Catholic Musical Renaissance Begins in Annandale

By Clare MacDonnell
^{HERALD Staff Writer}

At a time when rock, alternative, and even mainstream Christian music seem to be thriving, Nancy Scimone, a member of Holy Spirit Parish in Annandale, felt called to use her talents to initiate a Catholic musical renaissance.

Scimone was inspired to record a compact disc of sacred music when she was at a papal Mass and was struck by the absence of Catholic hymns. She has since combined her efforts with St. Gabriel Media in Springfield and Father Vincent Bork, associate pastor at St. John Parish in McLean.

St. Gabriel Media is directly associated with the Canons Regular of the Order of the Holy Cross, an order which was originally founded to reform the priesthood. The order, which is head-quartered in Rome and has an American base in Detroit, is consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The Holy Cross priests foster the use of sacred art and music as a means of uplifting the soul.

Through St. Gabriel Media, Scimone and Father Bork have completed a CD entitled "Ora Pro Nobis" which, according to Scimone, is intended "to elevate the awareness of this sacred tradition and to inspire devotion in the hearts of all believers."

The unique aspect of Scimone’s CD is that it contains original recordings of traditional-style sacred music as well as original arrangements of familiar music. The "Magnificat," "Salve Mater," "Sing of Mary," "O Sanctissima" and "Immaculate Mary" are among the tracks included that have been newly arranged by Scimone. The debut original track, written and arranged by Scimone, is "Thy Heart Immaculate," a Marian hymn which is really a heartfelt prayer to the Blessed Mother beautifully sung in Scimone’s clear, operatic voice. All songs are masterfully supported by the piano, organ or violin.

Some may think that the writing of Catholic hymns ceased in the Middle Ages, but indeed, Scimone has proven otherwise. Not only has she written the music but according to the overwhelming response to the CD, she has shown that it has an integral place in the lives of Catholics.

Scimone sees her work as an apostolate, responding to the Vatican II document "Sacrosanctum concilium" which exhorts the following: "Composers, animated by the Christian spirit, should accept that it pertains to their vocation to cultivate sacred music and increase its store of treasures…Let them produce compositions which have the qualities proper to genuine sacred music."

As an experienced opera singer, Scimone is satisfied with this channel for her vocal talents.

"I have sung a lot of opera and given a lot of concerts but as more sacred music emerged in my repertoire I knew that was what I wanted to do." said Scimone.

In the positive feedback Scimone has received to her music, even non-Catholics have praised the CD for its ring of truth.

"A good friend of mine who is a pianist and a non-Catholic was struck by the sense of peace instilled in him when he listened to the CD," said Scimone.

She attributes this universal appeal to the fact that the nature of sacred music is one of "eternal truth," which she says will always appeal to people, whether they recognize it for what it is or not.

Scimone first contacted Father Bork two years ago about chanting the Divine Mercy Chaplet that he was holding at St. Agnes Church in Arlington without knowing that he had hoped he could find someone to sing the chaplet. Since then the two have pooled their thoughts on the promotion of Sacred Music and have subsequently produced "Ora Pro Nobis."

Father Bork said that they have funded the project meagerly but wisely, mainly trusting in God’s will. He said that the spirit of poverty and charity is an important one in this type of project because it is for a higher purpose.

"We must do God’s will first," said Father Bork. "We cannot let selfishness get in the way, it must be an overflow of the heart."

"Nancy was very prudent in her use of the little funds we had and she managed to produce a first-class work."

Scimone’s CD is the first to be published by St. Gabriel Media. The second project is due to be released next week, which is a sung version of the Divine Mercy Chaplet. Scimone says that this is different than most recordings of the chaplet because it is directed at the individual prayer rather than a whole congregation. The media also has plans to release Scimone’s second CD which will focus on songs of Eucharistic adoration, with several original recordings.

Father Bork looks forward to the release of the upcoming CD because of it’s original tracks.

"It is beautiful and refreshing," said Father Bork. "At first, I must admit, I was skeptical about recording original songs but these really do contain the same beauty of the old traditional music."

Father Bork said the real beauty of sacred music is that it is an invaluable source of peace.

"Rock music takes control of the listener and causes a loss of peace," said Father Bork. "Often we use that kind of music as an escape but it only feeds the lower intellect by stimulating the senses and emotions."

Father Bork said that sacred music restores peace because it appeals to the higher intellect.

"When listening to sacred music, you remain in control," he said. "It doesn’t control you."

Scimone agreed with Father Bork saying that she really feels that her talents are an instrument for the Holy Spirit.

"If the composer’s mind is clogged up with disorder then that is what will come out," she said. "The composer should be a vessel for the Holy Spirit, otherwise the music will not heal people, but will only disorder them."

Father Bork also emphasized the many fruits of real sacred music, one of which is its healing ability. He would eventually like to see the CDs distributed to nursing homes and hospitals for this purpose. He has often witnessed patients and invalids being bombarded with the noise of television and thinks that they are missing the uplifting quality of sacred music, which could be beneficial for their physical, mental and emotional health.

"We are human beings, we need beautiful images," said Father Bork. "The more the world opposes this the more we need to provide beautiful art and music."

To order CD’s or cassettes of either "Ora Pro Nobis" or the Divine Mercy Chaplet or to coordinate charitable fundraising efforts, write to Saint Gabriel Media, 5948 Hall Street, Springfield, Va., 22152; or call 703/913-7559.

Copyright ©1998 Arlington Catholic Herald, Inc. All rights reserved.