EF Missa Cantata
  • countertenor
    Posts: 17
    During a Missa Cantata without incense aside from the priest and choir what is required. I'd been working with my priest preparing him to be able to do his chants, and to be able to chant the gospel, ect. now he is under the impression that he needs a server, a deacon and an MC in order to do the Missa Cantata. I've found plenty of documents that say a Missa Cantata is sung by the priest without the assistance of a deacon & sub-deacon, and that the Missa Solemnis is uses the deacon and sub-deacon.

    Could some one tell me what is really required for the Missa Cantata, as I thought it was as simple as a priest, server and the cantor/choir. This is how it was usually done when I was a chorister so I'm a bit confused by what he's saying. He's a but hard to say anything to once he gets something in his head, unless I have a document to back it up.

    Personally while I know he wants Missa Cantata and Missa Solemnis every week I think he's actually really freaked out about singing, because every time we get close to doing a Missa Cantata, he pulls something like this out of a hat, to delay it in some way.

    Please help.
    Thanks
  • Chrism
    Posts: 873
    According to this site (the online version of a 1936? book), you need only three: an assistant server, and two acolytes (torchbearers).

    In practice, I've seen priest + 1 server.

    Things may have changed somewhat as a result of rubrical changes before 1962.
  • Chrism
    Posts: 873
    Speaking of those rubrical changes before 1962, here is a footnote to a French translation of the 1961 Ritus Servandus, after discussing the fact that this edition of the Ritus Servandus, for the first time, specified the Cantata as an additional, specific type of Mass:

    "On remarquera que le législateur ne s’exprime pas dans ce texte sur la pratique commune de porter les chandeliers à la Missa cantata."

    So it would seem that the common practice of carrying candles at the Missa cantata is not explicitly required in the latest edition of the rubrics for the Traditional Latin Mass. And therefore, that the two acolytes who would carry the candles are not necessarily required either.
  • countertenor
    Posts: 17
    Thanks for that information.
  • RagueneauRagueneau
    Posts: 2,592
    You might care to look at the book that Jeff Tucker put online which clearly expalins all these matters.
  • Chrism
    Posts: 873
    Jeff, Psallite Sapienter "does not offer any detailed descriptions of the ceremonies of Mass" (#2).

    Serving is a separate discipline from music, and we usually don't have to worry about each other. When planning the type of Mass, a priest needs to speak with both musicians and altar servers. Sometimes one of the three parties will be less enthusiastic about having a Sung Mass. Sometimes the lack of enthusiasm is expressed in the form of a poor excuse, e.g. "we just can't handle the Propers yet"--which is pretty foolish when you consider the licit possibility of singing them recto tono.
  • RagueneauRagueneau
    Posts: 2,592
    sorry---I didn't read the post carefully
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