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This is a reconstructed musical liturgy (not sung for a real Mass, of course), a complete soundscape except for the two lessons, for the Sunday after Ascension, 1898 (Sunday within the Octave of Ascension), as it may have sounded in a mid-western, German-American Catholic parish, in 1898.
The Vidi Aquam, Ordinary, Regina Caeli, and O Salutaris are by Fr. Ignatius Wilkens, OFM, (1856-1934), a prolific composer and Cincinnati native, whose works achieved considerable local renown, with his works even being performed in Music Hall.
The chants are taken from the 1896 Pustet Graduale Romanum, the last Ratisbon chant books published according to the old method, prior to the reforms of St. Pius X in 1903 (with the new Graduale issued in 1908). They are accompanied with period accompaniments, taken from Fr. Witt's collection, which also includes the brief preludes to introduce the chant.
The accompaniment to the priest's parts and the choir's responses, Paternoster, and Preface are taken from a book published by J. Fischer, also in about 1890. The Prelude, Epistle Sonata, and other interludes (including the "Elevation," which was not unheard of prior to Pius X's reforms) were taken from the collection of "100 Short and Pleasing Voluntaries" contained in the back of this book, which we discovered in the choir loft at Ss. Philomena and Cecilia in Oak Forest, Indiana.
The closing hymn, "Das Grab ist Leer," is taken from the ubiquitous "Katholisches Gesang und Gebetsbuch" so widely used in German-American Catholic congregations, with an accompaniment adapted from the older Gotteslob to fit the historic melody.
The style of singing deliberately ignores the recommendations that would be made in 1903 by St. Pius X in his reform of church music. The full-voiced, operatic style as it was probably heard ubiquitously at that time has been embraced, even in the chanting. We were all surprised by the natural, robust way in which this style fit the music of the time, and understood well why improving it proved so difficult to sell among amateur choristers.
The recordings were made in the historic St. John's Church in Dover, Indiana (chosen for the historic acoustic, untouched period organ, low traffic volume), by the kind permission of its pastor, Fr. Jonathan Meyer, who also very graciously arranged for organ maintenance prior to our sessions.
The organ, an 1894 I/8 Pilcher, was played by Sean Connolly, who was also project coordinator.
The Cincinnati Latin Mass Schola Cantorum and Friends, founded by Mr. John Schauble, were conducted by Mrs. Anna Little for this recording.
The part of the "Celebrant" was taken by Br. Brent Stull, C.O., of the Cincinnati Oratory.
The solo quartet were: Mrs. Anna Little, Miss Beth Lichter, Br. Brent Stull, C.O., and Mr. John Schauble.
The recording engineer was an anonymous friend.
Valuable historical research in the Franciscan archives was provided by Fr. Valentine Young, OFM (R.I.P.)
Explicit thanks is also owed to Mr. Jeff Ostrowski of CCWatershed, whose Lalande Library of Rare Books makes so many of these historic chant resources available that either 1) we could not find on our own, or 2)could not duplicate from fragile originals without risking damage to historic books. We are very grateful for his tireless and enthusiastic efforts.
The Cincinnati Latin Mass Schola Cantorum & Friends
Soprano:
Mrs. Lisa Bloomfield
Mrs. Anna Daily
Miss Mary Kate Daily
Mrs. Anna Little
Miss Sarah Monnin
Mrs. Fatima Spoor
Alto:
Mrs. Delia Berry
Mrs. Chelsea Connolly
Miss Julie Koch
Miss Beth Lichter
Tenor:
Mr. Albert Bloomfield
Mr. Benjamin Bloomfield
Mr. Sean Connolly
Br. Brent Stull, CO
Bass:
Mr. Andrew Finck
Mr. Timothy Fox
Mr. Michael Lohman
Mr. John Schauble
Recording (c) 2015, Preserving Cincinnati's Heritage of Sacred Music
- Genre
- Classical
Contains tracks
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