iacobusm Easter, Sacred Music

“Hallelujah” from Beethoven’s Christ on the Mount of Olives

We tend not to associate the word "hallelujah" with those penitential seasons. In Christ on the Mount of Olives it signifies the climactic moment when Christ says, "Not my will, but ours, be done" (Luke 22:42). This is when he commits himself to his passion and death on the cross. That, in turn, will lead directly to the triumph of Easter. Now that calls for a "Hallelujah!"

iacobusm Lent and Easter, Sacred Music

Hidden Treasure: Mascagni’s Easter Hymn (Music for Easter Monday)

 This lovely piece of music is a little like the Treasure Hidden in a Field form Jesus' parable (see Matthew 13:44) . . . It's a nice reminder that grace breaks through even in the ugliest of circumstances.  

iacobusm Sacred Music

J.S. Bach – Lobet Gott in Seinen Reichen (from the Ascension Oratorio)

     This coming Thursday is the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord  . . . at least in many dioceses (and of course, wherever the traditional liturgical calendar is followed). It may not surprise you, if you are a regular reader of this blog, that I'm not a fan of moving important feasts like Ascension Thursday … Continue reading J.S. Bach – Lobet Gott in Seinen Reichen (from the Ascension Oratorio)

iacobusm Easter, Sacred Music

Music for the Easter Season: Regina Caeli, by Gregor Aichinger

The Regina Caeli ("Queen of Heaven") is a prayer that is closely associated with Easter. We usually recite this prayer instead of the Angelus during the Easter Season, at which time it also serves as the the Marian Antiphon at the end of Compline (Night Prayer). The beautiful musical setting for the Regina Caeli below … Continue reading Music for the Easter Season: Regina Caeli, by Gregor Aichinger