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Views from the Choir Loft

Composition with Pencil & Paper or Computer Software?

Fr. David Friel · June 25, 2017

HIS PAST week, which I spent in St, Paul, MN attending the annual CMAA Sacred Music Colloquium, was filled with many blessings. It was a week replete with academic keynotes to stimulate the mind, friendly conversations to strengthen the heart, and beautiful liturgies to move the soul.

Over lunch one day, I had a wonderful discussion with two other participants on the topic of music composition. Both of these musicians have degrees in composition, and one works actively as a full-time composer. So I took the opportunity to ask two questions that seemed worthwhile, even though I was fairly sure I knew the answers.

First, I asked if they compose using pencil and paper or a computer program. Predictably, they both said pencil and paper.

Second, I asked if they compose at a desk or at a keyboard. As you might expect, both said at their desks.

The discussion continued by observing how much the art of composition has changed in recent centuries. One of my lunchmates pointed out that the advent of computer software is perhaps not the biggest change composition has undergone since the medieval period. Arguably more significant is the adoption of the modern score. We are accustomed, in our time, to seeing full scores written out that include all vocal lines and instrumentation written out in measures that align vertically on the page. Until the 17th century or so, though, manuscripts were not written in this way. Compositions were, instead, written out for each individual part in separate “part books.”

This latter method is how such musicians as the 16th-century Palestrina would have composed. Can we even imagine the mental acumen that this style of composition necessitates? The sharpness of memory and breadth of vision this requires is certainly more demanding than what is required when composing in the fashion of a modern score. The effect of this practice upon the composer was undoubtedly a vivid appreciation for each musical line as a beautiful, integral whole.

Still more, it is worth considering that composers like Palestrina did not have CD collections or iTunes accounts. All their experiences of hearing sacred music, rather, were live performances. How different this is from our digital age, in which most musicians (and people generally) are inundated with recorded music.

Speaking of composition, one of my favorite parts of the colloquium each year is the new music breakout group. The idea is that composers (who range from hacks like me to rather polished artists) bring new pieces they are working on to be read through by the group, which usually includes 8 or 10 people. After sight-singing each piece, the members of the group offer feedback to each other. The composers use these constructive critiques to revise their manuscripts throughout the week, so that by the final day of the breakout, their work is either finished or at least improved. The final session is opened to all colloquium participants so that they can see and sing the revised compositions.

The annual Sacred Music Colloquium is a great opportunity to learn more about chant, polyphony, conducting, organ playing, etc. It is also a phenomenal venue for networking with other music directors, choir members, organists, clergy, etc. The colloquium draws together a wide array of people who love sacred music, and it has been known to forge new friendships.

Next year’s colloquium will be held at Loyola University in Chicago from June 25-30, 2018. If you have never attended a colloquium—or if you haven’t attended one in a while—plan ahead for next year.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Church Music Association of America CMAA, Sacred Music Colloquium 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 and teaches liturgy at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

    Introit • Candlemas (2 February)
    “Candlemas” • Our choir sang on February 2nd, and here's a live recording of the beautiful INTROIT: Suscépimus Deus. We had very little time to rehearse, but I think it has some very nice moments. I promise that by the 8th Sunday after Pentecost it will be perfect! (That Introit is repeated on the 8th Sunday after Pentecost.) We still need to improve, but we're definitely on the right track!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Simplified Antiphons • “Candlemas”
    Anyone who desires simplified antiphons (“psalm tone versions”) for 2 February, the Feast of the Purification—which is also known as “Candlemas” or the Feast of the Presentation—may freely download them. The texts of the antiphons are quite beautiful. From “Lumen Ad Revelatiónem Géntium” you can hear a live excerpt (Mp3).
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Tempo?? • 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘎𝘰𝘥, 𝘞𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘺 𝘕𝘢𝘮𝘦
    Once, after Mass, my pastor said he really loved the hymn we did. I said: “Father, that's Holy God, We Praise Thy Name—you never heard it before?” He replied: “But the way you did it was terrific. For once, it didn't sound like a funeral dirge!” Last Sunday, our volunteer choir sang that hymn. I think the tempo was just about right … but what do you think?
    —Jeff Ostrowski

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“To speak the language of God’s beauty, we must first begin to listen. And to listen, we must have silence in our lives. I pray that God will open our eyes and ears to beauty, and help us use it in the service of the Truth.”

— Bishop James D. Conley (10/4/2013)

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