The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-02-19
TO GIVE Us PURER MUSIC.
FATHER GRAF TO FOLLOW THE
CENTURIES OLD ROMAN SCHOOL.
When Eibald Airs and Words Were
Sung at Mass-The Rigid Training of
Priests and Choirs in song - The
"Stebat Mater" Huge Joke.

Sung at Mass-The Rigid Training OF
Priests and Choirs in song - The
"Stebat Mater" a Huge Joke.
Copyright
New YORK, Feb. 1S,-Music, as every
body knows, plays an important part in the
service Of the Roman Catholic church, but
laymeu and especially Protestant lsymen.
do not realize how great feature it is and
how much study and hard work it involves
for members Of the priesthood and minor
attaches of the church. Every priest must
be a singer, and every organist in Catholic
church must be able to catch and correct
pitch from the priests intonations. This Of
itself, without speaking Of the work Of the
choirs, shows that immense study must be
made Of music in order that the priest
may chant the mass correctly and the Or
ganist respond in the same key.
There is at least one famous school for the
study of ecclesiastical music. 1t was es-
tablished centuries ago at Rome and is still
in existence 1t is known as the Gondimel
school and some of the worlds greatest
musicians have been among its pupils. The
object OF that school, as l understand it, is
to preserve church music in its religious
purity and TO tram priests and singers 30
that their work shall be absolutely perfect
There is a movement on foot in America
for the establishment of a similar school
here. The head and front Of this movement
Is the Rev. Joseph Graf, who was formerly
stationed at Baltimore. He is now in New
York actively engaged in starting the
school, and the first public move will be In
the form of what is called Golden Episco
pal Jubilee" In celebration Of the
Doth anniversary Of the present
pope's entrance into the priest
hood. The distinguishing feature
of this celebration, which is to take place
on Feb. 20, will be the rendering of
church music by the best performers that
take place at Music hall, Fifty-seventh
street aud Seventh avenue. At that time
there will be produced for the first time in
this country some ompositions by Pales-
trina, a composer who was born in 1914. In
musical history he figures as the savior Of
church music. But before touching upon
bis very important relations to musical art
1t should be said that Father Graf is him.
self a finished musician. He Is a master OF
the theory OF music, good composer, a
good singer and very fine director. Ii Is
his end 70 restore to the church music of to-
day the spirit and style that prevailed dur
ing the last years of Palessrina's life.
When PAlestrina was young man the
composers who were then in vogue had
fallen into the habit Of using popular songs
as the basis for their masses. The singers,
who had heard the songs upon the streets or
in drinking rooms, fell into the habit of
singing saorilegious words to the familiar
tunes instead of the solemn words of the
liturgy. 1t seems almost incredible at this
day that such should have been the case
How would it sound, for instance, TO hear
fine choir shouting Annie Rooney, She's
NY Sweetheart" in the middle Of an i'm
pressive services Yet the choristers In
Rome four centuries ago did as badly as
that and even went further. The composer
may have arranged the words of the mass
to the refrain Of a ribald drinking song
and the singers. neglecting the Latin, would
sing the original words while the priests
were performing their functions at the
altar. This naturally provoked a great
scandal after a time, ard it became a seri-
GUS question with the church authorities
whether music should not be abolished from
the service. A committee of cardinals was
appointed by the pope to consider the ques-
ton, and it was we'll known that the mem
bers OF the committee were prejudioed to
such an extent that they would probably
recommend a rule against music.
Palesbrina had at that time already at
tanned considerable fame as q composer
and one of his friends persuaded the com
mittee to permit the composer to demon
strate that religious music-musc that
would be digniied, beautiful and pleasing
could be written without any appeal to the
popular airs Of the day. Pslestriua tried
1t, aud the result was that after the COM
mittee had heard three masses which he
had composed, one Of them was performed
before tile pope himself. and his holiness
was so pleased with the composition that he
declared that music should still remain
feature of the church service.
So Palestrina saved music, so far as the
church ts concerned, and for a long time
the influence Of his pure and mastery
thought was felt by subsequent composers.
Then came another change Composers
wrote masses more for the concert room
than for the church. Their music was good
but it had not the religious atmosphere that
the church requires. A glazing example Of
this is the famous and popular "Sabat
Mater" by RoSsini. ROsslni wrote this
work az a joke. The only religious music
in the whole work is the unaccompanied
quartet, and that quartet Rossin stole
bodily, note for note, from a compl sition
by Haydn.
1t is Father Crafts purpose to encourage
compositors to-day TO return to the classic
ecclesiastical style of Palestrina, or, If not
to go 80 far as that, to preserve the dignity
Of music designed for the church. In the
school he will establish there will be taught
the theory and practice of the Greeorian
chant, the history of church music, eoclesi-
astical laws concerning liturgical music. all
the departments which lie within the theory
OF composition, as we'll as organ playing.
chorus training and choir directing, and
critical study Of the best works OF ancient
and modern composers, particularly of
masterpieces of the Palestrina style. The
Jubilee already referred to will serve to an
courage composers and directors to work ia
Father Crafts direction. In the performance
of the music there will be a chorus Of 500
picked voices, the Symphony orchestra of
New York and several s2loists who are
famous all over the country as singers. The
soprano, for instance. will be- Mime. Furscb-
Msdi. There will be three CONDUCTOR.
among them Father Graf, and the others
Walter Damrosch and Bruno Oscar Klein.
Some of the compositions OF PAlestrina
which will be produced have never been
sung before except by the papal choir in the
Sistine chapel at Rome. That choir is.
probably, the finest in the world, and for
centuries it has kept its repertory Of sacred
music altogether to itself. On at least Two
occasions In musical history musicians have
listened TO the choir and noted the songs
that were rendered and afterward pub
lished them. One of these thofts, If such a
harsh word may be used, was made by Men
delssohn. On this occasion, OF course, the
performance has the full sanction Of the
highest church authorities