Category Archives: Liturgical Music

The Three

Posted on 29 March 2014 by

Over the years here (on this blog) and there (elsewhere in the Catholic blogosphere) we’ve discussed a good bit of liturgical music. The three judgments, introduced to most American church musicians in the 1972 document Music in Catholic Worship (MCW), … Continue reading →

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Lent 2 Antiphons and Psalms

Posted on 15 March 2014 by

There have been some interesting, perhaps heated discussions about the Mass propers lately. It seems to me more like a dialogue of the deaf. I thought that since this weekend’s offerings from the Roman Antiphonary are typical, it might be … Continue reading →

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Mercy, Wide and Late

Posted on 9 March 2014 by

The concluding hymn at the parish struck me today in a way it has never done before. Two things. First, wideness, wideness, and kindness: There’s a wideness in God’s mercy, like the wideness of the sea. There’s a kindness in … Continue reading →

Posted in Liturgical Music, Parish Life, spirituality | 3 Comments

Survey Says?

Posted on 18 February 2014 by

The Chant Cafe has been rather quiet the past several days. I did notice a link on this post to a survey offered by the CDWDS and the Pontifical Council for Culture. Forty questions are offered under the following headings: Formation … Continue reading →

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Wandering In A Musical Wilderness

Posted on 29 January 2014 by

On the Chant Cafe I noticed an earnest and heartfelt essay from the viewpoint of the organ bench and choir loft. I really feel for people who seem to be in anguish about church music. I think one problem, a … Continue reading →

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The Meme Of Banal

Posted on 26 January 2014 by

I notice over at the Chant Cafe some discussion about reform2 Americans reforming Roman liturgical music. (Paul went there, so I suppose …) It rung a bell with some Praise Music as performance I saw there from earlier this week. … Continue reading →

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What Inspires?

Posted on 14 January 2014 by

Another illustrative thread at the CMAA here. First a citation to an editorial that seems to confuse the decades: In the 1960s, many of our church leaders were seminarians.  It was a time when Gregorian chant was forcibly submerged below … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Commentary, Liturgical Music, Music | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Placing Apostrophes and the Grill

Posted on 30 December 2013 by

The Hawaii Catholic Herald interviewed two composers three months ago on the eve of the big liturgy conference out there in the Pacific. CNS picked up a slice of the story today. These stories behind the music–I find them fascinating. … Continue reading →

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Maybe The Gloria Is Inadequate

Posted on 23 December 2013 by

One of the current discussions in Catholic liturgical music is setting the Gloria. My parish invested time to introduce a through-sung setting, and mostly, it has paid off. The responsorial format, over the years, has often (but not always) resulted … Continue reading →

Posted in Liturgical Music, Liturgy | 4 Comments

Advent Music: My Soul In Stillness Waits

Posted on 15 December 2013 by

I mentioned this song ten years ago today. I mentioned then that I wish Marty Haugen had set or adapted all of the O Antiphons instead of just four of them. The piece is well over thirty years old now, … Continue reading →

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Seeking Spiritual Union

Posted on 20 November 2013 by

Many of my Catholic sisters and brothers desire two colors. White. Black. Period. White and black give perfect clarity in all situations, and help one know exactly what to do. In the case of liturgy, when to sing, what to … Continue reading →

Posted in Liturgical Music, The Blogosphere | 3 Comments

Commitment

Posted on 2 November 2013 by

I saw at the Café, Adam Bartlett is picking up on a generation-old argument for a permanent hymnal. It’s not a bad argument to make. Economically and green-wise, it’s often a good solution for parishes. My own parish is approaching … Continue reading →

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Conflicts and Tensions in Church Music

Posted on 27 October 2013 by

One more thing about that Joseph Swain interview in CWR. He mentions three “conflicts” at the conclusion of the chat. I think I see them as more tensions. But yes, in some places, especially on the internet, conflict breaks out. … Continue reading →

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Analyzing Folk Music

Posted on 26 October 2013 by

In medicine, diagnosis is essential. Doctors missed my mother’s heart disease because they were treating her as a female man. They looked at her symptoms in the 90′s, and saw anemia. So she was medicated for anemia and it caused … Continue reading →

Posted in Liturgical Music | Tagged , | 2 Comments

#addawordruinahymn

Posted on 11 October 2013 by

I have a Twitter thing, but you don’t see it in the margin; I mainly use it for the parish liturgy. And not all that much. I missed a lot of the fuss this week on #addawordruinahymn. It looked mostly … Continue reading →

Posted in humor, Liturgical Music | 1 Comment