HIS WEEK, I’m in Rome for the first-ever International Week of Sacred Music (“Autumn Academy”) hosted by the PONTIFICAL INSTITUTE OF SACRED MUSIC. The Institute, founded by Saint Pius X in 1910, is the Church’s own school for sacred music. Its home is the old ABBEY OF SAN GIROLAMO in Urbe, just west of Vatican City. The “Autumn Academy” runs from 28 September to 4 October, gathers one hundred participants from around the world, and will conclude with a Mass at Saint Peter’s Basilica. The organizers describe the week as part music festival, part choral workshop, and part prayer retreat—and their description is apt. Rehearsal, study, and liturgy flow into one another throughout each day, which reflects a truth at the heart of the Church’s musical tradition: sacred music is not merely performed but prayed, and it forms those who sing it.
(1 of 2) Overview: “Autumn Academy” • The program has three tracks, each shaped for a particular vocation. Experienced singers form an international choir under professors of the PONTIFICAL INSTITUTE OF SACRED MUSIC, preparing repertoire on the level of Palestrina’s Sicut Cervus and Mozart’s Coronation Mass. Teachers and church musicians who work with young people learn a creative method for teaching Gregorian chant in a joyful, accessible way, with a professional development certificate available on completion. Seminarians, priests, and religious receive coaching in singing the Mass and the Divine Office, and no musical background is required.
(2 of 2) Overview: “Autumn Academy” • On the event’s website, the organizers quote Pope Leo XIV: “In Christ, we become singers of grace” (23 November 2025). This week in Rome gives that phrase real substance. One hopes the Academy becomes an annual tradition and that those who attend carry what they learn back to their parishes, schools, and choirs. More information is available at iwsmusic.org.
Final Thoughts • Its faculty is distinguished. Father ROBERT MEHLHART, O.P., leads the plenary choir, and WALTER MARZILLI directs the choir track. INGA BEHRENDT teaches Gregorian chant, LUCA BUZZAVI covers children’s choir direction, and KRISTI BRYSON teaches vocal technique. Father VINCENT FERRER BAGAN, O.P., and Father RENÉ HERNÁNDEZ VÉLEZ guide the liturgical vocal formation. The program was developed with the Dominican Liturgical Center. Instruction is in English, and the liturgies are celebrated in Latin in the Ordinary Form (Missale Recens) with English translations provided.
