Views from the Choir Loft

Summer Chant Courses—Dunwoodie

Fr. David Friel · April 1, 2018

WO sacred music courses will be offered this summer at St. Joseph’s Seminary (Dunwoodie) in Yonkers. These offerings are being presented through the St. Cecilia Academy for Pastoral Musicians, an initiative of the Archdiocese of New York (both the liturgy office and the seminary) that was featured on these pages a couple of years ago.

The instructor for these sessions will be Jennifer Donelson, DMA (bio). Dr. Donelson is director of sacred music at Dunwoodie, president of the Society for Catholic Liturgy, and managing editor of the CMAA’s Sacred Music journal.

The two course offering this summer will be:

Principles of Sacred Music — 7 weeks online (June 4-July 22); 2 days on campus (July 23-24)

Principles of Sacred Music — 4 day on campus (July 25-28)

Participants will have the option either to take these courses for credit or to audit them. For the on campus portions, very reasonable room & board is being offered at the seminary.

For more information on these summer courses, see the official flyer.

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

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).

“Tonus Solemnior” • How old is it?

In the 1962 Missal, a section called “præfationes in tono solemniore” contains ornate melodies for the Preface. An article posted on the blog of the Church Music Association of America claims the tone comes from “the late 19th century” and said its elimination “is one of the very few good things which the post-Conciliar reform did for Gregorian chant.” The author said: “The Roman solemn preface tone is already beautiful enough, there was no need to give a more Romantic feel.”

Some have asked us whether the tonus solemnior comes from “the late 19th century.” It does not. Their author was wrong by at least 400 years. I have seen this tone in MSS from the 1400s—and it may go back even further. Here is an example from 1494AD. And here’s another from the 1400s. The FSSP priests use these tones on high feasts, and the effect is unforgettable.

—Jeff Ostrowski

6 January 2022 • Quick!

A short version of the INTROIT for the feast of the Epiphany has been added to the Saint René Goupil Gregorian Chant Website.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Confusing Feasts of Christmas

Whether one considers the Missale Vetustum or the post-conciliar calendar—or even the 1908 calendar—the feasts which follow Christmas are very confusing. Last year I created this comparison chart. I hope you find it helpful. As far as I can tell, my chart is the first effort to carefully detail the changes made to post-Christmas feasts (unless we also count the rather basic one by Lauren Pristas).

—Jeff Ostrowski