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Views from the Choir Loft

Dedication of the Cathedral Basilica of Mary, Queen of the World

Fr. David Friel · January 21, 2018

AST October 13th, the centenary of the Miracle of the Sun at Fatima was commemorated with numerous events, both at the apparition site and in communities around the globe. One of the more unique celebrations held on that day was the dedication of the cathedral church of Montréal, the Basilica of Mary, Queen of the World.

Construction began on the cathedral in 1870, and it was inaugurated in 1894, but it had never been formally consecrated.

Montréal is a lovely city filled with many beautiful churches. After the Oratory of St. Joseph on Mount Royal, Mary, Queen of the World is the second largest church in Québec. It is formally known, in French, as the Basilique Cathédrale Marie-Reine-du-Monde et Saint-Jacques-le-Majeur (its original patron had been Saint James). The architecture of Mary, Queen of the World is especially memorable, as it is a ¼-size replica of Saint Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.

Dedications of churches, of course, are not everyday occasions. (Richard Clark wrote here about his experience last spring at the dedication of a church in Boston’s Seaport District.) Still less common, though, is the dedication of a cathedral basilica.

The joyful occasion of dedicating Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral was enhanced by three new major musical works by composer Henrique Coe. The pieces are:

Sub Altare Dei Sedes — Sung during the deposition of relics in the altar

Stetit Angelus — Sung during the incensation of the altar

Locus Iste — Sung as an offertory motet (alternatively, as the gradual)

IVE recordings (edited) of these pieces being sung at the dedication are available, courtesy of Salt and Light Television. Sub Altare Dei Sedes lasts until the 8:02 mark; Stetit Angelus runs from 8:03 to 16:21; and Locus Iste spans 16:22 to 19:34.

The music is sung by the Chœur Polyphonique de Montréal, together with a vocal quartet (Marie Magistry, soprano; Josée Lalonde, alto; Andrew Gray, tenor; Martin Auclair, bass).

Other musicians involved were:

Conductor: Louis Lavigueur

Organ: Hélène Dugal

Trumpet: Victor Wong Seen-Bage and Nicholas Gagnon

Music Coordinator: Alain Duguay

Another beautiful composition by Mr. Coe is entitled “The Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.” Scored for brass quintet, the piece premiered in Lisbon, Portugal late in 2017. Here is a recording of this instrumental piece:

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Recording Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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Fr. David Friel

About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel served as Parochial Vicar at St. Anselm Parish in Northeast Philly. He is currently a doctoral candidate in liturgical theology at The Catholic University of America.—(Read full biography).

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Surprising Popularity!

One of our most popular downloads has proven to be the organ accompaniment to “The Monastery Hymnal” (131 pages). This book was compiled, arranged, and edited by Achille P. Bragers, who studied at the Lemmensinstituut (Belgium) about thirty years before that school produced the NOH. Bragers might be considered an example of Belgium “Stile Antico” whereas Flor Peeters and Jules Van Nuffel represented Belgium “Prima Pratica.” You can download the hymnal by Bragers at this link.

—Jeff Ostrowski
15 February 2021 • To Capitalize…?

In the Introit for the 6th Sunday after Pentecost, there is a question regarding whether to capitalize the word “christi.” The Vulgata does not, because Psalm 27 is not specifically referring to Our Lord, but rather to God’s “anointed one.” However, Missals tend to capitalize it, such as the official 1962 Missal and also a book from 1777 called Missel de Paris. Something tells me Monsignor Knox would not capitalize it.

—Jeff Ostrowski
15 February 2021 • “Sung vs. Spoken”

We have spoken quite a bit about “sung vs. spoken” antiphons. We have also noted that the texts of the Graduale Romanum sometimes don’t match the Missal texts (in the Extraordinary Form) because the Mass Propers are older than Saint Jerome’s Vulgate, and sometimes came from the ITALA versions of Sacred Scripture. On occasion, the Missal itself doesn’t match the Vulgate—cf. the Introit “Esto Mihi.” The Vulgate has: “Esto mihi in Deum protectórem et in domum refúgii…” but the Missal and Graduale Romanum use “Esto mihi in Deum protectórem et in locum refúgii…” The 1970s “spoken propers” use the traditional version, as you can see.

—Jeff Ostrowski

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“Those who teach Latin must know how to speak to the hearts of the young, know how to treasure the very rich heritage of the Latin tradition to educate them in the path of life, and accompany them along paths rich in hope and confidence.”

— Pope Francis (7 December 2017)

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