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Views from the Choir Loft

An FYI on EP in the OF – Part 2

Andrew R. Motyka · June 5, 2013

For Part 1 of this series, please click HERE.

WO WEEKS AGO (I’ve been lazy), we covered the first part of Evening Prayer, specifically, the Hymn and Psalmody. This contains the real “meat” of the liturgy, since the Liturgy of the Hours centers around the proclamation of the Psalms. This week, we will take a look at the reading and Responsory.

Immediately following the psalms is the reading. The reading is prescribed for each specific day of the cycle, or for the given feast on the calendar. It is permissible to use a different reading, usually from the Mass of the day, as a substitution, but in my opinion you should stick with the prescribed reading for the day. The cycle is there for a reason.

If a priest or a deacon is leading Evening Prayer, he may give a homily at this time, but it is optional. Following the reading (or homily), the Responsory is sung. The Responsory is an odd moment in the Ordinary Form because it is quite short. For this reason, singing it is one of the only ways to make it non-trivial. It is best to sing this with a cantor, and the form of the Responsory follows:

Responsory (Phrases A and B) – cantor

Responsory (Phrases A and B) – all

Versicle (a short verse) – cantor

Responsory (Phrase B only) – all

Doxology (only the first part, up to “Holy Spirit”) – cantor

Reponsory (Phrases A and B) – all

It is best to simply see this, in full text, for an example. Following my previous examples, let us look at the text of the Responsory for May 31, the Feast of the Visitation:

Hail Mary, full of grace, —the Lord is with you.
Hail Mary, full of grace, —the Lord is with you.
Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
—the Lord is with you.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
—Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you.

This form lends itself well to very simple musical adaptations. Here is an example of the above text:

DOWNLOAD a sample responsory.

Next week, we will wrap up our examination of Evening Prayer and its defining canticle, the Magnificat.

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 Andrew R. Motyka

Andrew Motyka is the Archdiocesan Director of Liturgical Music and Cathedral Music for the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

    “Glory To God” • (For Choir + Congregation)
    I wish to thank everyone for the nice comments I received vis-à-vis my Glory To God setting for Choir & Congregation. A gentleman with a musical doctorate from Indiana University wrote: “Love this setting so much. And I will pray, as you asked, for your return to composition more fully. You are very very good.” A female choir director wrote: “I love your harmonizations, your musicality, and the wonderful interplay you have with dissonance and consonance in your music. So fun to listen to, and great for intellect, heart, and soul!” A young woman from California wrote: “Thank you for releasing your new Glory To God in honor of Saint Noel Chabanel. I'm enjoying reading through the various parts and listening to your recordings.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    William Byrd • “Mass for Five Voices”
    Our volunteer choir is learning the “Sanctus” from William Byrd’s Mass for Five Voices. You can hear a short excerpt (recorded last Sunday) but please ignore the sound of babies crying: Mp3 recording. We still have work to do—but we’re on the right track. Once we have some of the tuning issues fixed, I desire to use it as an example proving volunteers can sing complicated polyphony. — One of our volunteer choirs also sang that SANCTUS on 24 September 2023, and you can listen to how that came out.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Baptism” • A Unique Hymn
    Father Christopher Phillips is the founding Pastor of Our Lady of the Atonement Catholic Church. One of his hymns is unique and (in my humble opinion) quite beautiful. His hymn is basically a prayer to the Holy Trinity but also speaks of Baptism and the Holy Eucharist. It would be an ideal Communion hymn on Trinity Sunday or the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. You can hear live recording from last Sunday by clicking here.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

At High Mass the Celebrant is not allowed to proceed with the Offertory while the “Credo” is being sung. Likewise he should not proceed with the Consecration until the singing of the “Sanctus” is completed.

— Father Carlo Rossini (1939)

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