Deacon Dulas: Using "O" Antiphons on Feast Days

Deacon Dulas adds this to his post on the "O" Antiphons today.

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I forgot to mention that on feast days, (since today is the Feast of St. Thomas) because of the festival mood of the day, the "O" Antiphons are only commemorated. 

To commemorate a day means it is being remembered, or acknowledged. Feast days have their own rubrics and propers, and therefore, properly speaking the "O" Antiphon does not have a place on festival days. However, they are commemorated, that is remembered or acknowledged, by adding a versicle, to add a "festival aspect" to the the "O" antiphons. This comes from the Sunday propers, since Sundays are not actually part of Advent. (Hence, Sundays IN Advent).

The versicle is the same as the first half of the antiphon for Rorate coeli (Advent IV):

V: Rain down, you heavens from above,
R: and let the skies pour down the Righteous One. (NKJV)

The versicle would be chanted to the same tone as the Introit tone for Rorate coeli. For those using the ancient psalm tones, that would be Tone 6 for Advent. Below is what we use at St. Matthew Ev. Luth. Mission, complete with organ accompaniment. The versicle would be pointed as such:

Rain down - || you heav- | ens, | from | (a-) bove, *
and let the skies pour down | the | Right- - | eous | One.

The extra hyphen indicates that syllable is chanted to two notes. The syllable in parenthesis indicates the "hollow" note, which is in parenthesis in the music. The double lines at the beginning of the first line indicates the intonation. This is not repeated on the second line.

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I asked Deacon Dulas about the placement of the special versicle in the context of Vespers.  Ordinarily, the O Antiphon falls in this order:

Versicle: Let my prayer...

Antiphon: O Dayspring...

Canticle: My soul doth magnify...
Antiphon: O Dayspring...

On feast days, the additional antiphon is added in:

Versicle: Let my prayer...
Antiphon: O Dayspring...
Versicle: Rain down...
Canticle: My soul doth magnify...
Antiphon: O Dayspring...
Versicle: Rain down...

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Deacon Dulas is ordained into the pastorate and member of the Evangelical Lutheran Diocese of North America (eldona.org).  In his own words, "My call is to serve as deacon and missionary-at-large to MN and WI at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Tony, WI.  We are starting a mission here in Mayer, MN, and the surrounding area called St. Matthew Ev. Luth. Mission."

Listen to today's antiphon at lutherantimeout.org.