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Views from the Choir Loft

“Live” Recording Of Polyphonic Kyrie VIII

Jeff Ostrowski · September 16, 2015

294 Extraordinary Form MASS AST SUNDAY, as you can see by the musical program I post each week, we sang a beautiful composition by Richard Rice. I’ve mentioned how much I like this piece—and if you haven’t done so, you should download the entire Mass—so I won’t repeat what I’ve said already.

Last Sunday, somebody in the pews took this “live” recording:

    * *  Mp3 Audio • “Live” Kyrie VIII (Rice)

Is it a perfect performance? Certainly not; but we’re on the right track. Moreover, when you consider that our FSSP parish in Los Angeles has existed less than a year, I think you’ll agree we’ve made fine progress.

WHEN I STUDIED MUSICOLOGY in grad school, they made us read “source documents” from the Renaissance. One Cardinal complained vociferously in writing about a Kyrie he said was too happy. I’m paraphrasing, but his argument went something like this:

“Doesn’t this composer realize the Kyrie is supposed to be sad and mournful? It’s supposed to be written in a sad mode, but he chose a happy mode. Is this what art has come to? Have we reached a point where composers don’t even realize the Kyrie should sound sad?”

In fact, the Cardinal was dead wrong. The Catholic liturgical tradition is much more complicated than “sad vs. happy.” For instance, the same melodies—the exact same melodies—are used for the interlectionary chants during Lent and Eastertide. You can even find “happy” melodies setting the CRUCIFIXUS. The reason is because our Catholic faith is a mixture of joy and sorrow. This is illustrated well by the name “Good Friday.” Another example would be “Felix Culpa.” For the record, Richard Rice’s Kyrie—if sung well—should should extremely happy, although a few “dismal” elements are hidden within it as well.

In a biography of Saint John Bosco, it’s mentioned that Don Bosco would fall out of bed each morning at 4:00am and immediately pray for an hour … in thanksgiving. Another described the saint’s whole life as a massive outpouring of thanksgiving. In my life, I have so much to be thankful for. Were I to list everything and everyone, this blog would go on forever.

Let me just mention three things:

(1) I’m grateful for the opportunity to work with our choir and organist here in Los Angeles.

(2) I’m grateful to Pope Benedict XVI for the gift of Summorum Pontificum.

(3) I’m grateful to the CCW donors, who give $5.00 each month. Thanks to them, we can share our hopes, dreams, failures, and successes here on Views from the Choir Loft.

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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Jeff Ostrowski

About Jeff Ostrowski

Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004). He resides with his wife and children in Los Angeles.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

Surprising Popularity!

One of our most popular downloads has proven to be the organ accompaniment to “The Monastery Hymnal” (131 pages). This book was compiled, arranged, and edited by Achille P. Bragers, who studied at the Lemmensinstituut (Belgium) about thirty years before that school produced the NOH. Bragers might be considered an example of Belgium “Stile Antico” whereas Flor Peeters and Jules Van Nuffel represented Belgium “Prima Pratica.” You can download the hymnal by Bragers at this link.

—Jeff Ostrowski
15 February 2021 • To Capitalize…?

In the Introit for the 6th Sunday after Pentecost, there is a question regarding whether to capitalize the word “christi.” The Vulgata does not, because Psalm 27 is not specifically referring to Our Lord, but rather to God’s “anointed one.” However, Missals tend to capitalize it, such as the official 1962 Missal and also a book from 1777 called Missel de Paris. Something tells me Monsignor Knox would not capitalize it.

—Jeff Ostrowski
15 February 2021 • “Sung vs. Spoken”

We have spoken quite a bit about “sung vs. spoken” antiphons. We have also noted that the texts of the Graduale Romanum sometimes don’t match the Missal texts (in the Extraordinary Form) because the Mass Propers are older than Saint Jerome’s Vulgate, and sometimes came from the ITALA versions of Sacred Scripture. On occasion, the Missal itself doesn’t match the Vulgate—cf. the Introit “Esto Mihi.” The Vulgate has: “Esto mihi in Deum protectórem et in domum refúgii…” but the Missal and Graduale Romanum use “Esto mihi in Deum protectórem et in locum refúgii…” The 1970s “spoken propers” use the traditional version, as you can see.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

Legitimate and necessary concern for current realities in the concrete lives of people cannot make us forget the true nature of the liturgical actions. It is clear that the Mass is not the time to “celebrate” human dignity or purely terrestrial claims or hopes. It is rather the sacrifice which renders Christ really present in the sacrament.

— Pope Saint John Paul II (20 March 1990)

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