Author: Richard Chonak

Posted on by Richard Chonak

Upcoming: Anthony Esolen on music and Catholicism

Photo: screenshot of interiew with IL Family Institute, via youtube

The Institute for Catholic Culture, a fine adult-education program based in Virginia, is presenting a lecture soon about the state of music in the Catholic Church in the U.S. On Tuesday, September 15, the poet and translator Prof. Anthony Esolen (Magdalen College) will speak on “Music and the Corruption of Catholicism“.

Dr. Esolen has written before on music and Catholic life. His book Real Music: a Guide to the Timeless Hymns of the Church includes a demonstration CD produced by one of the admirable choirs of St. john Cantius parish in Chicago. And for a sample of Dr. Esolen’s thinking on classic hymns, here’s an article from 2018 in Crisis Magazine.

The lecture on September 15 is to be streamed with live video starting at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time, and registration is required.

Posted on by Richard Chonak

Charles Cole on The World Over

Charles Cole, director of the London Oratory Schola Cantorum, was interviewed by EWTN’s Raymond Arroyo this week concerning singing in the time of the Coronavirus. He is doing important work in getting choirs to sing again.

CMAA President William Mahrt tells us that Charles is working with a committee of the CMAA to establish a statement of what needs to be done, as an answer to the negative statement of the NATS and the ACDA.

Posted on by Richard Chonak

Casavant 2793 plays again

The Saint Anne Shrine Preservation Society, a lay association working to preserve and fully reopen the former Dominican shrine in Fall River, Massachusetts, took a step forward this week when they presented a organ recital on the Shrine’s Casavant, Opus 2793.

Matthew Dion, a organ student at Oberlin, has been working with organist and organ builder Bro. Roger Chingas, FSC, to tune and make some minor repairs to the organ, which had been largely idle and unmaintained since the upper church was closed in 2015. The instrument was dedicated in 1964 with a recital by Jean Langlais, and one of the works from that program was included in this week’s recital.

A few days ago Dion recorded these pieces, and they were streamed with live introductions on Tuesday. Times within the video are indicated, with links to the works.

6:32: L.N. Clérambault: Grand plein jeu from the Suite du 1. Ton

12:29: François Couperin: an excerpt from the Messe pour les Couvents

15:09: Louis Marchand: Grand Dialogue

26:32: Percy Fletcher: Fountain Reverie

31:07: J.S. Bach: Prelude and Fugue in a minor

43:50: Jean Langlais: Trois méditations sur la Sainte Trinité: 1. Le Père

48:23: Jean Langlais: Pasticcio

54:40: Louis Vierne: Clair de lune from the 24 Pièces de Fantaisie

1:03:20: Jean Langlais: Te Deum from the Trois Paraphrases Grégoriennes

The full concert video is available here.

(Photo credit: by Kenneth C. Zirkel, via Wikimedia)

PS: I updated this post on July 31 to credit Brother Chingas, whose name I first omitted. Sorry for the lapse! Congratulations to him and Matthew Dion on the fine sound their work produced.

Posted on by Richard Chonak

Easter Vespers from St. Michael Abbey

The Norbertine Fathers of St. Michael’s Abbey in Orange County, CA, are streaming their Vespers today, Easter Sunday, and for the rest of the Easter Octave.

A Facebook “event” announcement is at
https://www.facebook.com/events/656075655192204/

and the video is scheduled to appear live on the page of the charity “Aid to the Church in Need“, whose founder and whose current US director are both Norbertines: https://www.facebook.com/ChurchInNeed

The time of the Vespers on Easter Sunday will be 3:30 p.m. Pacific Time (6:30 p.m. Eastern). (See the event page for the other days.)

UPDATE: The first-time video was shaky, but it was good to hear the fully chanted Office, including falsobordone verses on the Magnificat.