New Liturgical Chants

[JMJ_coder]

Hello,

When a new feast is declared, there are with it new propers. How do the new chants for those propers develop?

A case in point, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, which started with the infallible proclamation in 1854, with it came new propers. Who wrote the new chants, where did they come from, what’s the procedure for this?

 

[benedictgal]

I’m no liturgical historian by any means; however, I would hazard a guess and say that the pre-Vatican II version of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments probably has a hand in developing the new texts and propers (including chants) when new liturgical feasts were proclaimed. Of course, they didn’t have to fool with groups like ICEL or other complications. After all, all of this was done in Latin.

Nowadays, along with having to get the necessary recognitio from the Holy See, you also have to contend with ICEL (at least for the English-speaking world) and the plethora of bishops’ conferences around the world.

Interestingly enough, the last time there was some universal declaration was for the Feast of Divine Mercy. But, no special prayers, propers nor readings were needed because Pope John Paul II simply tacked it on to the Second Sunday of Easter.

As I said, this is just my plain, uneducated guess, so, take it for whatever its worth. I’m sure John Lilburne, japhy or Brendan will come up with something vastly more authoritative and scholarly than my own musings.