The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1905-06-03
Church Universal


81 s,,e a,Ilsalogytyet further let us imagine
49,, .iiueh lllne TO be taken up with these
PICTURES that large proport ion of tbe
~ Oler OF the mass has to be omitted
~ consequence. Then we have an
AacI counterpart of what takes place
AZ hlgh mass every Sunday of tho wear
~ hlne-tenths of our churches. ONLY
aoi stereopticon views" substitute
modern music
II the similarity does not strike us
az nrst sight it is because our taste
Ia! Ia, become somewhat vitiated i'm
lulS matter We have come to eynect
d concert at High Mass At Low Mass
we pray at High Mass we listen. In
lloIl- Cdthollc churches a religious con-
cert is perhaps admissible, because the
conditions are not the same. There
the musical numbers are frankly a
pause IN the prayer: with them the
prayer stops, a hymn or q psalm is
sung, ana the prayer is resumed. But
our Mass is different: it is a great act,
the sacrifice is all-important. The
NlasS is not collection of assorted
prayers and hymns: it is a unit. of
winch the center is the Conservation.
Inc, Inc music allotted to the choir is no
less an intrinsic part of the PRAYER
IMAM the music allotted to the priest.
one simply answers the other while the
MASS moves as d whole toward the
great tact Of the Conservation.
NO omission or Interpolation is al
ioWed-the sermon alone being by spe-
claI permission excepted. For this
reason a religious concert at Mass is
intolerable from the devotional stand
point That ii is equally intolerable
from the artistic standpoint is not less
true, and for almost the same reasons.
Even in opera we have now grasped
the principle that the music must be
entirely dependent upon the words.
must not delay the action, but must
serve to intensity and accentuate both
words and action-it must help the
drama, never hinder. This principle.
of which Wagner was the consnic-
aouS prophet in the realm of opera.
applies to all art where words and
music are used in combination to pro-
duce united result. Insomuch as
the music fails to be the handmade of
the sense and spirit of the words. in
Just so much it fails to be good art
1nsomuch as the music obstructs the
action, if action there should be, in
Just so much does it become bad art.
and this regardless of the value of the
music as music
This is the first principle of must
clans when combining the arts of
speech and music. 1t was perfectly
by St. Gregory and. his
contemporaries. But with the ascend
ancy of secular music in the fifteenth
century came lowering of the ideal, |
of opera writing to suit the !
voices of popular singers rather than
the eXigencies of the text. Meaning
less repetitions resulted. the action
was left to take care of itself-and |
opera became concert in costume, the |
music completely detachable from !
the drama. The demoralizing influence !
crept into the churches where even |
such great masters as Bach. Mozart |
and Beethoven allowed themselves to |
be affected-in form if not in matter
by the popular degeneration, and their /
masterpieces of devotional /
music thus failed to conform to the |
elementary standards of true art.
But opera has OutStripped the |
Church i'm her reform. Wagner APP
peared as prophet, insisting in spite
of ridicule and a Initiated public taste /
hat if opera were to be anything but
an exotic. and were to take its place
imong the arts. it must return to the
rue relation between words and mu-
sic. Whatever may be our personal
opinion as to Wagner's actual success
IS an exponent of this principle in his
,wn compositions, we must one and
asserting the principle itself So
much so. that no musicians. in these
lays, would be bold enough to write
pera in defiance of its laws.
II. then, the words of a mere opera
must not be neglected-what of the
words of the Mass? If the words of
play. devised to entertain an audi
nee in search Of an evenings pleasure |
If these words are to be treated with
aspect by the cOmpOseT-What of the
words Of the Mass. written by the
aints of the infant Church and offered
ID as the highest form of worship to
Almighty God? Shall we fall short of
he artistic standards of opera in our
reat act of praise? Shall the words
f a mere story meet with more rev.
rental treatment at the hands of the
1usician than the words of our Holy +,
lass?
Not so. The Church, too. has her
rophet The Holy Father is trying to
ring us up to the ultra-modern .
tandaTds of art in his great Motu
'roprio: THE liturgical text must
e sung as il is in the books. without
Iteration OF inversion Of the words. I
'ithout undue repetition, without syl- j
ibles and always in a manner intel ;
gible TO the faithful who listen" And !
gain: In general it must be con- t
idered to be a very grave abuse when 5
he liturgy in ecclesiastical functions ! {
: made 10 appear secondary to, and in
manner at the service of the music, '
Dr the music is merely part of the {
turgy and its humble handmade" 80
Justine b Ward in The Mes !
anger.