The past few days have been a very joyous occasion for the Brothers and Chorus Breviarii. From the celebration of Vespers to the singing of carols, we have been kept quite busy this Advent. Thank you to Marlon for providing the video above from our little carols session at Fratellino's house following First Vespers of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Gaudete at the Crown Point Country Club
Fratellino provided music at this year's party at the Crown Point Country Club on Gaudete Sunday. Seeing how this particular Sunday calls for rejoicing, the penances of Advent are relaxed, and so delicious meats were on the menu for that afternoon. Many thanks to the cook at Crown Point for the cornbread, the various meats (pork, turkey, and brisket); and for the blueberry chutney, which, although meant to be served upon the brie baked in puff pastry, made a delicious condiment for the meats.
Other than the various piano improvisations, Fratellino also accompanied the singing of carols listed in the 1958 album Christmas Sing-Along with Mitch. These caroling sessions have been quite informative and interesting, as besides the hymn tunes most familiar to Americans, we also sang the carols using the hymn tunes found in Britain. For "O Little Town of Bethlehem" we switched between the original American tune (St. Louis), the British tune from Vaughan Williams (Forest Green), and Fratellino's own setting which he composed for Holy Martyrs. The Austrian folk qualities of Franz Xaver Gruber's original accompaniment to "Silent Night", the many translations of "Silent Night" across the world, and the Latin version of "O Come All Ye Faithful" were also discussed.
After sunset, we continued our caroling at Fratellino's house, this time with three-part harmony and eggnog.
A Christmas Carol at Balboa Park
The day before Gaudete Sunday, Fratellino gave a dramatic reading of Charles Dickens' timeless classic A Christmas Carol in front of the House of England in Balboa Park. Tea with milk and sugar was served inside alongside fruitcake and biscuits.
Guadalupe Photos from Ken
Ken Onoda of Chorus Breviarii Murrieta took these pictures at the Guadalupe side altar at St. Anne following Vespers.
Mr. Shaun Rossettos, our ceremoniere for the night
While we only had two Brothers in choir for First Vespers of Our Lady of Guadalupe, fifteen other men (most of them in their 20s) joined to sing in the sanctuary as part of Chorus Breviarii. We would like to thank Fr. Valenzuela for once again inviting the Brothers and Chorus Breviarii to assist with Vespers at St. Anne. Following Vespers, some of us joined Fratellino at his house for eggnog, caroling, and Christmas tree decorating. Less than two weeks and we'll already be at Christmas Day.
Courtesy: Fratellino (link provided for those without embed access)
After a long delay, we present to you the photos from our Gaudete party during Advent 2023. We also have a previous post from December 2023 about this linked here: 2023-12-18.
The festivities of our Gaudete Sunday supper at Walsingham Burrow began with Vespers, with organ accompaniment from Fratellino. The Brothers and Chorus Breviarii sat to the sides as if seated in choir stalls, while family and friends sat facing the altar.
Fratellino warms up the Yamaha while sporting a Gaudete rose-colored tie.
Following Vespers was supper, which included an oniony soup, pancit, and various kinds of latkes. Our drink selection included eggnog to enjoy with bourbon, as well as other liquors. A potpourri sat simmering on the stove.
Our dessert for the night was Christmas pudding, drowned in rum and set ablaze by our hosts. A delicious butter infused with liquor (I believe it was bourbon but I don't quite remember) was also included to top our slices of pudding. While Epiphany was yet to come, there was also a rosca de reyes included among our desserts.
Fratellino entertained us with his playing on the Yamaha. We don't quite remember what sort of classic carols were played that day, but we do remember hearing some of Vince Guaraldi's works from A Charlie Brown Christmas, as well as the parody of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" that debuted at the Legatus Epiphany Party.
As a final note, some of the Brothers and Chorus Breviarii got to enjoy a night by the fireplace during Christmastide!
The Brothers and Chorus Breviarii helped to inaugurate the Nativity Scene at the Town Hall in the mountain town of Ramona, CA through the singing of modern, ancient, and medieval Christmas tunes in joyful anticipation of the coming season. Highway 78 was closed for the town's Christmas Festival, which included vendors and many photo-ops with decorated hotrods and festive tractor trailers. Our carols started soon after the town's Christmas tree lighting the next block over.
For all of us, it was our first time attending this event, and we hope to attend more events like it in the future. While we have caroled in the recent past for a private event, bringing religiously-significant carols to the public sphere is a humbling opportunity for us to spread Christ to a secular world. Paraphrasing Fratellino, it was an experimental first time out, and we will grow it in the future.
Special thanks to Diane Chapman for her invitation, and a big thank you to the parishioners of Immaculate Heart of Mary in Ramona for coming out to support.
