25 Sunday A (last Sunday)

Prelude: Andantino (C. Franck, ed. Callahan)
Picardy (Al Roberts)
Open: For the Beauty (Dix)
(10:30 Entrance Antiphon thingy in English)
Offertory: All Creatures (Lasst Uns Erfreuen) In C! ha!
Communion: Communion Antiphon (whatever it was)
At that First Eucharist (Unde Et Memores)
10:30 Let All Mortal Flesh (Picardy)
Sending: Heart of Christ (Stuttgart)
Postlude: Toccata (David Crouse)

26 Sunday A (upcoming)

Prelude: Adagio (Mozart, K 356, ed. Callahan)
Entrance: To Jesus Christ Our Sovereign King (Ich Glaub An Gott)
(10:30 Entrance Antiphon in English to a Psalm Tone)
Offertory: Be Thou My Vision (Slane)
(10:30 To Jesus Christ)
Sanctus: (tentative) teach congregation English chant arr. St. Meinrad
(any ideas for a matching Mem. Accl? I'm thinking of setting "When We Eat..." to the tone I've been using for the Responsorial Psalms: do-re-fa...)
Communion: Memento Verbi
Alleluia, Sing to Jesus (Hyfrydol)
10:30 Be Thou My Vision (arr. Shephard)
Sending: Jesus Shall Reign (Duke Street)
Postlude: Fugato (Meert, ed. Callahan)

bulletin article

I have been turning over in my mind for several weeks, a possible bulletin article.
This particular one will be in response to the occasional comment that I get:
"Mara, I really appreciate everything you've done here, but sometimes the songs are just so high, I can't really sing along..."

I know that some of my organ friends will have a lot to say on this issue...
I am going to now use this space to formulate my thoughts.

Objectives in writing this article:
-Demonstrate that it's not my fault that the songs seem high, but apologize that they seem that way for many people
-Explain why they seem high
-Explain what I as the organist occasionally do to lessen this burden upon the congregation

How I will do this:
-Explain how the SATB system of hymn writing works, and how we as Catholics in the congregation just sing the "melody line" which is actually for the sopranos
(at which point I can make a shameless plug for people to join the choir-- so they will always be singing a part that is comfortably in their range!)
-Point out that since people do have different ranges of singing (as demonstrated above) what is "too high" for one person is "just right" for someone else--perhaps I could even give examples, like Fr. G as opposed to the Deacon! tee hee. Or perhaps that would be unnecessary/innappropriate... :-)
-Explain how I often deliberately play the hymn in a lower key, either one that is written out somewhere besides the hymnal, or I spend hours practicing transposing it by sight. (ok, well, maybe not quite hours...but, what I would give for a little knob on my organ! Oh well, let's call it my "ongoing musical education.")

Sometimes I'm not sure exactly what people mean when they say things like, "your voice is too high to sing with," but I kind of wonder if they mean it just sounds high, (because it is usually men who say things like that,) or if they mean something other than that. I mean, because like if a man was singing from the choir loft, would they feel more comfortable singing with him?

What I might want to avoid:
-Discussing how much of the complaints about music being "too high" actually is just a result of people being either lazy or having untrained voices.
But maybe if I told them they had untrained voices, I could offer a class on how to sing better, and they might come! (or not.)

even more on solfege...

I just want to say, that someone did a google search for "what is the point of solfege in college aural" and clicked on my blog.
That makes me laugh (I have a sitemeter, so I can see things like that.)
Oh, how I wish I could talk to that poor college student...
And, I wonder if my post answered any of his questions!

solfege

I had the strange experience as I was studying aural music theory in college, that I began to think of every melody that I heard in solfege. You know, "do, re, mi." Instead of having songs stuck in my head, like most people occasionally get, I would hear a melody--and find myself singing it mentally to solfege! I was only sitting in an aural music theory class twice a week for an hour, and I did struggle in the class, but I passed, so I'm not sure how my mind got so attached to solfege. I would even play little mind games with myself, "wait Mara, what if this melodic phrase actually started on DO instead of SOL; is there really a way to tell for certain?" Like, I see how that can sometimes be applied to chant...is it "so-la-do," or "do-re-fa?" And I hated it! Just like how everyone else hates it when they get a song stuck in their head! It must have been for 2 solid years that I am pretty sure I was constantly hearing solfege. Gosh, it was annoying. At some point, however, it has thankfully dwindled away. I can't give any sort of precise date, but I will say that it now only happens when I think somewhat consciously about it.

Instrumental Recessional...

Fr. G and I have spent a bit of time recently discussing the pros and cons of having an "instrumental recessional" rather than a closing song. I certainly think it is more appropriate and wish we could do it always: there isn't much of a point to a closing song, very few people probably actually want to stay and sing a few verses!
Fr. G had seen it done elsewhere, so he has been bugging me to try to play some loud and fancy organ piece for a while, but every time he brought it up I would try to explain all my reasons for not wanting to do it; mainly, that once you let people know that it's "ok" to leave right after the priest does, then they always will. (of course, I am aware that it is permitted for them to leave then, it is just rude if they are supposed to be singing!.) He doesn't/didn't think that will be an issue, so we will see if more people leave early in coming weeks!
I finally agreed to play something this weekend, as it seemed appropriate on such a great feast.
But I was able to articulate a couple days ago the real reason that it made me nervous--and that is because I am afraid people will say I am showing off!
I have asked a couple people, and they all seemed to like it. My only regret is that at none of the Masses was I actually able to turn around or look in my mirror and see what was going on, as in, were people confused? Did they turn around and look up at me? How long did it take for the priest and servers to leave? How long after that did everyone leave?
So, we shall probably do it again, maybe for the next major feast (All Souls?) or even sooner.

Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Prelude: O Mensch, Bewein Dein Sunde Gross (or whatever it's called. the "best instrumental piece ever written by JSB)
Entrance: "Let Us Glory in the Cross" (English to Gloria Patri tone, 10:30 am Mass)
Alleluia, Alleluia (Hymn to Joy; other Masses)
Gifts: When I Survey the Wondrous Cross (this is the "do-do-re-mi" one; can't remember the tune name. Not sure how many people will know this...we'll try it.)
Communion: Per Signum Crucis (chant)
Pange Lingua (chant, all the verses in Latin)
If time: Glory Be to Jesus (Viva Viva Jesu) 10:30
NO "closing hymn"
instead: either Widor Toccata (if I can play it well in 48 hours...unlikely) or Vierne last 2 pages of Carillon

the singing on Marian Feasts

I meant to write about this a couple weeks ago, as in, right after the Feast of the Assumption, but of course I am not getting around to it until now.
I made an observation on that particular feast day, about how wonderful the singing is at Marian Feasts.
For two reasons:
It really is pretty much just the "good Catholics" who will go to Mass on a Thursday evening--holy day or not! And those are the Catholics who are more likely, period, to ...sing!
and then the songs we sing for Mary...they just LOVE.
They will belt out "Immaculate Mary" and "Hail Holy Queen" like no other! (I mean, it's wonderful! I love it!)
And I made another interesting (but really not surprising at all) observation that I would like to point out:
The singing at the evening Mass (contrasted with the 8:30 am Mass) was like...the Mass of MEN!
Of course, the 8:30 am Mass was full of women and children, but all the working fathers went to 7pm.
And they sang their hearts out.
it was a beautiful sound.

Sancta Missa

I returned on Friday night from the Sancta Missa workshop for the laity in Chicago. After normal Masses as well as THREE weddings over the weekend, and trying to move in between all that, I have finally settled into my new apartment, and now have a couple minutes to write about the conference (before my first choir rehearsal of the school year! yay! say a prayer it goes well and loads of people come!)

I was surprised that there were only 12 lay people at the conference, but it made it nice so we kind of got to all know eachother, an eclectic mix of those who regularly attend the Extraordinary Form, and those who don't even have one offered anywhere near them.

I was there deliberately to become familiar with exactly how music can be incorporated into this form of the Mass, and by trying to be more acquainted with it, because we WILL be offering it at St. P in the near future!
So I was thrilled that we got to attend both a low mass in the morning, and high mass every afternoon. We had excellent lectures about the history of the Mass and other aspects pertaining to reverence and the extraordinary form and such. I think I was the only person there who was mainly interested in the music.
I was very pleased especially with the couple of Canons Regular of St. John Cantius who were there, and their experience with the Mass as well as knowledge in answering all of my many questions!
I certainly feel like I have a pretty good grasp on it, and the musical aspects, as well as now having a much greater appreciation for exactly how much effort Fr. G gets to put into learning everything!

For me, it was also interesting to talk with the brothers of St. John Cantius, as they actually sing the Liturgy of Hours, and hearing their knowledge about the different chants that are in the Liber Usualis, that I would otherwise never become acquainted with!
For example: I would never know about "O Quam Suavis Est" from first vespers, Corpus Christi...the Sanctus from Missa de Angelis is based on it! (I think.)
I had never really heard "Ecce Panis Angelorum" (from the end of Corpus Christi Sequence) either.
And then a lovely, melismatic Ave Maria from the Offertory for "Feasts of the BVM"
and "Adoremus in Aeterum," which has a neat little refrain that people actually could learn from "After the Blessing" at Benediction.

Maybe I'm way behind, and everyone else already knows these, but it was pretty sweet! and that's exactly what I'm trying to learn!

last week of August

as my extremely busy August continues, I leave early tomorrow morning to drive five hours and go to a conference for laity on the Extraordinary Form. It should prove to be quite interesting.

And will be quite a contrast to this past week.
I have a future blog post brewing in my mind entitled, "My Double Life."

Byzantine Catholics

I had the extremely interesting opportunity to go to a Byzantine Catholic service on the Vigil of the Assumption (Dormition.) It included both a vespers service and then Mass. I was quite fascinated by everything, ranging from receiving Communion on a spoon, to the beautiful prayers we said before Communion. (Instead of just, "Lord I am not worthy...") Pretty much the whole thing was sung. The Deacon really was in charge. The vespers service included the congregation processing around, as well as paying homage to Mary. I would be interested to study the chants that they used. It was mostly somewhat similar, somewhat rhythmic, with clear longs and shorts, with no instruments. I wish I knew more about modality to know how to describe it. It was all in English. The altar and edifice in front of it were just gorgeous. Oh yes, and we all got anointed with rose chrism! how wonderful!

singing high

occasionally I get a comment like, "you sing everything so high..." or "your voice is so high..."
I never take the time to explain either how
-I am singing the soprano line of these 4-part hymns, and ideally we all should just be singing our own individual voice part,
-even with that, I often bring hymns which are in the key of D down to C (because most untrained females are not sopranos, and most untrained men are not sopranos one octave down,)
-and I don't bother to point out that if they're men, they're supposed to actually be singing an octave lower than me! ;-)

(and to those who are going to dispute this even though that wasn't what my post was originally about, I am quite certain that for an untrained congregation, a high D, is quite too high. And I am not going to take the time or energy-as if they would let me-to teach them how to sing correctly so they can reach it!)