Starting on Tuesday, in Stamford, Connecticut, is a three-day seminar just for priests and seminarians. The purpose is to teach the extraordinary form of the Mass. The emphasis is on singing the Mass. There are several reasons for this.

First, the sung Mass is the normative form, and this form of Mass has the brightest-possible future in its sung form.

Second, there are pedagogical advantages to singing the Mass rather than just speaking it. Look at any pedagogical program for kids designed to teach reading or math. Music plays an integral part because music provides a means of ordering unfamiliar text and concepts. If you have had trouble with Latin or had difficultly following the text or are just intimidated by the sheer abundance of new things to learn for saying the EF, consider that using music may actually help you get to where you need to be. This is what makes this seminar unusual.

Third, we now have access to great teachers who know how to teach this Mass in its normative form, and they will be there for this seminar: Fr. Scott Haynes of St. John Cantius and Scott Turkington of St. John Evangelist, the host parish. It is not easy to revive what has been nearly lost but it can be done, and one can’t but be grateful that such teachers are available.

The seminar can accommodate more. Now is the time to take advantage of the opportunity. It is three days that will change the liturgical character of a vocation.

First, the news on the Parish Book of Chant. We are moving into the 3rd printing of this book. It is being used by seminaries, colleges, cathedrals, and parishes all over the English speaking world, and demand is increasing.

Also, here is Chants of the Church by Solesmes/Gregorian Institute of America, 1954. We preserved the color in scanning this, which makes the file bigger than it ought to be. But it is very helpful in this way for printing programs and guides.

This book contains a large Kyriale plus many chant hymns, in modern notes, with English translations in red (literal translations). This will not go into print because of the cost of color printing but it is a very helpful online tool.

Here is a sample:

For those still considering attending the 2009 Sacred Music Colloquium: there are only ten single rooms remaining at the lower price of $420. Once these are filled, single rooms will be available at the rate of $522 for the week. There are plenty of doubles left as of today’s date. Deadline for registration and payment is May 15, 2009.

The Chant Intensive is filling up as well. There are 17 spots left. Deadline for registration is May 1, 2009.