Let's Sing with the Pope
The Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music's initiative to teach Gregorian Chant
We are having some technical delays in publishing our planned post for this week, so in the meantime, I would like to introduce you all to an exciting new video series by the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music in Rome.
On the first Sunday after the Conclave ended, Pope Leo XIV surprised the world by chanting, rather than speaking, the Regina Caeli (also spelled Coeli). Throughout these past two weeks as pope, Leo XIV has continued to use Latin and Gregorian Chant for the Regina Caeli and in his Masses. For many people, this is their first exposure to Gregorian Chant, so the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music has launched a series of videos on social media to teach people the beautiful treasury of Catholic Gregorian Chant.
Called “Let’s Sing with the Pope,” the videos are led by Fr. Robert Mehlhart OP, president of the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music. So far, he has released five videos, each highlighting a different chant. The first four videos feature various chants from the Mass, while the most recent video is on the Regina Caeli, the Easter Marian antiphon. Each video teaches viewers how to sing the chant. Working measure by measure, Fr. Mehlhart sings the notes, which are displayed and highlighted on screen as he sings. He then explains the meaning of the Latin words and sings each measure several times, giving viewers an opportunity to sing with him to learn the melody. Before the video ends, a recording of Pope Leo singing the particular chant plays, with the music displayed at the bottom of the screen so that viewers can quite literally sing with the pope.
I am embedding Fr. Mehlhart’s video of the Regina Caeli below, but if you would like to view the entire playlist, which contains all of the videos in the series so far, please use the following link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgKUI7HXZ-gMCEGRXJ8pL-iM_b7f-yG-A.
Gregorian Chant is at the heart of Catholic sacred music and the liturgy, and I am very excited to see the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music using the internet to teach people—young and old, experienced singers and complete beginners—the beauty of this rich tradition, so that we all can raise our voices in song following the example of countless faithful throughout the centuries of our Roman heritage. May God bless the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music in their work, and may God bless Pope Leo XIV.
Thumbnail image credit: OSV News