A Schola for Young People in Louisville, Kentucky

We are glad to share this report from Dr Emily Meixner on the Schola Cantorum Program for young people which she directs at the Shrine of St Martin of Tours in Louisville, Kentucky.

The Shrine of St. Martin of Tours in downtown Louisville, Kentucky is known for its historic architecture, 24-hour perpetual adoration chapel, and for the two early Christian martyrs enshrined beneath its side altars. It is also known for its dedication to beautiful liturgy and sacred music. Mindful of the teachings of Sacrosanctum Concilium (Paragraphs 112-115), the Shrine founded the Schola Cantorum program in the fall of 2016 as a means of preserving and fostering the Church’s vast treasury of sacred music in the local Catholic community. In its first year the Schola program was small but mighty, comprising 7 students; since that time, it has thrived and grown, filling the choir loft, and currently boasting 27 students ranging in age from 7 to 15.

The Schola program primarily assists the liturgical needs of the Shrine, meeting weekly on Wednesday afternoons during the school year to learn healthy singing techniques and a variety of forms of sacred music, ranging from Gregorian Chant to Anglican Chant, as well as traditional hymnody and polyphonic motets. The Schola primarily sings for Sunday Mass and Vespers at the Shrine multiple times a year (roughly three events in the fall and three in the spring), as well as occasional events outside of the Shrine, including a recital of organ music and Gregorian chant co-sponsored by the Louisville Chapter of the American Guild of Organists in October 2024, and a fall concert for the residents at the Wesley Manor Retirement Home in 2019. The Schola also has an annual tradition of chanting Compline at the historic Cave Hill Cemetery during the month of November, a time when the Church encourages the faithful to pray for the souls in Purgatory.

In 2022, the program was expanded to include an advanced Schola, which meets for rehearsals on Saturdays in addition to Wednesdays. The advanced students are those within the broader Schola program who have progressed in their singing and reading abilities to be able to sing more complex Gregorian chants and polyphonic motets, with the expectation that this will better prepare them to eventually join the ranks of the Choir of St. Martin’s. The advanced students prepare and sing for additional liturgical events at the Shrine, particularly monthly Vespers. Recent accomplishments include singing Maurice Duruflé’s Ubi Caritas, Elizabeth Poston’s Jesus Christ the Apple Tree, and Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Magnificat from The Short Service in C.

Fall of 2026 will mark the 10 year anniversary of the Schola Program’s founding. In the past nine years, the program has served 70 children and 32 families in the Louisville area. Upcoming events include singing for the Vigil Mass on Christmas Eve, Vespers for the Feast of the Annunciation, and their debut singing a Missa Cantata at the Sunday celebration of the Extraordinary Form Mass.