At Mary Queen of Peace, Cleveland
Introit: Miseris omnium Domine (Gregorian)
Psalm: Guimont
Imposition: Immutemur habitu (J.M. Nunez Garcia), Parce Domine (Gregorian)
Offertory: Exaltabo te (A. Scarlatti)
Sanctus through Agnus: chant mass
Communion: Qui meditabitur (Gregorian), Miserere mei ( di Lasso)
Hymn: Lord, who throughout these 40 Days (St. Flavian)

Was going to have a low Mass with the bishop (EF), but he fell ill, so we had another celebrant and made the switch to a high Mass. I quickly learned the propers, did all the liber propers (psalm tone grad + tract). Another friend was also there, and joined me singing. Over 100 people here.

Also chanted attende domine, ave regina caelorum, and anima christi.

Holy Ghost Catholic Church, Knoxville, TN - 450 people in attendance

Entrance: Lord, Who throughout These Forty Days (St. Flavian)
Psalm: # 51 by Michael Bedford
Gospel Acclamation: Proulx
Distribution of Ashes: R. Rice - Simple Choral Gradual
Offertory: Pie Jesu - Gounod
Ordinary: Vatican Edition XVIII
Communion Proper: R. Rice
Communion Hymn: Attende Domine
Recessional: The Glory of These Forty Days (Erhalt Uns Herr)

Help me here:
At a neighbouring parish, not my own:
We had the priest only for the ashes (after Mass)
Yet we had an extraordinary minister for the Eucharist. This seems backward to me?

At the Mass where my choir provided music:
Pergolesi: Stabat
Attende Domine (chant)
Parce Domine (Giffen)
Propers: SEP
and other various hymns along with the Latin Mass for weekdays so that everyone could feel comfortable.

We sang a lot. I think there were more than 1000 people, which was great because our priest offered Mass at the schools too. Ashes took forever to distribute, even with help from EMs.

Introit - Miseris omnium Domine, Mode I
Oost-Zinner Psalm
Bartlett Mode V Acclamation before Gospel
Blot Out My Offenses (Bartlett), Have Mercy Lord On Us (Southwell), Lamb of God (Brace)
Lumen Christi Offertory with harmonized verses
Sanctus/Agnus Dei XVIII
Lumen Christi Communion
Ave Verum (Garau)
Lord Who Throughout These Forty Days (St. Flavian)

ave regina caelorum

Ben, whose setting and what did you sub out for the "alleluia's?"

You must be thinking of something else, Charles... There's no alleluia in the text. We used the simple tone chant.

Ben/MJM, so I thought until....
Dufay-
http://www1.cpdl.org/wiki/images/sheet/duf-aver.pdf

Could be editor's augmentation? Chuck?

IT IS INCUMBENT UPON THOSE WHO sing penitential chant ordinaries and hymns and the votive antiphon during this holy season of lent, to be prepared to sing ecstatic, joyful and overjoyed chant during Eastertide as well. Not necessarly entire masses, but items within the mass. Actually, the Mass I for Eastertide is not at all difficult. But then, also, numerous solo works such as Alleluya pascha nostrum and the offertories for the following Sundays. If one searches, one can find Wildly joyful Eastertide chants that should find a place along side hymns and anthems. There is, actually, hardly a better way to demonstrate the many sides of chant than by following up appropriately penitential Lenten ones, and, not skipping a beat, replacing them with ecstatic and overjoyed ones all through Eastertide. This would be a great teacher of the variety of chant and its close affinity to all strata of liturgical observance, as well as to the gamut of human emotion and spiritual states. If one did this, one would eradicate the 'chant is sad and is for penitential seasons syndrome' in short order... shooo it away. One could take a Gregorian hymn such as Ad Regias Agni Dapes, or Verbum Supernum Prodiens Nec Patris, in Latin or English verse, and teach it to the congregation as a communion hymn, possibly for the whole of Eastertide. If your people would sing this over the season in either language they would come to love it.

(And the best way to make chant ecstatic and joyful is by a vigourous and artful semiology!)

Ben, you just described the situation at our parish. Chant and Latin are identified as a Lenten practice by the majority here.

That being the case, I've opted to go the noble silence route for most of Lent. It was a little weird for the choir last night since they are used to singing during the imposition of ashes, but once I explained to them what I was doing they thought it a brilliant idea. One parishioner even told me afterward, that it helped her to focus because there wasn't the distraction of the pretty music.

Melo,
The composer must've added it. Sometimes there are a few weeks between the Presentation and Lent (Purification and pre-Lent) when such a motet could be useful. Also, though I avoid it, there's nothing to say you couldn't use an Alma Redemptoris Mater or Ave Regina Caelorum as a motet in the middle of the Summer.

MJO, I think we have this discussion often: sometimes Lent is the only time pastors will allow any Latin or chant. I've been in that position. The choice, then, is: 1) no chant ever, or 2) chant just during Lent. Since it's our job to preserve the treasury of sacred music, I always went with 2. Thankfully, I think those days are over for me...I hope! We'll probably do Mass VIII for Easter Sunday, but then on to an English setting: I "owe" them one after chant ordinaries exclusively for the past 3-4 months. That's a lot more than they're used to, so brick by brick. I agree that Mass I isn't bad at all, nor is it hard.

Except for the Gloria from Mass for the City. If your parish can do that, you should just hand out polyphony for them to sing.

Ugh...
Well, now that's stuck in my head...

Gentle water... washing over me...

MJM, there's a whole class of sacropop that I call "Plane Crash Tunes."
In other words, when you're in the tin can at take-off, landing, turbulence or outright disaster beyond a screaming baby, there are ear-worm tunes like the one mentioned above that people use as mantras. That's not a bad thing, as it would be difficult to mentally hum Spam in alium when the chips are down.

Jackson, I truly believe you can hum the Tallis!

Spam in alium

Heh. Reminds me of Zmirak commenting on contemporary liturgical music:

"Here I am, Lord.” This hymn depicts a human soul responding to the call of Christ—but the music is whiny and grim, evoking in most people’s minds a can of rancid potted meat, being slowly spread by windshield wipers across a plate of dirty auto glass.

Zmirak is Da Man! Matthew is da MiniMan.
I do love me some Dufay, though.

Correction...

It's

Spam in Aluminum

Fixed.

Cathedral of Saint Joseph, Sioux Falls

Choir Mass combining Cathedral Choir and Men's Chant Schola

Miserere Mihi (Graduale - Prelude)
Again we Keep this Solemn Fast (Old Hundredth - Entrance Procession)
Guimont Psalm
Parce Domine + Psalm 51 (Ashes)
SEP + Brahms - Create in me a Clean Heart (Offertory)
ICEL Ordinary
Qui Meditabitur (Communion) + Bruckner Os Justi (Communion)
Forty Days and Forty Nights - Recessional

Thank you for your input.

I'm all for well-placed silence. But it sounded to me as if having silence during the entire Distribution of Ashes was being advocated.

Please... tell me I misunderstood?

David,

I read this thread about "interesting happenings and music on Ash Wednesday" back in March. When I read the "noble silence" post, I remember thinking, "hmm...interesting. I did not know silence was an option during the entire Distribution of Ashes."

I did not think about this topic again until this morning. I was studying the Roman Missal and I happened upon the rubrics for Ash Wednesday. When I read "are sung" and no mention of silence as an option during the Distribution of Ashes, I recalled this posting from March. I then found and re-read this thread.

Since people "visit this forum to seek counsel, guidance, education and encouragement," and members of this forum are called to "work together to provide mutual support and information on all issues related to sacred music," I decided to share my newfound information and express my opinion.

Many of the posts in this thread listed music. In contrast, the "noble silence" post only mentioned silence and that it was "weird for the choir."

What is it that I have misunderstood? The "noble silence" post seems to indicate that there was no music sung during the Distribution of Ashes.

If you could please help me understand how I was quoting "out of context," or was "lacking in charity," or was "being rigorist, scrupulous, or condescending," I would appreciate it, because that was never my intention.

I deeply believe that Singing the Mass is important, and in the context of the Roman Missal, I do not think that we should promote the idea of silence during the entire Distribution of Ashes.

Silence is appropriate at times. The consecration and elevations are silent. I believe that the Ave Verum Corpus has its origins as a hymn sung at the elevation.

I think it was after the elevation.

EDIT, Having looked at the references I see Rev. M Britt, O.S.B. in 'Hymns of the Breviary and Missal' does say 'at' the Elevation... But Rev. J Connelly, in "Hymns of Roman Liturgy", "is one of the many short hymns which used to be sung in the Middle Ages after the Consecration, the Benedictus not then being divided from the Sanctus."

I believe that Rev. M Britt when he writes 'at' he means the singing would start after the Elevation rather than during.

If nothing else, the Attende Domine should be sung for the imposition of the ashes.

But above all, a bit of common sense needs to be exercised in choosing appropriate music.