Dear parishioners,

As we enter the Season of Lent, the following changes in the liturgical music will occur: we will return to the Mass setting of the Ordinary of the Mass that we used during the Season of Advent namely, Mass of the Great Prophet. As a reminder, we owe this wonderful setting to Fr. Michael Dominic O’Connor, O.P., and to his source of inspiration the oratorio Elijah by the great Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, a 19^th c. convert, whose name we most widely associate with the “Wedding March” but whose influence at the time shaped the music not only in his homeland, Germany, but also in Great Britain where he was immensely popular and enjoyed the personal patronage of Queen Victoria.

Aside from the tradition to use a different Mass setting, to mark the penitential character of the Season, a few other changes in the liturgy would occur that affect the use of music. First, we will not be singing the Gloria, which will be used, recited or sung, only for a Solemnity if it falls on a weekday. The Acclamation before the Gospel that we usually associate with the Alleluia chant will use the text “Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ” instead and its respective melody. And finally, but not of a lesser importance, the instruments will be used only to accompany the singing. This means that just as we fast from certain foods or habits during Lent, we will “fast” from instrumental (piano or organ) preludes, postludes or meditation before, during and after Mass. One Sunday, Laetare Sunday (the Fourth Sunday of Lent) allows us to break this last "fast". If you were looking forward to hearing the organ by itself before Easter, stay tuned for the somber prelude by Bach in which the different voices, or melodies, in the organ weave and intersect in a way that creates an image of the Cross through sound.

As we join together on the Lenten journey, our songs will be guided by the overarching themes of each Sunday from the First through the Fifth Sunday: the response to temptation; the Transfiguration; the Water of Life; the Good Shepherd (Laetare Sunday); Out of the Depths. As the hymn choices reflect these themes, I would like to invite you to listen to one song for each of the Sundays here:

Led by the Spirit: https://youtu.be/BDeUg11DuW8?si=B4_MfpPNkgBzpCD6

Be Thou MY Vision: https://youtu.be/EOKaq8m3faU?si=VgVuQA_e3o6TGWV9

As the Deer Longs: https://youtu.be/7hRpw6nSyII?si=fUkGUm_NwArOhOvb

The King of Love My Shepherd Is: https://youtu.be/n55FvyGQ9W0?si=Vn6uN5m4Kgu-H1-7

I Know That My Redeemer Lives: https://youtu.be/m4XlRnjqLM8?si=vdYDLzwqtScvSPj8

Finally, I would like to use the opportunity that in our secular calendars, February is Black History Month, and acknowledge the relevance of the musical inspiration that the Catholic church owes to the African American song tradition. Next to Precious Lord, Take My Hand, and There Is a Balm in Gilead stands Lift Every Voice and Sing, which was liturgically fitting just a couple of weeks ago, and here I would like to leave you with this magnificent rendition of its most famous arrangement by Ronald M. Carter, directed by the composer himself: https://youtu.be/uyZkRgQ4ZnQ?si=qlVD06LDmqGu_7qF

May we have a fruitful Lenten Season together!

Music Throughout the Mass 

Entrance Hymn:
Marks the beginning of the Mass and sets the tone for the liturgy.

Responsorial Psalm: 
A musical response to the Scripture reading, sung during the Liturgy of the Word. 

Gospel Acclamation: 
A sung response to the reading of the Gospel. 

Offertory Hymn: 
Sung during the preparation of the gifts for the Eucharistic prayer. 

Communion Hymn: 
Sung during the distribution of Holy Communion. 

Recessional Hymn: 
Sung as the congregation departs after the Mass. 

"Holy, Holy, Holy" and "Lamb of God": 
Specific parts of the Mass Ordinary that are sung by the choir or congregation.