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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

Basilica Music Academy

Fr. David Friel · June 30, 2013

HEN THE EXPLANATORY EMAIL ARRIVED the other day, I was very pleased. In the memo, the Office for Liturgical Music of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced its new “Basilica Music Academy,” basically a summer school for church musicians. This summer school, however, is not punitive, but voluntary, designed to further, broaden, and polish the parish musician’s skills. It will be based at our Cathedral Basilica of Ss. Peter & Paul.

What will they offer? The curriculum focuses mainly on voice and organ lessons, with the option for private or semi-private (two or three people) sessions. The emphasis of the vocal studies will be technique and sacred repertoire, both solo and choral. For organists, the instructors will focus on playing technique, service playing, improvisation, and repertoire.

The Basilica Music Academy is just the newest development in the music department of my home Archdiocese. There are several other recent improvements for which Dr. John Romeri, Fr. Dennis Gill, and our worship office staff should be highly commended. Begun in 2011, the “Concerts at the Cathedral” series has brought an impressive string of national and international artists to perform in our cathedral, which is a magnificent acoustical space. The Association of Church Musicians in Philadelphia (ACMP), which has existed for many years, has been gaining momentum and undergoing serious renewal that is benefiting its membership in extraordinary ways. Furthermore, Philadelphia has long sponsored an Archdiocesan Boys Choir, but we now boast also an Archdiocesan Girls Choir and an adult Archdiocesan Choir.

If you live in the Philadelphia area, or if you are simply interested, click here for a flyer with more information on the new Academy.

Good things are happening musically here. We still have a long way to go toward reintroducing chant to our parishes, but some foundations have been laid for a renewed appreciation for music that is truly sacred. Are similar things happening in other Dioceses?

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 Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel served as Parochial Vicar at Saint Anselm Church in Northeast Philly before earning a doctorate in liturgical theology at The Catholic University of America. He presently serves as Vocation Director for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and teaches liturgy at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

    Vespers Booklet (4th Sunday of Lent)
    The organ accompaniment booklet (24 pages) which I created for the 4th Sunday of Lent (“Lætare Sunday”) may now be downloaded, for those who desire such a thing.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Vespers Booklet, 3rd Sunday of Lent
    The organ accompaniment I created for the 3rd Sunday of Lent (“Extraordinary Form”) may now be downloaded, if anyone is interested in this.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Weeping For Joy! (We Hope!)
    Listening to this Easter Alleluia—an SATB arrangement I made twenty years ago based on the work of Monsignor Jules Van Nuffel—one of our readers left this comment: “I get tears in my eyes each time I sing to this hymn.” I hope this person is weeping for joy!
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“In my opinion, there should be reached the aim that all priests could continue to use the old Missal.”

— ‘Cardinal Ratzinger, Letter to Wolfgang Waldstein (14 December 1976)’

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