“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)
I wish we had to time to discuss artwork at the Sacred Music Symposium, but there’s just not enough time. At this year’s conference in June, we will sing an absolutely incredible Magnificat setting by Father Francisco Guerrero (d. 1599). If you examine the part books, you will notice a marvelous aesthetic desire to avoid […]
Post-Liberal Theology compares a religion to a language. How might that comparison, which could include the concept of a “vocabulary” of liturgical music, inform how we think about repeating repertoire?
Sometimes a music director can encounter criticism about the music program. The good side of this is that it shows that someone cares.
Sheen has sometimes been criticized for avoiding mention of the sacred liturgy during his talks, but I cannot agree with such a view. • Includes about the Holy Eucharist, including a quote by Father Leslie Rumble and a quote from Pope Pius X+
I’m sure I’m not the only one to feel this way: certain celebrations don’t feel right without “that piece.”
Father Francisco Guerrero (d. 1599) studied music with Father Cristóbal de Morales circa 1545. He taught himself the organ. On 3 April 1542 he was engaged as a contralto by Seville Cathedral at an annual salary of 12,000 maravedís. He remained there until 1546, when, at the age of only 17, he was invited—on the […]
Many churches have turned to live streaming during these difficult times. But getting the audio quality right is challenging. Here are some tips!
“Repetition” in the Age of Streaming Masses…
Father Adrian Fortescue (d. 1923) called this “perhaps the greatest of all hymns.”
My own growth as a musician for the Liturgy has culminated in my pastor allowing me to sing the Propers in English: the realization of a decade-long dream.
During Advent, choirmasters must plan Christmas. During Lent, choirmasters must plan Easter. And so on.
“The tunes and ditties of the radio will be meaningless in the magnitude of one’s final moments; only the psalms can bear the weight of the moment.” —Barry Rose
Choosing music for the Sacred Music Symposium requires careful consideration. We make sure (always) to have great variety. Because the schedule is so full, there’s never sufficient time to discuss the music fully—indeed, we could easily do a month-long seminar on each piece! For example, last year Dr. Calabrese conducted a setting of the Magnificat […]
“I have made the mistake in the past of scheduling a whole set of new pieces for three of four weeks in a row.”
There’s an old saying: “Show me your friends, and I will tell you who you are.”
I composed this organ accompaniment yesterday, looking ahead towards Eastertide.
Including Fulton J. Sheen, Charles de Foucauld, and a Homily by Father Valentine Young, OFM
A missionary in Soviet Russia, Fr. Ciszek learned the spirituality of surrender through tremendous suffering.
CCW contributors—Jeff, Veronica, Andrea, and Cynthia—each recorded a line for this recording.
I would like to share a message from a highly respected scholar. (His articles appear in distinguished journals such as Études grégoriennes and Oxford’s Early Music.) He wrote as follows: The Brébeuf Hymnal is very tastefully done. Your team has exquisite literary and musical taste. I see from my copy of the hymnal that you […]
The world’s experts have been releasing contradictory statements Re: Covid-19. I am neither a doctor nor a scientist, so I won’t comment; but I have something to say about the spine-tingling predictions made by certain politicians. When I was growing up, they told us “within ten years” we would starve due to overpopulation. The next […]
The Congregation has released a short document with pertinent guidance.
The list of concerns is endless. Today, we may be given the gift of an overabundance of silence, but perhaps its fruit will reverberate for years.
The 2020 Sacred Music Symposium “Official Statement” on Coronavirus has been posted; I encourage everyone to read it. I would like to share some advice: (1) avoid excessive amounts of “cable news” reporting on the pandemic, similar to how we diligently avoid immoral magazines and pornography; (2) let us pray for God’s mercy, and let […]
For those who are separated from the liturgical life of the Church on account of COVID-19.
