Given the precipitous decline in organ-savvy and organist-friendly liturgical music, as well as the sparse number of churches with fine organs, Catholic organists are perhaps the most disgruntled of all liturgical musicians. Unlike singers who often have performance outlets outside the liturgical setting, organists must struggle to find musical fulfillment within it.

It is understandable, then, as organists scour the plethora of new Mass settings they look for scores that not only will gratify those in the pews but themselves. When Fr. Anthony Ruff recently mentioned on his blog a new Mass by Gerald Near, he roused the curiosity of his organist readers since Near’s chant-based organ works are popular repertoire staples.

Mass of St. Augustine, published by MorningStar, is not Near’s first venture at setting the Ordinary. The Hymnal 1982 (Episcopal) includes a Holy, Holy (S-131), Gloria (S-279) and three Fraction Anthems (S-155, 156, and 166). Though these movements have never enjoyed wide-spread use, they do represent solid craftsmanship. Near’s new setting is scored for unison voices (vocal range from middle C up to D) with organ accompaniment. The compositional style resembles that of Richard Proulx but with perhaps more harmonic and melodic daring. The accompaniment has smooth voice leadings, clear pedal markings, and is not difficult to play. The architecture of the vocal line is never contrived or strained and the melody flows naturally. Unadorned by grandiose, special occasion additives, Near’s Mass is meant for week-in, week-out yeoman service.

Most movements of this Mass have the same four eighth note organ introduction so there is melodic unity to the whole. The sixfold Lord, Have Mercy (Kyrie), based on this motivic pattern, has the first invocation beginning on D, the second on G and the third on E. Though the simplest of the movements, harmonic variety sustains interest. Near also provides a shorter threefold Lord, Have Mercy, but the repetition of each invocation in the sixfold version would be advantageous to learning the work.

Near has a penchant for ninth chords and a gift for smooth modulatory wanderings, both clearly demonstrated within six delightful measures in the Glory to God at the words “We praise, we bless you, we adore you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great glory”. Starting in D major, it drifts to B major, then G major, only to shift again to a c minor seventh chord at the words “Lord God”. Each double bar division offers a fresh tonality and thereby avoids commonplace predictability. Though the changing tonal focus requires chromatic alterations in the vocal line, it is a movement people should be able to learn with competent leadership. Once assimilated, I’m sure it will be popular.

Near gives us three versions of the Holy but does not explain why. They are roughly the same length and have identical opening measures that then vary at the words “Heaven and earth are full of your glory”. Could he not decide from among his drafts? I think most liturgical musicians selecting new Mass settings will find multiple options of a single movement a confusing hindrance. If a new Mass is to find favor among several communities it would be a significant help if they were all singing the same Holy. For what it’s worth, I find the second version the most satisfying.

There are four memorial acclamations (four because there are two versions of “When We Eat This Bread”). The second “When We Eat This Bread” begins with an inversion of the opening four-note motif heard in other movements and because of its melodic simplicity might be a good choice as a preferred option when introducing the Mass. “Save Us, Savior” and the Great Amen are also quite lovely and capture Near’s harmonic language in just a few bars.

The Lamb of God begins eerily with the same A-G-A note pattern of Richard Proulx’s Lamb of God from A Community Mass. The similarity ends there, however, as distinctive modal changes give away Near’s authorship. As with the Kyrie, a couple of the memorial acclamations and the Great Amen, it is very simple to sing.

At the end of my review of James MacMillan’s Mass of Blessed John Henry Newman I considered whether the composition had a chance of being widely implemented in the United States. The same can be asked of Near’s new work. It too is being offered by a publishing house outside the “big three” and it too is intended for an organ-only liturgical environment. In today’s liturgical political climate, those factors can be obstacles to widespread acceptance. On the other hand this music may be viewed on-line, can be quickly ordered, and is not demanding. Excepting perhaps the Gloria, most congregations will have no more difficulty learning Mass of St. Augustine than they had with Proulx’s A Community Mass or his setting of Vermulst’s Holy, Holy from A People’s Mass.

It is of course much too early to predict whether any of the newly composed Masses will catch on. Considering the current trend that so concerns organists, however, I for one would be pleased if Mass of St. Augustine were to become a fixture in American Catholic liturgy.