Alan suggested that we might practice the Vespers at home to get used to the text.
I looked on YouTube.
The only recordings of the Vespers of the Assumption I could find are from the two guys I posted last week. But they are not singing Mode VII. Worth watching to see that there are slight differences from the gestures Alan described. And to highlight the need to practice gestures, so as not to detract from the prayerful dignity:
It is a very good effort and we can learn a lot from the Schola of the Hofburgkapelle Vienna.
I can report that the Ladies Group's 'fish tea' in the hall was a big success as was the ice cream, served with old-fashioned Oysters and 'nugget wafers':
All of the ice cream was scoffed (Fr Joe helped, apparently) so we would have got short shrift if we had gone over and asked for some, as I had suggested.
Did you know that 'shrift' derives from shriven and a short shrift implies a short Confession?
I didn't. But "any fule knos" as Jennings would have it.
We practiced for the Mass in Seton Collegiate Church, unfortunatley George told me before the practice that he would be leaving the group. We will miss his dignified presence.
Malkie and I drove to East Lothian together. The lady from Historic Scotland was very enthusiastic about 'her' church and took us on a guided tour, showing us the Green Man and the Murdered Apprentice carved on the base of the corbels. Here's the Murdered Apprentice:
The acoustics were very forgiving as we sang the Mass of the Blessed
Virgin 'In Sabbato' in the church which was originally dedicated to 'Our
Lady and the Holy Cross'.
Several passers-by came in and some took places among the congregation. Others hung back and listened.
Here’s a first attempt at a YouTube video based on the audio recording of us singing the Introit hymn, Salve sancta Parens. The iPod recording is surprisingly good:
Salve, sancta parens, enixa puerpera Regem: qui caelum terramque regit in saecula saeculorum. Sentiant omnes tuum adiuvamen, quicumque celebrant tuam commemorationem.
Hail, holy mother, who did bring forth the King who rules heaven and earth for ever and ever.
May all who keep thy commemoration feel now thy help and protection.
I was careless and my photographs didn't turn out well, maybe next
time I'll remember to check settings before taking pictures on
automatic. But we sound pretty good - as my wife said 'Is that you?'
Before a fuller post, I though that it would be worth sharing a finding from our last session about Thomas Aquinas' great Eucharistic hymn,. Tantum Ergo. Tantum ergo Sacramentum Veneremur cernui: Et antiquum documentum Novo cedat ritui: Praestet fides supplementum Sensuum defectui. Genitori, Genitoque Laus et jubilatio, Salus, honor, virtus quoque Sit et benedictio: Procedenti ab utroque Compar sit laudatio.
I particularly enjoy the enthusiastic shouts of 'Gie it laldie' from 1.20 with 'Gie it laldie in the Raploch. This is a Papist stronghold' from 5.50. Fast Forward if you prefer.
We practiced this new-to-us Mass setting, Mass XI. We weren't very good but it is worth persevering with it because it comes from the earliest, most traditional years of chant.
Father Ray Blake writes about the Kyrie in Orbis Factor. Here we see the certainty of Divine mercy.
"The word eleison has a connection with olive oil, the sinuous melody seems to be like thick olive oil penetrating into the soul, healing and cleansing. The rise on the last syllable of Christe seems to be about a drenching in the oil of mercy". http://marymagdalen.blogspot.co.uk/2008/11/orbis-factor.html
This version of the Kyrie with 'tropes' is pretty remarkable:
1. Orbis factor rex aeterne, eleison
2. Pietatis fons immense, eleison
3. Noxas omnes nostras pelle, eleison
4. Christe qui lux es mundi dator vitae, eleison
5. Arte laesos daemonis intuere, eleison
6. Conservans te credentes confirmansque, eleison
7. Patrem tuum teque flamen utrorumque, eleison
8. Deum scimus unum atque trinum esse, eleison
9. Clemens nobis adsis paraclite ut vivamus in te, eleison.
1. Maker of the world, King eternal, have mercy upon us.
2. O immense source of pity, have mercy upon us.
3. Drive off all our evils, have mercy upon us.
4. Christ who art the light of the world and giver of life, have mercy upon us.
5. Consider the wounds produced by the devil's art, have mercy upon us.
6. Keeping and confirming thy believers, have mercy upon us.
7. Thou and thy Father, an equal light, have mercy upon us.
8. We know that God is one and three, have mercy upon us.
9. Thou, merciful unto us, art present with the Holy Spirit that we might live in thee, have mercy upon us.
(from Wikipedia)
We are aiming for this:
Father Blake writes that one of the nice things about the Traditional Rite is that the Penitential Rite and absolution is a private affair, for the priest and server at the foot of the altar, a preparation for Mass
"so the Kyrie becomes a triumphant proclamation in which the Christian prays and as he prays, he receives. The priest might mutter about his sinfulness under his breath but in the "congregation of the Redeemed" he and the congregation proclaims God's mercy".
He writes that the priest's introduction to the Penitential rite in the modern Mass, using his own words, "can become downright tedious, almost Pelagian". On regular Sundays we stand and pray the Confiteor together.
When I serve at the Latin Mass, I bow low while on my knees at the foot of the Altar and confess my sins, on behalf of the rest of the congregation. I am older than these chaps and always comb my hair:
The Ladies Group were in the Hall, hosting an event for seventy female guests from other parishes. They had tables set out and meals ready to go. Dancing was planned.....
We met in the crying room in the church. George was back with us after
his surgery and ready to punch people with his newly strengthened fist.
Jack stuck up for the NHS.
Alan wanted us to practice a new Mass setting AND the Vespers for Edinburgh.
I thought that he was being a bit optimistic.
The new Mass setting was Missa Orbis Factor. The name comes from the opening of the extended Kyrie which opens with a 'trope': Orbis factor rex aeterne, eleison
Maker of the world, King eternal, have mercy upon us.
I
will write more on Orbis Factor later. Suffice it to say that we were
not very good. The basic Kyrie is to be 'flowing', with counts of
222,333 for the start of the Kyrie and 333, 333 for the start of the
Christe. We sang our way through the other prayers. It will be several
more weeks before we try this Mass in public.
The Vespers went a bit better. We have until August to get this right. I will find a local venue for a practice in July.
The couplets from the Psalms are sung with a pause. Vespers sound something like this
Although these guys go up at the end of each line in the second part (Psalm 112) and the square notes don't appear to.
The final hymn began O Prima Virgo Prodita. This doesn't mean O Best Protestant Virgin.
O prima, Virgo, pródita E Conditóris spíritu, Prædestináta Altíssimi Gestáre in alvo Fílium; Tu perpes hostis fémina Prænuntiáta dæmonis, Oppléris una grátia Intamináta orígine.
O Virgin thou, the spirit's fair’st,
Predestined by the will divine,
Within thy sacred womb thou bear’st
His only Son, and also thine.
O thou in whom rich grace abounds,
Foretold thou wast to be the foe
Who in her origin confounds
The wicked demon here below.
Look at the crisp line on my sleeve - there's an excellent ironer in the group.
Here's the text to follow as we sing the prayer (The Sequence starts at 2.05, after the Alleluia).
Click to enlarge
Here it is in English (although this translation of Veni Sancte Spiritus from the Missal doesn't start 'Come Holy Spirit'):
Holy Spirit, Lord of Light,
From the clear celestial height.
Thy pure beaming radiance give.
Come, thou Father of the poor,
Come, with treasures which endure;
Come, thou Light of all that live!
Thou, of all consolers best,
Thou, the soul's delightful guest,
Dost refreshing peace bestow.
Thou in toil art comfort sweet;
Pleasant coolness in the heat;
Solace in the midst of woe.
Light immortal, Light divine,
Visit thou these hearts of thine,
And our inmost being fill.
If thou take thy grace away,
Nothing pure in man will stay;
All his good is turned to ill.
Heal our wounds, our strength renew;
On our dryness pour thy dew,
Wash the stains of guilt away.
Bend the stubborn heart and will;
Melt the frozen, warm the chill;
Guide the steps that go astray.
Thou, on us who evermore
Thee confess and thee adore,
With thy sevenfold gifts descend.
Give us comfort when we die;
Give us life with thee on high;
Give us joys that never end.
Amen. Alleluia.
Maybe there should be a Glasgow version of the video uploading site called YaTube Ye.
We had practiced the Sequence Lauda Sion on Thursday for the Sunday Mass at Holy Spirit. The Mass was well attended
The gifts of the Holy Spirit are written on the stained glass window: sapientia, intellectus, consilium, fortitudo, scientia, pietas, timor Domini (wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, fear of the Lord).
Two servers arrived, so I could sing with the Schola.
We are sounding more confident, according to my son.
In
the Kyrie we remembered to sing Chreestay and our pacing in the Gloria
was good. In our run-through before Mass, we had been too loud at the
endings and had the emphasis in Deus as De-us, rather than Deyus. But we
were fine at the Mass itself.
Lauda Sion is one of Aquinas's great Eucharistic hymns.
At the Communion, we sang one of his greatest hits Tantum Ergo.
Here's a short musical description of Thomas Aquinas's life and work sung to "Venus" by Bananarama. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m57m0XiRgBA
Worth clicking. 'Scholasticism was his game'.
Now, the Sequence itself:
We sang the Sequence well but we should have provided an English translation for everyone, not all have Missals with Latin/English. Here it is if you want to follow along:
Sing forth, O Sion, sweetly sing
The praises of thy Shepherd-King,
In hymns and caticles divine;
Dare all thou canst, thou hast no song
Worthy his praises to prolong,
So far surpassing powers like thine.
To-day no theme of common praise
Forms the sweet burden of thy lays –
The living, life-dispensing food –
That food which at the sacred board
Unto the brethren twelve our Lord
His parting legacy bestowed.
Then be the anthem clear and strong,
Thy fullest note, thy sweetest song,
The very music of the breast:
For now shines forth the day sublime
That brings remembrance of the time
When Jesus first his table blessed.
Within our new King's banquet-hall
They meet to keep the festival
That closed the ancient paschal rite:
The old is by the new replaced;
The substance hath the shadow chased;
And rising day dispels the night.
Christ willed what he himself had done
Should be renewed while time should run,
In memory of his parting hour:
Thus, tutored in his school divine,
We consecrate the bread and wine;
And lo – a Host of saving power.
This faith to Christian men is given –
Bread is made flesh by words from heaven:
Into his blood the wine is turned:
What though it baffles nature's powers
Of sense and sight? This faith of ours
Proves more than nature e'er discerned.
Concealed beneath the twofold sign,
Meet symbols of the gifts divine,
There lie the mysteries adored:
The living body is our food;
Our drink the ever-precious blood
In each, one undivided Lord.
Not he that eateth it divides
The sacred food, which whole abides
Unbroken still, nor knows decay;
Be one, or be a thousand fed,
They eat alike that living bread
Which, still received, ne'er wastes away.
The good, the guilty share therein,
With sure increase of grace or sin.
The ghostly life, or ghostly death:
Death to the guilty; to the good
Immortal life. See how one food
Man's joy or woe accomplisheth.
We break the Sacrament; but bold
And firm thy faith shall keep its hold;
Deem not the whole doth more enfold
Than in the fractured part resides:
Deem not that Christ doth broken lie;
'Tis but the sight that meets the eye;
The hidden deep reality
In all its fulness still abides.
Behold the bread of angels, sent
For pilgrims in their banishment,
The bread for God's true children meant,
That may not unto dogs be given;
Oft in the olden types foreshowed;
In Isaac on the altar bowed,
And in the ancient paschal food,
And in the manna sent from heaven.
Come then, good Shepherd, bread divine,
Still show to us thy mercy sign;
Oh, feed us still, still keep us thine;
So we may see thy glories shine
In fields of immortality;
O thou, the wisest, mightiest, best,
Our present good, our future rest,
Come, make us each thy chosen guest,
Co-heirs of thine, and comrades blest
With saints whose dwelling is with thee.
Amen. Alleluia.
Thomas Aquinas was a clever man but why did he pick on dogs?
We'll be in the church on Thursday from 7.30pm, all welcome.
