The Recovering Choir Director

From the MusicaSacra Forum comes this tidbit of good news from M. Jackson Osborn, co-founder of the St. Basil’s School of Gregorian Chant in Houston:

St Basil’s School of Gregorian Chant began its fall course in Houston this morning with 29 students. The course runs for eight weeks of three-hour Saturday morning sessions, culminating with singing for mass at the Vigil of All Saints. In addition to the plainchant propers we will sing the Cum Jubilo ordinary, indicated in the Gregorian Missal for Solemnities as well as feasts of our Lady. In addition to chant notation and singing, the course covers the significance of propers and ordinary in the mass, the psalter, performance styles, chant history, spirituality of chant, and newly composed or adapted chant in Latin & English in our own time. The students, even portions of men and women ranging from their 20s to 60s, were thrilled to be a part of this adventure. For further information, check our website: www.GregorianChantSchool.org.

I met the school’s other co-founder, Lowell Davis, at Colloquium XIX last June. If I remember correctly, he said that when they were publicizing their initial summer course last spring, they decided that they would be happy with a minimum of six enrollees, with twelve being optimal. The enrollment for the summer course was eighteen, with the majority of students enrolling in the final two weeks before the deadline.

May this school go from strength to strength, and may more schools like this be founded.