Gregorian Chant and Polyphony Sacred Music Workshop - Explore the musical treasury of the Catholic Church
Mark your calendars for the 2008 Gregorian Chant Workshop to be held at St. Peter Church! This year's workshop will be held on Friday, October 17 and Saturday, October 18, 2008. Email Darcy Bunn at jdbunn [at] charter.net to receive updated information when it is available.
Form Last Year's Chant Workshop:
Join us October 26-27, 2007 for a hands-on journey into the timeless treasury of the official sacred music of the Church.
The Church's Official Music for the Mass
Gregorian Chant was written exclusively for the liturgy, and is included in the official books of the Church as the music intended to accompany the Mass. The Second Vatican Council called for Gregorian chant to have "pride of place" in the liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concillium art. 116), and recommended sacred polyphony (motets written with a number of voice parts in harmony) as being well-suited to the Mass.
Our Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI has said,
"An authentic updating of sacred music can take place only in the lineage of the great tradition of the past, of Gregorian chant and sacred polyphony."
Discovering the tradition of sacred music in the Mass
Maybe you remember when Gregorian chant was part of the experience of Sunday Mass. Or maybe you have never experienced a Mass when the prayers were chanted and the schola cantorum sang the propers.
Propers? What are those anyway?
Where can I find the "official" music of the Church?
How do you read those square notes of Gregorian chant?
Today people throughout the world at workshops like this one, are learning to read and sing Gregorian chant and unlocking the treasury of polyphony. They are singing the psalms, hymns and prayers of the Church's tradition of sacred music during the liturgy.
Now you can join this beautiful tradition!
The Gregorian Chant and Polyphony Sacred Music Workshop takes place:
Friday October 26 from 3:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Saturday October 27 from 8:00 AM - 7:00 PM
During this workshop you will:
- Study with a renowned master of Gregorian chant, Fr. Robert Skeris
- Receive copies of the music you'll be singing, as well as the text and CD, A Gregorian Chant Master Class ($30.00 value)
- Learn how to read the neumes (square notes) of Gregorian chant
- Sing polyphonic music from the earliest days of the Church
- Prepare parts of the Mass in Gregorian chant and polyphony, then sing them during Saint Peter's 4 PM Vigil Mass.
You will also enjoy food and fellowship with the workshop attendees. Included are:
A Friday night wine and cheese social
A sandwich buffet lunch Saturday
A homemade Italian dinner after the Saturday night Mass, enjoyed to the accompaniment of a string quartet!
This workshop is ideal for:
Music directors, choir and schola members, cantors, clergy, teachers, parents, or anyone interested in experiencing our rich heritage of sacred music.
Rev. Dr. Robert Skeris
Father Robert A. Skeris was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee in 1961. He earned his doctorate in Theology in Bonn, Germany in 1975. Presently, he serves as the Director of the Center for Ward Method Studies at the Catholic University of America's B.T. Rome School of Music. He is the Chairman of the Dom Mocquereau Fund, Washington D.C. and a past president (1996-2004) of the Church Music Association of America. From 1990-1999, Fr. Skeris was the Chairman of the Theology Department of Christendom College. Father also taught as a professor in the Pontifical Institute for Sacred Music in Rome.
Discounted Accommodations for Workshop Attendees
Discounted room rates have been offered to workshop attendees by the following inns and hotels (please mention the Gregorian Chant Workshop when making your reservation):
Dreams of Yesteryear Bed and Breakfast
1100 Brawley Street, Stevens Point
715-341-4525
e-mail bonnie [at] dreamsofyesteryear.com
www.dreamsofyesteryear.com
Rates from $75-160 + tax
5% discount plus a free regional cookbook to workshop attendees
Fairfield Inn by Marriott
5317 Hwy 10 E., Stevens Point
Contact General Manager Amanda Miller to request rate quoted below at 342-9300
or e-mail stevenspointff [at] tharaldson.com
Rate $75.00 + tax
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/stefi-fairfield-inn-stevens-point/
Royale Inn
5110 Main St., Stevens Point
877-811-0217
www.royaleinn.com
Rate $49 + tax (double occupancy), $5 extra person
$10 additional for poolside room
Sleep Inn & Suites
1560 American Drive, Plover
715-342-0400
www.choicehotels.com/hotel/wi161
Rate $80.96 per double room
REGISTRATION INFORMATION
To download a registration form and brochure, click here. (You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open this document - download Adobe Reader here.)
To register online, click here.
Or register by phone or e-mail - contact Darcy Bunn at 715-343-9007 or e-mail jdbunn [at] charter.net
For more information about the Church's tradition of sacred music, visit the Gregorian Chant and Catholic music blog.