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Views from the Choir Loft

Report • “Musical Shape of the Liturgy Conference”

Dr. Charles Weaver · November 9, 2023

HIS WEEK the Catholic Institute of Sacred Music, a new initiative headed by Dr. Jennifer Donelson-Nowicka, held a conference in honor of the life and work of the extraordinary William Mahrt. The conference took place at St. Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park, CA. This is the seminary of the Archdiocese of San Francisco, where Dr. Donelson-Nowicka is a professor. As is usual with academic conferences, the schedule was packed with papers. Less usual, at least for music-related fields, was that many of the papers were presented in hour-long blocks, with 40–45 minutes for the paper, followed by 15–20 minutes of question time. This allowed for an amount of depth and detail that was unusual. Most time blocks had three papers going simultaneously, which left the participants with some hard choices. There were some more papers I wish I could have seen.

Also unusually for music conferences (at least in my experience), solemn Catholic liturgies were held several times a day between the paper sessions: Lauds, Vespers, Solemn Mass. The music was provided by Mahrt’s own St. Ann Choir, with conducting by Mahrt, Donelson-Nowicka, and David Hughes, my long-time former director in Norwalk. The singing was quite good. I particularly enjoyed sitting behind Fr. Bachmann, choirmaster at Clear Creek Abbey, during the office. He sounds like a monk of the Solesmes congregation, because that’s exactly what he is.

I had to arrive late and leave early because of schedule constraints, but I was able to attend three plenary events: keynote papers by Dr. Joseph Dyer on some Old Roman chant and Sr. Maria Kiely (of Solesmes!) on Latin as a sacred language and some of its rhetorical qualities in liturgical use. The third event was the banquet, with some very moving tributes to Mahrt and his influence.

As you might expect, I followed a chant-oriented itinerary through the conference papers. Especially noteworthy were two papers touching on the rhythm of Gregorian chant. Br. John Glasenapp (of Meinrad Archabbey) presented some really interesting research on the Cistercian reform of the chant repertoire in the late middle ages. He used this as a way to raise questions about some patterns of narrative (i.e., decay-restoration or decadence-reform) that recur throughout the history of the repertoire. Perhaps closer to my own research topics was a really interesting paper by Steven Ottományi on language and rhythm in chant. He was mainly looking at the Pothier-Mocquereau dispute, trying to come up with new and better ways to describe points of agreement and difference. His boldest claim is that the difference between their ways of accentuating chant may relate to regional variations in the way French is spoken in their birthplaces. Obviously such a cause, if it is true, is not entirely demonstrable and also would be in some quite deep stratum of their mental furniture, but it was an interesting point.

I also gave a paper this morning, on the connection between Mocquereau and various nineteenth- and twentieth-century theorists. It was based on the research in the fourth chapter of my recent dissertation. In some ways, I think my points were quite complementary with those of Glasenapp and Ottományi. Say of Mocquereau what you will as a chant practitioner, but I’m heartened to see the interest in my research looking at him as a theorist of music. The rhythmic signs, which have proven so controversial in chant circles, are really a very small part of Mocquereau’s theory.

From my point of view, the conference was quite successful. There was a lot of interesting scholarship to take in, and it was inspiring to see the fruits of Dr. Mahrt’s long career as both a practicing musician and a scholar, and a generous teacher. I hope to see many more such conferences in the future!

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Beauty in the Catholic Liturgy, Cantus Gregorianus, Church Music Association of America CMAA, Church music conference, Dom Mocquereau, Dom Pothier, Gregorian Chant Last Updated: November 10, 2023

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About Dr. Charles Weaver

Dr. Charles Weaver is on the faculty of the Juilliard School, and serves as director of music for St. Mary’s Church. He lives in Connecticut with his wife and four children.—(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Simplest “Agnus Dei” Ever Published
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. I needed a relatively simple “Agnus Dei,” so I composed this setting for organ & voice in honor of Saint René Goupil. It has been called the simplest setting ever composed. I love CARMEN GREGORIANUM (“Gregorian Chant”), especially the ALLELUIAS, INTROITS, and COMMUNION ANTIPHONS. That being said, some have pointed out that certain sections of the Kyriale aren’t as strong as the Graduale or Vesperale. There’s a reason for this—but it would be too complicated to explain at this moment.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. However, on the feasts website, the chants have been posted for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C), which is this coming Sunday: 6 July 2025.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Bugnini’s Statement (6 November 1966)
    With each passing day, more is revealed about how the enemies of the liturgy accomplished their goals. For instance, Hannibal Bugnini deeply resented the way Vatican II said Gregorian Chant “must be given first place in liturgical services.” On 6 November 1966, his cadre wrote a letter attempting to justify the elimination of Gregorian Chant with this brazen statement: “What really gives a Mass its tone is not so much the songs as it is the prayers and readings.” Bugnini’s cadre then attacked the very heart of Gregorian Chant (viz. the Proprium Missae), bemoaning how the Proprium Missae “is completely new each Sunday and feast day.” There is much more to be said about this topic. Stay tuned.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

The union of Christians can only be promoted by promoting the return to the one true Church of Christ of those who are separated from it, for in the past they have unhappily left it.

— Pope Pius XI (6 January 1928)

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