The liturgy is inherently linked to beauty: it is veritatis splendor. . . .Beauty, then, is not mere decoration, but rather an essential element of the liturgical action, since it is an attribute of God himself and his revelation.
Pope Benedict XVI, Sacramentum Caritatis (35)
he Church Music Association of America (founded in 1874) is an association of Catholic musicians and others who have a special interest in music and liturgy, active in advancing Gregorian chant, Renaissance polyphony, and other forms of sacred music, including new composition, for liturgical use. The CMAA’s purpose is the advancement of musica sacra in keeping with the norms established by competent ecclesiastical authority.
If beauty is a compelling need in the liturgy, then we must choose the most beautiful music possible.
Dr. William Mahrt President, CMAA
Read more . . . about the Church’s ideals of sacred music.
No cathedral and no parish need be without sacred music. The liturgy is worth every effort to reach for the ideal. To this end, the CMAA is the sponsor of the Sacred Music Colloquium, the Winter Sacred Music, Chant Intensive and other summer programs, as well as many other events.
Your annual membership makes this work possible.
CMAA members receive the acclaimed journal Sacred Music and become part of a national network that is making a difference on behalf of the beautiful and true in our times, in parish after parish.
CMAA’s work in print publishing has made available dozens of books supporting the apostolate of sacred music: newly composed music in English in choral and plainchant styles, performing editions of Gregorian chant, works of recent scholarship, and reprint editions of rare classic works to inform and inspire you.
The CMAA is sharing the treasures of sacred music through the internet on our network of six websites:
churchmusicassociation.org: This website announces events in sacred music, offers our catalog of books in print, and also gives away hundreds of beautiful download books and scores of sacred music, provided to the universal Church at absolutely no charge and with no restriction on reproduction.
On the MusicaSacra Forum, members work together to provide mutual support and information on all issues related to sacred music.
Chant Cafe: here a team of active contributors to church music writes about life as a Catholic church musician.
On the New Liturgical Movement website, writers explore issues and developments in the world of sacred liturgy and liturgical arts.
Our member portal provides on-line access to video resources exclusive to members and to the latest copies of CMAA’s Sacred Music journal.
Our archive of recordings provides examples of the music heard at over a dozen meetings of the annual Sacred Music Colloquium.
Who should join? Because you are interested in sacred music, you’re invited:
I would also like to begin by acknowledging my own personal long acquaintance and association with the Church Music Association of America, extending over many years, back to the 1980s, when I came under the tutelage of the great Msgr. Richard J. Schuler . . . [while] in preparation for my seminary studies. I sang in a Gregorian schola cantorum and . . . it was there that I truly began to experience my first formation in sacred liturgy according to the mind of the Church. . . .
The renewal and the reform of the sacred liturgy is absolutely key and essential to the work of the new evangelization.
The Most Rev. Alexander King Sample, Archbishop of Portland in Oregon,
speaking to the CMAA Sacred Music Colloquium at the Cathedral of the Madeleine, Salt Lake City, in June 2013
Read more . . . about joining on-line and about other membership options.
If you prefer to use classic mail, you can print and send in this form with your contribution.
The CMAA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational organization.
