Last night we worked on this with my new part-averse schola, and I discovered -- whoops! -- that it's an alternatim setting. We aren't going to do anything about that for Friday (besides sing odd-numbered verses). But the text is pretty hard to read, and I'm considering re-setting the piece, and putting the music for the unset verses into that copy. But the Perosi is in G major, and "the" Ave maris is in Mode 1. What to do?
1. Put the chant in as-is and trust the choir to change mode (my inclination, in spite of the M6th transition back to polyphony) 2. Put it up a step onto E. Easier transition between chant and polyphony, but higher, and we still add an accidental C#. Putting it in "real" Mode 1 for the G major diatonic set Ain't Gonna Happen 3. Take the POLYPHONY down to F, chant in D (split the difference between 1 & 2) 4. Use a DIFFERENT Ave Maris chant (LU 1262, Mode 7). This gives the risk/benefit of #2, plus having to learn new music (which this schola doesn't yet do easily...they will, bwahaha!)
On top of this...should the chant be accompanied?
What do we know, if anything, about performance practice in alternatim liturgical music of the early 20th century in Italy?
You might try using the Hispanic Mode I setting, which has the flatted B (te). It's beautiful and actually rather easier to sing than the Roman setting. The Mode VII setting just doesn't really fit.
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