The Catholic Institute of Sacred Music is pleased to present three different topics in its fall online workshop series, focusing on practical topics helpful to those who teach Gregorian chant to others, and providing offerings which music directors can use to supplement instruction for new chanters. These workshops are held via Zoom, and taught by Dr. Jennifer Donelson-Nowicka, William P. Mahrt Chair of Sacred Music at St. Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park, California, and Director of the Catholic Institute of Sacred Music. The workshops take place on Monday evenings at 5:30 p.m. Pacific Time.
Registration for one or more of the workshops is available here. The price is $20 for each topic, $50 for all three, and $10 extra per topic for archived access following live instruction.
Gregorian Psalm Tones
Mondays, September 25 & October 2, 5:30 – 6:30 pm, PDT
Join us for two Monday evenings as Dr. Donelson-Nowicka explains how to chant the Psalms according to the Gregorian psalm tones.
You’ll study the anatomy of a psalm tone, the relationship between the tone and the mode, as well as the relationship between the tone and the antiphon. The workshop will focus on how to point the text (put the correct notes on the correct syllables) according to the required accentuation patterns and preparatory syllables. Dynamics and tempo considerations for the phrasing will also be addressed. Sessions will present the texts sung in Latin.
Techniques for Teaching Gregorian Chant to Your Parish Choir
Mondays, October 16 and 23, 5:30 – 6:30 pm, PDT
Are you looking to refresh your pedagogical techniques so that your parish choir feels confident and enthusiastic about singing Gregorian chant? Join Dr. Donelson-Nowicka as she covers different teaching techniques to start a new chant with your choir, help them feel more confident on the melodic intervals in the melody, and have a strong sense of the phrasing in the piece.
Solfège 101: Solfège Basics & How to Use It to Learn and Teach Basic Chants
Mondays, October 30, November 6, and 13, 5:30 – 6:30 p.m., PDT/PST
Designed and paced for absolute beginners to solfège, and presenting teaching models for those music directors who teach chant novices, this series will cover the basics of solfège, focusing on major-mode patterns familiar to the modern ear. Attendees will learn drills for improving their ability to use the solfège syllables to sight-sing and audiate (hear the music in their minds). Exercises will be applied in easy chants within the repertoire that are accessible to new singers of chant.
