Abbat Bourigaud Challenges Dr. Charles Weaver!
Father De Santi opined that “Solesmes had rid themselves of Pothier by giving him an abbey”—to which Pope Pius X responded that it amounted to “a small compensation.”
Gregorian Rhythm Wars
Christmas • “Approached By A Famous Musicologist”
If you’re somebody who likes grandiloquence, you’ll prefer the description by Dr. Ellis.
“Liber Usualis” • Jeff’s Proposed Modifications
In 1957, the Abbey of Solesmes publicly claimed copyright over “the rhythmic signs 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗵𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁.”
(14 Examples) • Jeff Ostrowski’s Artistic “Credo”
Including several hymns eminently suitable for the feast of Christ the King.
PDF • Draft Booklet “Couture Chant” (255 Pages)
This is very much a “work in progress”…
“Did One Man Single-Handedly Sabotage the Gregorian Restoration?” • (Part 2 of 2)
Will anyone step forward to defend this?
Are We Done? • “Gregorian Chant Rhythm Wars”
It’s been decided to bring that particular series to a close. However…
Gregorian Rhythm Wars • “Godspeed!” (9 Oct 2023)
“It is all too easy to be lured away from a common-sense interpretation of the oldest sources by the siren song of beautiful, polished performances according to some other style.” —Patrick Williams
Vollaerts Revisited
“The time is ripe to reconsider the contributions of Fr. Jan Vollaerts to Gregorian musicology.” —Patrick Williams
Gregorian Rhythm Wars • “Nuances of Nuances” (28 Sep 2023)
“Reading deliberate ‘nuances’ into normal variations in handwriting is a solution in search of a problem.” —Patrick Williams
A Brief Addendum
In praise of the Cardine approach to chanting, with some further thoughts on pluralism and correctness in performance practice.
Some Questions Answered
Some very quick answers to questions posed by Patrick Williams.
Concerning Alterations to the Vatican Edition
“I cannot imagine any justification for making such an alteration and still claiming that one’s edition corresponds to the Vaticana.” —Patrick Williams
Gregorian Chant Introit • (Sung According to the Official Rhythm of the Catholic Church)
This coming Sunday is the 17th Sunday after Pentecost (EF).
Enter the Gregorian Rhythm Wars
My goal is to clarify and illumine what I believe exactly is at stake when we debate the rhythm in chant. I shall first attempt to summarize the core arguments that each of the main authors in this blog series use.