Ana's Picture Book of the Week

Mozart, the Wonder Child, A Puppet Show in Three Acts by Diane Stanley, 2009 Harper Collins.

No need to introduce young Mozart or kids biographer extraordinaire Diane Stanley, but this brand new biography has a new twist: she wrote the whole book as a marionette play! The pictures look as if his whole life is a show, with characters suspended on strings. Expect the usual detail-rich, high level writing that comes with her wonderful biographies.

Another innovative aspect is the medium she chose for the paintings for this book: the 500-year old method of egg-tempera. On the interior of the back jacket she explains about this medium and directs readers to the Society of Tempera Painters at www.eggtempera.com. For this art teacher, this definitely sparks my curiosity... potential projects abound in my head!

"Christmas in God's Country" CD

This is a neat CD for this Christmas, and benefits Wyoming Catholic College, a small Catholic liberal arts college.

In honor of the Advent and Christmas seasons, the Wyoming Catholic College Choir has released its inaugural recording, fittingly entitled Christmas In God’s Country, featuring beautifully rendered traditional and historical Christmas music. For a small donation, you can obtain a deluxe version of this CD, complete with plastic case and extensive liner notes. It makes a great gift idea!

Click here for more information, including samples of the music from this CD.

Cross-posted from the Rejoice in Hope blog.

O Antiphons

The "O Antiphons" are special prayers (that can be chanted) for the days preceding Christmas (December 17-23). You can read about them here.

Dr. Mahrt is posting the chant along with beautiful recordings at the Church Music Association of America Blog.

Project for children: O Antiphon House

O Antiphon Coloring Page from Illuminated Ink

UPDATE: Jennifer Miller has a very detailed set of resources and ideas on O Night Divine.

Messiah Sing-Along at Home

(cross-posted from Studeo)

We ended up doing an impromptu Messiah sing along just with our family last night. I pulled out my music book (from high school) and we had a lot of fun (and when you sing it at home, it's okay to giggle at the high notes or trills you can't quite manage)! Recordings are plentiful and I imagine any one would do (we have one of highlights from the Messiah - from the Musical Heritage Society). The sheet music book is quite inexpensive - only about $8. Details at the Hal Leonard Publishing Company.

Sacred Music Resources

ChoralTreasure.org (hat-tip The Curt Jester)

You might also be interested in the Church Music Association of America.

Marian Songs for Advent (from Studeo)

The Origin of Do-Re-Mi

Read about it at G.K.C.'s Favourite

Classical Music Top 100

All-classical radio KBPS Portland, OR, has on their website a list of the top 100 classical music pieces, as determined by a poll of listeners. My dh, a real classical music fan, says it is a great list to start with. You can find it online here.

The Angelus and the Regina Caeli

Sweetness and Light has a lovely post today on the Angelus prayer, Jean-Francois Millet's painting of the Angelus and a related poem for on art study on Millet.

You can find the prayer here if you don't already know it.

By the way, there is a special prayer, often sung, that traditionally takes its place during the Easter Season. I fell in love with it when I first visited Thomas Aquinas College when I was a sophomore or junior in high school. The bell was rung and many people would gather to sing it together at noon and six o'clock. It's called the Regina Caeli (Queen of Heaven).

You can find the Regina Caeli prayer here.
The music (in Gregorian Chant notation) and a recording can be found here.

Mozart's 250th Birthday

is on January 27th of this year. Seems like a good time to introduce his music to your children (if you haven't already) and read up a little about his life. Here's a link to get you started.

Anyone have any favorite resources on Mozart? Mostly we just enjoy listening to good recordings of his music (we also have a few audio stories that they have enjoyed).

Gregorian Chant for Christmas

Open Book and Godsbody link to this article which is interesting and a little hopeful.

I think the answer in restoration of good liturgical music in general and bringing Gregorian Chant in particular back into churches is by first keeping it alive in our families.

My daughter and I will be singing for Christmas Eve Mass at our parish and our organist agreed to let us sing Alma Redemptoris Mater acapella just before the opening song. I think it will be a beautiful, reflective and even slightly "mysterious" (in the sense of the great heavenly mystery of Christ in the Incarnation) way to start the Mass.

Here is a rough translation, according to the Adoremus Hymnal:

Loving Mother of our Savior,
thou open gate leading us to heaven,
And Star of the Sea, help thy fallen people,
help all those who seek to rise again.

Maiden who didst give birth,
all nature wondering, to thy holy Lord Creator:
Virgin before and virgin always who received from
Gabriel's mouth this message from heaven,
take pity on us poor sinners.

The song is traditionally sung throughout the Advent and Christmas seasons.

I found the image and music files on the website of the Secular Oratory of St. Francis Xavier Church in Philadelphia.