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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

New! • Easy Choral Extension Mass (Ordinary Form)

Guest Author · January 3, 2017

509 Medieval Organist HAVE BEEN recently inspired by the principle of using choral extensions allowing both congregational participation and “a touch of polyphony,” as discussed in a previous post on Corpus Christi Watershed. I think it is a sound principle for those who are trying to find a balanced approach within the Ordinary Form, bring in beautiful elements of the Church’s polyphonic tradition, and increase the moments that we should have a little more reflection within the action of the Liturgy.

Practically speaking, a full polyphonic setting in the context of a regular Ordinary Form liturgy might seem a trifle long, when the action must stop to wait for it. In the heyday of sacred polyphony, and in the context of the Extraordinary Form of the Mass today, the liturgical action may continue during the choral singing of the Ordinary, with the celebrant reciting the texts at the altar sotto voce. This means that, sadly—and not intentionally—great works may be perceived to lose some of their functionality. This is where the principle of choral extensions may come in, where you still want this priceless treasure practically used in the Ordinary Form Mass.

    * *  PDF Download • MISSA MISERICODRIAE DEI (2017)

So, I have devised this Mass setting, which I’ve given the name Missa Misericordiae Dei (Mass of the Mercy of God), which incorporates the most common ICEL Roman Chants of the Kyrie, Sanctus, Memorial Acclamation, Great Amen, and Agnus Dei, with excerpts from the Missa Octavi Toni by Orlando de Lassus (for SATB). This allows for the congregation to join in with the “Chant” section of each of the parts and the choir to provide some polyphony either between or at the end of the section. I have provided the ICEL chants with a possible SATB choral harmonisation, to allow for them to be sung without organ accompaniment, as would seem to be more fitting in the penitential seasons of the year, particularly Advent and Lent. It would be, however, perfectly reasonable to ignore these harmonisations and sing the melodies in unison and break into the polyphony where it begins. The ICEL Chants are given in their English form. They could equally be sung in Latin, or any other language should that be desired or required.


We hope you enjoyed this guest article by Maestro McBain.


Nigel Lucas Silvester McBain currently serves as Director of Music and Adult Faith Formation at Holy Family Catholic Church, Mitchell, South Dakota.

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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Quick Thoughts

    William Byrd • Simple “Agnus Dei” Canon
    Time flies! Back in July, I posted a PDF setting of a perfect canon by William Byrd (d. 1623) arranged as an AGNUS DEI for three voices. Last Sunday, we sang that arrangement with our volunteer choir. To hear a ‘live’ recording of it, click here (Mp3). In my humble opinion, this would be a perfect piece for a choir just beginning to experiment with polyphony.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Glory To God” • (For Choir + Congregation)
    I wish to thank everyone for the nice comments I received vis-à-vis my Glory To God setting for Choir & Congregation. A gentleman with a musical doctorate from Indiana University wrote: “Love this setting so much. And I will pray, as you asked, for your return to composition more fully. You are very very good.” A female choir director wrote: “I love your harmonizations, your musicality, and the wonderful interplay you have with dissonance and consonance in your music. So fun to listen to, and great for intellect, heart, and soul!” A young woman from California wrote: “Thank you for releasing your new Glory To God in honor of Saint Noel Chabanel. I'm enjoying reading through the various parts and listening to your recordings.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    William Byrd • “Mass for Five Voices”
    Our volunteer choir is learning the “Sanctus” from William Byrd’s Mass for Five Voices. You can hear a short excerpt (recorded last Sunday) but please ignore the sound of babies crying: Mp3 recording. We still have work to do—but we’re on the right track. Once we have some of the tuning issues fixed, I desire to use it as an example proving volunteers can sing complicated polyphony. — One of our volunteer choirs also sang that SANCTUS on 24 September 2023, and you can listen to how that came out.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

It is unworthy that the stone holds Him, Who encloses everything in His hand, Locked in by the forbidding rock. (“Indígnum est cujus claudúntur cuncta pugíllo | Ut tegat inclúsum rupe vetánte lapis.”)

— SALVE FESTA DIES (Eastertide)

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