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Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

Preparing for Candlemas

Veronica Brandt · January 24, 2015

Candle clip art ANY YEARS AGO WE BRAVED the local Greek Orthodox candle factory, part of their monastery. They have a sign at the entrance with the dress code and there’s a donkey and they have the most beautiful chapel with wall to wall icons and candles and it is awesome. We bought a box of candles a little over a foot long each. They are a rather bright orange colour, but burn well and have lasted all these years – the last two are just under half burnt, and Candlemas is coming.

Buying a year’s supply of candles to be blessed is just one part of preparing for Candlemas – the feast of the Presentation of Our Lord and the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It falls 40 days after Christmas on the 2nd of February. That’s the Monday after next.

I mentioned Candlemas to a young member of another choir and she said that the thing she hates about Candlemas is having to hold a candle in one hand and a heavy Liber in the other and sing. That’s because there’s a procession.

Now as a non-choir youngster I loved processions. The thing that annoyed me though, was when I got stuck in the middle of a non-singing bunch of congregants and couldn’t hear the choir and didn’t know the music that well anyway.

So, to prepare for Candlemas – Learn The Music! Now is a great time to start. There are two Sundays to recruit singers and next Saturday you could have a big Farewell to Alleluia Party with Candlemas choir practice.

What follows is the music for the Extraordinary Form as I understand it.

The first antiphon is very easy – Lumen ad Revelationem Gentium. You’ll be humming it all day. This is sung for the distribution of candles. It’s on page 11 of A New Book of Old Hymns and I made this short recording for my choir.

Adorna thalamum is the first antiphon for the procession.

It revolves around one note – Do. If you can get that one note in your head then you will never be too far off track.

At the end of the procession comes Obtulerunt, which is a Responsory – that means there is a small part which is repeated, which is very handy when you are learning new music. I run through this piece in this recording.

You can download a handy pdf of the music for the procession and the propers of the Mass from the Institute of Christ the King. They include an extra antiphon for the end of the distribution of candles, which I understand was removed in 1960. It sounds like many places leave out the second antiphon for the Procession –

The introit and the gradual use some very familiar musical patterns. If you are already familiar with the Gregorian chant propers they will be easy to learn, otherwise they will be well worth learning. They can be found among the recordings from Sao Paolo, Brazil.

If you are in the vicinity of Glenbrook in the Lower Blue Mountains, NSW, Australia, on Monday 2nd February, there will be Mass and Procession starting at 10.30am at St Finbar’s Catholic Church. The church may look odd, but the acoustics are fantastic.

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 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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President’s Corner

    PDF Download • “Offertory” for this Sunday
    This coming Sunday, 12 October 2025, is the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). Its OFFERTORY ANTIPHON (PDF) is gorgeous, and comes from the book of Esther, as did the ENTRANCE CHANT last Sunday. Depending on a variety of factors, various hand-missals (all with Imprimatur) translate this passage differently. For instance, “príncipis” can be rendered: King; Prince; Lion; or Fierce lord. None is “more correct” than another. It depends on what each translator wants to emphasize and which source text is chosen. All these pieces of plainsong are conveniently stored at the blue-ribbon feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Why A “Fugue” Here?
    I believe I know why this plainsong harmonizer created a tiny fugue as the INTRODUCTION to his accompaniment. Take a look (PDF example) and tell me your thoughts about what he did on the feast of the Flight of Our Lord Jesus Christ into Egypt (17 February). And now I must go because “tempus fugit” as they say!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
    Those who don’t sign up for our free EMAIL NEWSLETTER miss important notifications. Last week, for example, I sent a message about this job opening for a music director paying $65,000 per year plus benefits (plus weddings & funerals). Notice the job description says: “our vision for sacred music is to move from singing at Mass to truly singing the Mass wherein … especially the propers, ordinaries, and dialogues are given their proper place.” Signing up couldn’t be easier: simply scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”
    My pastor requested that I write short articles each week for our parish bulletin. Those responsible for preparing similar write-ups may find a bit of inspiration in these brief columns. The latest article (dated 12 October 2025) talks about an ‘irony’ or ‘paradox’ regarding the 1960s switch to a wider use (amplior locus) of vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
    The American Catholic Hymnal, with IMPRIMATUR granted (25 April 1991) by the Archdiocese of Chicago, is like a compendium of every horrible idea from the 1980s. Imagine being forced to stand all through Communion (even afterwards) when those self-same ‘enlightened’ liturgists moved the SEQUENCE before the Alleluia to make sure congregations wouldn’t have to stand during it. (Even worse, everything about the SEQUENCE—including its name—means it should follow the Alleluia.) And imagine endlessly repeating “Alleluia” during Holy Communion at every single Mass. It was all part of an effort to convince people that Holy Communion was historically a procession (which it wasn’t).
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Canonic” • Ralph Vaughan Williams
    Fifty years ago, Dr. Theodore Marier made available this clever arrangement (PDF) of “Come down, O love divine” by P. R. Dietterich. The melody was composed in 1906 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (d. 1958) and named in honor of of his birthplace: DOWN AMPNEY. The arrangement isn’t a strict canon, but it does remind one of a canon since the pipe organ employs “points of imitation.” The melody and text are #709 in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“By a decree of the synod of the diocese of Exeter in 1284, no one should claim any seat in a church; but whoever first entered a church for the purpose of devotion, might choose at his pleasure a place for praying.”

— A work by Fr. Husenbeth (d. 1872)

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