Our Journey into the Paschal Mystery in 2007

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blostopher	Our Journey into the Paschal Mystery in 2007		Lead	[-]
Member Posts: 390 04/01/07 22:31:01	Tags : None Welcome! This thread will host a special series of reflections by fellow forum member Martin Cooke -- "Our Journey into the Paschal Mystery in 2007 accompanied with over a Millennium of Sacred Music" -- to be posted over the course of Holy Week. (Other members may feel free to make use of this category by starting new threads of their own). Regards, Christopher
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blostopher	Introduction	#1	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 390 04/01/07 22:32:04	Our Journey into the Paschal Mystery in 2007 accompanied along the way with over a millennium of sacred music St Gregory the Great INTRODUCTION Liturgy and music were one from the beginning. Where human beings praise God, words alone are not enough. Talking to God exceeds the limits of human language. Pope Benedict XVI Dear Friends & Members of the Pope Benedict XVI Discussion Forum The living tradition of Sacred Christian music in our 2000 year history is an almost inexhaustible source. The ancient text of Let all mortal flesh keep silent is derived from the "Prayer of the Cherubic Hymn" from the Litany of St. James, written during the 4th century. The Regina Caeli and Salve Regina are but two jewels from the deeply mystical fourteen hundred year old treasure trove of Gregorian chant. The authorship is unknown however the Regina Caeli was in use by the Franciscans in the early 13th century and the Salve Regina dates back to the 12th century. We will also listen to a recording of the Salve Regina on Easter Sunday for our night prayer, even though the Regina Caeli is normally only sung during Easter. You will understand why I choose it as well when you hear it. This recording will be sung by the monks of the Arch Abbey of St Ottilien here near my home and our thanks go to Fr Siegfried Wewers O.S.B. for the kind permission to use various recordings and photographs of the abbey. Toms Luis de Victoria Our journey continues onto the Renaissance era of polyphonic music with the Popule Meus of Toms Luis de Victoria (1548-1611). This work for our Good Friday reflection will be sung by the Regensburger Domspatzen or the Regensburg Cathedral Sparrows, the oldest ongoing choir in the world which is nearly as old as Gregorian Chant itself. The Regensburger have an uninterrupted tradition stretching back over one thousand years and it is indeed the pride of the Church in Germany and of the State of Bavaria in particular. This recording comes from a live concert in the Sistine Chapel in honour of Pope Benedict XVI in 2005. His Holiness has a very close relationship with the city of Regensburg where he lived and lectured for nearly 10 years and also with the choir where his brother Monsignor Georg Ratzinger was director from 1964-1994. Many former choir boys have become members of the Bavarian State Opera and currently four of my colleagues are former Regensburger Cathedral Sparrows. Gregorio Allegri The Miserere of Gregorio Allegri (1582-1652) from the early 17th century is another well known work we will hear. Under pain of excommunication, the Miserere was only allowed to be performed and heard in the Sistine Chapel on Good Friday. Thanks to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, we have a copy of it today as he heard and memorised it during a rehearsal after a visit to the Sistine Chapel during Holy Week in the late 18th century. Mozart wrote it down perfectly for posterity. Sadly Mozarts original manuscript has never been rediscovered. Johann Sebastian Bach We then move on to Germany: the heartland of the Reformation and great Protestant music with Johann Sebastian Bach and his St John and the St Matthew Passions. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1790 Our journey continues south to Austria with the Ave Verum and other works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart which form an integral and unsurpassed element of the Viennese Classical period of the late 18th century. Then it is off to the British Isles with three well loved hymns in the style typical of the mid 19th century. A return to Italy is scheduled and the late Romantic era of Giuseppe Verdi and his Stabat Mater and Te Deum, then a short detour north to the Czech Lands and Antonin Dvorak with an aria from his Stabat Mater. Giuseppe Verdi Finally we shall approach the 20th century and Vienna with Gustav Mahler and the powerful last movement of his Resurrection Symphony No 2 from 1895 moving on to an organ work by the distinguished Belgian composer and organist Flor Peeters (1903-1986). Then we arrive in the mid 1950s with a psalm of Fr Joseph Gelineau SJ. We will complete our journey in the third millennium with two living Australian composers: Richard Connolly and Fr Kevin Bates SM. Fr Kev Bates SM It is a privilege to share sacred music with you in this Holy Week of 2007 and I would particularly like to thank the administration of the Pope Benedict XVI Forum for their kind permission to post these reflections. Many recordings are from live performances and you are welcome to download them for your private use. The two major live orchestral and choral works for the Holy Saturday morning reflection and for Easter Sunday are from the Bavarian State Opera conducted by Zubin Metha, Zubin Mehta whom we gratefully acknowledge, together with the Regensburger Domspatzen. Id suggest you listen to the last movement of Mahlers Resurrection Symphony on Sunday afternoon and hopefully enjoy a beautiful Australian sunset at the same time. It is also a piece to be heard at sunrise that is if your neighbours can cope with such great music in the wee hours! Gustav Mahler Every now and then you may hear a cough or chair move but live recordings are much better and catch the spirit of the occasion. Should some pieces not appeal simply hit the stop button and move on. May Almighty Gods wonderful gift of music as expressed here by these outstanding composers, touch our hearts and help us in coming closer to Our Divine Lord and to each other as brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus this Easter and beyond. expatm Singing is the mother tongue of all humanity Sir Yehudi Menuhin
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rcesq	Re: Introduction	#2	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 1751 04/03/07 01:56:00 Moderator	Blostopher: The musical selections are tantalizing, but can we access them online? If yes, how?
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munichmember	we start tomorrow on Wed of Holy Week	#3	[url]	[-]
Member Posts: 74 04/03/07 03:38:05	Hi Rcesq I will be loading up a reflection each day as of Wed in Holy Week and all the links are provided, just click on them and download. My links are in my own secured domain so no worries about downloading. Unfortunately I posted my intro some weeks ago by mistake as I meant only to do a preview. Tomorrow is the day Ciao Martin.
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Margy07	Re: we start tomorrow on Wed of Holy Week	#4	[url]	[-]
Posts: 6 04/05/07 13:53:31	A special thank you to Martin for this wonderful series of reflections, which I am enjoying immensely. They make a very prayerful accompaniment to our Easter liturgies. Thank you for this rich spiritual nourishment. In this rationalistic age a spirituality that does not hold back from engaging the 'whole person' - heart as well as head - is always refreshing. God bless. Margaret
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