Reno Catholic Network

This summer, I'll highlight a few of the sites that we link to here on rpchoir.blogspot.com.

I start with Reno Catholic Network, a labor of love from our good Cathedral friend Gwen Linde (Col. USAF Ret.). Gwen has recorded and compiled numerous homilies, talks, and presentations of various sorts from the Cathedral and beyond, including our own chant workshop from September 2013. You can easily download any of these talks to your mp3 player or smartphone by using the "Save link as..." function.

Here's just a sampling of what else you can find on the Reno Catholic Network site:

• Homilies by Bishop Calvo, Fr. Francisco Nahoe, and Deacon Joe Bell, among others.
• "Answering Tough Questions," which does just that on a variety of moral, liturgical, and denominational issues. Kathy gave a talk for this series called "Why Gregorian Chant at Mass?"
• "Why Are There Protestants, Anyway?", a "tough question" that warranted its own series earlier this year.
• Talks about Cathedral patron St. Thomas Aquinas from the novena to him.
• The recently completed four-year "beginning to end" Bible study.

Take a look around the site, and maybe you'll find some good, edifying, and local Catholic material to listen to!

Have A Great Summer

It wouldn't be a Regina Pacis Cantorum season without challenges, right? We certainly had our share, especially in the realm of health. It seemed like no one was immune; Kathy had to lead on through her crud around Christmas, I was KO'd for most of January and February, and even Sandy got a cold to miss our Corpus Christi finale.

A big THANK YOU goes out to all of our new members! Some of you joined us following the successful chant workshop we had in September, while others came aboard as the year went on. I hope you all felt welcome and learned a thing or two about the wonderful world of chant.

Thank you also to all the pastors who allowed us the privilege of singing in their sanctuaries: Fr. Francisco Nahoe, Fr. Larry Morrison, Fr. Norman King, Fr. Guillermo Arias, and Fr. Loy Torente. We're always open to singing in other parishes if they will have us.

One more thank you goes out to Kathy and tenor Rob Bateman. It's way too easy to take for granted how they displayed their incomparable voices in chanting Gradual and Offertory verses; those pieces required extra preparation beyond the usual song load. Bravissimo!

We also said goodbye to some of our most cherished singers: Shirley Beasley, Sarah Beasley, Patty Dickens, her mom Helen, and her sister-in-law Renee. Your impact on RPC will long be remembered.

Kathy is now heading off to the Sacred Music Colloquium in Indianapolis, as well as to see relatives in Indiana whom she hasn't seen in as many as 50 years. When she gets back, she will be the proud owner of this Nevada license plate, thanks to your generosity:

Enjoy the summer, and we'll see you in the fall. Meanwhile, keep an eye and ear out for any sopranos and basses who would be great additions to our numbers. Not that we'll turn away any prospective altos or tenors!

Benedicamus Domino...Deo gratias!

Requiescat in Pace

The father of bass Tim Rhodes has died following a lengthy illness. We pray he is in a much more peaceful and pain-free place now, and that the Holy Spirit will minister to Tim and his family. Tim chose to sing with us at the Corpus Christi High Mass today; no one would have blamed him if he didn't.

Good News

Many of us know Kathy's lovely and talented daughter, Marli. Well, she was just named the Sparks Museum and Cultural Center's museum director. She's coordinated and performed at Celtic events at the museum before. Congratulations!

She and Kathy would appreciate some prayers for Marli's newlywed husband Paul, who was just laid off. That's a situation with which too many RPC members have been familiar, myself included. St. Joseph the Worker, pray for us!

(UPDATE: Paul has accepted a position with a Las Vegas company, so he and Marli will be moving there, with, Marli "commuting" to Reno to continue in her new position. Thank you, St. Joseph!)

Prayers Answered

Bass JP DeChambeau asked me to share with you the happy news that his lengthy court battle is done, and he is now free and clear of debt. This should open the way for him to attend college.

In fact, JP is so happy about it, he's decided to sing. (By the way, if you have any samples of your own singing you'd like to share, let me know.)

What You Should Be Keeping After Next Sunday

After next Sunday (Jun. 22), you should be hanging onto:

• Adoremus Hymnal
• Liber Cantualis
• Asperges Me/Vidi Aquam
• Gospel Acclamations for Sundays of the Year I
• Repleatur
• Any instruction sheets on Gregorian chant
• Solfege sheet
• Latin pronunciation sheet

And only if you have them:

• St. Gregory Hymnal
• The "Green Book" (Chormusik der Caecilianer)
• Gloria Patri tones (if you don't have them, they're here)
• Memorial Acclamation
• Chants of the Roman Missal booklet

All else should be turned in in alphabetical (hymn/motet) or numeric (Psalm) order, EXCEPT any schedules or personally-made copies of any music; do Kathy a favor and discard those yourself. If you still have any propers, make sure the correct Communio sheets are inside.

Kathy also says if you'd like to get your own music back, write your name in pencil at the top of each piece of music; that goes for all season long. Otherwise, save Kathy some extra work again by erasing any marks in your music.

Jun. 22: Corpus Christi

4 PM at the Cathedral. Last Mass of the season, but we'll have all summer to rest up from it. Maybe it's just me, but with this being Nevada, wouldn't a procession led by a heavy-duty pickup truck be something?

Bring water and maybe a snack for the duration of the procession.

Prelude: Domine, Non Sum Dignus/Miserere Mei

Introit: Cibavit eos

Gloria: Mass XI (Orbis Factor)

Gradual: Oculi omnium

Alleluia: Caro mea (they don't, but we repeat the Alleluia after the intonation)

Sequence: Last part of Lauda Sion (start at 4:59, Ecce panis Angelorum)

Offertory: Sacerdotes Domini (proper; MP3 only)
Sacerdotes Domini (Haller motet)

Communio: Quotiescumque (MP3 only)
Ave Verum Corpus (Mozart)

Processional: O God Of Loveliness

(break for the procession)

Re-Entry: Lauda Sion (all)

Tantum Ergo (start at 1:56)

Closing: Holy God, We Praise Thy Name (S, A, T, B)

Unless Kathy sends other sound files, I don't have anything for the Marxer-Rossini Missa Brevis or the Werner O Salutaris Hostia.

This Year's Sacred Music Colloquium

Is in Indianapolis, not far from where Kathy grew up! She, of course, is going; other RPC members have attended in recent years. More info here.

We're Disrobing. Really.

This might be a first for an official RPC Mass, although I'm sure someone who has been around longer will correct me. From Kathy (emphasis mine):

In looking at the weather forecast, I see the high for Sunday is scheduled in the mid-90s.  Since the church will have been closed all afternoon with no a/c running, I think it will be too hot to have robes on in the choir loft.  I don't want anyone getting sick due to having the robe on.  I'll ask to have the a/c turned on as soon as someone shows up who has access to it, but the loft will still be pretty warm.

Please be aware that you are representing Regina Pacis and people know who we are.  Please dress in a dignified manner.  No jeans or T-shirts please!

No word on whether we'll sing "Shall We Gather At The River?" afterward.

Stand By To Stand By

All sorts of things are happening regarding Corpus Christi at the Cathedral on June 22, our final Mass of the year. It looks like we will be singing at 5 PM again instead of 11:30 AM to avoid a conflict with the diocesan Jubilee Mass following soon after, although that puts us against the 7 PM Spanish Mass if there's a procession.

It also means a jumbling of our rehearsals; look for an e-mail from Kathy regarding next week's sectional rehearsals, and make sure to reply to her.

Finally, if we are indeed doing an EF High Mass on Corpus Christi, we'll be doing Lauda Sion once again, so I've linked it for practice purposes. We'll alternate verses: All, T/B, All, S/A, All, etc.