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| Musical Musings: CNP Feedback |
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CNP Feedback - Entrance PsalmsThe "Feedback Box" on the CanticaNOVA Publications website has proven quite effective in promoting communications on a variety of subjects, and expressing concerns of liturgists and musicians. From time to time, we'll compile a few of these questions or comments and put them in public view, with the hope that others with similar concerns may benefit from their content.
Q. Dear CNP:
A. Dear Funeral Liturgist:
Your question concerning the appropriate psalm to use with the Entrance Antiphon (Introit) is very understandable. This area (the Propers of the Mass: Entrance, Offertory and Communion Antiphons) is one in which direction and materials are considerably lacking in the Sacramentary (the English translation by ICEL of the Missale Romanum). There is little indication about how the Entrance and Communion Antiphons are to be used, and no indication as to what psalm and verses should be sung between antiphon repetitions. Further, the Offertory Antiphons themselves were never even translated into English and are completely missing from the Sacramentary! There are ways, however, to correct these mistakes or oversights in the Sacramentary, but it requires considerable research and volumes that may not be available to every parish. There are three volumes that contain some or all of the Propers of the Mass, in addition to the Latin Missale Romanum:
1. The Graduale Romanum (using Gregorian chant in neums and Latin texts) offers:
2. The Graduale Simplex (using simpler chant and neums, with Latin texts) offers:
3. The Sacramentary (with no music at all) offers simply:
It's clear from the first two volumes that Psalm 65:2-5 should be used as the verses between the first antiphon, "Give them eternal rest..." One can easily chant these (using a psalm tone, Meinrad tone, Anglican chant, etc.) with the appropriate text from the New American Bible (or other approved translations). Noting which psalm verses are called for during the Entrance for various liturgies sounds like a good project for CNP, and we'll work on such a list to publish on our website. We did a similar list for the Offertory music — this was more imperative since even the Offertory Antiphons themselves are missing from the Sacramentary! It should also be mentioned that Dr. Paul Ford has completed a helpful volume called By Flowing Waters (available from Liturgical Press) which translates the Graduale Simplex into English, using modern musical notation. The Introit for the Funeral Mass is given as follows:
I hope this information is helpful. Keep checking the CNP site for an article that will list the psalms to be sung with each Sunday's Entrance Antiphon.
Gary Penkala See also: |
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