The English translation of the Apostolic Exhortation Sacramentum Caritatis has been revised. The initial translation, critiqued at Fr. Zuhlsdorf’s blog, said in paragraph 62 that international liturgies “could be” in Latin. The revised translation: “it is fitting that such liturgies be celebrated in Latin” – a revision that comes closer to reflecting the Latin text.

Here is the 1970 Missal edition of the Exsultet, prepared by Richard Rice.

Gregorian Chant for Church and School, by Sister Mary Antonine Goodchild.

Free download | purchase

What a wonderful find this is: an ideal textbook on chant for junior high, high school, or really any age. It is mercifully free of verbiage or exaggerated detail. It is short and super clear on all aspects of learning to chant (notes, rhythm, Latin, style), and it contains a vast amount of the basic repertoire, in neumes and with English translations. It even has study questions!

Many of us have wish that such a book would be written. It took Fr. Samuel Weber to point out that such a book already exists, and now it is in print again. As the title says, it is the perfect text for Church and school. It came out in 1944 but it isn’t in the slightest bit dated. This is price for mass distribution.

We are pleased to make available a Kyriale extract from the Graduale, with helpful navigation links. The other edition linked on this site is also excellent but it lacks the Solesmes-style rhythmic markings. Thus does this pdf edition fill a gap in our online resources.

The book contains all the Mass settings plus Psalm tones for readings and the Gloria Patri, plus chants for Corporus Christi, fully 160 pages in a format that is far easy to manage that the full Graduale. It is the true “people’s songbook” for the Roman Rite. You can easily copy images using Adobe reader. The scan is 300 dpi.

In addition, the Kyriale is available in both softcover ($12) and hardcover ($22) here.

It offers a wonderful piece in the coming colloquium.

On March 26th at 11:30am Eastern time, the Holy Mass will be shown from Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral in the Diocese of Phoenix on EWTN. The Most Rev. Thomas J. Olmsted will be Celebrant. The Cathedral Schola, which sings the Solemn Mass every Sunday at 11:00am, will sing the Introit, Communio and the Ordinary of the Mass, along with some solid Catholic hymns. The Schola is made up of professional musicians.

Because of your donations, we’ve been able to grant four scholarships to the sacred music colloquium. Thank you for your generosity! Of course there are other students and singers applying who will have to be turned down until more funds are available. If you would like to help, please contact us or make an online donation for this purpose.

What parishes use Latin and chant at Mass? Fr. Fox wants to know.

And don’t forget to sign the National Registry of Gregorian Scholas.

Frequently Asked Questions on Sacred Music, now in print.

We’ve been getting many questions along the following lines.

“I love sacred music, and I want to make a contribution. I can read music. But I don’t currently sing in a choir, I don’t know Latin, and I have no experience in singing chant at liturgy. Can I come to the Colloquium or would I feel out of place?”

The answer to this is easy: yes, please come. This is the profile of the typical Colloquium attendee. So while the music may look difficult – and it is indeed challenging – the entire purposes of the program is to teach and raise up a new generation of singers for the Catholic faith. We are just at the beginning stages of the movement, and it is going to take everyone with musical ability to make a contribution.

Past years have even included non-singing participants, people who come to watch, listen, communicate, learn, and be inspired. You are welcome too!

Please register today!

The CMAA is pleased to present Marie Pierik’s 1939 book The Spirit of Gregorian Chant in free download or in print.

Pierik was a scholar and chant enthusiast. Like many Catholic musicians of that generation, she was inspired by the work of Solesmes to dedicate her life to helping the world to sing as the Church intends.

She was never shy about her utter devotion to her cause. Her prose is delightfully free of pretense: it burns with the desire to communicate and explain, systematically but also warmly, why Gregorian chant is the music of the faith. This book in particular provides an overview of history, doctrine, and practice to provide a manual as powerful in her time as in ours.

Have you ever wanted to hear what Doms Pothier and Mocquereau sounded like in person? The CMAA is pleased to bring you two (mp3) recordings of the good Doms speaking about the nature of chant and the monumental work of the Solesmes workshop. Translations are available at the link. Enjoy.

There are some very important articles in the past issue of Sacred Music. Please download it and send it around. And if you aren’t a subscriber, please consider joining the CMAA.

For Holy Thursday, a responsorial version of the antiphon for the Washing of Feet: Maneant in vobis.

If you are coming to the Sacred Music Colloquium but would like more extensive training, you can stay over from June 25 to July 13, 2007, to take the long-established Gregorian Chant Practicum at The Catholic University of America, as sponsored by the Ward Center and taught by Professor Scott Turkington. The course is designed for those wishing to learn the Solesmes Method well but also for those who come to Gregorian chant for the first time (but otherwise have the ability to sing).

The text is the excellent Gregorian Chant Practicum, by Theodore Marier. Turkington is his student. This intensive 3-week, 3-hour-a-day course will secure your ability for a lifetime of singing chant. The course may be taken on a non-credit basis for $500.00 or for three graduate credits for $2100.00. For more information, or to register, write Professor Turkington.