Summer is here in full swing, complete with a couple of heat waves that made us grateful for the office air conditioning and wishful for some climate control in the Cathedral church (especially when the organ developed a cipher right before the 5 PM Mass). This time of year is for slowing down a bit, in the church music world...for soaking up long conversations with colleagues, attending conferences, submerging ourselves in score study as we dream about what our choirs will

Pentecost is here…the one day in the liturgical year where the Church focuses her attention on celebrating the person of the Trinity we call the Holy Spirit. There’s a mystery to this – do we even know what we’re talking about when we try to explain the Holy Spirit? Maybe not. But what we have is Jesus’ own words to us: “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Paraclete to be with you always.” (John 14:16) The Paraclete. The Advocate. The Comforter. The One who is

Ash Wednesday is here again, and with it the beginning of another Lent. Whether this is your first or your tenth or your fortieth or your eightieth Lent, it seems each one takes on a character of its own. As this day approaches, I am never sure what to expect. There have been years where I've laid out big, ambitious plans for personal growth or spiritual reading. There have been years where my plans were smaller...but I almost always have plans. I have traditionally approache

It’s been a good week for skiing around here. Just enough new snow to freshen up the trails, and temperatures that are not unbearable (and not too much wind). I was out on the trail at a nearby park and was struck by how many small children were skiing with parents and grandparents. A number of the adults were encouraging the kids. The really striking thing, though, was how the kids were encouraging everyone else. As I passed one little girl, probably about five years old, sh

It gets darker and darker, and then Jesus is born. (This quote has been attributed to author Wendell Berry by fellow author Anne Lamott, and it's one of my favorites .) There is something about the extra darkness this time of year that invites us to create light. We do that in different ways: lighting Advent wreaths at home and at church, putting candles in the windows or on the dinner table, decorating our homes with brightly-colored bulbs, building fires in the fireplace, g

As the year winds to a close, all around us the signs of celebration are appearing...lights on rooftops, wreaths on doors and lightposts, displays in store windows. Our inboxes and mailboxes fill with notices of sale prices and shipping deadlines. The restaurants and coffee shops start offering pumpkin spice lattes and peppermint-flavored everything. Everywhere we go, we can hear the sounds of the season... Rudolph and Silver Bells and It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Chri

Music ministry comes in many shapes and sizes. At this time in our journey as an Area Catholic Community, some of us are trying new things, sitting in different places for Mass or attending at different times. This is a great time to get involved in music ministry at the Cathedral. You do not have to be a registered Cathedral parishioner to be a part of the music ministry here. We have lots of ways to participate: Cathedral Choir - rehearses Wednesday evenings from 7 - 8:30 P

Thanks to the Anselm Choir for sharing this image and making me giggle. Summer is here...and with the exception of three big Sunday...

Easter Vigil at St. Mary's. Photo by Fr. Steve Binsfeld. Isn't it a gift that Alleluias come in different shapes and sizes and tempos and volumes? Some are loud and bright, accompanied with trumpets and timpani. Some are quiet, hummed as we go about our business. Some are sung or said through gritted teeth. They all mean the same thing. "Praise the Lord." They all count. Alleluia is not about feeling happy or about having a smiley face. Alleluia is a choice. The Lucernarium o

A hand-painted street sign in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. I have decided to follow Jesus is a song that comes from the Assam region of India. It was made popular in the United States by Dr. Billy Graham. The song’s origins are unclear. One legend attributes it to the last words of an Indian Christian martyr, who is said to have recited these words as he died. His words were later made into a hymn by an Indian missionary, Sadhu Sundar Singh. Another source credits an Indian mi

Josef Gabriel Rheinberger (public domain image via Wikimedia Commons) This week’s Lenten Music Highlight is Kyrie from Josef Rheinberger’s Cantus Missae (Sung Mass) for double choir in E flat. Josef Rheinberger (1839 – 1901) was from Liechtenstein, one of the smallest countries in Europe. He showed early talent for music. At age seven, he was already serving as the organist at the parish church in Vaduz, the capital city. Although his father initially opposed his desire to

Lately, I've been wondering about what it means to do Lent in the Jubilee Year of Hope. Right before Lent started, Father Scott mentioned this in his homily. He said he had the sense that Lent in the Jubilee Year of Hope would be filled with exceptional graces. Something about the way he said it made me take note - it hung in the air for an extra second, like it had more weight than the sentences around it. I've been thinking about this a lot. Extra graces. Does that mean ext

February 2 is the Feast of the Presentation. Another name for this feast is Candlemas, from the tradition of blessing all the candles that will be used in the church in the coming year. The Feast of the Presentation celebrates the introduction of Jesus in the Temple forty days after his birth. In the Gospel account according to Luke, Jesus is introduced to Simeon, a priest who has been waiting his whole life to meet the Messiah. In the famous text that the church prays as the

In the darkest weeks of the year, just when it's gotten really cold in Central Minnesota, we find ourselves at a new beginning. Again. It's the Saturday before Advent, the Church's liturgical New Year's Eve. While the rest of the world is racing ahead to Christmas celebrations the day after Thanksgiving, the rhythm of the Church invites us to pause, to reflect, to prepare intentionally and deeply for the coming of Christ. This time of year isn't just about getting ready for t

Sing to the Lord a new song; Sing to the Lord, all the earth. Proclaim his salvation day by day. Tell among the nations his glory, and...