Sacred Miscellany

Cantina Band for 4-Hand Piano - Just Fun to Watch and Hear!

Having a rough day or evening?  Take less than two minutes to lift your spirits with this great little YouTube! Thanks to the Collaborative Piano Blog.

 

Wedding Thoughts

It's been a great wedding season on the First Coast!  Harp, organ, and a few harp plus organ weddings in Jacksonville and St. Augustine.  Watching armies of attendants and coping with music choices, I've come to two conclusions:

1.  Strapless dresses are great for runway models.  They know how to wear them and the dressed are literally glued and taped into place.  Bridesmaids spend a fair amount of time unconsciously tugging at their bodices.  It just kills the air of "chic" if it appears the wearer is worried that her dress will fall down.  Put your maids in something with straps.

2. Most wedding prelude songs are unmemorable and too long.  An exception is one I played yesterday: "Jesus, Stand Beside Them" by Austin Lovelace. Pleasant tune, only two pages, a prayer, and not overwrought.  Available from Cokesbury Publishing.

Don't get me wrong.  I love playing weddings and working with the couples and mothers on music selections.  There is something wonderful about the optimism of the couples, the parents' pride in their children, and the longing for everything to be beautiful that I so enjoy!

Mazel tov!   

The Agonies of Social Networking

Some days I long fondly for a time when I didn't have to worry about web sites, Facebook, blogs, etc.  And then I remember that I live right here, right now and I might as well get over it.

Today's struggle appears to be the interference of Explorer 9 with image posting.  I look forward to the challenges that lie ahead.  (I might as well try an attitude change.)

Now for the test image - success at last!

Cantorae Seeks New Singers!

Cantorae St. Augustine has openings for women singers who want to join in the adventure of chant and a cappella sacred music. We rehearse weekly on Monday evenings in St. Augustine and perform throughout the year. Prior choral experience and sight-singing skills are desirable. To learn more, visit www.cantorae.com. To arrange an audition, contact the director, Mary Jane Ballou at 904-347-6544 or email maryjane@mjballou.com.

Stop and Sign The Book!

If you're on the road this summer and cross the state line somewhere, take a minute to stop, go into the visitor center (maybe learn something new) and sign the register. These places are a wonderful resource and they're always on the verge of having their budgets wiped out. So, pull over, stretch your legs, and sign in!

Excellent Advice from Colin Mawby, KSG

I always enjoy the Vivace Newsletter and here are composer Colin Mawby's latest thoughts. He's right on the money here. When we're talking about building a better liturgical music landscape, it's the pastor that sets the tone (no pun intended).

Introducing your Parish to Plainchant

Plainchant is an essential part of the tradition of worship. Much of our music
is based upon it and it also underlines the deep spirituality to be found in
liturgy. Why do so many parishes make so little use of it?

People feel that it's very difficult to sing, and beyond the ability of
congregations. In one word, it is "unfashionable", but is this
true? I went to Mass recently in a church in Sussex and was amazed to
hear the congregation singing plainchant Mass XI with vigour and
insight. This parish has a repertoire of three chant masses as well as a
number of simple plainsong hymns. I was also recently told by a visitor to the
Catholic Cathedral in Hanoi how greatly impressed he was to hear the people
singing chant.

The answer to introducing chant to our parishes lies with the Parish Priest or
Pastor. His or her enthusiasm is essential.

This again comes back to the quality of musical education in the seminaries.
Chant should be an essential part of a seminarian's study. There should
be a well-constructed syllabus, teachers who inspire, and some type of
exam. As a general rule, no student should be ordained until he is able
to sing a basic chant repertoire - after all, well-ordered worship will be the
most important part of their work. They should have a knowledge of the theory
and history of chant and be taught how to conduct it. A chant course could
easily fit alongside the study of contemporary liturgical music. The
newly-ordained priest should have an extensive knowledge of liturgical music
and the ability to impart this to a parish.

A small schola will be of immense value in a parish: people need enthusiastic
musical leadership. Gregorian Chant Network
offers excellent courses in the UK and there are similar events in other
countries. There are also courses available at Solesmes, the cradle of the 19th
century chant revival. All the necessary facilities and publications are
available.

In the last analysis, chant will be introduced to a Parish if the pastor or
Parish Priest wills it. It will take time, but enthusiastic commitment will
ensure success. There are very simple chants - Mass XVIII, Rorate Caeli,
Adoro te devote are just a few. A competent organist, a good schola
and an enthusiastic Pastor/Parish Priest will ensure that over a few years a
complete and beautiful chant tradition will be created. People cry out for
spirituality and this can be found in singing and listening to Gregorian chant.

Colin Mawby KSG

Visualization - The Why of Why It Works

Anyone who performs, competes, or has been otherwise alive on the globe for the last twenty years has been told to "visualize" the concert, the game, the presentation in front of the meanest committee living, etc. Tom Metzger gives a great explanation of how visualization works. It's not voo-doo; it's neuroscience.