THE EUCHARISTIC REVIVAL PROJECT

From the Director—Vision

When I heard about the Eucharistic Revival, I knew I wanted to do something from the perspective of liturgical music. Music has the capacity to help us understand more fully and gratefully, the mystery and truth of our faith.Cappella is made for a project like this. Each day, Cappella students use their musical gifts and the devotion within their hearts to create beauty in our community. This is Cappella’s particular mission and ministry, deep in the very heart of our Catholic liturgy. We are inspired by our University Ministry patron, St. John Paul II, who, in his Letter to Artists, urged us to craft our music, beauty—as a gift to the world. We will work hard to use our time and resources to contribute through music so that others may be drawn more fully into the beauty of the Eucharist. Singing this music in our own university community is certainly a blessing; however, sharing this music outside our community is something that we are called to do. We are eager to go out to all the world and share our love for sacred music and the Eucharist!

OUR MUSIC

We recorded a wide variety of music from various eras and styles, including chant, antiphons, polyphony, hymns, etc. Not all are released on our album, but we have archival recordings of our musicians participating in this monumental project. This has culminated in Cappella's debut album, "Abide in Me: Eucharistic Music for Revival".
We commissioned three composers to compose music on Eucharistic texts for our album: Michael John Trotta (Ave verum corpus), Philip Stopford (O sacrum convivium), and Alex Seefeldt (Oculi omnium). We are very happy to be sharing in the long tradition of commissioning works of art and beauty for the Church!
In addition, we had some "friends of Cappella" that contributed compositions to the project, including our Graduate Teaching Assistant, Kolbe Schanzenbach (Adoro te, devote), who is earning his MA in Music through the University of Mary. Dr. Rebecca Raber, Conductor, also contributed two compositions to this project, including an adoration piece, "Turn Your Eyes on Jesus" as well as a brand new piece composed for the canonization of St. Carlo Acutis, "Ecce Panis." Read about that story in UMary's Momentum!

OUR MISSION

Beginning in 2022, Cappella embarked on a three-year project, devoting rehearsal time and resources to record a collection of music that focuses on the Eucharist. This will include chant, antiphons, hymns, and polyphony from a wide range of years and styles.
We became partners with the Newman Society for Eucharistic Education by contributing this project, "Moved by Beauty."
Catholic World Report Catholic News Agency Our Sunday Visitor
During our 2023 spring tour of Spain and France, we sang and recorded this Eucharistic music at the sites of Eucharistic miracles (Monserrat and Zaragoza, Spain). You can enjoy these recordings here.
The Early Church Fathers knew that music had the capacity to convert the hearts of the faithful. Through these recordings, we wanted to use the beauty of sacred music to draw hearts to Christ in the Eucharist. We hope that listening to this special music will rekindle, awaken, and encourage a special devotion to the Real Presence in the Eucharist.

CAPPELLA

Dominic Plummer

Class of 2024

. (Business Administration)

"As members of Cappella, we have a unique opportunity to order our labor directly towards the glorification of God and the inspiration of the Church, through our participation in the Sacrifice of the Mass. The Eucharist is at the heart of this opportunity and is the foundation of our mission. In our newest project, we feel eager and responsible to cultivate a revived atmosphere of adoration around the Eucharist in our own community and through the Church."

Mary Scherber

Class of 2024

(Music)

"I am so blessed to be supporting the Eucharistic Revival project through Music with Cappella! As a Sacred Music Ensemble, we are striving to demonstrate the beauty and mystery of the Most Holy Eucharist through music. We are making a particular effort to prepare Eucharistic texts which we have the privilege of singing for Masses outside our community, and even at Eucharistic Miracle sites in Spain! The Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus is at the crux of our Catholic Faith. It is our duty as musicians to promote Christ’s awesome and beautiful sacrifice at the altar through music."

Curstin Lynch

Class of 2025

(Sacred Music)

"Sacred music is an integral part of our Catholic faith. It has an ability to touch the human soul and move it to comprehend the great truths of the Church in a way that nothing else can. Cappella has a unique ability to educate through beauty and to inspire devotion through its music. I firmly believe that we have an irreplaceable role in the Eucharistic Revival!"

Kamryn Morrison

Class of 2024

(Psychology)

“The air in Ivorra had an unmistakable holiness within it that told you something amazing had happened there before you even entered the Sanctuary of the Holy Doubt. Witnessing the relic, of which the blood of Christ poured freely from over a thousand years ago, was an unforgettable experience. Being able to share in that beauty through song further deepened it and truly struck me to my core. Singing at the site united Cappella with the generations of pilgrims who have journeyed to Ivorra to marvel at the true presence of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Eucharist and invigorated a Eucharistic revival within ourselves that mirrors the mission of our Church."

Sophia Maertens

Class of 2024

(Music/Philosophy)

“When I sang one version of O Salutaris and then directed another both in the tomb of St. Thomas Aquinas, I felt like he was there with us, listening to our music as we sang about Christ opening Heaven’s Gates to us, as He did for his servant Aquinas. It was an experience reminiscent to singing for Mass and feeling Christ’s presence in the Eucharist as he hears our sung prayers.”

Marshall Milless

Class of 2025

(Communications/Catholic Studies)

"The highlight of our visit in Montserrat for me was getting to sing our commissioned Eucharistic piece of Ave Verum Corpus in the chapel of the Virgin. Being that this was a site of a Eucharistic miracle, it made it even more special experience. The space was gorgeous and looked otherworldly. It was a space truly fit to praise our creator. After hearing the story of the Eucharistic miracle that took place in that space and singing Ave Verum Corpus, I was moved to tears by the beauty of God and the beauty of the music we sang. I was filled with a desire to grow in deeper relationship with him through receiving him in the Eucharist. Looking back on my visit to Montserrat, I realized even more how important it is to remain close to The Church and the sacraments. When everything else fades away, Jesus still remains, and after this trip I’ve had a greater appreciation for his gift to us making himself truly present in the Eucharist."

Dr. Rebecca Raber, Conductor

“While we were on our musical pilgrimage to Spain and France, we sang several Eucharistic pieces that we had prepared during the year: O sacrum convivium, O salutaris, Ave verum corpus, Tantum ergo, O Taste and See, and Jesu dulcis memoria. Singing this music (with such beautiful, true, and moving texts) became even more elevated once we sang them at the sites of Eucharistic miracles. The students clearly understood the importance and poigniancy of singing those songs in those spaces. It was incredible. It deeply inspired a group of young adults, eager to share about their faith and the Eucharist because of this rich experience. We are filled with thanksgiving!