O praise the Lord, all ye nations!

On a new CD from the Schola Cantorum of Downside Abbey is to be found a new setting of Laudate Dominum by Christopher Tambling, the Master of the Schola: 

Also on the CD is a Victoria motet, Ave Regina Caelorum: 

Two months to go

The Collect for the 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time:  

Father, you show your almighty power,

in your mercy and forgiveness. 

Continue to fill us with your gifts of love. 

Help us to hurry toward the eternal life you promise

and come to share in the joys of your kingdom. 

And from next year:  

O God, who manifest your almighty power

above all by pardoning and showing mercy,

bestow, we pray, your grace abundantly upon us

and make those hastening to attain your promises

heirs to the treasures of heaven. 

Radio Interview with Director of Music at St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney

The Director of Music at St. Mary's Cathedral, Thomas Wilson, was on 4 September interviewed on the ABC programme Sunday Nights.  The interviewer was Noel Debien, himself a choral music director at St. Francis of Assisi Paddington, an inner city parish run by the Franciscans.  The topics of discussion were generally confined to sacred music and its centrality to the celebration of the Roman Rite.  And for those who might be growing a little tired of the whole issue of the new English translation of the Roman Missal, not a word about it is mentioned. 

Click here to download the interview in mp3 format. 

Excerpts of pieces sung by the Cathedral Choir are interspersed throughout the programme, and here are some further excerpts from previous posts on this blog:

Rheinberger:

Tisserand:

Victoria:

Westminster Uses New Altar Missal

At last Sunday's Mass of Thanksgiving for the Papal visitation last year Westminster Cathedral was presented with the Roman Missal, Third Typical Edition, published by the CTS, which of course contains the more edifying translation of the Latin Missale Romanum.  The pictures below are all © Mazur/catholicchurch.org.uk.  See more photos of the Mass here.

Missal website for England & Wales revamped

The Missal website for the dioceses of England and Wales has had a makeover, but a quick glance suggests that the content remains largely the same as before.  The website is devoted to the new translation of the Roman Missal and has some handy resources.  

More translation news from the Emerald Isle

The Irish translation of parts of the Roman Missal: 

faoi mo dhíon = under my roof
trí mo choir féin, trí mo choir féin, trí mo mhórchoir féin = through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault

Sound familiar?

See the article by Susan Gately on the Catholic Ireland website.

And see the whole Order of Mass in Irish Gaelic here.  My Gaelic isn't what it used to be (I now now eight words!) so the use of an electronic translator came in quite handy to test the veracity of the claims in the article.  Apparently, the Irish Gaelic was translated directly from the Latin.  It would be most illuminating to fiund out whether that occurred prior to or after 2001 (significance of that date is assumed knowledge).

"Restoring the centurion’s roof"

is the title of an interesting article about the new translation of the Roman Missal in last Friday's edition of the (London) Daily Telegraph.

The Cardinal, the Archbishop and the Oratorian

Cardinal Newman was an Oratorian in Birmingham, but was not a bishop.  Archbishop Longley is prelate of Birmingham, but is not an Oratorian.  Fr. Guy Nicholls is an Oratorian in Birmingham but is neither a Cardinal nor a bishop.  But they all share two things in common.  First, they all place/placed much importance on high quality sacred music as being necessary for the enrichment of the Mass.  And they have/had an association with the Birmingham Oratory, where tomorrow at 11am His Grace, Archbishop Longley will celebrate a Mass at said Oratory, formally to mark the opening of the Newman Institute of Liturgical Music, whose director is Fr. Nicholls.  Saturday 17 September happens to be the first anniversary of Cardinal Newman's beatification.

Find out about the Institute's raison d'etre by clicking here.

Aunty's Recording of Cambridge Mass Using the New Translation

Last Sunday's broadcast of BBC Radio 4's programme Sunday Worship was recorded at the Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs, Cambridge on the occasion of the introduction in England and Wales of the new translation of the Roman Missal.  This recording is only available until Sunday 11 September 2011.

In brief:

• Sung greeting, solemn tone (celebrant Mgr. Peter Leeming)
• Kyrie - Mass XVI (Greek)
  Gloria - Mass XV (English)
• Gospel - Sung introduction and conclusion, simple tone
• Homily (given by precentor of Westminster Cathedral, Fr Alexander Master)
• Credo - Apostles' Creed (said)
• Prayer of the Faithful -  Petitions announced by reader, then "Be pleased to hear us" intoned by cantor, with the people responding "Lord, we ask you, hear our prayer" - as provided for in the Missal - excellent!!
• Sung Preface Dialogue
• Sanctus - Mass XVIII (English)
• Eucharistic Prayer II (new translation)
• Acclamation at the Mystery of Faith - We proclaim ... (Missal tone)
• Sung Doxology
• Sung Lord's Prayer (English, Missal tone)
• Agnus Dei - Mass XVIII (English)
• Final Blessing (said)
• Dismissal (sung, "Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life")

It seems there was some editing by the BBC, which is understandable, but the illuminating parts are retained.

Well done all concerned!

Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs, Cambridge

Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs, Cambridge

(Pictures taken by the author of this blog after a Mass in July 2010, not after yesterday's service)

All things have their season

Collect for the 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time: 

1974-2011: 

God our Father,

you redeem us,

and make us your children in Christ. 

Look upon us,

give us true freedom

and bring us to the inheritance you promised. 

2012-

O God, by whom we are redeemed and receive adoption,

look graciously upon your beloved sons and daughters,

that those who believe in Christ

may receive true freedom

and an everlasting inheritance. 

And So It Begins (in the Northern Hemisphere)

In a reversal of the normal order of things, parishes in the Northern Hemisphere have started to use the new, more edifying translation of the Order of Mass, from the Roman Missal, Third Typical Edition.  At the Saturday Vigil Mass at a certain red brick church in London, which may or may not have a well known choir, the congregation was told that it was an historic day for Catholics in the UK, that the new translation of the Missale Romanum was not change for change's sake, and that it ought to be embraced gladly (to which I'm sure the gathered faithful, filled with the Holy Spirit, silently responded "hear hear!")  The new texts were proclaimed with precision and, unsuprisingly for an Englishman, perfect diction.  This all helps immeasurably in the transition from old to new.

As for how the congregation coped - at first better with the responses when said than when sung, but that is to be expected.  By the time the Preface Dialogue came around, most were able to respond in song with confidence.  The cantor led the Missal chant settings of the Ordinary superbly. 

Perhaps fittingly, the Mass was concelebrated by two quite newly ordained priests from the Archdiocese of Sydney, to whom the new translation is old hat, the bishops in Australia having allowed a gradual implementation since January this year. 

With any luck the example of (what may or may not have been) the mother church of England and Wales will be followed by parishes both there and across the pond, where at present only the new translation of the Ordinary may be used, if sung (which means, effectively, the new Gloria, Creed and Sanctus). 

Interesting times.