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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

Conference Updates

Fr. David Friel · January 29, 2017

EW INFORMATION is available for two upcoming liturgical summits. First is the national Gregorian chant conference being hosted at St. Joseph’s Seminary (Dunwoodie) in March, and second is the Sacra Liturgia conference to be held this June in Milan.

The Dunwoodie gathering is entitled “Gregorian Chant in Pastoral Ministry and Religious Education.” New information has just been posted concerning the sacred liturgies that will form part of this experience. The lists of speakers and topics are very exciting. N.B.: Registration for this conference ends this week, on Wednesday, February 1st. Register here.

My presentation for this conference is entitled, Is Beauty Subjective? Identifying the Criteria of Beauty. Following is the abstract:

It is commonly held that beauty exists in the eye of the beholder and is therefore a subjective quality. True beauty, however, is a transcendental property, touching upon the eternal and reflecting aesthetic criteria. Through an approach that is both philosophical and theological, these criteria will be established and shown to be a necessary part of human experience.

This study will rely on the thought of Jacques Maritain, Dietrich Von Hildebrand, and St. John Paul II. Attention will further be given to identifying the “lost center” lamented by Hans Sedlmayr. The aesthetics of beauty will then be applied to Gregorian chant as sacred music par excellence.

Two weeks ago, Sacra Liturgia Milan released a full list of its speakers and their topics. Among this list, especially notable are Cardinal Sarah, Cardinal Burke, Fr. Michael Lang, Dr. Jennifer Donelson, and Dom Alcuin Reid.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Beauty, Dunwoodie Chant Conference, Gregorian Chant, Raymond Cardinal Leo Burke, Robert Cardinal Sarah, Sacra Liturgia Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel served as Parochial Vicar at Saint Anselm Church in Northeast Philly before earning a doctorate in liturgical theology at The Catholic University of America. He presently serves as Vocation Director for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

Alabama Assessment!

We received this evaluation of Symposium 2022 from an Alabama participant:

“Oh, how the Symposium echoed the words of Cardinal Merry Del Val: …choosing only what is most conformed to Thy glory, which is my final aim. In one short and fast paced week, the faculty and attendees showed me the hand of God and our Lady working in our lives. The wide range of education—from Gregorian Chant, jazz modes in organ improvisation, to ‘staying sane’ while leading a choir—were certainly first-class knowledge from the best teachers of the art. However, the most powerful lesson was learning how to pray as a choir. The sacrifice of putting songs together, taking time to learn the sacred text, meditating on the church teaching through the chants, and gaining the virtues required to persevere in these duties were not only qualities of a choir but of a saint. The sanctification of the lives of the attendees was a beautiful outcome of this event … and that in itself is worth more than a beautifully-sung Solesmes style chant!”

—Jeff Ostrowski
PDF Download • Trinity Sunday (22 pages)

Feel free to download this Organ Accompaniment Booklet for Trinity Sunday (Second Vespers). Notice how the modes progress by number. Psalm 1 is mode 1; Psalm 2 is mode 2; Psalm 3 is mode 3; Psalm 4 is mode 4; Psalm 5 is mode 5. I am told by an expert that other feasts (such as Corpus Christi) are likewise organized by mode, and it’s called a “numerical office.”

—Jeff Ostrowski
10 June 2022 • “Official” rhythm of plainsong

I continue to search for the most beautiful way to present the “pure” Editio Vaticana scores. (Technically, the “pure” rhythm of the official edition is what everyone is supposed to use.) You can download my latest attempt, which is the Introit for this coming Sunday: Feast of the Most Holy Trinity. Because this is not an ancient feast, the Introit had to be adapted (perhaps around 750AD). Prior Johner says the adaptation is “not an entirely happy one.”

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“Iconographic tradition has theologically interpreted the manger and the swaddling cloths in terms of the theology of the Fathers. The child stiffly wrapped in bandages is seen as prefiguring the hour of his death: from the outset, he is the sacrificial victim, as we shall see more closely when we examine the reference to the first-born. The manger, then, was seen as a kind of altar.”

— Pope Benedict XVI (2012)

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