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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

Sacred Music Colloquium XXV — Update VI

Andrew Leung · July 9, 2015

CTL Colloquium 11 AST WEEK was one of the best weeks in my life! The Sacred Music Colloquium was a heavenly experience. I can totally see the Liturgy, along with the Sacred Music, as the foretaste of the heavenly banquette. I apologize for not being able to post this last update sooner due to my travel schedule. Here are some highlights from the last two days of the conference.

On the last day of the Colloquium, an Ordinary Form closing Mass was celebrated in Latin at the Duquesne Chapel. The Missa ad Majorem Dei Gloria by André Campra was sung under the direction of Maestro Wilko Brouwers and all the participants chanted the Te Deum at the end of the Mass to celebrate the conclusion of the twenty-fifth Sacred Music Colloquium. Fr. Robert Pasley asked us to offer up our works as a prayer and pray for all the church musicians everyday.

Dr. William Mahrt gave a short address at the closing brunch. He thank us for our support to the Church Music Association of America (CMAA) and ask us to continue to show our support to the organization. He said it is not easy to be church musicians and our jobs are full of challenge and sacrifice. He encouraged us not to give up when trials come and continue to take Sacred Music to the highest level. He then “send us forth” to the world to bring beautiful music to our parishes.

OW, let’s go back and take a look at the peak of the whole week: the Solem High Requiem Mass on Friday. The Mass was celebrated by Fr. Robert Pasley, Chaplain of the CMAA, for all the deceased members. The Mass setting was written by French composer, Gabriel Fauré. The choir sang under the direction of Dr. Horst Buchholz, Vice President of CMAA, and was accompanied by organist, Bruce Ludwig. After four days of intense rehearsals, the choir brought the beautiful melodies to the Gothic cathedral and really expressed all the emotions in the music. Recordings of this Mass and other liturgies can be found here.

Fr. Pasley gave a sermon after the Mass and he explained the differences between a Requiem Mass and a normal Vetus Ordo Mass. The Mass for the dead in the Extraordinary Form always put the focus on the deceased which is why actions toward the congregation, like the sermon and the final blessing, are omitted. During the Mass, the priest, united with the faithfuls, pray for the deceased and ask God to show His mercy. During the Mass, the Church commemorates the death instead of the resurrection. Black vestments are used to express the sorrow and to remind us of death, which is the result of sinning. The gold/silver/white trims and patterns on the vestments represent our hope. The sequence Dies irae is sung or recited to remind us of the last judgement which we will all have to face.

In the 19th-20th Century French tradition, the Pie Jesu is sung in place of the Benedictus after the consecration at the Requiem Mass. In Fauré’s setting, the Pie Jesu is sung by a soprano soloist. Here is a video I took from the choir loft after the words of consecration. Dr. Cecilia Nam singing the beautiful Pie Jesu accompanied by Bruce Ludwick. And Dr. Horst Buchholz was the conductor.

HIS POST will conclude my report on the Colloquium 2015. The Sacred Music Colloquium XXVI will be held in St. Louis, Missouri, next year. It will be from June 20 to June 25. The venues will include the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis and the Shrine of St. Joseph. I am already looking forward for the next gathering of church musicians!

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 Leung

Andrew Leung currently serves the music director of Vox Antiqua, conductor of the Cecilian Singers, and music director at Our Lady of China Church.—(Read full biography).

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President’s Corner

    Typo in the “Missale Romanum” (1962)
    The 1962 MISSALE ROMANUM was a transitional missal. It was on its way to becoming the 1970 version, but wasn’t there yet. It eliminated certain duplications, downplayed the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar, expanded the role of laymen, minimized the Last Gospel, made many items optional, and so forth. Father Valentine Young spotted many typos in the 1962 MISSALE ROMANUM, especially incorrect accents. The Offertory Antiphon for this coming Sunday (OF kalendar) contains an error, citing the wrong verse from Psalm 118. It should be 118:107b, not 118:154. If you read verse 154, you’ll understand how that error crept in. [In this particular case, the error pre-dates the 1962 Missal, since the 1940s hand-missal by Father Lasance also gets it wrong.]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 30th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 26 October 2025, which is the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the top-notch feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Little Encouragement?
    In the Gospel, our Savior tells about 10 lepers who were healed. Only one went back to give thanks. Precious few express gratitude, yet many have endless energy to complain. For that reason, I deeply appreciate receiving messages like the following, which arrived a few days ago (about the parish where I direct in Michigan): “Last Sunday, a couple I knew from Grand Rapids was at Mass at 10:00 a.m. I got a chance to talk to them after Mass. I wanted to let you know what they said about the choir. They were absolutely floored by our sound!!!!! They both said they could continuously listen to our choir and the beauty of it. They asked me: “Do you always sound like that?” And they were also very surprised at how packed the church was. They said it was nice for them to be in such a full church. I just thought you would be interested to know their thoughts about our choir.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “Our Father” • Musical Setting?
    Looking through a Roman Catholic Hymnal published in 1859 by Father Guido Maria Dreves (d. 1909), I stumbled upon this very beautiful tune (PDF file). I feel it would be absolutely perfect to set the “Our Father” in German to music. Thoughts?
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    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

Random Quote

In 1951 (and again in 1952 and 1955) the Sacred Congregation of Rites gave permission to the bishops of the whole world to celebrate the “Vigil of the Lord’s Resurrection” as much as possible in conformity with the ancient ceremonial: the most noticeable change was to transfer the ceremonies to the late evening of Holy Saturday. During the experimental period the text of the Missal remains unchanged, and a special “Ordo Sancti Sabbati” has been published.

— Charles Richard Anthony Cunliffe (1955)

Recent Posts

  • Typo in the “Missale Romanum” (1962)
  • “Music List” • 30th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • “Our Father” • Musical Setting?
  • Little Encouragement?
  • Children’s Repertoire • Mueller’s Recommendations

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