3606 When the Harps Went Still

In When the Harps Went Still, Maestro Aurelio Porfiri, Bishop Athanasius Schneider, and Professor Guido Milanese provide a rich synthesis of papal documents that witness to the beauty of Gregorian chant and liturgical Latin. Although Vatican II’s constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium praised the musical tradition of the universal Church as “a treasure of inestimable value,” the decades following the Council brought about a lamentable decline in sacred music. The authors examine the theological, liturgical, and cultural reasons for this decline, and they explain what is needed to bring about a revival of sacred music directed to the elevation of souls. 176 pp. Softcover.