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“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)

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Views from the Choir Loft

[Book] Benedict XVI And Beauty In Sacred Music

Jeff Ostrowski · November 3, 2012

ASED ON THE NAMES of the contributors, this looks like a truly fantastic book. All the contributors are distinguished experts, and I have had the privilege of meeting several of them: His Eminence, Cardinal Burke; Dr. William Mahrt; Fr. Michael Uwe Lang, Cong. Orat.; and Fr. Samuel Weber, OSB.

Some I only met briefly, so I have no idea whether they would remember me. Apropos of this, there was a pianist named Sviatoslav Richter, who, while probably one of the greatest “modern” pianists, was also pretty much insane (as so many great pianists were). For years, Richter carried around a red stuffed lobster, without which he could not function. Anyway, they say Richter could not sleep at night if he forgot the name of any person he had ever met. As you can imagine, he met thousands of people during his long career. Only after he remembered the missing name could he relax. By the way, his memory was unbelievable: they say he had forty (40) full-length concert programs memorized, in addition to all his concerti and chamber music. In case you are wondering, other great pianists who were “disfunctional” as human beings were Cortot, Rachmaninov, Horowitz, Gould, Lhevinne, and even Josef Hofmann (perhaps the most outstanding pianist of all time).

      Benedict XVI and beauty in sacred music [URL] — Janet E. Rutherford, editor

Contributors: Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke (Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura), D. Vincent Twomey SVD (St Patrick’s College, Maynooth), Andreas Andreopoulos (U Winchester), Sven Conrad FSSP (Priestly Fraternity of St Peter), Alberto Donini (Diocese of Brescia), Thomas Lacôte (Conservatoire d’Aubervilliers-La Courneuve/Conservatoire d’Orléans), Uwe Michael Lang CO (Consultor to the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff), William Mahrt (Stanford U), Kerry McCarthy (Duke U), Ite O’Donovan (DIT Conservatory of Music), Stéphane Quessard (St Stephen’s Cathedral, Bourges), Alcuin Reid, Samuel Weber OSB (Institute for Sacred Music, Archdiocese of St Louis).

The Fota International Liturgy Conferences are dedicated to the elucidation and promotion of Benedict XVI’s vision of liturgical reform, emphasizing the importance of beauty in the celebration of the Church’s rites, and the necessity to go forward into the future as part of our inherited tradition. The proceedings of the Third Fota International Liturgy Conference, contained in this volume, explore the ideas advanced in the Holy Father’s writings on liturgical music. It also provides a forum for a younger generation of liturgists and musicians, drawn from various countries, who are presently engaged in the recovery and promotion of the Church’s musical heritage for liturgical use or in composing beautiful new and uplifting works of sacred music.

Dr. Janet E. Rutherford is Honorary Secretary of The Patristic Symposium, Saint Patrick’s College Maynooth, and Irish Correspondent to L’Association Internationale d’Études Patristiques.

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

Filed Under: Articles 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 Los Angeles.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

16 May 2022 • Harmonized Chant?

This year’s upcoming Sacred Music Symposium will demonstrate several ways to sing the CREDO at Mass. This is because—for many parishes—to sing a full-length polyphonic CREDO by Victoria or Palestrina is out of the question. Therefore, we show options that are halfway between plainsong and polyphony. You can hear my choir rehearsing a section that sounds like harmonized plainsong.

—Jeff Ostrowski
14 May 2022 • “Pure” Vatican Edition

As readers know, my choir has been singing from the “pure” Editio Vaticana. That is to say, the official rhythm which—technically—is the only rhythm allowed by the Church. I haven’t figured out how I want the scores to look, so in the meantime we’ve been using temporary scores that look like this. Stay tuned!

—Jeff Ostrowski
14 May 2022 • Gorgeous Book

If there is a more beautiful book than Abbat Pothier’s 1888 Processionale Monasticum, I don’t know what it might be. This gorgeous tome was today added to the Saint John Lalande Online Library. I wish I owned a physical copy.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“After the Second Vatican Council, the impression arose that the pope really could do anything in liturgical matters, especially if he were acting on the mandate of an ecumenical council. Eventually, the idea of the givenness of the liturgy, the fact that one cannot do with it what one will, faded from the public consciousness of the West.”

— Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger

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