Square Notes: The Sacred Music Podcast

Starting from the impact of a post-war style of academic training on his compositional voice through his search for a greater capacity for expression in the use of tonality, Dr. Frank La Rocca narrates the journey he took from the influences of the severe style cultivated in universities to the freedom he experienced in the strictures of writing a cappella choral music. Accompanying this path was his reversion to the Catholic faith, and the possibilities opened up by writing sacred choral music, leading to what many listeners will recognize in the style of Dr. La Rocca's most recent Masses.  Find out more about Dr. La Rocca's work here: https://www.franklarocca.com/ Learn more about Dr. La Rocca's masses here: https://benedictinstitute.org/ Buy the recent #1 release of Dr. La Rocca's Mass of the Americas here: https://listn.fm/laroccamass/?mc_cid=0cb9d5c000&mc_eid=7669693fa1 Learn more about the composition seminar Dr. La Rocca will teach this summer, or the other classes of the Catholic Institute of Sacr

His Excellency, Stephen J. Lopes, Bishop of the Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter and Chairman of the USCCB's Committee on Divine Worship, offers reflections on the work of God in the sacred liturgy, the relationship of artistic beauty to the truths of the Catholic faith and a life of charity, as well as a bit about the formation of the Ordinariate's liturgical books.  Learn more about the Ordinariate and Bishop Lopes here: https://ordinariate.net/bishop-lopes. Learn more about the Catholic Institute of Sacred Music here: https://catholicinstituteofsacredmusic.org/.

Our Christmas gift to you is one of the most special interviews we've yet had the opportunity to present on this podcast. Naji Hakim joins us to discuss the impact of the sounds of his youth on his musical imagination, his training as a young musician, his study with Jean Langlais, succeeding to Olivier Messiaen's post at La Trinité, and his own work as an improviser and composer.  Learn more about Mr. Hakim here: https://www.najihakim.com/ And be sure to tune in to his excellent YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/uyiai Keep in touch with Dr. Donelson-Nowicka here: https://jenniferdonelson.com https://www.stpsu.edu/

When listing the most stressful jobs one can think, church musician doesn't immediately come to mind. Even so, there are a huge number of stressors that lead to frequent burnout and high turnover rates, impacting parish communities, and even the spiritual lives of musicians. Join Dr. Kensley Behel, an expert in musicians' health, as we discuss the roots of these problems and what musicians and pastors can do to avoid burnout.  Learn more about Dr. Behel here: https://www.kensleybehel.com/ Keep in touch with Dr. Donelson-Nowicka here: https://jenniferdonelson.com https://www.stpsu.edu/

Have you ever wondered where and how Western musical notation originated and developed? How did it affect the learning and teaching of music? What are the limitations and contributions of notation to how the music sounds? Join Dr. Thomas Forrest Kelly, the Morton B. Knafel Research Professor of Music at Harvard University and author of Capturing Music: The Story of Notation, for a fascinating interview. Buy Dr. Kelly's book here: https://wwnorton.com/books/Capturing-Music/  Learn more about Dr. Kelly here: https://medieval.fas.harvard.edu/people/thomas-forrest-kelly Keep in touch with Dr. Donelson-Nowicka here: https://jenniferdonelson.com https://www.stpsu.edu/

Looking for inspiration about how to improve lackluster liturgies in your Catholic school? Fr. Christopher Smith presents myriad ideas which instill the faith in families and children, give a strong structure to the school schedule and curriculum, and bring people into your Catholic community. Fr. Christopher Smith is pastor of Prince of Peace Catholic Church in Taylors, South Carolina. Check out what’s happening at Prince of Peace here: https://princeofpeacetaylors.org/ https://www.liturgicalartsjournal.com/2022/08/liturgical-arts-flourishing-at-prince.html https://www.facebook.com/princeofpeacetaylors Keep in touch with Dr. Donelson-Nowicka here: https://jenniferdonelson.com https://www.stpsu.edu/

How did the Franciscan missionaries of California engage the people they were evangelizing through music? How did their training in music enable their missionary work? What were the forms of music the missionaries used? What were the artistic cultures of the California missions like? Join us as we discuss these questions with Dr. Craig H. Russell, author of From Serra to Sancho: Music and Pageantry in the California Missions (Oxford Univ. Press). Check out Dr. Russell's book here: https://oxford.universitypressscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195343274.001.0001/acprof-9780195343274?rskey=yAse1t&result=1 Listen to Chanticleer sing mission music in their collaborative album with Dr. Russell, Mission Road: https://music.apple.com/us/album/mission-road-our-journey-back/288152035 

A leading expert in the work and approach to singing chant of Dom Eugène Cardine, Dr. Edward Schaefer (Collegium Sanctorum Angelorum) joins us to discuss the basics of semiology, the older styles of neumes, and how reading from these neumes can inform our singing of Gregorian chant. To learn more about Dr. Schaefer, please visit: https://www.edwardschaefer.net Check out Dr. Schaefer's online introduction to semiology here: https://gregoriansemiology.com Discover the Collegium Sanctorum Angelorum here: https://www.the-collegium.org Sign up for the CMAA's Sacred Music Colloquium, to be held at the Collegium in Hagerstown, MD here: http://musicasacra.com/colloquium Learn more about Dr. Schaefer's summer class at St. Joseph's Seminary here: http://dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes 

What are the limits of music in conveying meaning? Can one "do theology" musically? Join Dr. Robert Sholl (Royal Academy of Music) as we discuss Olivier Messiaen's search for a musical language which could convey the truths of the Catholic faith. Learn more about Dr. Sholl here: https://www.ram.ac.uk/people/robert-sholl Check out Dr. Sholl's work on Messiaen here: https://www.cambridge.org/gb/academic/subjects/music/twentieth-century-and-contemporary-music/messiaen-studies?format=HB&isbn=9780521839815 or here: https://www.routledge.com/Messiaen-the-Theologian/Shenton/p/book/9781138248014 To find out more about or register for summer classes at St. Joseph's Seminary, please visit: https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes

Focusing firstly on the Psalms of Sunday vespers, Dr. Mahrt takes us through a tour of the Psalms and their antiphon pairings and how this helps us to understand the typological fulfillment of the Psalms in Christ, as well as the feasts of the liturgical year. We discuss the four senses of scripture and how singing the Divine Office opens up the meaning of the scriptures. To learn how to sing Gregorian chant, check out the Principles of Chant course this summer at St. Joseph's Seminary: https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes

What can a parish music director take away from historical research in terms of performance practice? Join Prof. Charles Weaver (Juilliard, CUNY) as we discuss phrasing, rhythm, vibrato, pitch, tuning, and other issues which inform the performance of Renaissance polyphony.  To learn more about Prof. Weaver's work, please visit: https://www.juilliard.edu/music/faculty/weaver-charles To download the app Prof. Weaver mentions, click here: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pitch-trainer-harmonize/id965614965 To find out more about Prof. Weaver's summer class at St. Joseph's Seminary, please go to: https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes

We can learn so much from listening to the experiences of others, and this is particularly true when it comes to starting a new job, or just getting started in a professional field. Join us for this episode as we discuss training and formative experiences that help church musicians start off on the right foot in a new job or in the field more generally. Samuel Rowe is here to discuss his journey to Catholicism, things he learned in college and grad school that were important in his development, and how he has been working to invest his time and talents as the director of music at the Basilica of the Assumption in Baltimore.  To learn more about Sam's work, please visit: https://www.americasfirstcathedral.org/music/ To find out more about summer sacred music study at St. Joseph's Seminary, check out: https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes

The search for new styles or canons of artistic expression in the liturgy throughout the 19th and 20th centuries produced varied results, with some styles possessing little beauty or appropriateness for the sacred liturgy, while others captured something timeless and beautiful while utilizing a modern artistic grammar. The Beuron School, centered at a German Benedictine abbey, is a representative of the latter, and produced artworks of enduring beauty. Join Emily Sottile, the director of the Sacred Space Studio at Evergreene Architectural Arts, as we explore the ideas and canons of Desiderius Lenz and Gabriel Wüger, the founders of the Beuronese School.  To learn more about Emily's work, please visit: https://evergreene.com/people/emily-sottile/ To learn more about the summer sacred music program at St. Joseph's Seminary, go to: https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes

Looking for some great new repertoire for your parish choir? Join Dr. Aaron James from the Toronto Oratory as we discuss resources and tips for building up a body of pieces that your choir can sing well, and his suggestions for a few lesser-known motets that work well with amateur choirs.  Check out the YouTube page of the Toronto Oratory here: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheTorontoOratory  Learn more about Dr. James' music program here: https://oratory-toronto.org/holy-family-parish/choirs/ Find out more about summer sacred music courses at St. Joseph's Seminary here: https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes

Secular Music at Mass? In looking at how to deal with this issue now, it's important to understand how the Church and composers dealt with this issue in the past. Join us for an interview with Prof. Andrew Kirkman (University of Birmingham, Binchois Consort) as we look at the use of secular tunes in polyphonic masses of the 15th and early 16th centuries. Learn more about Prof. Andrew Kirkman here: https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/music/kirkman-andrew.aspx Check out the Binchois Consort here: https://www.binchoisconsort.com Find out more about the summer music program at St. Joseph's Seminary here: https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes

Are you interested in planning a really great event to introduce people to sacred music? This is the episode for you. We talk with Janet Gorbitz, General Manager of the Church Music Association of America, about the big idea behind an event, as well as the nuts and bolts of planning a successful workshop.  Janet's project-planning booklet: https://sacredmusicpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Chant-Workshop-Planning.pdf   Check out the website of the CMAA here: https://musicasacra.com   To learn more about summer sacred music courses at St. Joseph's Seminary, please visit https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes 

Join us for our season opener as we discuss leadership, service, formation, and what the word "pastoral" really means with the Archbishop of San Francisco, Salvatore J. Cordileone.  For more information on the graduate summer sacred music program at St. Joseph's Seminary, visit https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes

What is the fundamental experience of music? How does a notated piece of music relate to that fundamental experience? What are the limits of musical notation in conveying sound? Why does all this matter for the Catholic musician? We look at these topics and more with Charles Weaver, who teaches in the historical performance program at Juilliard.  To learn more about the class Professor Weaver is teaching this summer, Medieval & Renaissance Music Notation Practicum, please visit: https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes

Join us for some good, old-fashioned love stories, the history behind finding a spouse in a Catholic choir, inspiration for lay vocations and family life, and the role singing can play in it all.  Check out summer sacred music study at St. Joseph's Seminary: https://www.dunwoodie.edu/dunwoodie-music-classes Take a look at the mission and work of the New York Metropolitan Catholic Chorale: https://nymcc.org  

We look to a great Spanish saint for inspiration in his holy life, devotion to the Most Blessed Sacrament, and his care for the sacred liturgy and its accompanying sacred arts. St. Juan de Ribera (1532–1611) is an inspiring example of establishing foundations which take seriously the role of beauty in cultivating worship in the faithful, and inspiring them to love Christ in all they do, and especially in the Eucharist. Join us for this conversation with James Monti, a true devotee of this great saint, as we look for inspiration in prayer and patronage of the sacred arts. Articles about St. Juan de Ribera: https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.14315/arg-2004-0108/html https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=4541898 Books about St. Juan de Ribera: https://www.google.com/books/edition/El_B_Juan_de_Ribera_y_el_R_Colegio_de_Co/FmkAAAAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0 https://www.google.com/books/edition/Vida_del_beato_Juan_de_Ribera/eFmn2xPm3OUC?hl=en&gbpv=0 Writings of St. Juan de Ribera: https://w