Views from the Choir Loft

Judas Iscariot

Fr. David Friel · May 14, 2013 ·

ATTHIAS WAS OSTENSIBLY CHOSEN to replace Judas Iscariot among the Twelve Apostles. Yet, as Matthias probably understood better than any of us, it’s not really possible to replace another person. We can fill their position and assume their duties, but that is a long way from truly replacing the person.

This is a lesson our world needs to learn. A couple of weeks ago, in Boston, the senseless marathon bombings took the lives of 3 spectators. Each of those lives was unrepeatable and irreplaceable.

Yesterday, here in Philadelphia, we heard of the guilty verdict for Kermit Gosnell, who was convicted for the murders of three babies born alive. (The verdict, of course, doesn’t even take into consideration the thousands of unborn babies he also murdered.) Every one of those lives was unrepeatable and irreplaceable.

In two more weeks, our nation will commemorate all the men & women who have died fighting for our country at war. Every one of those lives lost was unrepeatable and irreplaceable.

Matthias was chosen to take over the duties of the twelfth Apostle, but he could never actually replace Judas Iscariot. We ask for the special prayers of St. Matthias today, that we and all the world might have a renewed appreciation for the preciousness of every human person.

About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel served for five years as Parochial Vicar at St. Anselm Parish in Northeast Philly. He is currently a doctoral candidate in liturgical theology at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

Could Pope St. Pius X Sing?

“On 12 March 1908, the complete publication of the Roman Gradual was issued by the Vatican Press. On that very day, Dom Pothier solemnly presented the first copy to the Holy Father. A witness of the audience says that Pius X wished to be the first to see the new book; he opened it at random, at page 128 of the supplement pro aliquibus locis—it was the Introit of the new Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. The Pope sang it with perfect taste to the last note.” (Catholic Choirmaster, February 1915)

—Jeff Ostrowski

Julius Bas Accompaniment

A very prolific harmonizer of Gregorian chant in the early 20th century was Mr. Julius Bas. He often uses a very strange technique, wherein he employs rests to eliminate the Alto, Tenor, and Bass voices. Consider what he did with “Lumen ad revelationem” here:

* JPEG • Lumen ad revelationem

It seems quite lazy, and I’ve never seen anyone else use such a technique, although Dr. Peter Wagner often switched to parallel octaves when he ran out of ideas… (Yuck!)

—Jeff Ostrowski

Hitting wrong notes

Fr. Valentine Young, OFM, used to say: “The organist can play 1,000 correct notes and one wrong note—and the only thing people will care about is the wrong note.” Last Sunday I hit some wrong notes, and felt bad. Then I remembered a story about Rudolf Serkin and started to chuckle. Charles Rosen (or was it Leon Fleisher?) told the story of Serkin playing a Beethoven Sonata in front of a large audience. The theme is all in octaves; but Serkin hit some wrong notes, and played parallel 7ths instead. This so unnerved him that every time the theme returned, he played the entire thing in parallel 7ths! We must remember that even the greatest hit wrong notes. Alfred Cortot, Vladimir Horowitz, Wilhelm Backhaus, Edwin Fischer, Sviatoslav Richter, Egon Petri—they all hit wrong notes, which we can hear on recordings. (Josef Hofmann was an exception, but he was super-human so he doesn’t count!)

—Jeff Ostrowski