Simple Propers

While many Catholics pine with quivering anticipation for the implementation of the new missal translation, slated for Advent this fall, some musicians are holding their breath..... will we finally break past the 40-some years of, to put it mildly, insufficient Catholic music? There is a great project going on right now, the Simple English Propers Project, here, which looks to be a very promising fulfillment of the liturgical, musical, and pastoral ideals set forth by Sacrosanctum Concilium. The project sets, simply, a very good English translation to a simplified version of the actual Gregorian chant propers, such as found here. The result is a wonderful synthesis of the rich musical tradition the Church, and the vernacular and pastoral expansions of the Second Vatican Council. Recently at Bishop White Seminary, at Gonzaga University, in Spokane, WA, the seminarians used the simple English propers for their candlelight procession and mass for the Presentation of the Lord. The seminarians currently use By Flowing Waters , but the quality of translations used is questionable, and, with the new missal, the English ordinary should render By Flowing Waters obsolete.