Sacred Music, 119.1, Spring 1992; The Journal of the Church Music Association of America

8/14/2019 Sacred Music, 119.1, Spring 1992; The Journal of the Church Music Association of America

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Cathedral of Mexico City SACRED MUSICVolume 119, Number 1, Spring 1992

FROM THE EDITORSNew Spain 3IMPROVISATION REMEMBEREDKaroly Kope 5

MUSIC FOR COLLEGIATE CHURCHES YESTERDAY AND TODAYDuane L.C.M. Galles 9ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS

Deryck Hanshell, S.J. 19OPEN FORUM 22

NEWS 24REVIEWS 25

CONTRIBUTORS 28


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SACRED MUSIC

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Continuation of Caecilia, published by the Society of St. Caecilia since 1874,an d The Catholic Choirmaster, published by the Society of St. Gregory ofAmerica since 1915. Published quarterly by the Church Music Association ofAmerica. Office of publications: 548 Lafond Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesota55103.Rev. Msgr. Richard J. Schuler, EditorRev. Ralph S. March, S.O. Cist.Rev.John BuchananHarold HughesdonWilliam P. MahrtVirginia A. SchubertCal StepanRev. Richard M. HoganMary Ellen StrappRev. Msgr. Richard J. Schuler548 Lafond Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55103Paul Salamunovich, 10828 Valley Spring Lane, N. Hollywood, Calif. 91602Paul Manz, 1700 E. 56th St., Chicago, Illinois 60637548 Lafond Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55103

Monsignor Richard J. SchulerGerhard TrackVirginia A. SchubertEarl D. HoganRev. Ralph S. March, S.O. Cist.Mrs. Donald G. VellekWilliam P. MahrtRev. Robert A. SkerisMembers in the Church Music Association of America includes a subscrip-tion to SACRED MUSIC. Voting membership is $12.50 annually; subscrip-tion membership is $10 annually; s tudent membership is $5.00 annually.Single copies are $3.00. Send applications and changes of address to SA-CRED MUSIC, 548 Lafond Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55103-1672.Make checks payable to Church Music Associat ion of America .Library of Congress catalog card num ber: 62-6712/MNSACRED MUSIC is indexed in the Catholic Periodical and Literature In-dex, Music Index, Music Article Guide, and Arts and Humanit ies Index.Cover: Christopher ColumbusCopyright by Church Music Association of America, 1991.ISSN: 0036-2255474960

SACRED MUSIC (ISSN 0036-2255) is published quarterly for $10 per year by the Church MusiAssociation of America, 548 Lafond Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesota 55103-1672. Second-class postagepaid at Saint Paul, Minnesota.Postmaster: Send address changes to SACRED MUSIC, 548 Lafond Avenue, Saint Paul, Minnesot55103-1672.


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FROM THE EDITORSNew Spain

1992 marks th e quincentennial of the landing on San Salvador of Chris topherCo lu m b u s and h i s men w ho crossed th e Atlantic on the Santa Maria, th e Pinta a n dthe Nina. It was O c to b e r 12, 1492, and the beginning of a most remarkable chain ofevents, resulting in religious, cultural, political an d economic achievements mostamaz ing in the i r magn i tude a n d surely a manifesta t ion of the in tervention of God inhuman affairs .The discovery of Amer ica and the subsequent conversion of the native peoples toChristianity, which lead to the adop t ion of Spanish culture a n d civilization in greatpa r t s of the western hemisphere , forms a t ru ly extraordinary page in the his tory ofthe Church. Within an extraordinari ly short per iod of t ime th e pagan ism a n d idola-try, and to a great degree th e suffering an d poverty that held th e hemisphere fo rcenturies were replaced with the grace of Go d, the Greco-Roman civi l izat ion broughtby th e Spaniards , a way of life preached by the Catholic Church which established

the human dignity of each person as a child of God. A melding of the Spanish,Portuguese a n d Indian peoples produced th e Latin American world that w e k n o wtoday. T h e scope of the project set in motion b y Columbus ' d iscovery is unbeliev-able .A mere forty years after th e arr ival of Co lu m b u s , o n December 9, 1531, theBlessed Virgin Mary appeared to Juan Diego a t Tepeyac a n d asked that th e b ishoperect a chapel there in her honor . T h e news of the appar i t ion and the devo t ion t o O u rLady of Guadalupe spread over all of South a n d Central America . T h e role of M a r yin extending th e Catholic faith to the native peoples through h er miraculous pic tureand the shrine forms a n integral part in the establishment of New Spain.Almost immediately th e hierarchical structure of the Church was put in place byRome and the Spanish monarchy. T h e dates of the founding of the dioceses through-out Central a n d South America show with what speed the evangelization w as takingplace: Santo Domingo (1511); San Juan de Puerto Rico (1511); Panama (1513);Santiago de Cuba (1522); Mexico City (1530); San Cris tobal de las Casas (1539);Lima (1541); Quito (1546); Asuncion in Paraguay (1547). In an age tha t h a d none ofthe marvels of modern communica t ions a n d t r anspor ta t ion , th e good news w a sspread over enormous dis tances and the roughest terrain with amazing rapidity. Toestablish with such speed both civil a n d ecclesiastical administrations in missionarylands so far removed from th e main bases of au thor i ty in Spain and in Rome isamaz ing . T h e diversity of cultures a n d languages among th e native populat ions, theinter-tribal warfare that w a s waged among them and the remoteness of their citiescause even greater wonderment at the wide dissemination of the Chris t ian message.

It is the h a n d of God at w o r k .Surely through the sixteenth a n d seventeenth centuries, following th e discovery b yColumbus, there were many things involving the greed an d cruelty that humanna tu re is capab le of . Individuals left marks of s h a m e b y their immoral conduct . T h eChristian ideal was no t always upheld in act even though th e Church continued topreach th e t ru th and t ry to establish th e practice of the Chris t ian message. For allthose w h o were guilty of wrong, there were many others w h o were heroes dedicatedto the spread of the gospel, th e teaching of Chris t ianity and the establishment of theCh u r c h . W h a t w as accomplished makes th e wrongs fade away in the m a g n i tu d e ofthe discovery and the spread of European civilization across the new continents .While th e Europeans brought their v ices a n d diseases with them, they brought alsothe glory of centuries of Catholic life, and the natives accepted i t and embraced i t . FROM THE EDITORS


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The spread of the faith in Central and South America equalled the miracle of theextension of the Christ ian message throughout the Mediterranean world of the firstChrist ian centuries.Unfortunately, error, misinformation, and even hatred have marred the historicalt reatments of Columbus and those who fol lowed him. A hat red for Rome and al lthings Catholic, carried on by prejudice directed toward Spain and her Catholicculture, was based in sixteenth-century Protestantism and later in eighteenth-centuryEnl ightenment , Masonry and most recent ly Communism in the upheaval of theSpanish Civil War in the 1930's. The contemporary expression of all those errors andhatred can be found in the movement called Liberation Theology, which is wide-spread throughout Lat in America today. The "black legends" cont inue and can befound in the opposit ion today to the celebration of the quincentennial of Columbus.Crit icism comes even from within Catholic circles. If one hates the Church, then themiraculous Christ ianization of America through the efforts of Spain and Portugalconsti tute a very un ha pp y event, one to be denied and opp ose d even by l ies. Withthe establishment of bishoprics and churches, the praise of God replaced the paganworship of false gods and idols carried on by many tribes including some that eveninvolved human sacrifice, often taking the l ives of thousands of innocent victims.But with the discovery, soon the Roman li turgy was celebrated everywhere inchurches buil t in the baroque style of the Spanish 18th century. The art and skil lsneeded to make vestments, to carry out the l i turgical ceremonies, to produce sculp-tures and paintings were quickly learned by native art ists. Even in writ ing poly-phonic music in the style of the t ime they proved to be very adept and creative.Throughout Lat in America the cathedrals and mission churches stand today astestimony to the degree of beauty and art that was achieved by the new Christiansthroughout the area. Vestments and vessels in si lver and gold are st i l l in existenceshowing the skil ls of the art isans. While l ife within the terri tory of the United Statesin those centuries was t ruly savage and barbarous, the nat ions of Hispanidad werefounding universit ies, bui lding cathedrals and composing p olyph onic mu sic equal tothe great schools of composit ion in Europe. Musicians were brought from Europeand musical establishments were set up in the cathedrals and major churches. Choirschools educated boys, and church music became an important part of l i fe . Com-munities waited for the ships from Old Spain to bring news but also to deliver thelatest composit ions from music publishers in Europe.

The fame of the musical l ife of Latin America is today being rediscovered throughthe work of musicologists both in the United States and in Latin America. Not onlythe cathedrals and major churches have archives of music used in the l i turgy, buteven the remote missionary stations streching north into California, Texas, NewMexico and Arizona were the scene of musical activity. What the missionaries wereable to accomplish musically with their new Christ ians is truly wonderful.The southwestern states of our country have a great Hispanic tradit ion and cul-tu re . Appreciation of their Spanish roots is growing daily as the Hispanic populationgrows and scholarship reveals the glory of the centuries of discovery. Efforts areconstant ly being made to use Hispanic cul ture in archi tecture, paint ing and otherarts in the service of religion. But what about the glories of music that date back tothe seventeenth and eighteenth centuries that unfortunately are not being employedin today's l i turgies for Spanish-speaking American Catholics? To use mariachi musicin the l i turgy is not only an abuse of the sacredness of the Mass by bringing insecular music, but i t is an offense against a people whose musical inheritance in-cludes some of the finest musical art that any age has produced for the worship ofGod. Why don't we revive the singing of the great polyphonic masterpieces writ tenin this hemisph ere for use here and leave the maria chi tune s for the secular events for

FROM THE EDITORS w hic h the y we re co m po se d? R.J.S.


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Altar of Coromoto, Venezuela

IMPROVISATION REMEMBEREDI was recently asked if I would ever consider becoming once again an activeCatholic church organist if conditions were right (fine organ, beautiful liturgy, goodmusic). My answer was: it is very unlikely. For, even in the best imaginable scenarioin today's liturgical world, the organist can no longer apply his talent to the fullest:there is no room left for serious improvisation.Few realize how impo rtant improvising can be for the organist and for the liturgy,and few are aware that the organist, unlike other musicians, must also be an impro-

viser. The special character and format of the Roman Catholic liturgy had fosteredimprovisation as a serious art form. Playing beautifully from a printed page was notenough. There were moments during the proceedings when, to maintain continuityor make transitions, the organist was required to fill gaps with appropriate sounds,sounds just long enough (or short enough) for the occasion and suited for themoment. These were the organist's moments of prayer in sound, and it meant verymuch to him to let his participation adorn the ceremony w ith phrases echoing w hatwas just prayed or meditating on what was to follow.We organists practice and perfect many a beautiful or flashy piece, but except aspreludes or postludes, such pieces are rarely well-suited for playing during Mass.They may be too long and must be brought to an abrupt end, or they may be tooshort and cause a hiatusunless we go on adding meaningless coda upon coda.Rarely is such a "repertory piece" quite ideal. It tends to stand out as an "insert" like a concert piece intruding on prayer. A more appropriate solution is for theorganist to improvise if he knows how. I am sure that many an organist will testifythat there is greater artistic and religious satisfaction in improvising as part of theliturgy, than there is in parading a virtuoso repertory at a concert. The latter is "artfor art's sake," the former is prayer. We each partake in prayer in our own manner.The organist does it when praying in improvised sounds. Thus, a humble echo of thehymn just heard can often be more prayerful and more appropriate than a master-piece by Bach that has nothing to do with the truth of the moment.Unfortunately, recent liturgical trends have greatly restricted the need or the possi-bility for serious improvisation. Former silences have disappeared. Even some of the IMPROVISATION


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remaining s i lences are violently invaded. Communion is one occasion offered theorganist for beautiful music-making (or improvising), but there seems to be a com-pulsion to force people to sing even then (when most can't sing with the host in theirmouths and would ra ther say grace) .I wonder i f the reformers knew that they were thus banishing improvisat ion. Theelimination of the "silent Mass" (or low Mass) spelled the end of all serious organ

playing during M ass. Wh ethe r i t wa s entire ly si lent or in terspersed with hy mn s, thatceremony provided an occasion for adorning the Mass with musical decorat iveelements from the organ. The high Mass, in its greater festivity, was the morechallenging occasion for the improviser. He could elaborate on musical themes fromthe proper of the day during silences, and he had at least two parts of the Mass whenhe could truly play: offer tory and communion. (He was a lso expected to improvisefestively at one point of the Magnificat during solemn vespers .) These opportunit iesno longer exis t . Not only does the present format of the Mass provide very l i t t leoccasion or incentive for improvisation, there is also a tendency to have somethinggoing on at all times and at all cost. Even communion, as mentioned before, is oftenfilled with forced singing of hymns.As one groomed in a different tradition, I, naturally, lament the disappearance ofwhat used to make the organist 's calling very special. Think of it: what good would itdo today if a Franck, or a Bruckner, or Messiaen or Dupre (not to mention Fresco-baldi and Bach) became organis t in one of our churches? Where would be theglorious improvisat ions for which they are s t i l l remembered and which most proba-bly contained the seeds for many, if not most, of their known organ works? For I amquite convinced that many a well-known masterpiece or iginated as an improvisat ionwhich was la ter ref ined and writ ten down. The organis t-composer ' s bat t leground isnot h is desk at home but h is console in church, f rom where he harvests happyinspirat ions which he la ter t ransforms into f in ished composit ions .I have heard it said that if one wanted truly to understand the music of Messiaen,one should hear him improvise during services at the Church of La Trinite architec-

ture and liturgy ceased to be distinct but became one prayerful essence; Messiaen'soften enigmatic music revealed itself entirely as the mystic prayer in sound that itw a s . I have also heard i t sa id that , though Dupre 's improvisat ions a t concerts werestunning , the th ing to do wa s to hear h im improvise during the Magnificat at vespersin his ow n chu rch (Saint Sulpice , Paris) . I was never m oved by Dupre 's exhibit ionis-tic improvisations at concerts, though they were impressively well-crafted. Yet I wasoften moved during Mass, or vespers , on hearing able organis ts pray extemporane-ously in sound, not by showing off as is done at concerts, but through prayerfulcommentaries on the l i turgical proceedings. Such improvisat ions, when successful ,possess a freshness and sincerity that can raise them to the level of the best composedmusic . Occurr ing when i t does and inspired by the l i turgical moment, a good im-provisat ion becomes more "functional" and therefore more appropria te than anextraneous "masterpiece."

Not all are gifted improvisers, and not all the gifted possess the techniques or thediscipl ine to improvise well , for improvisat ion is nothing other than composing ex-tempore, i .e . , on the spur of the moment. An improvised piece is jus t anothercom posit ion, with the difference that i t was not prem edita ted or improved at le isure .It is like an improvised speech: it must make sense, be grammatically and syntacti-cal ly correct , and i t must be repeatable , though not verbatim. If you can ' t rememberwhat you just finished saying (condensing it if necessary), then what you said madeno sense. The same is t rue of improvisat ion.All organis ts had to be improvisers , even if some so-cal led improvisat ion was noIMPROVISATION m ore tha n "messing aro un d" at the key boa rd, wi th per hap s one foot stuck on a peda l


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an d sen se l e s s ly b o r in g ch o r d s g o in g o n f o rev e r . T h a t , o f co u r se , is n o t im p r o v i s in g .I t i s r a th e r l ik e si ll y ch a t t e r w i th o u t r h y m e o r r ea so n . T o th e m u s ica l ly sen s i t i v e ,l i s t en in g to t h a t was p u r e t o r tu r e , an d th e o n ly g o o d th a t m ay co m e f r o m th ep o ss ib l e d em ise o f im p r o v i sa t io n w i l l b e t h e d i sap p ea r an ce o f su ch in ep t p l ay in g . Bu tsuch a ga in wo ul d har d ly jus t i fy a muc h grea ter loss . (Poor imp rov is ing i s l ike ab o r i n g se r m o n : j u s t b ecau se n o t ev e r y p r eac h e r i s a C ice ro o r a De m o s th e n es , d o es i tf o l lo w th a t t h e a r t o f o r a to r y sh o u ld b e b an i sh ed ? )S in ce im p r o v i s in g i s t h e sam e a s co m p o s in g ex - t em p o r e , i t f o l l o ws th a t t h o sewish in g to im p r o v i se m u s t f i r s t l e a r n h o w to co m p o se . T h a t d o es n o t m ean th a t t h eyh av e to b e co m p o se r s . Few a r e b o r n w i th a t a l en t f o r co m p o s in g , y e t m an y h av e ag i f t fo r improv is ing . Tra in ing can educate the g i f ted to do wi thou t paper and penci l( an d e r a se r ) wh a t ev e r y se r io u s m u s ic s tu d en t l e a r n s i n co u r se s o f t h eo r y an d h a r -m o n y an d co u n te r p o in t an d m u s ica l f o r m . P r o f i c i en cy co m es w i th p r ac t i c e . T r a in in gb eg in s w i th g a in in g f lu en cy a t f i g u r ed b a ss r ea l i z a t io n a t t h e k ey b o a r d ( n o t o np ap e r ! ) , w i th a l l t h e r u l e s o f g o o d v o ice l e ad in g , e t c . o b se r v ed . T h a t i s f o l lo wed b yth e p r ac t i c e o f p u t t i n g to g e th e r sh o r t p h r a se s wh ich o n e m u s t b e ab l e t o r em em b eran d to d u p l i ca t e v e r b a t im . As f ac i li t y d ev e lo p s , sh o r t e r co m p o s i t i o n s a r e " in v en ted "an d p r ac t i c ed . I n t r o d u c in g co u n te r p o in t an d v en tu r in g in to l a r g e r f o r m s i s t h e f i n a ls t e p . Al l t h i s r eq u i r e s a l o n g ap p r en t i ce sh ip an d ex p e r t g u id an ce , an d i t p r e su p p o sest ech n ica l m as t e r y o f t h e i n s t r u m en t . A l th o u g h so m e m u s ic sch o o l s p u t g r ea t em p h a -s is o n im p r o v i s a t io n f o r o r g an i s t s ( Pa r i s Co n se r v a to i r e ) , n o t a l l p r o f i c i en t o r g an i s t sb eco m e n o tab le im p r o v i se r s a f t e r a l l , n o t a l l o f u s a r e co m p o se r s in pectore b u tth ey b eco m e a t l e a s t g o o d t r ad esm en wh o h an d le ev en u n d i s t i n g u i sh ed im p r o v i sa -t ions cor rec t ly .

For the o rgan is t who had no g i f t fo r improv is ing and who s t i l l needed to f i l l inwi th sounds f rom the o rgan , there ex is ted a vas t l i te ra tu re o f o rgan p ieces wr i t ten fo rth a t v e r y p u r p o se . Cesa r F r an ck ' s LOrganiste i s a g o o d ex am p le . T h o s e f am i l ia r o n lywi th F r an ck ' s l a r g e r o r g an wo r k s w i l l b e su r p r i sed to d i sco v e r t h e se m o d es t l i t t l ep ieces a r ranged in d i f fe ren t keys and des t ined fo r var ious par ts o f the Mass . Franckd id no t consider i t benea th h imsel f to he lp ou t the humbler o rgan is t in smal lch u r ch es b y wr i t i n g th e se d e l ig h t f u l l i t t l e p i ece s w i th o u t o b l ig a t e p ed a l an d p l ay ab lea l so o n th e h a r m o n iu m . I t i s o b v io u s t h a t in d o in g so , F r an ck was co m m i t t i n g top ap e r so m e o f h i s o wn im p r o v i sa t io n s . M an y o f h i s f av o r i t e m e lo d ic t u r n s an dh a r m o n ie s k eep r eap p ea r in g in p i ece a f t e r p i ece , an d th e ch a r m in g t r ea tm en t h e g iv e sto we l l - k n o wn h y m n s o r n o e l s b e t r ay s h i s j o y a t "p l ay in g w i th a sea so n a l h y m n . "

I m e n t io n ed F r an ck , b u t t h e r e i s a h o s t of m i n o r co m p o s e r s wh o p r o v id ed n u m -ber less shor te r p ieces fo r the use descr ibed . They were the o rgan is t ' s vade mecuman d co u ld b e f o u n d in m o s t o r g an lo f t s .

T o d ay we a r e so m ewh a t sn o b b i sh , an d u n le s s we p l ay Bach ( o r s t i l l e a r l i e r co m -p o se r s i f we a r e r ea l sn o b s ) , o r u n l e s s we p l ay v i r tu o i s t i c o r g an m u s ic , we th in ko u r se lv e s u n w o r t h y o f o u r p r o f e s s io n . T h a t i s a f a l la cy an d a d an g e r o u s v i ew . Af t e ral l , most o f those who hear us p lay care no th ing fo r Bach and even less fo r Buxte-h u d e . Bu t we o r g an i s t s sh o u ld ca r e v e r y m u ch ab o u t h o w we r each th em an d e l ev a t eth em in t h e i r p r ay e r f u l m o o d . T h e r e i s , t h e r e f o r e , r o o m f o r so m e th in g o th e r t h an th eg r ea t e s t m as t e r p i ece s ( wh ich a r e f o r t h e m o s t p a r t i n ap p r o p r i a t e d u r in g M ass ) , an dwe can f a l l b ack o n th a t wea l th o r m in o r co m p o s i t i o n s b y m in o r ( an d so m e n o t - so -m in o r ) co m p o se r s , wr i t t en e sp ec i a ll y fo r t h o se am o n g u s w h o ca n n o t o r p r e f e r n o t t oi m p r o v i s e .

T r ad i t i o n a l ly t h e o r g an i s t was a l r ea d y t ra in ed in co m p o s i t i o n . M an y c o m p o se r swh o se n am es a r e f am i l i a r t o a l l we r e a l so o r g an i s t s a t so m e p o in t ( y o u n g Bee th o v enin Bonn) o r a l l the i r l ives (Franck , Reger ) . In read ing the b iograph ies o f famouscom pos ers w e o f ten lear n tha t they rece ived the i r ear ly t ra in ing f rom so me fo rgo t ten IMPROVISATION


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organist who nonetheless, was the best-trained musician in town. The complexityand seriousness of the organist's profession required complete musicianship. Thatexplains why to this day many conservatories require that organists also go througha rigorous training in composition. For an organist thus trained, becoming a goodimproviser in only a matter of practice.Mastering the techniques of improvised composing will not make one a composer,no more than a command of English makes one a writer. But it will enable the giftedto produce passable results. Most talented persons can sit at the keyboard and "playaround," i.e., improvise after a fashion. Germans call it phantasieren (to fantasize).That is not true improvisation ye t. It is a sort of musical "day dreaming" that takesyou wherever the momentary impulse leads. Harnessing such musical fantasy andcoming up w ith a true improvised composition is a different art. I am sure that theteen-age boy Beethoven did better than just "fantasize" when he made his mark onMozart, and Bach was by no means letting his imagination run wild when hestunned King Frederic II of Prussia with the fugue he improvised on the royalsubject: a fugue cannot be the result of loose fantasy. It is too complex for that.If improvisation is to survive in the Catholic tradition, then those in charge shouldconsider how important it is to make room for it in the liturgy by allowing it toregain its rightful place. For those desiring to be initiated into the craft the method isclear, although the path is long and arduous. Dupre's method in improvisation (twovolumes) spells out the step-by-step procedures, although that particular method israther forbidding. But the principle involved is quite simple: re-learn all you learnedin theory and composition by starting all over again at the keyboard and withoutpaper and pencil. Needless to say, you will need the supervision of a teacher or tutorwho will point out what you are doing wrong (e.g., bad voice leading, unbalancedphrases, illogical modulations, etc.) and who will assist by showing alternatives.To end with the question posed at the start: would I consider returning to be aCatholic organist? I'm afraid I would feel out of place in an environment that has notonly anathematized all that was traditional, that has not only buried our greatmusical heritage by abandoning Latin, but that has also made it impossible for theorganist to contribute the most precious thing he had: his prayer expressed in im-provisation. Knowingly or not, the so-called reformers have transformed the formerorganist into a mere accompanist or a grinder-out of preludes and postludes.*KAROLY KOPE

*We must not confuse the improvisation discussed here with what is often referred to asimprovisation in jazz. Improvisation in jazz (or by Hungarian Gypsy bands) is more likeimprovised variations on existing music (with melody and harmony and basic structurealready given). It is not the inventing of anything new -which could never be done by an en tireband. Improvised flourishes on a known tune are more like improvised cadenzas. They arenot the extemporaneous composing of new music (with only a theme given).

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MUSIC FOR THE COLLEGIATE CHURCHYESTERDAY AND TODAYT H E B A TT LE A G A I N S T T H E C A N O N S

Ch u r ch m u s ic o wes a g r ea t d eb t t o ch ap te r s o f c an o n s . Can o n s we r e o n ce g r an df ig u r e s i n m an y a l o ca l ch u r ch an d th e i r m u s ic m a tch ed th e i r g r an d eu r . Ca th ed r a lcan o n s we r e o n ce l i k en ed to ca r d in a l s . I n d eed , so m e wer e so ca l l ed an d a t l e a s t t h ecan o n s o f t h e p a t r i a r ch a l c a th ed r a l o f L i sb o n lo o k ed th e p a r t , f o r t h ey we r e p r iv i -l eg ed to we a r r ed ca s so ck s . E v en th o se ca t h ed r a l c an o n s l e s s g r an d ly a t t i r ed inca sso ck s o r m o ze t t a s o f p u r p l e r e sem b led ca r d in a l s i n f u n c t io n i f n o t i n ex ac t ap -p ea r an ce . Fo r i n cen tu r i e s p a s t c a th ed r a l c an o n s f o r m ed th e e l ec to r a l co l l eg e wh ose l ec ted th e d io ce san b i sh o p a s we l l a s t h e p r e sb y te r a l s en a t e wh ich ad v i sed h im . T h eb ishop genera l ly cou ld no t ac t l ic i t ly on major mat te r s wi thou t f i r s t a t leas t so l ic i t ingth e can o n s ' ad v ice . I n so m e m a t t e r s ch ie fly t h e a l i en a t io n o f p r o p e r ty h e ev enneeded the i r consen t to ac t va l id ly .1

M o r eo v e r , c an o n s ' l i f e - t en u r e f o r t i f i ed th e i r p o wer . T h e i r c an o n r y was a b en e f i ce ,a so r t o f l i f e es ta te in a f low of funds , o f which they cou ld no t be depr ived wi thou tdue p rocess o f law.2 T r ad i t i o n a l ly , m o r e o v e r , t h e se b en e f ice s y i e ld ed a h an d s o m ein co m e , en su r in g th e can o n s ' e co n o m ic secu r i t y a s we l l . F in a l ly , c an o n s we r e u su a l lyse lec ted f rom the same leve l o f soc ie ty as b ishops and so they were se ldom the soc ia li n f e r io r s of t h e b i s h o p . T h u s , li t u r g ica l ly , c an o n ica l ly , e co n o m ica l ly an d so c i a l l yth ey f o r m ed a f o r m id ab le f o r ce i n a d io ce se .

I s i t an y wo n d e r , t h en , t h a t f o r a c en tu r y a f te r 1 7 8 8 , w h e n th e Am er i c an Ca th o l i cc lergy e lec ted the f i r s t b ishop in the Uni ted Sta tes , the Uni ted Sta tes b ishops fought ad o g g ed an d v ig o r o u s cam p a ig n to f r u s t r a t e t h e i n t r o d u c t io n o f ch ap te r s o f c an o n sin to the Un i ted Sta tes? Se e ing tha t the bes t defense i s a go od of fense , the b ish opsc r ea t ed a m o r e so b e r an d m o r e p l i ab l e a l t e r n a t iv e , t h e b o a r d o f co n su l to r s , w i thwh ich to w a r d o ff t h e d e m an d f o r ch ap te r s of c an o n s . A t t h e t h i r d p l en a r y co u n c i l ofBa l t im o r e in 1 8 8 4 th e b i sh o p s wo n d ec i s iv e ly , d e f ea t in g a j o in t d em ar ch e b y Am er i -can p r i e s t s an d th e Ho ly See a im ed a t s ecu r in g can o n s f o r Am er i ca . 3 T h i s A m e r i c a nep iscopal v ic to ry was cod if ied in to the 1917 Code of Canon Law, wh ich r eco g n izedb o a r d s o f co n su l to r s a s a ccep tab le a l t e r n a t iv e s t o ch ap te r s o f c an o n s . F in a l v i c to r ycam e f o r t h e Am er i c an b i sh o p s in 1 9 8 3 w h en th e r ev i sed co d e th a t y ea r a lm o s ten t i r e ly su p p lan ted ca n o n s in f av o r o f co n su l to r s .4

T H E C H A P T E R O F C A N O N SBu t i t s eem s th a t "Go d n ev e r c lo se s a d o o r w i th o u t o p en in g a w in d o w." I f t h e

a d m i n i s t r a t i v e f u n c ti o n s o f c a n o n s w h i c h m a d e t h e m o d i o u s to A m e r i c a n b i s h o p sa r e n o w ced ed to t h e co l l eg e o f co n su l to r s an d th e p r e sb y te r a l co u n c i l , t h e can o n s 'an c i en t l i t u r g i ca l f u n c t io n s r em a in . T h e f in a l c au se o f a ch ap te r o f c an o n s , c an o n 5 0 8te l l s us , i s the ce lebra t ion o f the more so lemn l i tu rg ica l funct ions . That i s to say the i rd u ty i s t h e d a i ly so l em n co n v en tu a l M a ss an d th e ch o r a l r e c i t a t i o n o f t h e l i t u r g y ofth e h o u r s . T h e h o p e i s , t h en , t h a t wh en th e l i t u r g i ca l r e f o r m s o f Va t i can I I a r eim p lem en ted in acco r d an ce w i th t h e co n s t i t u t i o n o n th e l i t u r g y , Sacrosanctum conci-lium, chap ters o f canons wi l l en joy a rena issance and wi l l r ega in the i r lead ing p lacea s p r ac t i t i o n e r s o f t h e so l em n l i t u r g y an d a s p a t r o n s o f ch u r ch m u s ic .

Ad m i t t ed ly , t h i s i s a d i s t an t p r o sp e c t . Ne a r ly ev e r y w h e r e i n t h e Un i t ed S t a t e s a tl e a s t , t h e so l em n l i t u r g y h a s b een ab a n d o n ed o r is i n d i sa r r ay . Ba l l ad s an d m e r ed i t t ies have la rge ly rep laced l i tu rg ica l music which i s in tegra l o r necessary to theso lem n li turg y. Blessed bu rl ap an d p o p ar t disf ig ure ou r ch ur ch es . COLLEGIATE CHURCH


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T h e h a p p y p a r t o f t h i s s ad s i t u a t io n i s t h a t , f o r o n ce , t h e l awy e r s c an n o t b eb lam ed . T h e n o r m s f o r t h e r en a i s san ce a r e i n p l ace . T h ey o n ly l a ck u se r s . A cen tu r yago M r . Jus t ice Ho lm es sa id , " the li fe of the law is no t log ic bu t exper ien ce" an d am i l l en iu m b e f o r e t h a t i t was sa id , crescente ecclesia, crevit officium ecclesiasticum a sthe Church g rows, the church o f f ice g rows, too . But in the case o f the law ofco l l eg i a t e ch u r ch es , l aw n o w p r eced es l i f e . T o d ay th e l aw s t an d s r ead y to a s s i s t a sm id wi f e a t t h e r eb i r th o f ch ap te r s o f c an o n s a s p r ac t i t i o n e r s o f t h e so l em n l i t u r g yan d a s p a t r o n s o f s ac r ed m u s ic . On e wo n d e r s h o w th e l awy e r s co u ld d o so we l l an dthe l i tu rg is ts do so bad ly .

But before every b i r th there i s a ges ta t ion per iod and before tha t a genet ic h is to ry .Wh i l e h i s to r y i s n o t b o u n d b y th e sam e i r o n l aws a s i s t h e co d in g in a DNA ch a in ,n ev e r th e l e s s we d o s t an d o n th e sh o u ld e r s o f t h o se wh o h av e g o n e b e f o r e u s . T h u s , ag l im pse of the pas t to so m e ex ten t g ives us a v is io n of the fu tu re . To kn ow som eth ingof the po ten t ia l g lo ry o f the sacred music in co l leg ia te churches o f the fu tu re , we needo n ly lo o k to t h e i r g lo r io u s p a s t .

I n t h e e s t im a te o f o n e em in en t h i s to r i an o f ch u r ch m u s ic , t h e l e ad e r sh ip i n t h ed ev e lo p m en t o f p o ly p h o n ic m u s ic l ay w i th co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch es an d p r iv a t e ch ap e l s . 5T h a t co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch es sh o u l d h av e p l ay ed a l e ad r o le h e r e is r e a l ly n o su r p r i se .T h e y w e r e ecclesiae maiores o r l a r g e r ch u r ch es w i th t h e h u m an an d m a te r i a l r e -so u r ce s t o en ab le t h em to ce l eb r a t e t h e l i t u r g y so l em n ly . We k n o w f r o m th e p a r ab leo f t h e t a l en t s t h a t o f t h e m to w h o m m u ch i s g iv en m u c h w i l l b e ex p ec t ed . Yetca th ed r a l an d m o n as t i c ch u r ch es a r e a l so ecclesiae maiores. Nev e r th e l e s s , i t wa s n o tth ey so m u ch a s t h e co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch es wh ich p r o v id ed th e l e ad e r sh ip i n t h e d ev e l -o p m en t o f p o ly p h o n ic m u s ic . T h e sp ec i a l g en iu s o f t h e co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch es seem s tohave been in the i r f lex ib le s t ruc tu re . Thei r f lex ib i l i ty enab led them to respond to theo r g an ic ch an g es t ak in g p l ace i n wes t e r n m u s ic i n t h e l a t e r m id d le ag es an d t ak e th el ead in t h e d ev e lo p m en t o f p o ly p h o n ic m u s ic .

W h a t , t h en , i s a co l l eg ia t e ch u r ch ? T h e an s we r i s s im p ly th a t i t i s a ch u r ch se r v edby a cha p te r o f ca no ns o r co llege o f p r ies ts wh ich i s no t the sea t of a b ish op .H i s to r i ca l ly , s i n ce t h e m id d le ag es t h e p a s to r a l m o d e l o f t h e L a t in Ch u r ch h a s b een"o n e p a r i sh , o n e p r i e s t . " Wh i l e t h i s m ay n o t a cco r d w i th t h e ex p e r i en ce o f m an yu r b an Am er i c an Ca th o l i c s , it i s t h e p a r a d ig m o n wh ich t r ad i t i o n a l c an o n l aw , t h ecorpus juris canonicum, was b a sed . "T eam m in i s t r y " was ex cep t io n a l . I t was o n ly t ob e h ad in m o n as t i c an d co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch es .

T h e cu r r en t Am er i ca n n o t io n o f "co ll eg e" s t em s f ro m th e co m m u n i t i e s of c l e ri c san d o th e r sch o la r s a s so c i a t ed w i th t h e sev e r a l co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch es a t Ox f o r d an dCa m b r id g e wh ich m a te r i a l l y cam e to f o r m th e u n iv e r s i ti e s t h e r e . Bu t t h e ca n o n ica lco l l eg e h a s an ces t r y f a r m o r e an c i en t t h an th e se t h i r t e en th cen tu r y co l l eg es . I t h a r k sb ack to an c i en t Ro m e wh e r e t h e Ro m an l aw o f a s so c i a t i o n s d ec l a r ed a s a l eg a l r u l e ,tres faciunt collegium o r " th r ee ' s a co m p an y . " Q u i t e s im p ly , t h r ee p h y s i ca l p e r so n scou ld un i te to fo rm a d is t inc t ju r id ica l person o r lega l en t i ty . In an assoc ia t ion o fp h y s i ca l p e r so n s in a co l l eg ia t e j u r id i ca l p e r s o n each m em b er o r co l l e ag u een jo y ed eq u a l v o i ce an d v o te . Pu t i n t h e v e r n acu la r e ach t e am m em b er was eq u a l .T H E O F F IC E R S O F T H E C H A P T E R

Bu t i f Ro m an an d can o n l aw o f j u r id i ca l p e r so n s o n ly s t a t ed th e m in im u m n u m b erof phys ica l perso ns neede d to c rea te a co l leg ia te ju r id ica l perso n , fu r the r spec i f icswere le f t to the decree c rea t ing i t and to the s ta tu tes (o r by laws) o f the lega l en t i ty .T h e o f f i c e r s o r d ig n i t a r i e s wo u ld b e se t f o r th t h e r e a lo n g w i th t h e i r d u t i e s an dco m p en sa t io n . I n p r ac t i c e m an y o f t h e se o f f i c e s an d th e i r d u t i e s t en d ed to b e so m e-wh a t s im i l a r a l l a c r o ss Ch r i s t en d o m , s in ce a l l co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch es h ad th e sam e f in a l

LLEGIATE CHURCH ca us e, viz , th e cel ebr ati on of the so lem n li turg y.10


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The need fo r o rder thus gave r i se to a p res id ing o f f icer , who in I ta ly migh t beca l l ed th e "a r ch p r i e s t , " wh e r ea s i n Ge r m an y h e was u su a l ly ca l l ed "p r o v o s t " an d inEngland "dean ." In charge o f the sacred vesse ls and ves tments o f the church (whichwhen no t in ac tua l use reposed in i t s t r easury) was the t reasurer . In charge o f i t scorpora te secre tar ia t was the chancel lo r , who of ten took charge o f the co l leg ia techurch schoo l serv ing as i t s headmaster . In charge o f the music and l i tu rgy o f thep lace was the p recen tor o r f i r s t can to r . Co l lec t ive ly , they fo rmed the quatuor per-sonae or "b ig four" d ign i ta r ies o f the church . In the la rger co l leg ia te churches thesed ig n i t a r i e s m ig h t h av e a s s i s t an t s k n o wn r e sp ec t iv e ly a s t h e su b - d ean , t h e a s s i s t an tt reasurer , the v ice-chancel lo r , and the succen tor .

Bes id e s t h e can o n s wh o h ad f u l l m em b er sh ip i n t h e ch ap te r t h e r e m ig h t b e an u m b er o f a s so c i a t e s wh o h ad a f u tu r e h o p e o f a c an o n r y . T h ese m ig h t b e ca l l edch ap la in s o r mansionarii. T h er e m ig h t a l so b e a g r o u p o f a s s i s t an t s . T h ese m ig h t b eca l led v icars-chora l (espec ia l ly i f they were p r ies ts ) o r chor is te r s o r song men i f theywere c le r ics in minor o rders o r lay men . To p rov ide the h igher vo ices there migh t a lsob e a g r o u p o f ch o i r b o y s , a s sem b led a f t e r l e av in g g r am m ar sch o o l an d sch o o ledwith in the p rec inc ts o f the co l leg ia te church . Af ter the i r vo ices b roke they o f ten go t ap lace as a chor is te r in a co l leg ia te church o r in some nob leman 's p r iva te chapel . Themore ta len ted boys migh t end up in the royal househo ld o r ge t a scho larsh ip to one o fth e u n iv e r s i t i e s .S O M E S P E C IF I C C H A P T E R S

So m e co n c r e t e ex am p le s w i l l sh o w h o w v a r i ed th e s t r u c tu r e o f co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch escou ld be . The co l leg ia te church a t Bever ly , Eng land , da ted back a t leas t to the days o fKin g Ae th e l s t an in t h e t en th cen tu r y an d i t i n c lu d ed a p r o v o s t , n in e can o n s an dseven s ing ing c le rks . The las t were ca l led berefellarii b ecau se th ey wo r e b ea r sk inco l la r s to guard aga ins t the co ld . In 1320 , the chap ter added to i t s s ta f f e igh t boys"ap t in s ing ing and f i l l ing the o f f ice o f chor is te r s ." Ev idencing the l ink be tween theso lem n l i t u r g y an d sac r ed m u s ic , a t t h e sam e t im e th a t i t ad d ed th e ch o i r b o y s , twothur i fe r s were added and la te r we f ind re ferences to a song school there as wel l . AtBever ly the p recen tor , chancel lo r and t reasurer were o f f icers bu t no t necesar i ly mem-b e r s o f t h e ch ap te r , u n l e s s t h ey h ap p en ed to h o ld a c an o n r y .

Q u i t e e a r ly t h e p a r i sh ch u r ch o f t h e Ho ly Cr o ss i n Cr ed i to n , Dev o n , was t r an s -fo rmed in to a co l leg ia te church . From i t s s ing le par ish p r ies t i t now came to havee ig h t c an o n s a s we l l a s f o u r ch o r i s t e r s an d f o u r ch o i r b o y s . T h e co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch ' sde ta i led s ta tu tes d i rec ted tha t the boys spend the i r days e i ther in schoo l learn ingg r am m ar o r i n ch o i r s in g in g .

M u s ic , l i k e m o s t o th e r sk i l l s i n t h e m id d le ag es , was l e a r n ed b y ap p r en t i ce sh ip ,and the t ra in ing o f chor is te r s and cho ir boys in co l leg ia te churches fo l lowed th isan c i en t an d h o n o r ab le p a th . T h i s m ean t t h a t a p r o d ig io u s am o u n t o f m u s ic h ad tob e co m m i t t ed to m em o r y . T h e en t i r e p sa l t e r an d th e v a r io u s an t ip h o n s an d h y m n sh ad to b e l e a r n ed b y h ea r t . I n d eed , t h e ce r em o n ie s a t v e sp e r s c l ea r ly i n d i ca t e h o wli t t le was no t memor ized . Before the re fo rms o f Vat ican I I , the aco ly tes a t tended thece lebran t wi th the i r tapers on ly a t the chap ter and the co l lec t to permi t h im to see thetex t and s ing those ever -vary ing par ts o f the o f f ice . At a l l o ther t imes on ly them em o r y o f t h o se i n ch o i r l i g h t en ed th e d a r k n ess o f t h e s in g e r s .

T h e g r o wth o f M ar i an d ev o t io n s a f t e r t h e twe l f th cen tu r y l e ad to t h e ex p an s io n o fm u s ic i n ch u r ch es , e sp ec i a l l y i n co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch es . Of t en a l ad y - ch ap e l was ad d edto th e ch u r ch an d th e r e a p r i e s t - ch ap la in , p r o v id ed w i th t h e i n co m e o f a b en e f i ceen d o wed f o r t h a t p u r p o se , wo u ld ch an t a d a i ly M ass o f Ou r L ad y . I n ca th ed r a l an dco l leg ia te churches the chor is te r s and cho ir boys o f ten a t tended th is Mass to s ing ap la inc han t o r po lyp ho nic Mas s the re . Such wa s the case a t O te ry Sa in t M ar y nea r COLLEGIATE CHURCH

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Exeter . In 1337 , Bishop Grand isson ra ised i t f rom a par ish church in to a co l leg ia tech u r ch . A t t h a t t im e h e en d o wed i t w i th f o u r d ig n i t a r i e s ( wh o wer e t o b e i n a t t en d -an ce d a i ly f o r t h e co n v en tu a l M ass an d v e sp e r s ) , f o u r o th e r c an o n s , e ig h t p r i e s t -v i ca r s , e ig h t c l e r k s , e ig h t ch o r i s t e r s , an d a g r am m ar m as t e r . H i s s t a tu t e s l a id d o wnp r o ced u r e s i n t h e g r ea t e s t d e t a i l , ev en sp ec i f y in g h o w p ag es i n t h e so n g b o o k s we r eto b e t u r n e d . An o th e r s t a tu t e spec i fi ed th a t ch o i r b o y s h a d to b e su ff i c ien t ly m u s ica lto s in g an d p l ay p o ly p h o n ic m u s ic an d th a t t h ey a t t en d th e d a i ly L ad y - ch ap e l M ass .T h i s s t a tu t e c l ea r ly i n d i ca t e s so m e th in g o f t h e l ev e l o f m u s ica l a cco m p l i sh m en tex p ec ted o f t h em .

Ju s t a s c an o n l aw to d a y r eco g n ized th a t ( a cad em ic ) Ca th o l i c co ll eg es m ay b eestab l ished by laymen as wel l as by a d iocese o r re l ig ious ins t i tu te , so too in them id d le ag es l ay m en e s t ab l i sh ed m an y a co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch . I n 1 3 8 6 , R ich a r d , E a r l o fAr u n d e l , e s t ab l i sh ed a co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch a t Ar u n d e l b y m ak in g a g r ea t ad d i t i o n toth e p a r i sh ch u r ch th e r e an d p r e sen t in g a su i t ab l e en d o wm en t f o r t h e b en e f i ce s h ec r ea t ed . T o th e ex i s t i n g n av e an d t r an sep t s h e ad d ed a g r ea t e a s t - en d ch ap e l f o r t h eco l l eg e o f p r i e s t s h e en d o wed . T h e ch ap te r co n s i s t ed o f a m as t e r , twe lv e can o n s , s ixc l e r k s , two aco ly t e s , two sac r i s t an s , an d sev en ch o r i s t e r s . Cu r io u s ly , t h e n av e to d ayse r v es a s an An g l i can ch u r ch wh i l e Ar u n d e l ' s ad d i t i o n s f o r m a Ro m an Ca th o l i cch u r ch , d iv id ed f r o m th e f o r m er b y a s to n e wa l l .

Hav in g co m p le t ed h i s g r ea t c a s t l e a t T a t t e r sh a l l , L in co ln sh i r e , Ra lp h , L o r dCr o m wel l , t r e a su r e r o f Hen r y VI , a l so r a i sed th e p a r i sh ch u r ch th e r e t o t h e s t a tu s o fco l l eg ia t e ch u r ch . T h e n ew f o u n d a t io n w as h ea d ed b y a wa r d e n an d in c lu d ed s ixch ap la in s , s i x c l e r k s , an d s ix ch o r i s t e r s . T o th e n ew co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch wa s a t t a ch ed ana lm sh o u se o r h o sp ice f o r t h i r t e en p e r so n s su ch was th e ca r e ex t en d ed in t h em id d le ag es t o t h e h u n g r y an d th e h o m e le s s . I n 1 5 2 5 , t h e n o te d T u d o r m u s ic i an , Jo h nTaverner , i s l i s ted as a c le rk in o rders there .

Dam e I sab e l Pem b r id g e , p a t r o n o f t h e p a r i sh ch u r ch a t T o n g , Sh r o p sh i r e , i n 1 4 1 0co n v e r t ed i t s p a r i sh ch u r ch o f Sa in t Ba r th o lo m ew in to a co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch . T h ech ap te r was a m o d es t o n e , co n s i s t i n g o f o n ly a wa r d en an d f o u r o th e r p r i e s t s . T o th eo f f i c e o f wa r d en was an n ex ed th a t o f p a r i sh p r i e s t , w i th t h e o th e r f o u r ch ap te rm em b er s b e in g p a id a s t i p en d o u t o f t h e r ev en u es o f t h e co l l eg e . No sep a r a t e c an o n -r i e s w e r e e n d o w e d t h e r e .

T h e s t a tu t e s of t h e co l l eg i a te ch u r ch of Sa in t An d r e w a t Co ck e r s to ck , N o r th am p -to n sh i r e , h av e b een p r in t ed an d th e se p r o v id e so m e id ea o f h o w su ch a d o cu m en tregu la ted l i fe in a co l leg ia te church . The co l lege was es tab l ished in 1337 by MasterJohn Gif fard , canon of York . The new co l lege was to consis t o f a p rovost and twelvech ap la in s . As a t T o n g , t h e p a r o ch ia l b en e f i ce was h e ld b y th e co l l eg e h ead . Ch ap -l a in s we r e ad m i t t ed b y th e p r o v o s t a ft e r co n s u l t a t i o n w i th t h e o th e r m em b e r s . T h esewer e t o b e co m p e ten t i n ( L a t in ) g r am m ar an d in officio ecclesiastico regulando,legendo, et cantando instructi. For cho ir d ress the co l leagues were to wear over the i rb l ack ca s so ck an d r o ch e t a cappa nigra ( o r p o n ch o - l ik e g a r m en t ) f i t t ed w i th ana lm u ce o r h o o d o f b l ack f u r i n t h e m an n e r o f t h e v i ca r s - ch o r a l o f L in co ln ca th ed r a l .D u r i n g s u m m e r ( f r o m t h e Gloria o n H o l y S a t u r d a y u n t i l H o l y C r o s s d a y in S e p t e m -b e r ) t h ey co u ld o m i t t h e cappa an d wea r b u t a c r o ch e t o v e r t h e i r c a s so ck . E ach d ayth ey we r e t o s in g l au d s an d v e sp e r s an d ch an t t h e co n v en tu a l M ass i n t h e co l l eg i a t ech u r ch . O n Su n d a y s an d f ea s ts of d o u b le c l a s s ( t h o se p r o v id ed w i th fi rs t an d seco n dv esp e r s ) a d eaco n an d su b d eaco n , c l ad in d a lm a t i c an d tu n ic l e r e sp ec t iv e ly , we r e t oa s s i s t t h e ce l eb r an t a t M ass . 6

M an y o f E n g lan d ' s o th e r two h u n d r ed co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch es co u ld a l so b e d e sc r ib eda n d t h e r e w e r e m a n y m o r e a c r o s s C h r i s t e n d o m f r o m P o l a n d t o P o r t u g a l . M o s ts i zab le t o wn s t en d ed to h av e a co l l eg i a t e ch u r ch . T h ese we r e p r o b ab ly a s d e s i r ab l e

OLLEGIATE CHURCH th en as a co m m un it y college is tod ay, for ea ch pr ov id ed sim ilar cu ltu ral serv ice s.12


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Besides divine services in their churches and learning in their schools, each collegiatechurch would have been a focal point for broader culture, purveying music anddrama and art to the community at large. In Catholic countries collegiate churchesremained a regular part of urban life until the French Revolution in the late eight-eenth century and the secularizations in the early nineteenth century put an end tomost of these venerable institutions.OBSTACLES TO RENAISSANCEIn its program of reform Vatican II urged a return to the sources, to the roots andwell-springs of institutes. This can be seen in the case of Perfectae caritatis, thecouncil's decree on the reform of religious institutes. In Orientalium ecclesiarum, itsdecree on the eastern churches, the council looked to a renaissance of the easternchurches through a purification of eastern usages in the light of their own soundtraditions. T he liturgy of the Roman rites was to be simplified and shorn of needlessaccretions. Such also was to be the post-conciliar recipe for the reform of collegiatechurches.Many conciliar reforms heralded a sweeping reform of collegiate churches. Thecouncil called for an end to the benefice system and for the introduction of a systemof clerical salaries, at once more equitable and more flexible, than the beneficesystem inherited from the feudal age. Under the benefice system one was stuck withwhatever income the original investment, made centuries ago, now yielded. Thismight be substantial or a mere pittance.The ius patronatus, abolished prospectively by the 1917 Code of Canon Law, wasgiven the coup de grace by the council everywhere where still in lay hands. Thissystem, bo rn in the early middle ages, gave to the builder or founder of a church andhis heirs the right to present to that church a suitable cleric when the benefice fellvacant. If the presentee were not "canonically unsuitable," the bishop was thenrequired to institute the presentee, who thereupon acquired a life-long right to thebenefice or church. To this day the vestry of an Episcopalian parish possesses thisright of presentation and this right is a vestige of the old Catholic canon law. Soextensive was the ius patronatus in earlier centuries that a diocesan bishop might findhimself entitled to fill only a small percentage of the parishes of his diocese. In thediocese of Clermont, France, after the Council of Trent the right of patronage was soextensive that its bishop, Cardinal de la Rochefoucauld, could directly fill only abou tten percent of the benefices in his diocese. In the rest, patrons often laymen enjoyed the right to present priests to parishes and other benefices.Vatican II also created the senate of priests to serve as an advisory body to thebishop . Previously, the cathedral canons had served in this office but now the desirewas to reform the bishop's advisory council and make it more representative of thepriests of the d iocese. The college of consul tors, un less other provision is made,became the bishop's inner circle of advisors, succeeding to some powers of thecathedral chapter of canons in the matter of diocesan finances.All these reforms had the effect of returning chapters of canons to the sources.Stripped of the accretions of a milleniumof the consequences of the in troduction ofthe benefice system and the ius patronatus in the feudal ages canons are nowreturned to the status quo ante. The 1983 Code assigns to them only their erstwhileduty, their functiones liturgicas solemniores. This was their ancient duty of celebrat-ing the choral liturgy of the hours and the solemn conventual Mass. Under therevised Code their administrative functions, which made them so odious to Ameri-can bishops, have been suppressed, and canons need no longer be burdened with thecares of benefices, bothered with sum mons to diocesan synods and provincial coun -cils, nor be laid down with the business of the diocesan curia and the diocesan COLLEGIATE CHURCH

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f i n a n c e s . T h e 1 9 8 3 Code n o w s e t s c a n o n s f r e e t o c o n c e n t r a t e o n t h e i r e r s t w h i l emetier, t h e s o l e m n l i t u r g y a n d s a c r e d m u s i c .

O n l y n o n - c a n o n i c a l o b s t a c l e s i mp e d e t h e r e n a i s s a n c e o f t h e s o l e mn l i t u r g y a n ds a c r e d mu s i c i n c o l l e g i a t e c h u r c h e s . T h e d i s r u p t i o n s t h a t f o l l o w e d t h e V a t i c a n Co u n -c i l l e d t h o u s a n d s t o l e a v e t h e a c t i v e s a c e r d o t a l m i n i s t r y a n d d o u b t l e s s d i s i n c l i n e dt h o u s a n d s mo r e f r o m e n t e r i n g i t .7 T h e u p s h o t h a s b e e n a d e v e l o p i n g c l e r i c a l s h o r t -a g e . E v e n if t h e s e v e r it y of t h i s s h o r t a g e h a s s o me t i me s b e e n o v e r e s t i ma t e d w h e n i t ist a k e n i n r e l a t i o n t o t h e n u mb e r o f p r a c t i c i n g Ca t h o l i c s , t h e s h o r t a g e h a s ma d ed e v o t i n g p e r s o n n e l t o t h e s o l e mn l i t u r g y s e e m r a t h e r a l u x u r y b e y o n d a v a i l a b l eh u ma n r e s o u r c e s . S e e mi n g l y , t h e c l e r g y s h o r t a g e h a s ma d e t h e e s t a b l i s h me n t o fc o l l e g i a t e c h u r c h e s a p i p e d r e a m.

E v e n mo r e d i s a s t r o u s f o r t h e s o l e mn l i t u r g y h a s b e e n t h e c o u r s e t a k e n b y s a c r e dmu s i c s i n c e t h e c o u n c i l . T h e s o l e mn Ma s s , o f c o u r s e , i s s i mp l y a s u n g Ma s s c e l e -b r a t e d w i t h t h e a s s i s t a n c e o f s a c r e d mi n i s t e r s . Bu t t h e d i s t i n c t i o n b e t w e e n t h e s u n gMa s s a n d t h e r e a d Ma s s h a s i n p r a c t i c e b r o k e n d o w n . T h e i n t r o d u c t i o n o f " p r o g r e s -s i v e s o l e mn i t y " h a s i r o n i c a l l y w r o u g h t t h e r e v e r s e . I n s t e a d o f a s u n g Ma s s o n e n o wh a s f o r t h e mo s t p a r t a r e a d Ma s s w i t h s o me h y mn s o r o t h e r mu s i c . I n t h e U n i t e dS t a t e s a t l e a s t t h e p r o p e r s ( in t r o i t , g r a d u a l , o f f e rt o r y, c o m mu n i o n ) e x c e p t f o r t h eA l l e l u i a , a r e s e l d o m s u n g a n d a l mo s t n e v e r i n L a t i n t o G r e g o r i a n c h a n t . I n p r a c t i c et h e r e s p o n s o r i a l p s a l m h a s s u p p l a n t e d t h e g r a d u a l w i t h i t s g l o r i o u s me l i s m a t i c m u -s i c . I n d e e d , t h e ma n y w h o h a v e n e v e r s e e n t h e r e f o r me d Graduate Romanum, p u b -l i shed by the Abbey o f So lesmes in 1972 fo r use in the re fo rmed Vat i can I I l i t u rgy ,mi g h t t h i n k t h a t t h e r e s p o n s o r i a l p s a l m h a s i n d e e d o u s t e d t h e c h a n t e d g r a d u a l . I nv e r y ma n y p l a c e s t h e p r a c t i c e c o n t i n u e s t o r e c i t e , a n d n o t s i n g , t h e Credo d e s p i t e t h eu r g i n g s t o t h e c o n t r a r y i n t h e praenotanda of the 1972 Graduate Romanum. I n m a n yp l a c e s c h u r c h mu s i c h a s b e c o me l i t t l e mo r e t h a n a f e w h y mn t u n e s y o k e d t o n e w a n db o w d e r i z e d t e x t s p l u s s o me n if t y b a l l a d s a n d p e r h a p s a f e w p r o p e r s a n d p s a l msc h a n t e d t o s i mp l e t u n e s o f v a r y i n g w o r t h w i t h i n v a r i a b l e E n g l i s h t e x t s . Mu s i c a l l y ,t h e h o u s e o f G o d h a s b e c o m e " B l e a k H o u s e . "

D e s p i t e t h e s e b l e a k mu s i c a l d e v e l o p me n t s , c a n o n l a w h a s c o n t i n u e d t o f o r g ea h e a d t o h e r a l d t h e r e n a i s s a n c e o f c o l l e g ia t e c h u r c h e s a s c e n t e r s of t h e s o l e m n l i t u r g ya n d s a c r e d mu s i c . D u r i n g t h i s d e c a d e , l e a v e n e d b y t h e e c c l e s i o l o g y o f communioa n d b y t h e p r i n c i p l e s o f c o l l e g i a l i t y a n d s u b s i d i a r i t y , t h e c a n o n l a w g o v e r n i n g c h a p -t e r s o f c a n o n s h a s b e e n r e v o l u t i o n i z e d . A s r e c e n t l y a s 1 9 8 0 , t h e d r a f t o f t h e r e v i s e dCode s t i l l r e s e r v e d t h e e r e c t i o n , a l t e r a t i o n a n d s u p p r e s s i o n o f c o l l e g i a t e c h u r c h e s t ot h e H o l y S e e . Ca n o n 3 1 8 ( 2 ) o f t h e d r a f t c o n t i n u e d t h e r e s t r i c t i v e a p p r o a c h o f c a n o n391 o f the 1917 Code a n d r e s e r v e d a l l c o mp e t e n c e i n t h e s e ma t t e r s t o t h e H o l y S e e .Bu t i n A p r i l , 1 9 8 0 , a w a t e r s h e d w a s r e a c h e d . I n r e v i e w i n g t h e d r a f t c a n o n t h ec o n s u l t o r s t o t h e Co mmi s s i o n f o r t h e Re v i s i o n o f t h e Code of Canon Law v o t e d t od e l e t e t h e r e s t r i c t i v e l a n g u a g e w i t h r e s p e c t t o c o l l e g i a t e c h u r c h e s . 8 H e n c e f o r t h , o n l yt h e e r e c t i o n , a l t e r a t i o n , o r s u p p r e s s i o n o f c a t h e d r a l c h u r c h e s w a s r e s e r v e d t o t h eH o l y S e e . Co l l e g i a t e c h u r c h e s t h u s w o u l d n o w c o me u n d e r t h e j u r i s d i c t i o n o f t h ed i o c e s a n b i s h o p , w h o c o u l d b y e x e r c i s i n g h i s p o w e r s u n d e r c a n o n s 3 0 1 a n d 3 1 2 t oe r e c t a c l e r i c a l p u b l i c j u r i d i c a l p e r s o n t h e n c r e a t e a c h a p t e r o f c a n o n s a n d a c o l l e g i a t ec h u r c h . T h e d r af t c a n o n , i n th e fo r m r e c o m m e n d e d b y t h e c o n s u lt o r s , b e c a m e l a w a scanon 504 o f the 1983 Code.

Canon 503 descr ibes a chap ter o f canons as a co l l ege o f p r i es t s . In v iew of thea n c i e n t m a x i m , tres faciunt collegium, c o d i f i e d a s c a n o n 1 1 5 ( 2 ) , a c h a p t e r o f c a n o n sw o u l d h a v e t o b e c o mp o s e d o f a t l e a s t t h r e e p r i e s t - c a n o n s . W h e r e a s t h e Co u n c i l o fT r e n t o n l y r e q u i r e d t h e s u b d i a c o n a t e i n o r d e r t o b e a p p o i n t e d a c a n o n , t h e 1 9 8 3Code fo l lows the 1917 Code i n r e q u i r i n g t h e s a c e r d o t a l o r d e r . S i n c e p r i e s t h o o d

COLLEGIATE CHURCH ap pe ars a con s t i tu t iv e e l em ent in th i s ca no n , it i s one tha t a d ioc esan b i s ho p cou ld14


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no t , unde r c a non 87 , d i s pe ns e . I t fo l l ows , t he n , t ha t no l a y pe r s on o r de a c on c a n bea p p o i n t e d a c a n o n w i t h o u t a n a p o s t o l i c i n d u l t .

At the same t ime canon 507(2) makes i t c lea r tha t c le r ic s , even i f not members ofthe chapte r , can hold capi tu la r off ices . Ear l ie r in the case of the col leg ia te church ofBever ly , we saw tha t the off ice rs the re were not necessa r i ly members of the chapte r .C a n on 50 7 s ugge s t s a r e a l op po r t u n i t y fo r qua li f i e d pe rm a n e n t de a c on s to be o f r e a lse rv ice in co l leg ia te churches . S ince a deacon i s of course a c le r ic , a deacon wi tha pp rop r i a t e m us i c a l qua l i f i c a t i ons m i gh t , fo r e xa m pl e , ho l d t he o f f i c e o f c a n t o r o rp re c e n t o r a nd s o ru l e t he c ho i r a nd p re pa re t he c ho ra l o f f i c e s a nd t r a i n t he c ho r i s t e r sa nd c ho i r boys . Ano t he r de a c on m i gh t a l s o s e rve a s m a s t e r o f c e re m on i e s fo r t hechapte r and so see to the marsha l l ing of the se rv ices and the t ra in ing of the acoly tes .A de a c on wi t h a s u i t a b l e ba c kg round i n t he f i ne a r t s m i gh t be t r e a s u re r a nd s o ha vet he c a re , c u s t ody a nd c ons e rva t i on o f t he s p l e nd i d s a c re d ve s t m e n t s a nd s a c re dvesse l s of the col leg ia te church needed for the so lemn l i turgy i t s chasubles , copes ,c ha l i c e s , c i bo r i a , a nd m ons t r a nc e s . Ano t he r de a c on wi t h e xpe r t i s e i n f i na nc e m i gh tse rve as oeconome or f inance off ice r of the chapte r . More genera l ly , deacons wi l lo f t e n be t he s a c re d m i n i s t e r s whos e a s s i s t a nc e wi l l m a ke pos s i b l e t he s o l e m n l i t u rgyin col leg ia te churches .

C a non 507 (1 ) r e qu i re s t ha t t he c ha p t e r ha ve a p re s i d i ng o f f i c e r c hos e n by t hec a nons . Ove r t he c e n t u r i e s t h i s o f f i c e r ha s be e n va r i ous l y s t y l e d a s we ha ve s e e n ,a rc hp r i e s t , de a n , a nd p rovos t be i ng t he m os t f r e que n t t i t l e s . B u t s i nc e t he l a t t e r t wot oda y a re found on l y i n a c a de m i c s e t t i ngs on t he Am e r i c a n s c e ne , i t m i gh t be be t t e ri n t he Un i t e d S t a t e s fo r t he c ha i rm a n o f a c ha p t e r o f c a nons t o be c a l l e d a n " a rc h -pr ie s t " to avo id confus ing h im wi th an acad em ic off ic ial . Th e ad jec t ive "col leg ia te"wi l l i t se l f breed suff ic ient confus ion but "a rchpr ies t " would he lp c la r i fy tha t thecol lege tha t he heads has a l i turg ica l cha rac te r .

The p re c i s e du t i e s a nd r i gh t s o f c a p i t u l a r s , o f f i c e r s , v i c a r s -c ho ra l , c ho r i s t e r s , a ndc ho i r boys s hou l d be s e t fo r t h , a s c a non 506 r e qu i re s , i n t he c a p i t u l a r s t a t u t e s wha t Am e r i c a n c o rpo ra t e l a wye r s wou l d c a l l t he "by l a ws . " The s e s hou l d a l s o l a ydo w n t he e xa c t l i t u rg i c al func t i ons t o be pe r fo rm e d , e . g . , a c a p i t u l a r s o l e m n M a s so n S u n d a y s a n d S u n d a y c h o r a l v e s p e r s . H e r e t o o t h e v a r i o u s e m o l u m e n t s f o r t h e s eva r i ous pe r s ons s hou l d be s e t fo r t h p re c i s e l y .

C a non 506 a l s o pe rm i t s t he s t a t u t e s t o l a y down t he c a nons ' i n s i gn i a o r a t t i r e ,p rov i de d t ha t t he s e be i n a c c o rda nc e wi t h t he no rm s l a i d down by t he Ho l y S e e . Th i sproviso seems to re fe r to the 1970 and 1987 c i rcula r l e t te rs which gave to episcopa lc on fe re nc e s t ha t f a c u l t y t o r e fo rm t he c ho i r d re s s o f c a nons wi t h i n c e r t a i n l i m i t a -t i o n s . C a no ns we re fo rb i d de n t o w e a r t he m a n t e l l e t t a , roc h e t , m i t er , r i ng , pe c t o ra lc ro s s o r u s e t he c roz i e r . V i o l e t c a s s oc ks a nd m oz e t t a s we re r e s e rve d t o c a nons whowe re b i s hops ; o t he r c a nons m i gh t we a r a b l a c k o r g re y m oz z e t t a t r i m m e d wi t h v i o l e to r a v i o l e t one . V i c a r s -c ho ra l m i gh t we a r a b l a c k o r g re y m oz z e t t a . No s pe c i a lp rov i s i ons we re m a de fo r d i gn i t a r i e s o r o f f i c e r s o f c ha p t e r s . More r e c e n t l y , i n R om eP op e J oh n P a u l I I ha s r e qu i re d t he c a n on s t he re t o we a r t he a l m uc e . On c e a ho od a n ds hou l de r c a pe l i ne d wi t h fu r a nd u s e d t o gua rd a ga i n s t t he c o l d wh i l e i n c ho i r , t oda yi t i s bu t a fur (usu a l ly squ i r re l ) scarf. I t i s the ances tor of the mozze t ta . In recentcentur ie s i t was ca rr ied over the le f t a rm. At the t ime of Va t ican I I i t had fa l len in todisuse in mos t a reas . But today John Paul ' s in te res t in i t has spa rked a reviva l of i t . 9

T h u s , i t wou l d s e e m t ha t c a non 506 a u t ho r i z e s c ha p t e r s o f c a nons t o a dop t a d re s sc ode i n a c c o rda nc e wi t h t he s e no rm s . Th i s i s a c ons i de ra b l e volte-face. In t he pa s te ve ry de t a i l o f c a nons ' d re s s wa s r e gu l a t e d by a pos t o l i c i ndu l t . Now t he p r i nc i p l e o fs ubs i d i a r i t y ha s be e n pu t i n t o p ra c t i c e pe rm i t t i ng t he c a nons t he m s e l ve s , w i t h i nl i m i t s , to r e gu l a t e t he m a t t e r . Th e s t a t u t e s w ou l d be a dop t e d c o l l e g i a ll y ( "one m a n ,on e vote") an d w ou ld nee d the app rov a l of the d ioc esan b i sh op . COLLEGIATE CHURCH

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W h e r e t h e c h u r c h is a p a r o c h i a l c h u r c h ( a s m o s t A m e r i c a n C a t h o l i c c h u r c h e s a r e )c a n o n 5 1 0 f o r b i d s t h e pleno iure un i on o r m e rge r o f t he pa r i s h a nd t he c ha p t e r . Th i si s do ne s o t ha t a n i nd i v i d ua l , r a t he r t h a n a fi c ti ve j u r i d i c a l pe r s on , w i l l be t he pa s t o ro f t he pa r i s h . B u t no t h i ng p re ve n t s one o f t he c a nons f rom be i ng pa s t o r . As we ha ves e e n i n t he c a s e o f Tong a nd C oc ke r s t oc k , i t c ou l d be p rov i de d t ha t t he he a d o f t hec ha p t e r wa s t o be pa s t o r . Th i s wou l d a l s o he l p l e s s e n t he pos s i b i l i t y o f c on f l i c t sbe t we e n t he pa r i s h a nd t he c o l l e g i a t e c hu rc h . Ne ve r t he l e s s , s om e s o r t o f d i s pu t e -r e s o l u t i on m e c ha n i s m s hou l d be s e t fo r t h i n t he s t a t u t e s .

C a n on 508 p ro v i de s t ha t t he c a no n pe n i t e n t i a ry o f a c o l l e g ia t e c hu rc h ha s t h eha b i t ua l f a c u l t y t o a bs o l ve i n t he i n t e rna l fo rum latae sententiae c e n s u r e s w h i c h h a v eno t be e n de c l a re d o r r e s e rve d t o t he Ho l y S e e . Thus , t he c a non pe n i t e n t i a ry c ou l da b s o l v e a p e r s o n w h o h a d i n c u r r e d a u t o m a t i c e x c o m m u n i c a t i o n f o r p r o c u r i n g a na bo r t i on . He c a n e xe rc i s e t h i s f a c u l t y wi t h r e s pe c t t o t hos e dom i c i l e d i n t he d i oc e s ee i t he r i n s i de o r ou t s i de t he d i oc e s e , a nd wi t h r e s pe c t t o non -d i oc e s a ns i n s i de t hed i oc e s e .M U S I C I N T H E R E N A S C E N T C O L LE G I A T E C H U R C H

W e ha ve , t he n , w i t h t he a i d o f t he c a nons l i m ne d ou t how a c o l l e g i a t e c hu rc hm i gh t be s t ruc t u re d a s a c ha p t e r o r c o l l e ge o f a t l e a s t t h re e p r i e s t s he a de d by a na rc hp r i e s t a nd a s s i s t e d by a c o rps o f pe rm a ne n t de a c ons , c ho r i s t e r s a nd c ho i r boys .In p ra c t i c e , t o e ns u re i t s pe rm a ne nc e t he c o l l e g i a t e c hu rc h wi l l ne e d s om e s o r t o fc ho i r s c h oo l . T he e x t e n t o f t he c o l l e g ia t e c hu rc h ' s f ina nc i a l r e s ou rc e s wi ll d i c t a t e ho wm ode s t o r e l a bo ra t e t ha t c ho i r s c hoo l wou l d be . I t m i gh t i n f a c t be qu i t e m ode s t a ndc ons i s t m e re l y o f a n i n fo rm a l a pp re n t i c e s h i p s e rve d by ne wc om e rs wi t h a b i t o fc oa c h i ng by t he p re c e n t o r .

I t m i gh t a l s o be a fo rm a l l y e s t a b l i s he d s c hoo l o f c hu rc h m us i c wi t h t e a c he r s ,s t ud e n t s , a nd a s e t c u r r i c u l um . Hi s t o r i c a l l y m a n y co l l e g i at e c hu rc he s m a i n t a i n e ds ong s c hoo l s . F o r a fo rm a l s c hoo l s om e gu i de l i ne s m a y be o f fe re d . A s c hoo l o fc hu rc h m us i c m us t ha ve bo t h m us i c a l a nd l i t u rg i c a l c om pone n t s . F i r s t o f a l l i t m us tp ro v i d e a f i rm g r oun d i n g i n m us i c . Th i s g rou nd i ng i n t he a r t of m us i c i s ke y . He re , ifthe whe e l i s no t to be re - inv ented , th i s a r t i s t i c t ra in ing i s bes t le ft to one of the f ine rs e c u l a r s c hoo l s o f m us i c . 1 0 O n t h i s s u b s t r a t u m t h e c o l l e g i a t e c h u r c h c a n p i g g y b a c ka nd s i m p l y t a ke a dva n t a ge o f wha t a l r e a dy e x i s t s . F o r t he i r m us i c a l t r a i n i ng s t ude n t sa t t he c o l l e g i a t e c hu rc h wou l d t a ke c l a s s e s a t t he l oc a l m us i c s c hoo l .

The d i s t i nc t i ve c on t r i bu t i on o f t he c o l l e g i a t e c hu rc h wou l d be t he l i t u rg i c a l t r a i n -i n g a n d ( w h a t is m o r e i m p o r t a n t i n t h e s e p e r i l o u s ti m e s ) a n o p p o r t u n i t y t o e x p l o r ea nd e xpe r i e nc e t he t r e a s u ry o f s a c re d m us i c i n a l i t u rg i c a l s e t t i ng . The l i t u rg i c a lt r a i n i ng c ou l d be o rga n i z e d i n a va r i e t y o f wa ys . The p ra c t i c a l pa r t wou l d o f c ou r s ebe ob t a i ne d by pa r t i c i pa t i ng i n t he l i t u rg i c a l func t i ons o f t he c o l l e g i a t e c hu rc h . S om eof t h i s by a r r a n ge m e n t m i gh t e ve n p ro v i d e c re d i t t ow a rd a m u s i c de g re e . S t u de n t sm i gh t s i ng i n t he Gre go r i a n c ha n t s c ho l a o r i n t he po l yphon i c c ho i r .

The t he o re t i c a l pa r t o f t he l i t u rg i c a l t r a i n i ng m i gh t be ha d i n a va r i e t y o f wa ys . A ti t s m o s t fo rm a l , a n i n s t i t u t e of c hu rc h m us i c m i g h t be e re c te d a s a pub l i c j u r i d i c a lpe r s on c ha rge d wi t h o rga n i z i ng t he c hu rc h m us i c c u r r i c u l um . J u s t a s i t wou l d wi s e l yp i ggyba c k on t he m us i c c l a s s e s o f a l oc a l s e c u l a r m us i c s c hoo l fo r t r a i n i ng i n m us i c ,s o wh e re s ou nd c ou r s e s r e m a i n o r m i gh t be r e v i ve d t he i n s t i t u t e m i gh t m a keus e of c l a ss e s o f f e red b y l oc a l C a t h o l i c c o l l ege s a n d s e m i na r i e s i n li t u rg i e s , s a c ra m e n-t a l t he o l ogy , e c c l e s i o l ogy , c hu rc h h i s t o ry a nd c a non l a w t o p rov i de t he church side oft he c hu rc h m us i c c ou r s e . Thus , w i t hou t do i ng a ny t he o ry t e a c h i ng i t s e l f t he i n s t i t u t eo f c hu rc h m us i c unde r t he a e g i s o f a c o l l e g i a t e c hu rc h m i gh t ne ve r t he l e s s o rga n i z e as upe r i o r c ou r s e i n c hu rc h m us i c , m e re l y by ha rna s s i ng e x i s t i ng r e s ou rc e s t o t ha t e nd .

W he re s o e l a bo ra t e a c ou r s e c a n be o rga n i z e d , t he i n s t i t u t e m i gh t c ons i de r a f f i l i a -LEGIATE CHURCH t ion or agg reg a t io n w i th the Pon t i f ica l Ins t i tu te of Sac r ed M usi c in Ro m e. Th is i s

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e ffec ted by a dec ree of the Congrega t ion of Seminar ie s and Ins t i tu tes of S tudies andwould g ive the ins t i tu te the facul ty to offe r pont i f ica l degrees . Aff i l i a t ion pe rmi t sone t o g ra n t t he ba c c a l a u re a t e de g re e ; a gg re ga t i on , t he l i c e n t i a t e (m a s t e r ' s ) de g re e .De t a i l s on t h i s a re gove rne d by t he a pos t o l i c c ons t i t u t i on , Sapientia Christiana,a r t i c l e 62 , a nd t he o rd i na nc e s p rom ul ga t e d pu r s ua n t t o i t , a r t i c l e 48 . A t t he s a m et ime tha t they a re pursuing c iv i l degrees a t the secula r school of mus ic , s tudentsc ou l d be work i ng t owa rds a pon t i f i c a l de g re e f rom t he i n s t i t u t e o f c hu rc h m us i c . 1 1

One o f t he c h i e f c on t r i bu t i ons t o t r a i n i ng i n c hu rc h m us i c t ha t a c o l l e g i a t e c hu rc hcould make i s the prac t ica l exper ience of the t reasury of sac red mus ic to be had int ha t c hu rc h . Equ i ppe d wi t h t he ne c e s s a ry m a t e r i a l a nd f i na nc i a l r e s ou rc e s t o p rov i des upe r i o r c hu rc h m us i c , c a non l a w i m pos e s on c o l l e g i a t e c hu rc he s t he a f f i rm a t i veob l i ga t i on t o do s o . Thus , t he c ha p t e r o f c a nons wi l l s e e t o i t t ha t s a c re d po l yphonya nd Gre go r i a n c ha n t a re c u l t i va t e d ge ne rous l y a t Ma s s a nd , a l s o , a t l e a s t a t S unda yvespers in the col leg ia te church . Some place should a l so be a l lo t ted to La t in , whichVat ican I I sa id was to be re ta ined in the La t in r i t e s . Over the course of the l i turg ica lyea r s tudents in the se rv ice of the col leg ia te church would thus rece ive a wide andi nva l ua b l e e xpos u re t o t he g re a t t r e a s u ry o f c hu rc h m us i c . P e rha ps t he m os t va l ua b l easpec t of th i s exper ience i s tha t the s tudent wi l l have exper ienced l i turg ica l mus ic in al i turg ica l se t t ing , ra the r than mere ly in a concer t ha l l or in a l i s ten ing room. Thes ound wi l l t hus m ore c l e a r l y e c ho t he s e ns e .

For a l l o f th i s to ha pp en s om e pla nn ing i s nee ded . I t m us t f irs t be a sce r ta in ed tha ta de qua t e m us i c a l a nd l i t u rg i c a l r e s ou rc e s a re a t ha nd . Sapientia Christiana in factca l l s for p lanning , l e s t the re be dupl ica t ion of e f for t . Sure ly one would not expec ttwo hundred col leg ia te churches to spr ing to l i fe aga in in a count ry the s ize ofEng l a nd a nd W a l e s . In f a c t , pe rha ps on l y a ha nd fu l o f c o l l e g i a t e c hu rc he s c a nse r ious ly be expec ted to be e rec ted . This i s a case of qua l i ty , not quant i ty .

In c l o s i ng one m i gh t a s k why a pa r t i c u l a r c hu rc h a nd d i oc e s a n b i s hop wou l d wi s ht o de vo t e s o m uc h t i m e a nd t r e a s u re t o s om e t h i ng s o e phe m e ra l a s c hu rc h m us i c ?Th e be s t a n s we r is be c a us e t h i s i s w ha t t he C hu rc h w i s he s . The S e c ond Va t i c a nC ounc i l de c re e d t ha t c ho i r s be a s s i duous l y de ve l ope d , t ha t t he t r e a s u ry o f s a c re dm us i c be c u l t i va t e d a nd fo s t e re d wi t h s upe r l a t i ve c a re , t ha t Gre go r i a n c ha n t be g i ve nthe lead spot s ince i t i s the Roman Church ' s own music , and tha t La t in be prese rvedin the La t in r i t e s . As Tac i tus pu t i t , Tibi summum rerum imperium dii dederunt nobisobedienciae gloria relicta est ( to you be l ong s t he s up r e m e pow e r of c o m m a nd , t o u st he g l o ry o f obe d i e nc e . ) Thus Leglise le veult i s bo th a necessa ry an d a suff ic ientr e s pons e .1 2

The re a re a l s o s upp l e m e n t a l be ne f i t s fo r t he d i oc e s a n b i s hop who e re c t s a c o l l e -g i a t e c hu rc h . He c re a t e s a d i s t i nc t i ve hono r e n t i r e l y i n h i s g i f t w i t h wh i c h t o r e wa rds e n i o r p r i e s t s w ho h a ve t o i l ed l ong i n the v i ne ya rd o f t he Lo r d . B e s i de s t he c a non s h ea ppo i n t s , t he t i t u l a r c a nons , t he re c ou l d a l s o be p rov i s i on fo r hono ra ry c a nons . Thehonora ry c a nons wou l d ha ve t he t i t l e a nd o t he r d i s t i nc t i ons o f a t i t u l a r c a non bu tnone o f t he bu rde ns . W i t h m a ny p r i e s t s now re t i r i ng a t a ge 65 (o r e ve n e a r l i e r ) ac a non ry m i gh t be a " l i gh t du t y " a t t r a c t i on wh i c h wou l d ke e p m a ny a f i ne s e n i o rpr ie s t a t l eas t semi-ac t ive in the minis t ry whi le a t the same t ime rewarding h im forpas t se rv ices . In shor t , a co l leg ia te church-fa r f rom exacerba t ing the c le rgy shor tage might even se rve to he lp a l lev ia te i t . At the same t ime the b i shop wi l l have reviveda n a nc i e n t hono r a nd pe rha ps t o s om e e x t e n t ha ve r e l i e ve d s om e o f h i s p r i e s t s o f t he" i de n t i t y c r is i s " wh i c h s om e t i m e s oc c u r s onc e t he y be c om e " s h e phe rds o n t he shelf."

Am ong t he p r i nc i p l e s wh i c h t he f i r s t s ynod o f b i s hops a s ke d t o gu i de t he r e v i s i onof canon law was the pr inc ip le of subs id ia r i ty . Tha t pr inc ip le ca l l s for dec is ions to bem a de a t t he m os t a pp rop r i a t e l e ve l s o t ha t t he c om m on good m a y be s e rve d . Inpra ct ice i t ha s m ea nt a ve ry con sid era ble de vo lut io n of po w er from Ro m e to the COLLEGIATE CHURCH

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diocesan bishop. This discussion of the canons on collegiate churches will have madeclear how fully in this matter this guiding principle for the revision of canon law hasbeen implemented. Almost the entire program outlined above can be implementedby the diocesan bishop and the particular church. Resort to the Holy See would onlybe needed for one small part of the edifice to ob tain a decree affiliating oraggregating the institute of church music to the Pontifical Institute in Rome. The restof the program is entirely "home grown." So thoroughly have the lawyers done theirwork that it but remains for the liturgists and church musicians to do theirs so thatthe renaissance of collegiate churches and sacred music may take place.DUANE L.C.M . GALLES

NOTES1. Willibald Plochel, Geschichte des Kirchenrechts (Wien, 1953) I, pp. 321-322.2. When the Diocese of Louisiana was erected in 1793 a chapter of two canons waserected in the New Orleans cathedral. The two original canons died in 1804 and nosuccessors appear to have been apoin ted. Roger Baudier, The Catholic Church in Louisi-an a (New Orleans, 1939) p. 223. It is perhaps ironic that, while the United States cannever forget "the shot heard round the world," it was the American church which re-presented to the universal church the model of the monarchical bishop as a desirablefigure. By the mid-nineteenth century the power of the American bishop was alreadynotorious. It is said that one day someone asked Pope Pius IX for a favor. He replied,"What you ask is not in my power to grant. But there is an American bishop now inRome. Go ask him."3. John Tracy Ellis, The Catholic P riest in the United States: Historical Investigations(Collegeville, 1971) pp. 228-237. America n priests fought a century-lon g battle no t o nlyfor chapters of canons but also for canonical parishes (as opposed to mere "missions")and for the life tenure of pastors. The last two were secured overnight on Pentecost,1918, when the Code of Canon Law went into effect. This victory was abandoned in1983 by ca non 522 of the revised Code, which permits a bishop to appoint pastors for aterm to be established by the episcopal conference.4. An interesting series of articles on chapters of canon s appeared in 63 Periodica (1974),especially that by J. Beyer, "De capitulis cathedralibus servandis vel supprimendis."Other articles treat the Spanish, French, German and Swiss chapters.5. Frank Harrison, Music in Mediaeval Britain (New York, 1959) pp. 2, 4-9, 17-19.6. A. Hamilton Thompson, The English Clergy and their Organization in the LaterMiddle Ages (Oxford, 1947), pp. 79, 149, 251, 284, 285; G.H. Cook, English CollegiateChurches of the Middle Ages (London, 1959), pp 10, 119-125, 135-137.7. On Clergy departures, cf. Michael O'Riley, O.M.I., "Canonical Procedures for theLaicization of Priests," Canon La w Society of America Proceedings of the 44th AnnualConvention (Washington, 1983). p. 246 indicates that 1963-1969 there were 9,804 priestslaicized; 1969-1980 some 24,489 priests left the ministry for a total of 34,293. On thestate of church music in the United States, see Giles Dimock, O.P., "The liturgy ofVatican II: Success or Failure," 87 Homiletic and Pastoral Review (1989) 31 .8. 13 Communicationes (1981) 135.9. 63 AAS 314; Peter M. J. Stravinkas, Our Sunday Visitor's Catholic Encyclopedia(Huntington, IN, 1991) p. 56.10 . R. J. Schuler, "Education in Music: The Answer to our Liturgical Problems," 93Sacred Music (1966), 34-35.11. Helpful elaboration on Sapientia Christiana relevant to this area is in P. Dezza, S. J.,"Le altre Facolta Ecclesiastiche" and "Pianificatione della Facolta e mutue collabora-tione" in 20 Seminarium (1980) at pp. 571 and 582.12. In Britain a bill becomes law when the royal commissioners announce to the houseorgininating it, "Le roi (la reine) le veult."

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ENGLISH TRANSLATIONSIt was in 1973 that the present English version of the liturgy was published, thework, of course, of ICEL, the International Committee on English in the Liturgy. Tosay that i t failed to meet with universal approval would be an understatement; and i twas not long before the first stirrings of organized revisionism were to be felt. To say

no more of this, however, let us take as an example what we were given for theopening prayer of the 17th Sunday of the year:God, our Father and Protector,without you nothing is holy,nothing has value.Guide us to everlasting lifeby helping us to use wiselythe blessings you have given to the world.This is disjointed, unrhythmic, jejune ("Nothing has value"). What has happenedduring some thirteen years to bring ICEL to realize this, to make a U-turn, and in1986, to produce the following as a re-draft?O God, protector of those who hope in you,without w hom nothing is strong, nothing is holy,enfold us in your gracious care and governance,that we may use wisely the gifts of this passing world,and fix our hearts even now on those which last for ever.Here the rhythm flows and the language is memorable, and we are in anotherwo rld. T he rendering is in fact tradit ion al. Indeed , i t rather goes over the top in usingsuch words as "enfold" and "governance," not to mention other Anglican PrayerBook echoes (which belong elsewhere) in the last line. It is also on much th

Sacred Music, 119.1, Spring 1992; The Journal of the Church Music Association of America

Documents

Transcript of Sacred Music, 119.1, Spring 1992; The Journal of the Church Music Association of America