Phoenix Gregorian Chant Group
The Phoenix Gregorian Chant Group provides an informal and relaxed opportunity to sing with others and explore the Gregorian repertory together. Our goal is to improve music reading skills rather than refining and perfecting chants for public performance. There is no audience, and everyone is expected to participate in the singing. Singers of all ages and all musical and religious backgrounds are welcome! We usually meet 3:30 to 5:00 on the second Sunday of each month in the parish hall of Mater Misericordiae Catholic Church at 1537 W. Monroe St. in downtown Phoenix. Enter through the east side gate and the double doors under the church sign (doors will be unlocked by 3:15). Extra copies of the Liber Brevior are available to borrow and can also be purchased for $30 (check or exact change is appreciated). If you're new, please familiarize yourself with the Fundamentals of Gregorian Chant.
Sunday, June 12, 2022, 3:30–5:00
Fifty-Sixth Singing
Sunday, July 10, 2022, 3:30–5:00
Murray 1: Gregorian Chant according to the Manuscripts - 11 pages (pp. 3–13)
Ch. I: The Gregorian Chant (History)
Ch. II: The Chant Manuscripts
Ch. III: The Different Notations
*Four chants from the Graduale Novum to study alongside readings for July through November from the following two works:
Dom Gregory Murray, O.S.B. Gregorian Chant according to the Manuscripts. London: L. J. Cary, 1963.
Dr. Jan van Biezen, tr. Kevin Rooney. Rhythm, Meter and Tempo in Gregorian Chant. Glendale, CO: Lancelot Andrewes Press, 2016.
Fifty-Seventh Singing
Sunday, August 14, 2022, 3:30–5:00
Murray 2: Gregorian Chant according to the Manuscripts - 9 pages (pp. 14–22)
Ch. IV: Long and Short Notes
Ch. V: The Necessity for Comparative Analysis
Fifty-Eighth Singing
Sunday, September 11, 2022, 3:30–5:00
*Van Biezen 1: “The Rhythm of Gregorian Chant" - 7 pages (pp. i–ii, 19–23)
Preface by Kevin Rooney
Introductory paragraphs
Tone Transitions
Ornaments
Fifty-Ninth Singing
Sunday, October 9, 2022, 3:30–5:00
*Van Biezen 2: “The Rhythm of Gregorian Chant" - 11 pages (pp. 23–33)
Rhythm
A New Analysis of the Rhythm
The Rhythm of One- to Five-Note Syllables
Sixtieth Singing
Sunday, November 13, 2022, 3:30–5:00
*Van Biezen 3: “The Rhythm of Gregorian Chant" - 8 pages (pp. 34–41)
The Rhythm of Many-Note Syllables in the Nonantola Corpus of Chant
Meter
Tempo
Sixty-First Singing
Sunday, December 11, 2022, 3:30–5:00
Assignment: Mark long notes in introits Si iniquitates and Sitientes*
*The chants from the Graduale Novum and the article from Kevin Rooney's English translation of Rhythm, Meter and Tempo in Gregorian Chant by Jan van Biezen are under copyright and provided for educational use by members of the Phoenix Gregorian Chant Group.
Please e-mail choir at phoenixlatinmass dot org with any questions.