An Interview with Horst Buchholz, Composer of the Mass of Saint Francis

The 2024 Source & Summit Missal includes new Mass Settings from Peter Latona, Paul Jernberg, Dave and Lauren Moore, and Horst Buchholz. I had a conversation with each composer to learn more about their inspiration and to have an inside look at their music from their point of view.

The second interview is with Horst Buchholz, composer of the Mass of Saint Francis and the Director of Sacred Music for the Archdiocese of Detroit and the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament.

This is Part Two in a four-part series on the new Mass Settings in the 2024 Source & Summit Missal.

‍Part One can be found here.

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Adam Bartlett: What was your inspiration for composing the Mass of St. Francis?

Horst Buchholz: When the English Mass translation changed in 2011, there were numerous new Mass Settings plus many old ones that were being updated—some with more success than others. At that point the late Helen Hull Hitchcock, founder of the Adoremus Society and Bulletin, asked me to write a new Mass Setting for the revised Adoremus Hymnal. Looking at several of the new settings, I did not find any new metric ones that were just what I was hoping for. I had written an earlier metric mass setting when I was in Denver, the Mass of Colorado. The simple rising and falling melodic lines somehow resembled the beauty of the mountains, and it was my idea that the Mass of St. Francis should be in that same spirit.

AB: Based on your experience using the Mass Setting in parish and cathedral settings, what do you think are some of its strengths and distinctive features?

HB: I was aiming for beauty and simplicity, and somehow Saint Francis exemplifies that for me. The Mass was written in St. Louis and is easy to sing even if you have never heard it before. It became popular in a number of parishes, but the most gratifying moment was hearing it sung fervently by the whole assembly at a major Archdiocesan liturgy.

AB: For parishes that are accustomed to singing more conventional Mass Settings, the Mass of St. Francis will be much more familiar sounding and accessible than, say, a Gregorian chant Ordinary. And yet, it sits very nicely alongside the chant tradition. Why do you think that is?

HB: Well, there are pros and cons for metric versus chant Masses (both in English or Latin). I love chant Masses, Gregorian and English ones. The natural melodic flow I was aiming for without complex rhythms or tricky rests, makes it possible to sing the Mass of St. Francis even a cappella, much like Gregorian chant. Organ or piano accompaniment are equally fitting though.

AB: Why did you decide to publish this Mass Setting in the Source & Summit Missal?

HB: The Mass was first published in the revised Adoremus Hymnal, however, I retained the copyright since I always wanted it to be used by a broader audience. I have since had requests from Ireland and New Zealand to use my Mass Setting, as well as across the USA. The concept of Source & Summit to elevate the beauty of the liturgy with proper chant antiphons and musically as well as doctrinally solid hymns is pretty close to the musical practice that I have employed for most of my music ministry. People who subscribe to Source & Summit do not simply buy another music publication, but subscribe to a liturgical vision that is orthodox, reverent, and beautiful. I hope that my Mass Setting can contribute a small part to more beautiful Masses everywhere.  

AB: How often have you used the Mass of St. Francis in your cathedral work? Do you find that it is better suited to some seasons or occasions over others?

HB: In St. Louis, the Mass of St. Francis became one of six or seven Mass Settings that we rotated during the year depending on the liturgical season. The rising melodies have a somewhat festive tone and might be more suitable in the “white” seasons (Christmas, Easter), and the Kyrie works equally well in Greek or in English, even a cappella, with a unison invocation (cantor or equal voices) and the SATB responses.  In Detroit, I have used it along with a number of other Mass Settings that people have been using and are accustomed to. Again, I found it remarkable with what ease the people here were able to pick up my Mass which they had never heard before.

AB: Aside from this Mass Setting, what are some of the other compositional or musical projects you have taken on in recent years?

HB: Serving as Director of Sacred Music for both the Cathedral and the Archdiocese does not leave much time to compose, neither in St. Louis, nor in Detroit. But in the past few years I have written a few commissioned works for the American Guild of Organists and for the St. Louis Childrens’ Choir. I am also very interested in editing and publishing sacred music that is out of print and long forgotten. My predecessor, Rene Louis Becker, was the first organist at the cathedral in Detroit and wrote a number of excellent choral pieces that have not been heard in decades. I hope to do the same as time allows.

AB: Are instrumental parts or additional arrangements available for the Mass of St. Francis? And if so, how can people find them?

HB: The Gloria has an optional SATB middle section which is best sung a cappella. But it works just as well for a cantor with organ accompaniment, or the entire congregation singing it from the beginning to the end. I envisioned the Mass of St. Francis primarily to be accompanied by the organ, but I have also written some brass parts for the Gloria and the Sanctus which I am happy to share upon request. Anyone who might be interested in obtaining these brass parts can contact me directly at drhorstbuchholz@gmail.com.

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Horst Buchholz Bio

Horst Buchholz serves as the Director of Sacred Music for the Archdiocese of Detroit and the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament. Previously he served in similar positions in St. Louis, Cleveland, and Denver. He received his first musical training in a boys choir in his native Germany. After obtaining diplomas in organ, church music, and music theory from the University of Arts in Berlin, he continued his conducting studies at Indiana University in Bloomington where he graduated with the Doctor of Music degree.

Dr. Buchholz has been active as a conductor, organist, and educator in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Japan, South Korea, and throughout Europe. He is very devoted to sacred music, and in over four decades of music ministry has developed an affinity to some of the greatest treasures in that genre from Gregorian and Ambrosian chant to masterpieces of Renaissance polyphony, and from orchestral masses by Mozart and Bruckner to works of our time.

Buchholz was professor of sacred music at St. John Vianney Seminary in Denver, and also taught at Washington University in St. Louis. As Vice-President of the Church Music Association of America he has been a regular faculty member at their annual Colloquium.

Request a Sample Copy of the Source & Summit Missal

You can request a sample copy of the Source & Summit Missal in both its Standard and Companion Editions at www.sourceandsummit.com.