Views from the Choir Loft

Ten “Ave Maria” Settings from Different Lands

Lucas Tappan · May 12, 2017 ·

AST SUNDAY the Most Pure Heart of Mary Schola Cantorum (both our adult and children choirs combined) presented a musical reflection on a Decade of the Most Holy Rosary in honor of the 100th anniversary of the first apparition of Our Lady of Fatima. (The choir will repeat this concert next Saturday at 6 p.m. at Holy Angels Catholic Church in Basehor, KS, for those interested.)

The program began with the plainsong Pater noster followed by ten settings of the Ave Maria from different eras and lands before closing with Stanford’s setting of Psalm 150 and the Doxology. I thought I would share a few of the Ave Maria recordings from the day, which I hope you enjoy!

* * 2. AVE MARIA (Plainsong)

This chant provides the melodic material for Victoria’s setting.

* * 3. AVE MARIA attr. to Fr. Victoria (d. 1611)

Conducted by my assistant John Deahl.

* * 5. AVE MARIA by Colin Mawby (b. 1936)

Composed specifically for the Most Pure Heart of Mary Schola Cantorum.

* * 7. AVE MARIA by Matthew Martin (b. 1976)

Sung by Choristers only.

* * 9. AVE MARIA by Rachmaninoff (d. 1943)

Conducted by my assistant John Deahl.

* * 10. AVE MARIA by Charlie Wulke

This work was newly composed by our school music teacher for the concert!

* * 11. AVE MARIA by Gabriel Fauré (d. 1924)

Like Beethoven, Fauré was deaf as he grew older.

Many of our families are devoted to the Rosary, and the children enjoyed this musical “decade of the Rosary.”

About Lucas Tappan

Dr. Lucas Tappan is a conductor and organist whose specialty is working with children. He lives in Kansas with his wife and four children.

Could Pope St. Pius X Sing?

“On 12 March 1908, the complete publication of the Roman Gradual was issued by the Vatican Press. On that very day, Dom Pothier solemnly presented the first copy to the Holy Father. A witness of the audience says that Pius X wished to be the first to see the new book; he opened it at random, at page 128 of the supplement pro aliquibus locis—it was the Introit of the new Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. The Pope sang it with perfect taste to the last note.” (Catholic Choirmaster, February 1915)

—Jeff Ostrowski

Julius Bas Accompaniment

A very prolific harmonizer of Gregorian chant in the early 20th century was Mr. Julius Bas. He often uses a very strange technique, wherein he employs rests to eliminate the Alto, Tenor, and Bass voices. Consider what he did with “Lumen ad revelationem” here:

* JPEG • Lumen ad revelationem

It seems quite lazy, and I’ve never seen anyone else use such a technique, although Dr. Peter Wagner often switched to parallel octaves when he ran out of ideas… (Yuck!)

—Jeff Ostrowski

Hitting wrong notes

Fr. Valentine Young, OFM, used to say: “The organist can play 1,000 correct notes and one wrong note—and the only thing people will care about is the wrong note.” Last Sunday I hit some wrong notes, and felt bad. Then I remembered a story about Rudolf Serkin and started to chuckle. Charles Rosen (or was it Leon Fleisher?) told the story of Serkin playing a Beethoven Sonata in front of a large audience. The theme is all in octaves; but Serkin hit some wrong notes, and played parallel 7ths instead. This so unnerved him that every time the theme returned, he played the entire thing in parallel 7ths! We must remember that even the greatest hit wrong notes. Alfred Cortot, Vladimir Horowitz, Wilhelm Backhaus, Edwin Fischer, Sviatoslav Richter, Egon Petri—they all hit wrong notes, which we can hear on recordings. (Josef Hofmann was an exception, but he was super-human so he doesn’t count!)

—Jeff Ostrowski

On 12 March 1908, Feast of St. Gregory the Great, the complete publication of the “Graduale” was issued by the Vatican Press. That very day, Dom Pothier solemnly presented the first copy to the Holy Father. Pius X wished to be the first to see the new book; he opened it at random, at page 128 of the supplement “pro aliquibus locis”—the Introit of the new Feast of Our lady of Lourdes. The Pope sang it with perfect taste to the last note.

— A witness of the papal audience writing circa 1915