Antiphon Verses
  • Hi Friends,

    I understand that the Antiphons are found in the Roman Missal. However, where does one find the designated Antiphon verses?

    Thank you
  • Alonso,

    There is a book available here called the Psalmorum which has verses for the Introit and the Communion.

    There is a separate book, also available here, called the Offertoriale which contains the verses of each Offertory.

    At this point I'm unaware that Graduals, Tracts and Alleluias have other verses than those printed in the Liber Usualis.


    If you're looking for Antiphons in the Ordinary Form, that's a different kettle of fish, and it will require help from someone else.

  • If you are asking about sung antiphons, those are not in the Roman Missal. Those in the Missal are to be spoken by the priest only at non-sung masses. The sung antiphons are found in the Graduale Romanum. This, of course, is in Latin, which is fine if you have an EF or Latin OF mass. For English masses there are several English versions of the Graduale, notably by Palmer-Burgess, or the more modern American Gradual, by Bruce Ford. Both can be accessed on line. Also, several scholars, Fr Columba Kelley, for one, have published only Introits and Communions with verses.

    As for the verses, the Graduale Romanun cites verses which can be sung with the Communion Antiphon. There are, also, several sources for Offertory verses - as CG-Z cites just above here.
  • smvanroodesmvanroode
    Posts: 966
    LATIN
    The psalm verses to the Mass antiphons are found in the Graduale Romanum 1974. The verses of the offertory antiphons can be found in Offertoriale 1935. The psalm verses of the communion antiphons are also found in Communio.
    Another valuable source containing psalm verses, with restored melodies, is Graduale restitutum and Offertoriale restitutum cum versiculis.

    ENGLISH
    An overview of the English antiphons and their psalm verses can be found in either the Processional 2012 or Antiphonary 2010.
    These are only texts. Melodies with psalm verses can be found in many editions like English Proper Chants (Ainsly), Lumen Christi Missal (Bartlett) or Columba Kelly's Entrance en Communion Antiphons.
  • Jérôme
    Posts: 29
    Hi,

    BTW, the 2002 missal does not provide offertory antiphons. Any reason why?

    So I guess there are english translations of offertory antiphons in the Simple English Propers come from the Graduale Romanum, right?
  • davido
    Posts: 873
    Jerome, that is correct.

    Proper of the Mass, by Samuel Weber, is a great place to start. Has antiphons in graded levels of difficulty and psalm verses for all antiphons.
    The antiphons in the Weber book are not from the Graduale, but from the missal and will correspond to the texts in your missallettes.
  • Jérôme
    Posts: 29
    @davido

    It looks like offertory antiphons in the Weber book come from the 1974 graduale romanum.
  • Andrew_Malton
    Posts: 1,156
    There were never Offertory antiphons in the Pauline novus ordo Missal, because those are never said by the priest, but only sung by the schola or choir or people. For various reasons the more recent books were purposely divided into volumes: for readers, the priest, the schola. A little like the division of books in, say, mediaeval cathedrals.. but unlike the less recent Missal of the traditional Mass, which contains everything because the priest says everything even when it's also being sung.

    Also note: the psalm verse references in the Graduale 1974 are reproduced from the official book for sung Masses, namely Ordo Cantus Missae. In those books, the psalm and verse numbers, and line letters (eg “Ps 26:9ab”, from yesterday) refer to the psalter of the Nova Vulgata. It's far from easy to translate those to references in another Bible or Psalter, be it Latin or English.

    The choices of psalm verse for the antiphons is said (by Psalmorum) to be iuxta codices antiquos: but no other authority is offered. I would like to know how normative those choices are and how often they are evident in the tradition: but I don't know.
    Thanked by 1bhcordova
  • Thank you for the great and informative responses!
    I'm searching in particular for Entrance Antiphon verses in order to set them to music. I will definitely explore all of your resources in order to further expand my familiarity with the Antiphon.