ONE of Scotland's leading composers is leading a new initiative to revive and promote chant-based worship in the Catholic church in Scotland.
James MacMillan, who was commissioned to compose much of the music for the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the UK in September 2010, has established a new body, Musica Sacra Scotland, which will hold its first conference on November 9 in Glasgow.
The composer would like the new organisation, formed with the violinist, Paul Livingston, to encourage church-goers, priests and parishes to use chant-based sacred music, both ancient and newly composed. He hopes the new body will also lead to more professional musicians to get involved.
The composer said: "Musica Sacra Scotland intends to draw on the tremendous wealth of professional expertise within our Catholic community, for benefit of everyone in our Catholic community.
"Many Scottish Catholics, whose musical and liturgical expertise are highly sought and prized throughout the world, have, until now, felt under-used in the proceedings of their own country; these are individuals deeply woven into the fabric of Scottish Catholicism and well-attuned to the realities of parish life.
"This exclusion is about to halt.
"As Archbishop Tartaglia and his brother bishops work to restore confidence in Scottish Catholicism, we hope this initiative will add to the ongoing renewal of the Scottish church."
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