When I attended the Church Music Association of America's colloquium at Catholic University in Washington D.C. last summer, I decided to take my video camera along. One of the organizers had put out a request to attendees to volunteer to tape stuff. I said I would but cautioned I was no professional (that's an understatement). There were other people with cameras there, but as far as I could tell, I was the only one set up to record all the Masses. (I also recorded some of the talks and rehearsals, but my husband and I haven't gotten to editting that footage yet.) Even though I had my camera running, I was mostly concerned with catching the sounds, not so much the sights . I was too busy singing to worry about monkeying with the camera angles much. So the visual might not always be real interesting (some of it is), but the sounds really are beautiful. These Masses are all in the ordinary form (i.e. novus ordo) and all are a little different in their execution. All take place in the Crypt Chapel in the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. (There was an extraordinary form Mass celebrated as part of the colloquium too, but I didn't make it to that one due to pregnant mommy's need for rest.) You can click below to view the playlist for each Mass, which connects each video clip of the Mass in order. The first Mass is primarily in English, but demonstrates how the propers and ordinary can still be chanted in English. Father Robert Skeris, who was the presenter at the Gregorian chant workshop in my parish last fall, was the main celebrant at this Mass.

This was a Mass celebrated on the feast of St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher. It is primarily in Latin, with the celebrant, Father Robert C. Pasley, offering the Eucharistic Prayers ad orientem. At this Mass we sang my favorite piece of the colloquium, Os Justi by Bruckner. I never knew such beauty was possible, and it was thrilling to be part of it. Bruckner's compositions apparently require large choirs, and we were a large choir, about 140 people I think.

This was the Sunday Mass at the end of the colloquium. It is a sign of the continuity with tradition of this ordinary form Mass, that the same music was used at the extraordinary form Mass before which I unfortunately didn't get taped. I think there are some audio files of it though, maybe on musicasacra.com. In the Sunday Mass, the celebrant is Fr. Lawrence Donnelly. He gives a great homily that all church musicians should listen to. The Mass is primarily in Latin. The sprinkling rite was used, and we sang the Asperges Me arrangement by Dr. Horst Buchholz, who directed all the polyphony for the large group and is the director of music at the cathedral in Denver, CO.

Finally, we have the requiem Mass for the deceased members of the CMAA. The main celebrant is Fr. Jeffrey Keyes, who I have learned is making leaps and bounds in his parish sacred music program, judging by his First Communion program this year. This Mass is also primarily in Latin, doesn't use any polyphony in the Mass settings but much chant, including the sequence "Dies Irae." It is a great example of what would be possible in a funeral Mass.

It is my hope that putting this videos out there will give more sacred music people and priests some inspiration to strive for greater dignity, solemnity and beauty in their Masses. These Masses are in line with the universality of the Church, across time and space, and in assisting at them, one truly felt like they were connected with the eternal banquet in heaven.