• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)

  • Our Team
    • Views from the Choir Loft • “Our Team”
    • Our Editorial Policy
  • Pew Resources
    • Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal
    • Jogues Illuminated Missal
    • Campion Missal, 3rd Edition
  • MUSICAL WEBSITES
    • René Goupil Gregorian Chant
    • Noël Chabanel Psalms
    • Nova Organi Harmonia (2,279 pages)
    • Lalemant Polyphonic
    • Saint Antoine Daniel KYRIALE
    • Father Enemond Massé Manuscripts
  • Miscellaneous
    • Site Map
    • Emporium Kevin Allen
    • Roman Missal, 3rd Edition
    • Saint Jean de Lalande Library
    • Sacred Music Symposium 2023
    • Gradual by Pothier’s Protégé
    • Mass in Honor of Saint Noël Chabanel
  • Donate
Views from the Choir Loft

Agnus Dei • “Missa Mille Regretz” by Fr. Cristóbal de Morales (d. 1553)

Jeff Ostrowski · October 3, 2017

OOKING AT MUSIC on the page is one thing, but hearing it real life is a different matter. I’ll never forget hearing Dr. Alfred Calabrese run through Guerrero’s KYRIE on the opening day of our very first Sacred Music Symposium. As a composer, I was in awe of what Guerrero had done: his grasp of musical DENSITY was life-changing. (No recording can capture this.)

These composers were aware of the overtone series, which is sometimes described as a series of “imaginary notes.” Let us consider an AGNUS DEI by Guerrero’s teacher, Fr. Cristóbal de Morales. The following recording—which I consider to be quite beautiful, especially for those familiar with this piece—was created by members of the volunteer choir I direct here at FSSP.la.

In measure 38, Tenors combine into unison on C—do you hear an imaginary girl’s voice singing a high G? (That’s a strong overtone.) Listen to the 1:31 marker:

REHEARSAL VIDEOS for each individual voice await you at #4297.
The full PDF score can be downloaded there.

Please download this Mp3, and listen to it carefully a billion times in your car:

    * *  Mp3 • AGNUS DEI (Part 3) from Missa Mille Regretz

    * *  PDF • AGNUS DEI (Part 3) from Missa Mille Regretz

…what a gorgeous piece!

THE FRATERNITY OF SAINT PETER in Los Angeles released a Promo Video celebrating the 10-year anniversary of “Summorum Pontificum.” The recording above was chosen as the soundtrack, and here’s a translation for the Chanson which Fr. Morales used as his melodic basis for Missa Mille Regretz:

Modern French:
Mille regrets de vous abandonner
et d’être éloigné de votre
visage amoureux.
J’ai si grand deuil
et peine douloureuse
qu’on me verra vite mourir.

English Translation:
A thousand regrets at deserting you
and leaving behind your loving face,
I feel so much sadness
and such painful distress,
that it seems to me my days
will soon dwindle away.

It’s fitting, in a way, because many priests I’ve asked about the 1960s reforms have expressed regret. When they opened up the new Missal for the first time (they explain) they saw that much of the beautiful symbolism and holy gestures of the ancient liturgy had been eliminated. As one bishop put it, “I knew it was gone for good.” Nobody at that time could have even hoped for something like “Summorum Pontificum.”

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

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Subscribe

It greatly helps us if you subscribe to our mailing list!

* indicates required

About Jeff Ostrowski

Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004). He resides with his wife and children in Los Angeles.—(Read full biography).

Primary Sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

Quick Thoughts

    “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
    “Baptism” • A Unique Hymn
    Father Christopher Phillips is the founding Pastor of Our Lady of the Atonement Catholic Church. One of his hymns is unique and (in my humble opinion) quite beautiful. His hymn is basically a prayer to the Holy Trinity but also speaks of Baptism and the Holy Eucharist. It would be an ideal Communion hymn on Trinity Sunday or the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. You can hear live recording from last Sunday by clicking here.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

I basically don’t favor Cardinal Kasper’s proposal; I don’t think it’s coherent. To my mind, “indissoluble” means “unbreakable.”

— Daniel Cardinal DiNardo (19 October 2015)

Recent Posts

  • PDF Download • All Seven (7) Movements: “Mass in Honor of Saint Noël Chabanel”
  • Composer Kevin Allen in Europe!
  • “Slander!” • (Response to an Accusation We Received)
  • Some Questions Answered
  • Concerning Alterations to the Vatican Edition

Subscribe

Subscribe

* indicates required

Copyright © 2023 Corpus Christi Watershed · Isaac Jogues on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.