Stabat Mater, in the News

Dominican nuns sang the Stabat Mater as a Sequnce in the late 13th century, much earlier than has been thought, according to this article.

h/t: the NLM

Top 10 Hymns

Phillip Lopez, the Casey Kasem of Christian Colleges, writes to say he's listed the "Top 10 Christian Hymns of All-Time."

It's an interesting list and worth a look, but personally I'm not sure why Φως Ιλαρόν and Apostolorum passio are missing. What else belongs on this list?

"She thought He was the gardener"

"She must arouse the voice of the cosmos"

A Church which only makes use of “utility” music has fallen for what is, in fact, useless. . . . For her mission is a far higher one. As the Old Testament speaks of the Temple, the Church is to be the place of “glory,” and as such, too, the place where mankind’s cry of distress is brought to the ear of God. The Church must not settle down with what is merely comfortable and serviceable at the parish level, she must arouse the voice of the cosmos and, by glorifying the Creator, elicit the glory of the cosmos itself, making it also glorious, beautiful, habitable, and beloved.

Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, “On the Theological Basis of Church Music,” in The Feast of Faith, pp. 113–126 (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1986), p. 124.

New blog: theological and pastoral reflections

My grad school professor and noted Vatican II scholar Fr. Joseph Komonchak has a new blog.

I'm hoping to see frequent entries devoted to his elegant translations of St. Augustine, and tutuorials on John Henry Cardinal Newman, whom I have unfortunately been unable to study yet.

Glad to see this blog!

EWTN today

A version of this video will be aired at 2 pm Eastern (11 am Pacific) on EWTN.

The Fourth of Four

In classic 4-line hymnody, the third line is often the place for a tonal change. Pivoting on the fifth (e.g. the G chord in a C-major hymn), and incorporating the fifth of five (D in our example), the hymn flirts with a key change, going up the circle of fifths . (A clear example is Salzburg. In Nicaea, a remarkably thorough key change occurs on line 2.)

The effect of the shift is a certain opening-out, an exuberance and dare I say playfulness, which counterbalances the solemnity of the organ. At least that is what I hear.

Much of modern church music employs the fourth of four in abundance. I need not list examples, I hope.

The fourth of four squishes the sound, making it seem serious in a way I find somewhat deadening. That's what I hear, anyway. The question is, is it something new in music? In sacred music?

Is this the most provocative blog post title of all time?

First Things asks for your opinion on the ten worst hymns of all time.