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“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)

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Views from the Choir Loft

Ridiculously Awesome Sanctus You’ve Never Heard

Jeff Ostrowski · February 2, 2016

HEN I FIRST ENCOUNTERED Guerrero’s SANCTUS & HOSANNA, I wasn’t impressed; but then I began to look deeper. I noticed how Guerrero places the ancient chant “Beata Mater” as a Trope in the Soprano, then—to add variety—moves it to the Alto. Scholars are divided on whether, in fact, the Trope would have been sung. 1 It turns out the marvelous melody we mentioned earlier was taken from the end of the chant—how cool is that?

I recorded all the voice parts myself to give an idea how it sounds:

    * *  PDF Download • Guerrero SANCTUS & HOSANNA


The second half of the SANCTUS is based on that same motif. Those Renaissance composers certainly did appreciate “order and structure” in their compositions, and that’s part of what makes their music so great. 2

We don’t spend time denigrating the work of others on this blog. That being said, it is obscene for today’s “liturgical” composers to offer their works as substitutes for composers like Guerrero, Victoria, Nanini, and Palestrina. Comparing them would be like comparing my bank account to Michael Jordan’s—but judge for yourself! Sing through the Tenor line. Sing through the Alto line. See for yourself how dazzling Guerrero can be!

This is the 1st Section only. I hope to add the 2nd Section (“Benedictus”) soon. 3

REHEARSAL VIDEOS :

EQUAL VOICES : YouTube   •   Mp3 Audio

SOPRANO : YouTube   •   Audio

ALTO : YouTube   •   Audio

TENOR : YouTube   •   Audio

BASS : YouTube   •   Audio




NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   We have very little information about the precise way this music would have been performed. People have all kinds of hypotheses—for example, regarding whether instruments would have been used—but things get hairy when you ask them “How did you arrive at your conclusion?” I have no trouble believing that the text of this Trope would have been sung. On the other hand, secular songs were also included in such scores, and I’m not sure those would have been sung. Here’s what a famous musicologist told me recently:

Such an inclusion of the text of a source of a cantus firmus is often seen in the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. In manuscripts I’ve seen in color, these texts are often red—so maybe “sing the black, think the red.” Stranger things have been done, but I doubt that they would have sung the text of the song.

In any event, we are not allowed to sing Tropes in the Extraordinary Form. That’s why I added the text in italics.

2   By the way, Guerrero has a distinct compositional style, and several of his traits are shown in this Mass setting: penchant for canons; “sneaking in” voices on odd beats, outlining tritones, and even skips of a seventh (over a rest).

3   At the conclusion of the “Benedictus,” the same HOSANNA is sung.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Francisco Guerrero Composer, Missa Beata Mater Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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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

16 May 2022 • Harmonized Chant?

This year’s upcoming Sacred Music Symposium will demonstrate several ways to sing the CREDO at Mass. This is because—for many parishes—to sing a full-length polyphonic CREDO by Victoria or Palestrina is out of the question. Therefore, we show options that are halfway between plainsong and polyphony. You can hear my choir rehearsing a section that sounds like harmonized plainsong.

—Jeff Ostrowski
14 May 2022 • “Pure” Vatican Edition

As readers know, my choir has been singing from the “pure” Editio Vaticana. That is to say, the official rhythm which—technically—is the only rhythm allowed by the Church. I haven’t figured out how I want the scores to look, so in the meantime we’ve been using temporary scores that look like this. Stay tuned!

—Jeff Ostrowski
14 May 2022 • Gorgeous Book

If there is a more beautiful book than Abbat Pothier’s 1888 Processionale Monasticum, I don’t know what it might be. This gorgeous tome was today added to the Saint John Lalande Online Library. I wish I owned a physical copy.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

Thus the priest-celebrant, putting on the person of Christ, alone offers sacrifice, and not the people, nor clerics, nor even priests who reverently assist. All, however, can and should take an active part in the Sacrifice. “The Christian people, though participating in the Eucharistic Sacrifice, do not thereby possess a priestly power,” We stated in the Encyclical Mediator Dei (AAS, vol 39, 1947, p. 553).

— Pope Pius XII (2 November 1954)

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