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Views from the Choir Loft

Singing the Divine Office before and after Mass

Veronica Brandt · September 14, 2013

St Michael from Monastic Office A page from The Monastic Office by Teresa Clark OST PEOPLE AGREE we need more awareness of the Divine Office. The treasure of the Liturgy of the Hours is spiritually nourishing for us here on earth as well as pleasing to Heaven.

Some parishes are reviving Vespers once a week or more. One parish has been praying the hours before and after the main Sunday Mass as well as Compline after evening Masses. The choir manages to finish practice before grabbing a drink of water and heading in for Terce at 10.15, just before Mass starts at 10.30. After Mass they wait a while before moving up to the front pews, ladies on the right, men on the left, and chant the hour of Sext.

After evening Mass the choir sits up the front (as for Sext) and chants the night prayer. They follow the Monastic Office, which has less variation for Compline than the regular Roman Office. The Monastic Office also echoes the Benedictine roots of the parish.

At first they sang straight from the Monastic Antiphonale, but it was cumbersome. There would be the odd mix up with the Liber Usualis, another impressive black tome. My mother made booklets, which were refined over the years until at last all the pieces have been assembled into one volume.

HERE is a preview of the first 16 pages, including the ordinary of the hour of Terce. You could try it out tomorrow, all you need is the collect, which you might find in your missal.

The complete 238 page book is available through Lulu in hardback, spiral bound and pdf

If you have any questions, or if you would like a set with a custom cover, ask my mother, Teresa.

(Happy feast of the Holy Cross today!)

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Compline Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Veronica Brandt

Veronica Brandt holds a Bachelor Degree in Electrical Engineering. She lives near Sydney, Australia, with her husband and six children.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

PDF Download • Trinity Sunday (22 pages)

Feel free to download this Organ Accompaniment Booklet for Trinity Sunday (Second Vespers). Notice how the modes progress by number. Psalm 1 is mode 1; Psalm 2 is mode 2; Psalm 3 is mode 3; Psalm 4 is mode 4; Psalm 5 is mode 5. I am told by an expert that other feasts (such as Corpus Christi) are likewise organized by mode, and it’s called a “numerical office.”

—Jeff Ostrowski
10 June 2022 • “Official” rhythm of plainsong

I continue to search for the most beautiful way to present the “pure” Editio Vaticana scores. (Technically, the “pure” rhythm of the official edition is what everyone is supposed to use.) You can download my latest attempt, which is the Introit for this coming Sunday: Feast of the Most Holy Trinity. Because this is not an ancient feast, the Introit had to be adapted (perhaps around 750AD). Prior Johner says the adaptation is “not an entirely happy one.”

—Jeff Ostrowski
7 June 2022 • FEEDBACK

From Chelan, Washington: “CCWatershed is a God-sent resource that I can’t function without! Such great work by the team to bring beauty back to our liturgy!” From Gainesville, Florida: “I am so appreciative of the work, of my brothers and sisters in music!” From Troutman, North Carolina: “Keep up the excellent work in service of the Liturgy!”

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“As often as possible they gathered together the children of the village and sat them down in the cabin. Father Brébeuf would put on a surplice and biretta and chant the Our Father, which Father Daniel had translated into Huron rhymes, and the children would chant it after him. Next, he taught them the sign of the cross, the Hail Mary, the Apostles’ Creed, and the Commandments.”

— Biography of St. Jean de Brébeuf

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