Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Fort Worth Schola Gregoriana update

OK... back from my little rant about NPR and Sesame Street...

Our schola had its rehearsal last night and got much work done. We worked on the new Communion chant that we had begun learning last week -- Qui manducat. Also, we worked on the Introit for the 2nd week of Ordinary Time -- Omnis terra. They did very well with both of them. We also worked on Jesu dulcis memoria and Ave verum corpus . In addition, we did a quick review of the chants we'll be singing this weekend.

I have been talking to them all about the workshop that will be given in Sugarland, TX in February. You can see details about it here. Scott Turkington will be the director, so I know it will be a very good workshop. I think it would be very good for the schola members to get the opportunity to study chant with him and to experience singing with so many other singers of like mind. The polyphony portion of the workshop may turn out to be a bit difficult for our group, since we do strictly unison singing at this point, but even so it will be a great experience.

This coming weekend (the last Christmas season Mass) we will be singing:

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

Opening: Angels We Have Heard on High
Kyrie VIII / Gloria VIII
Responsorial Psalm (chant tone by Arlene at Chabanel)
Alleluia (simple chant tone)
Offertory Cordis natus ex Parentis (chant hymn)
Sanctus XVIII
Our Father, chanted in English
Agnus Dei XVIII
Communion: Viderunt omnes (we are getting really good at this chant!)
Post Communion: Anima Christi
Closing: Good Christian Friends (I would prefer a not-so-politically correct version in which the friends remained "men", but this is the version in the misallette)

It is time to get going on the day... no more reading the forum and email in an attempt to avoid my housework!

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