
We seldom post YouTube videos, and hope our readers will pardon this exception…
What A Real Catholic Conductor Looks Like
What exactly is “the presence” ??
Jordan B. Peterson • “My Biggest Regret In Life”
…church musicians will be surprised by this!
Twelve (12) Tips • “Keeping Choir Members Happy”
Add variety to the singing, so choir members will “take delight” in what they are doing—and they should be “taking delight” in singing praises to God.
“Part 2” Ready! • (Polyphony For Amateur Choirs)
This *might* be the most beautiful 45 seconds in music—Father Guerrero’s compositions are truly awe-inspiring!
PDF Drafts • Ten (10) Gregorian Chant Litanies
Here’s what I currently have…but several of these draft copies are pretty ugly!
They Did Something Bad & Inexplicable • (Documentation Included)
I beg you on my hands and knees to read verses 12-20.
PDF Download • For the Sacred Heart (3 voices)
There is a great need for simple polyphonic pieces arranged for 2 voice and 3 voices.
PDF Download • Organ Accompaniments for “Lauda Sion Salvatorem” (Sequence)
“Man cannot understand this, cannot perceive it; but a lively faith affirms that the change—which is outside the natural course of things—takes place.” (Ladua Sion, v12)
PDF Downloads
PDF Download • “Credo VII Polyphonic Extension” for a Girls’ Choir
We’ve decided to try an experiment, with assistance from one of my favorite composers: Giovanni Maria Nanino (d. 1607).
“Veni Creator Spiritus” + Organ Accompaniment • with English Translation by Fr. Fortescue
Did you realize there are two versions of this famous hymn?
“Kyrie by Father Guerrero” • For Amateur Choirs
Now that choirs are beginning to come back…
“Veni Sancte Spiritus” (Sequence) • Musical Score + Organ Accompaniment: Eighteen Versions!
The Pentecost Sequence harmonized by Father Green, Father Jones, Dom Gregory Murray, Max Springer, Achille P. Bragers, and more!
PDF Download • (1 page) “Agnus Dei for Two Voices”
What is the best way to get your choir singing when they first return? Here are some tips…
Paul Inwood Attacks Jeff Ostrowski’s Harmonies
Paul Inwood has unwittingly committed a rookie’s error here…