In search of decent Musicam Sacram in Spanish
Dear friends,
Does anyone know of any good resources for nice Spanish music for Mass?
If anyone has ever looked at the "Flor y Canto" he will know how abysmal this publication is.
I would even say that it is worse than the Glory and Praise, because at least the Glory and Praise has a FEW pieces that are worthy of the house of God.
Thanks so much if you can help!
Msgr. Jules Van Nuffel
Does anyone know of any good resources for nice Spanish music for Mass?
If anyone has ever looked at the "Flor y Canto" he will know how abysmal this publication is.
I would even say that it is worse than the Glory and Praise, because at least the Glory and Praise has a FEW pieces that are worthy of the house of God.
Thanks so much if you can help!
Msgr. Jules Van Nuffel
8 Comments:
Msgr. Van Nuffel,
I know of another OCP collection that is at least a few steps up from Flor y Canto. It is a bilingual collection of responsorial Psalms and some canticles. If I remember correctly, many if not most can be sung exclusively in Spanish. I think the quality is much higher. An example is in Flor y Canto, the sprinkling rite (either #2 or #4, I've forgotten which.)
Sorry, I forgot to mention the name of the collection! It is Cantare Eternamente:
http://www.ocp.org/en/products/music/11303.php
Thank you my friend.
However, I actually write the Responsorial Psalms...
Best,
JMO
You are most welcome.
By the way, for what it's worth, GIA has a Spanish-English hymnal in (apparently rather slow)production.
I am not familiar with the second edition of Flor y Canto, but still suffering from the trauma of the first edition I have no desire to be.
Probably the highest quality easily available collection is imported by World Library Publications (sometimes the publisher's name still actually means something): Una Voz Jubilosa. This is a collection of (1-192) original music by Father José Soler for all the Sunday gospels of the Lectionary, with the addition (193-275) of some songs, international music, and a number of chants in Latin and Spanish side by side. No "service music."
A WLP publication which is of more variable quality but containing more familiar (e.g., devotional and international) material is Cantos del Pueblo de Dios. Printed in the U.S. and economical. However, the Mass settings are not too good. If you need one, it might be best to contact me for one that Mexicans are likely to know although I believe that it has been published in ... Flor y Canto.
The WLP Web site is here, but good luck with it. For months if not years, it has given me error after error when trying to search, and not just in my favorite browser. It might be easier to call (800) 566-6150.
Also readily available are Taize in Spanish from GIA: Cantos de Taize and Deiss in Spanish from WLP: Gloria al Señor. For Gelineau in Spanish, contact me privately.
If you are looking for choral or choral/congregational music in Spanish, I have a sample of about a dozen printed works from the metropolitan cathedral of Mexico City written in the 2000's that I have permission to publish and sell in the U.S. on its behalf. Again, contact me privately if interested.
Addenda:
There is a Spanish national hymnal: Cantoral Liturgico Nacional, but it is disappointing in some places and is not systematically imported into the U.S.
Also, just to be fair, I should pass along that the dozen or so organists in the schola at the basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City (and, most probably, at the cathedral of Mexico City) would be most happy to receive commissions. Much of their music is composed ad hoc but even when printed in a collection (typically the propers and commons combined for a single complete Mass) it is a short press run that quickly disappears.
Additional comments:
Your trusty Liber Usualis can still serve you with its psalm tones and Gloria Patri tones. I wrote a long and somewhat boring article about how these have been used for propers for CanticaNova some months ago, but it has not yet been posted anywhere. The principles apply to Spanish texts just as they do to English.
Also, of course, everyone is supposed to be familiar with Jubilate Deo. And in a mixed-language environment, Latin is a definite advantage.
Thank you!
I shall check out the resources.
I have no problems adapting Mass settings (Spanish, Latin, metrical, chant-based, etc.) but the hymns are a real problem. Text and Music is ... a real problem.
Best,
JVN
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