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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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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!
    A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Booklet of Eucharistic Hymns” (16 pages)
    I was asked to create a booklet for my parish to use during our CORPUS CHRISTI PROCESSION on 22 June 2025. Would you be willing to look over the DRAFT BOOKLET (16 pages) I came up with? I tried to include a variety of hymns: some have a refrain; some are in major, others in minor; some are metered, others are plainsong; some are in Spanish, some are in Latin, but most are in English. Normally, we’d use the Brébeuf Hymnal—but we can’t risk having our congregation carry those heavy books all over the city to various churches.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

“In the Latin Church the pipe organ is to be held in high esteem, for it is the traditional musical instrument which adds a wonderful splendor to the Church’s ceremonies and powerfully lifts up man’s mind to God and to higher things.”

— Vatican II Council

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