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Corpus Christi Watershed

“A much greater source of anxiety to Us is the style of action of those who maintain that liturgical worship should shed its sacred character, who foolishly say we should substitute for sacred items & furnishings ordinary common things in daily use.” —Pope Saint Paul VI (14 Oct 1968)

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Views from the Choir Loft

Turning Off the Air Conditioning

Fr. David Friel · September 25, 2016

T BUGS ME when people use air conditioning needlessly. Fall officially arrived last week, and the weather has been quite favorable here in DC recently. My windows have been open continuously for several days, and I have been able to study, pray, and sleep comfortably with nothing more than fresh air and a ceiling fan. Even in the car, riding around with the windows down has been more than adequately comfortable during these days.

Walking around campus, though, one hears air conditioners running in in the windows of many dormitories, classrooms, and offices. Not only is this a waste of resources, it means that many folks are missing out on the natural beauty of early autumn weather. That saddens me a bit.

Air conditioners, of course, can be a very good thing. Having sweated through many summer liturgies in open air chapels and having tried to sleep while camping in muggy environments, I have no personal vendetta against air conditioning wisely used. But when the weather is inviting, instead of oppressive, my preference is always for untreated air.

These are more than meteorological observations. They have bearing on the present state of parish liturgical music. Allow me to draw the analogy.

The Roman Rite possesses a native music that is rich, beautiful, and perfectly suited to its liturgical ceremony. This music—Gregorian chant—consists of ordinary and proper elements that are more than simply historical. These chants are integral to the rite.

Indeed, the rite developed along with its music, so intimately are they connected. It would hardly be proper even to speak about the Roman Rite and its music as though they were separate entities, for the music of the Roman Rite is part of the rite, itself. The rite and its music are symbiotic.

Based on the experience of contemporary parish practice, of course, the average Mass goer would have no knowledge of this music that is so central to Roman worship. For decades, the Mass has been celebrated in our churches with foreign music, to the impoverishment of the liturgy.

It is not that the perfectly suited music does not exist. It’s all easily available (now with vernacular versions, free Internet resources, and even video tutorials). It has simply been ignored.

The state of affairs is not unlike the hypothetical situation of a person who has been locked up in an air-conditioned room for half a century without realizing that the air outside has been perfectly comfortable all the while. Instead of trying artificially to manufacture the perfectly temperate environment indoors (“climate control”), it would have been wiser for that person to notice and appreciate the perfectly suitable weather just outside the window all along.

Instead of forcing foreign music forms upon the Mass, it would be wiser for music directors to become familiar with the chants that belong to the great “treasury” of the Church.

In a modern culture that is obsessed with “going organic” with food, one might expect that people would have an inclination toward the natural air conditioning of open windows. Indeed, more often than not, I think that people leave the air conditioning on during beautiful fall weather without much thought. When the air conditioner has been on all summer long, it is easy to leave it running unconsciously, without even thinking to turn it off.

I am convinced that most people, if they realized they could do without air conditioning on a particular day, would happily choose to open the windows. This gives me great hope.

How so? Because it means that it is reasonable to expect that music directors, if exposed to the liturgy’s native music, will happily choose to use it.

N.B.: Anyone interested in learning more about how to implement the authentic music of the Roman Rite in parish liturgies should plan to attend a conference at Dunwoodie that has just been announced: “Gregorian Chant in Pastoral Ministry and Religious Education.”

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Alius Cantus Aptus, Authentic Liturgical Renewal Reform, Beauty in the Catholic Liturgy, Gregorian Chant, Hymns Replacing Propers, Propers, Singing the Mass Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel is a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and serves as Director of Liturgy at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    This coming Sunday—13 July 2025—is the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). All the chants have been conveniently assembled and posted at the feasts website. The OFFERTORY, Ad Te Levávi, is particularly beautiful.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Music Director Job • $80,000 per year
    Our readers will be interested in this job offering for Music Director at Saint Adalbert’s Basilica, located 40 minutes from where I live. My pastor was recently elevated to this basilica. He is offering $80,000 per year, plus benefits. I’m told Saint Adalbert’s Basilica is utterly gorgeous and contains one of America’s most magnificent pipe organs. It would be fantastic to have a colleague nearby!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Simplest “Agnus Dei” Ever Published
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. I needed a relatively simple “Agnus Dei,” so I composed this setting for organ & voice in honor of Saint René Goupil. It has been called the simplest setting ever composed. I love CARMEN GREGORIANUM (“Gregorian Chant”), especially the ALLELUIAS, INTROITS, and COMMUNION ANTIPHONS. That being said, some have pointed out that certain sections of the Kyriale aren’t as strong as the Graduale or Vesperale. There’s a reason for this—but it would be too complicated to explain at this moment.
    —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

At High Mass the Celebrant is not allowed to proceed with the Offertory while the “Credo” is being sung. Likewise he should not proceed with the Consecration until the singing of the “Sanctus” is completed.

— Father Carlo Rossini (1939)

Recent Posts

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  • 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • The Tallis Scholars
  • Music Director Job • $80,000 per year
  • Pope Saint Paul VI to Consilium (14 October 1968)

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