Dear Fellow Lovers of Sacred Music,
Peace to you this Saturday and a belated blessed St. Patrick's Day to you all! I pray you are at joyful in the Lord today...
The Church lovingly shows her faithful some beautiful liturgical compassion in this celebration of Laetare Sunday. Dom Prosper Gueranger, in his Liturgical Year, a very large compendium on all things liturgical, writes:
"This Sunday, called, from the first word of the Introit, Lætare Sunday, is one of the most solemn of the year. The Church interrupts her Lenten mournfulness; the chants of the Mass speak of nothing but joy and consolation; the Organ, which has been reduced during the preceding three Sundays, now gives forth its melodious voice; and instead of purple, Rose-colored Vestments are allowed to be used. These same rites were practiced in Advent, on the third Sunday, called Gaudete. The Church’s motive for introducing this expression of joy in today’s Liturgy is to encourage her Children to persevere fervently to the end of this holy Season. The real Mid-Lent was last Thursday, but the Church, fearing lest the joy might lead to some infringement on the spirit of penance, has deferred her own notice of it to this Sunday, when she not only permits, but even bids, her children to rejoice!
Let us analyze this Sunday's motets in this same spirit of rejoicing:
Laetatus Sum - Antonio Vivaldi (1678 - 1741)
His first liturgical piece, a joyful expression of the joyful Psalm 122, was written in 1691 when Vivaldi was just 13 years old, two years before he began his seminary studies (Vivaldi was a priest). In 1704, at only age 26, he was allowed to abstain from Mass and priestly duties because of his respiratory problems. He continued to teach and compose, however...
This piece divides Psalm 122 up in three verses, which, with small exceptions to provide for the different textual accents, closely resemble one-another. It concludes with a Gloria Patri verse. The violin, Vivaldi's favorite of all instruments, is continually moving in eighth and sixteenth note patterns, cascading above, below, and around the choral recitation of the text. The piece would be quite nice with just the choir, but the very Baroque notion of keeping the music moving is exhibited by the violin to great effect, providing an even-greater sanguinity and cheer to the text.
It reads:
I was glad when they said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the Lord!”
Our feet have been standing
within your gates, O Jerusalem!
Peace to you this Saturday and a belated blessed St. Patrick's Day to you all! I pray you are at joyful in the Lord today...
The Church lovingly shows her faithful some beautiful liturgical compassion in this celebration of Laetare Sunday. Dom Prosper Gueranger, in his Liturgical Year, a very large compendium on all things liturgical, writes:
"This Sunday, called, from the first word of the Introit, Lætare Sunday, is one of the most solemn of the year. The Church interrupts her Lenten mournfulness; the chants of the Mass speak of nothing but joy and consolation; the Organ, which has been reduced during the preceding three Sundays, now gives forth its melodious voice; and instead of purple, Rose-colored Vestments are allowed to be used. These same rites were practiced in Advent, on the third Sunday, called Gaudete. The Church’s motive for introducing this expression of joy in today’s Liturgy is to encourage her Children to persevere fervently to the end of this holy Season. The real Mid-Lent was last Thursday, but the Church, fearing lest the joy might lead to some infringement on the spirit of penance, has deferred her own notice of it to this Sunday, when she not only permits, but even bids, her children to rejoice!
Let us analyze this Sunday's motets in this same spirit of rejoicing:
Laetatus Sum - Antonio Vivaldi (1678 - 1741)
His first liturgical piece, a joyful expression of the joyful Psalm 122, was written in 1691 when Vivaldi was just 13 years old, two years before he began his seminary studies (Vivaldi was a priest). In 1704, at only age 26, he was allowed to abstain from Mass and priestly duties because of his respiratory problems. He continued to teach and compose, however...
This piece divides Psalm 122 up in three verses, which, with small exceptions to provide for the different textual accents, closely resemble one-another. It concludes with a Gloria Patri verse. The violin, Vivaldi's favorite of all instruments, is continually moving in eighth and sixteenth note patterns, cascading above, below, and around the choral recitation of the text. The piece would be quite nice with just the choir, but the very Baroque notion of keeping the music moving is exhibited by the violin to great effect, providing an even-greater sanguinity and cheer to the text.
It reads:
I was glad when they said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the Lord!”
Our feet have been standing
within your gates, O Jerusalem!
Jerusalem, built as a city
which is bound firmly together,
to which the tribes go up,
the tribes of the Lord,
as was decreed for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the Lord.
There thrones for judgment were set,
the thrones of the house of David.
which is bound firmly together,
to which the tribes go up,
the tribes of the Lord,
as was decreed for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the Lord.
There thrones for judgment were set,
the thrones of the house of David.
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!
“May they prosper who love you!
Peace be within your walls,
and security within your towers!”
For my brethren and companions’ sake
I will say, “Peace be within you!”
For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
I will seek your good.
-Psalm 122:1-9
An excellent recording can be heard here: Antonio Vivaldi: Laetatus sum [psalm 121] in F major (RV 607) - YouTube
Teach Me, O Lord - William Byrd (1539 - 1623)
Vivaldi constitutes one of the top Baroque composers, (he is almost certainly one of the top three most well-known along with J.S. Bach and George F. Handel). Byrd is also at the top of the list of Renaissance composers (along with Palestrina and Victoria).
We have discussed it in previous emails, but Byrd, along with Tallis, held an exclusive patent on all music published in England during the Elizabethan throne. Thus it was that these men were able to hold onto their Catholicism, even amidst the throne's bitter persecution of Roman Catholics and Catholicism, as the Queen took delight in their musical quality. Hyperion, "Britain's brightest record label" produced a recording with the fore-mentioned piece and gave some fascinating context/commentary in its corresponding booklet (I'm including a large amount of it, as it's extremely well-written):
“May they prosper who love you!
Peace be within your walls,
and security within your towers!”
For my brethren and companions’ sake
I will say, “Peace be within you!”
For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
I will seek your good.
-Psalm 122:1-9
An excellent recording can be heard here: Antonio Vivaldi: Laetatus sum [psalm 121] in F major (RV 607) - YouTube
Teach Me, O Lord - William Byrd (1539 - 1623)
Vivaldi constitutes one of the top Baroque composers, (he is almost certainly one of the top three most well-known along with J.S. Bach and George F. Handel). Byrd is also at the top of the list of Renaissance composers (along with Palestrina and Victoria).
We have discussed it in previous emails, but Byrd, along with Tallis, held an exclusive patent on all music published in England during the Elizabethan throne. Thus it was that these men were able to hold onto their Catholicism, even amidst the throne's bitter persecution of Roman Catholics and Catholicism, as the Queen took delight in their musical quality. Hyperion, "Britain's brightest record label" produced a recording with the fore-mentioned piece and gave some fascinating context/commentary in its corresponding booklet (I'm including a large amount of it, as it's extremely well-written):
This piece is a beautiful, slightly haunting demonstration of the text, taken from Psalm 119. It is interesting to note that this piece only sets roughly 3% of Scripture's longest psalm to music. Here is the text, taken from an early Anglican translation:
"Teach me, O Lord, the way of thy statutes : and I shall keep it unto the end.
Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law : yea, I shall keep it with my whole heart.
Make me to go in the path of thy commandments : for therein is my desire.
Incline my heart unto thy testimonies : and not to covetousness.
O turn away mine eyes, lest they behold vanity : and quicken thou me in thy way.
O stablish thy word in thy servant : that I may fear thee.
-Psalm 119:33-38
"Teach me, O Lord, the way of thy statutes : and I shall keep it unto the end.
Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law : yea, I shall keep it with my whole heart.
Make me to go in the path of thy commandments : for therein is my desire.
Incline my heart unto thy testimonies : and not to covetousness.
O turn away mine eyes, lest they behold vanity : and quicken thou me in thy way.
O stablish thy word in thy servant : that I may fear thee.
-Psalm 119:33-38
Here is a wonderful, live recording of the piece produced back in 1965: Teach me, O Lord (William Byrd) - Guildford Cathedral Choir (Barry Rose) - YouTube
We are happy to have our very own Mr. Jack Norton, a sixth grader at Holy Family Academy, sing the Soprano solo, keeping with the Boys Choir sound of this recording, which contains a special particular sweetness and purity. Thank you, Jack!
Ave Verum Corpus - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 - 1791)
Today's motets unite three of the greatest composers of their own genres, as Mozart is clearly of the best (and most well-loved) composers of the Classical period. Ave Verum Corpus was rightly described by Austrian pianist Artur Schnabel as ‘too simple for children, and too difficult for adults’. It was Mozart's final completed sacred work, written on June 17, 1791, for the feast of Corpus Christi as a sort of payment or "thank you" for hosting him and his wife.
At only forty-six measures, encompassing 2.5 minutes, this piece is a masterclass in simplicity meeting beauty.
Cmuse.org writes:
We are happy to have our very own Mr. Jack Norton, a sixth grader at Holy Family Academy, sing the Soprano solo, keeping with the Boys Choir sound of this recording, which contains a special particular sweetness and purity. Thank you, Jack!
Ave Verum Corpus - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 - 1791)
Today's motets unite three of the greatest composers of their own genres, as Mozart is clearly of the best (and most well-loved) composers of the Classical period. Ave Verum Corpus was rightly described by Austrian pianist Artur Schnabel as ‘too simple for children, and too difficult for adults’. It was Mozart's final completed sacred work, written on June 17, 1791, for the feast of Corpus Christi as a sort of payment or "thank you" for hosting him and his wife.
At only forty-six measures, encompassing 2.5 minutes, this piece is a masterclass in simplicity meeting beauty.
Cmuse.org writes:
Austrian choirmaster, Anton Stoll is the man we can thank for commissioning Mozart to write the Ave Verum Corpus. Constanza often visited the small town of Baden to enjoy the cures, and Mozart himself knew the town and its Choirmaster quite well. This is important to the work as even on a first hearing it is not difficult to note its simplicity. Unlike the setting for the Requiem that Mozart never completed, the Ave Verum Corpus is set modestly and in a beautifully serene manner.
Mozart was fully aware that the choirmaster had limited musical facilities and so chose deliberately to set the words for mixed choir, small string ensemble and an organ continuo, (organ accompaniment). The work is in D major which often for Mozart is a hopeful key and certainly one relatively easy for amateur string players to perform in. In the Ave Verum Corpus, it seems to bring an almost transparent lightness to the music.
Even though the piece appears simple and is brief when compared to other works of the time, the inventiveness is ever present. Mozart employs all his skills in this Motet, combining effortless melodic ingenuity and harmonic colour without compromising the meaning of the text. In his article for “All Music” James Leonard astutely notes, “…with its severe serenity, the motet is transcendentally glorious, and in its final line, “Be for us a foretaste of the trial of death,” the work achieves the sense of the eternal and the infinite that the Requiem never attains”. This comment, in my opinion, eloquently encapsulates the very nature of this all too brief piece of late Mozart. Whether we agree that this motet actually surpasses the final Requiem is for us each to decide but in the case of the Ave Verum Corpus, it is all Mozart’s work and truly magical.
For another much-more technical critique/reading of this piece, consider going here: https://archive.schillerinstitute.com/fid_91-96/fid_964_ave_ver.html
Here are several recorded versions of this piece; consider listening to each one, using these questions to see what is different about each. Have the members of your house choose which one was their favorite; it's always interesting to see how their favorites do or don't line up with their stated observations. (Have them keep notes on a piece of paper, if so desired.
1.) What is the tempo (speed) of the piece in comparison to the others? Did they speed up or slow down in any key moments, or was the tempo fairly straight the whole time?
2.) What are the vowel sounds like in each recording?
3.) What are the dynamics (loudness vs. softness) in each recording? Do volumes seem to crescendo and then diminish, or do they largely stay the same?
4.) Are the highest voices women's/girls' voices, or are they boys?
A. How could you tell and did that prejudice you in any way?
5.) Where did the performance fall on the Overly-Emotional vs. Excessively Stiff scale?
6.) What was a significant moment or two that really stood out to you?
Performance #1: King's College Choir https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pscsAvGjQI0
Performance #2: Leonard Bernstein: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NK8-Zg-8JYM
Performance #3: National Orchestra of France: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uduY8lh6B_Q
Peformance #4: Romanian Foundation for Excellence in Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDKCK_6WLTg
Performance #5 Girls' Choir of Willimington, SC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFKZpsFsAPU
Peformance #6: The Sixteen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GKSR_TzsD4
*** As a bonus, here is a beautiful performance of Franz Lizst's piano arrangement of the piece: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYYUpDcwKWU
...And wait, there's more!!! We would be remiss if we didn't honor the foster father of Jesus, good St. Joseph. In most places, his March 19th Feast gets moved to the 20th when it falls on a Sunday to Monday, so we have another reason to rejoice.
One of the composers whose music I have most recently come to enjoy listening to is Jan Dismas Zelenka, a Czech Catholic contemporary to J.S. Bach. His music is so fresh, always containing a lot of vitality and vigor, a perfect embodiment of what the term 'Baroque' means - listen to how he sets the text "Gloria in excelsis Deo". Of his 21 Masses, his 14th is entitled Missa Sancti Joseph in D Major, shared below. I find it enjoyable to have my previous musical assumptions occasionally debunked. (For example, in my musical youth, I used to say things like "the greats of the Baroque are exclusively Bach, Handel, and Vivaldi"). In listening to Zelenka's work, I can't help but find him to be as equally talented as these fore-mentioned composers; it is only very recently that this man's work is starting to rise from the musical catacombs. Most of his liturgical music will never see their way into current liturgical life, as they run too long to be sung anywhere (and too ornate for current taste) but as a source of spiritual meditation and technical artistry (and potential concert material) they are definitely worthy.
That is all for now; God bless you, and have a very blessed and happy Laetare Sunday and a blessed Feast of St. Joseph!
In Christ,
Jacob Flaherty
-Director of Sacred Music
In Christ,
Jacob Flaherty
-Director of Sacred Music