Leon J. Podles :: DIALOGUE

At one point in my peregrinations, I drove from Bozeman to Kalispell. The radio stations offered three choices: Country and Western, Christian, and Christian Country and Western. I listened to each as long as I could stand it: Rollin in my Sweet Baby’s Arms (when does the mail train come back?), Yes We’ll Gather by [...]

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Commonweal is having a discussion in the decades-old topic “Why Catholics Can’t (or Won’t) Sing.” 
The lack of singing at Mass is a symptom that the liturgical renewal was not a popular movement: it was developed by a small group of enthusiasts and scholars and imposed on the laity without any consultation. Catholics have a strong [...]

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I heard Bach’s cantata, Wenn die stolze Feinde schnauben, at Christ Lutheran Church in Baltimore.
 
It is the last part of the Christmas oratorio, and was sung on Epiphany.
 
While the recitative recounts the narrative of the Three Kings, the meditative parts focus on the evil that already desires to destroy the Child.
 
Herr, wenn die stolzen [...]

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My of my least favorite social duties is weddings. The normally low level of Catholic Church music plunges to new lows as “their favorite song” (sometimes schlocky-romantic, sometimes full of innuendos) is played during Communion. The bride has confused a ball gown and a wedding dress. A ball gown is daring and slightly immodest; a [...]

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We were in Rome last week, and decided to attend the 10:30 sung mass at St. Peter’s. I had hopes because Benedict is a musician.
Several years I met an American musician who lived in Switzerland. He had negotiated with he Calvinist Cathedral in Geneva to host a Catholic choir, the first Catholic choir to sing there [...]

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During our annual Christmas trip, we heard the choir of St. Thomas Episcopal Church (Fifth Ave) sing The Messiah, as arranged by Mozart.

  I had never heard it with treble voices before. The voices were delicate but clear. It was possible to hear all the lines of music distinctly. Because boys voices do not have [...]

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