The rest of the week - Epiphany and fleeing Snowmageddon

Thursday was another day full of music.  We had 4 1/2 hours of chant and polyphony rehearsal, plus chanting of Morning and Night Prayer, plus Mass - probably about 7 hours of singing, total.

The day's Mass was for St. John Neumann, OF ad orientem, completely sung, not only the ordinary (Mass IV) and the chanted propers of the day, but also the readings.

In the Traditional Latin Mass, Epiphany is celebrated on the appointed day, not transferred, so we actually got to have Epiphany on Jan. 6th. :) 
Due to the impending Winter Storm Helene, the  High Mass was moved up by three hours.  This meant we had to skip our last rehearsal, and the earlier one was shortened.  The rector of the cathedral surprised us by sending over two King cakes for the coffee hour after Morning Prayer! 

The Mass setting for the day was the Missa O Quam Gloriosum Est Regnum by Vittoria, which uses the same motifs from the motet after which this blog is named.  Hopefully, we will learn this setting in our parish schola at home later on.

Music files!   (It's a wonder I figured out how to do this)

 St. Paul Cathedral

Men's schola

Women's schola

Our fearless conductors!

Morning sky from hotel window
prior to Snowmageddon

So, I've been collecting pics of the 'angels in the architecture' in the various churches .  There weren't any in this cathedral, but they do have these adoring angels before the tabernacle!

Birmingham was getting ready for an afternoon of heavy sleet, so it was a blessing to be able to finish early, but it's always hard to leave.  We made it home safely, although it rained most of the way.  My schola and traveling buddy Jean is a great driver, even if I was white-knuckling it for a good part of the time! :-)

The annual summer Colloquium will take place in Minnesota this June.  Hope to see y'all there!

Colloquium Day Five - Palestrina!!

Could this week get any better?  Why, yes, yes it can!

Today we had a plenary talk by Bishop +Conley from the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska, who spoke on the Via Pulchritudinis, or the Way of Beauty.  We, as transmitters of the sacred music tradition, are called to evangelize through our chant amd polyphony.  In our post-modern culture, truth and goodness are no longer valued, but beauty retains its power to inspire conversion, turning to God.  We are to let it transform our whole lives, leading by example.

A lovely addition to the week jas been the opportunity to meet two of my online Plurk friends in person.  We met Mark, from Rome of the West, and Tina, from Snup's View from the Back Pew, for lunch at Schlafly's Tap Room neat the Colloquium hotel.  I love it when my online friends turn into 'in real life' friends! :-)

After lunch was the final rehearsal for the evening Mass for the Nativity of St. John the Baptist at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis.  We were warned not to let our necks get stuck looking up so much at all the mosaics adorning the interior of the cathedral!  It would have been easy to do so, as it is covered from top to bottom, and then some!  Our 60 voice Palestrina choir had the awesome experience of singing the Missa Papae Marcelli in this magnificent space.  The reverberation time seemed to be almost nine seconds!  Following the Mass and supper, we returned t  the cathedral for an organ concert, which again filled the space.  I'm still trying to figure out how to pack some of that echo for home; even three seconds would make a world of difference in our home parish.

Tomorrow, the Mozart choir will provide his Sparrow Mass setting for our final Mass back at the Shrine of St. Joseph.

Bp. +Conley gives a plenary talk
 on the Via Pulchritudinis

Main altar
 containing a relic of St. Louis

Me with Mark and Tina,
in real life!

St. Louis is the patron
 of the Secular Franciscan Order

Lots and lots of angels!

Up in the baldachino
you can see the honeycomb.
The Motet choir sang Jesu Dulcis Memoria by Victoria

Colloquium Day Four - Requiem

Today we had the annual  Solemn Requiem Mass for the deceased members of CMAA.  We were back at the Shrine for the Mass, followed by Solemn Vespers and sung Compline.

Earlier in the day,  the Palestrina choir (the one I'm in) rehearsed the Missa Papae Marcelli, which we will sing at the Cathedral Basilica tomorrow.  If you have never been in the midst of 60 voices singing this Mass, I highly recommend that you do so.  It is breathtakingly beautiful.  

After all the liturgical events at the Shrine, I got to meet my Plurk friend Tina and her puppy pal Dug in person!  Dug showed off his cat-stalking and treat-eating skills, and Tina graciously played tour guide and gave me a driving tour of the city before dropping me back at the hotel.  Tomorrow, I get to meet another Plurk buddy, Mark from Rome of the West blog fame, in real life.  :-)

The Mass will be live-streamed on Friday at 5:30 Central, 6:30 Eastern here:  http://archstl.org/CMAA

Catafalque

Solemn Requiem Mass

Fr. Pasley

Vespers

Compline

Dug

Colloquium Day Two

After morning prayer and breakfast, all 240 colloquium attendees split off into their various chant groups.  There are seven, yes SEVEN, different chant groups this year.  Walking down the hallway past the rehearsal rooms was like passing by the rooms in the mansions of heaven;  each room producing one glorious sound after another!

Today's plenary talk was given by Dr. Mahrt, on the aesthetics of psalmody as a foundation for liturgy.

After lunch, it was time for a demo by a children's schola from Virginia, who were taught using the Ward Method, followed by our various polyphony choir practice.  There are four polyphonic choirs.  Each prepares selections for the daily sung Masses, whether ordinary or extraordinary form, in English or Latin, including the Ordinary, the Propers, and motets.

This afternoon's Mass was at the Pro-Cathedral of St. John, built in the mid-nineteenth century.  I love the acoustics in the old churches;  time to return to that architectural aesthetic!
After supper, we returned to the main ballroom on the 13th floor of our hotel for chanted Compline.

We shall do it all again tomorrow! :-)

David Cole conducts the advanced women's schola.

Dr. Mahrt

The Arch

Ward Method children's schola

Main altar and sanctuary,
ProCathedral of St. John

Angels in the architecture

Pipe organ in the loft

Prayer after Communion

Celtic cross outside the main entrance

Lots of cassocks to bee seen this week! :-)

Colloquium time again! St. Louis edition

Yes, we are in the Rome of the West this week for the 26th annual Musica Sacra Colloquium.  This year's event kicked off last evening with a concert given by Pro-Arte St. Louis, under the expert direction of cathedral conductor Horst Buckholst.  We will begin the full schedule of schola and polyphonic choir rehearsals this morning.

The great hall at St. Louis city center library

Owls around the ceiling

Colloquium Day 5

Today was the day we'd been awaiting all week.  Every year, the CMAA celebrates a Solemn Requiem Mass for their deceased members.  This year,   the Faure Requiem setting was chosen.  This was our second and last trip to the cathedral.

In the choir loft and ready to sing Faure's Requiem Mass setting

Mass in the Extraordinary Form begins

Incense and prayers over the catafalque

The largest tabernacle I've yet seen, on the side altar.

Colloquium Day 4

Another whirlwind day at the Musica Sacra Colloquium!  Today we had Mass, Vespers, and Compline at the breathtakingly beautiful Cathedral of St. Paul in downtown Pittsburgh.  This church makes our own Sacred Heart  in Church in downtown Tampa seem almost frumpy in comparison!  The Faure choir rehearsed in the loft for tomorrow's Solemn Requiem Mass.  The Mass Ordinary today was sung beautifully by the Palestrina choir.  After supper at a nearby Indian restaurant, we went back to the cathedral for Vespers, celebrating the Visitation of Our Lady, followed by sung Compline.

Stairs to the choir loft

Holy water stoup

The Holy Spirit watches over all

I lit a votive candle for the success
of our new Latin Mass parish

St. Michael the Archangel
Defend us in battle!

The new music reading session was held in
Synod Hall

The gallery

Solemn Vespers led by the
Office choir

Ad Te Suspiramus click link for video

Tabernacle on a side altar