I'm interested in the development of vernacular chant complements to the traditional Latin proper settings. Adam Bartlett's Simple English Propers project is a good example of the possibilities, especially for those musicians who lack the confidence to approach the originals (wrongly in my opinion - like most sight-reading exercises, those with basic musicianship skills can achieve a lot with a little application & self-discipline). I would encourage you to explore them. John Anslie's suggestion that they don't do service to the originals misses the point - they represent a preliminary investigation that doesn't aspire to the complexity and subtlety of the original, but offers a useful and accessible blend of traditional style with the vernacular. I also feel that his emphasis on the problems such settings face with regard to text-setting reflects a wholly admirable respect for the perfection of the Latin originals, but a narrow understanding of the relation of text pattern to melody that is happy with psalm tones, yet unwilling to explore the creative fusion of the vernacular with the glories of the melismatic tradition.

Adam's chants are new compositions in a traditional style. I believe there is also room for direct developments of the traditional chants, adapted to vernacular texts in manner that is sensitive both to the language and the melismatic original, without slavishly attempting to reproduce its every note. I am beginning to experiment with this, and have reached the stage where I have begun to commit ideas to paper, but am not yet satisfied that they have reached a publishable state. We will, however, sing one such exploration on Sunday evening at the Offertory, and I attach it here as a suggestion of what might be done.