There is a marvelous story behind the Ut Queant Laxis, the hymn to St. John the Baptist that the Schola is singing as a prelude this Sunday, the 28th in Ordinary Time. Its origins date to the 8th century.

Each phrase in the stanza moves up the hexachord step by step. And note the sylables: Ut, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La. Replace the Ut with a Do, and you have the basis of the De Re Mi system called solfege that most scholas use to navigate their way through the pitches in chant notation. This system was also made famous in the movie "The Sound of Music" and is taught in the Ward Method of musical pedagogy.

It is not only a charming melody, it is also very beautiful. Here is the download.

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