Newsletter 12 Final Draft.pub

12 Pages·2008·0.56 MB·English

by  Mark Langley

THE LYCEUM LETTER
NewsletterVol.V No. 2 ~ VerumBonumPulchrum ~ Winter 2008
Quaedam Dies... Congratulation Class of 2008! College
Articles
Acceptances– 100%!
Dear Friends,
Page One:
We are proud of our senior class who
Letter from
The Headmaster Mark all were accepted to the college of their first
Some days when
Langley– choice. Does a classical education prepare a
“Quaedam Dies”— classes are out at The
student for college? The answer from
A day in the life of aLy- Lyceum, and the last
ceum student Franciscan University of Steubenville, and
student has gone home,
John Carroll University, and Belmont
Page One: when silence has once
College Acceptances! Abbey College and Kent State University,
again taken possession of
is yes, yes, yes, and YES!
PSAT our school building and the central hall is
Outstanding Scores!! filled with that warm glow that can only be It is gratifying to see the hard work of
caused by the afternoon sun pouring through our seniors rewarded not only with college
Page Four
News and Notes stained glass, the atmosphere itself seems to acceptances but also financial awards and
Seven BeautifulEvents beg one to sit and be admittance to honors
still and reflect. programs and even
Page Eleven offers with full tuition
It is during
Introducing...
scholarships. We
those moments that
think any college that
Mrs. Susan Palmer I a m a b l e t o
Miss Teresa Henderson receives a member of
Mr. Andrew Summerson contemplate the
the Lyceum class of
school day as a
2008 is fortunate.
whole and am always
Faculty struck by how Congratulations
perfectly a classical
are also in order for
Mr. Mark Langley
Mrs. Jean Henderson curriculum orders Lyceum Juniors
Samuel Schmitt, PhD the lives of students.
who demonstrated
Mrs. Mary Sand
Miss Caitlyn Murphy A c l a s s i c a l the power that
Mr. Nathaniel Smith curriculum proposes
Classical education
Mrs. Susan Palmer
Miss Teresa Henderson nothing less than gives when it comes
Mr. Andrew Summerson g r e a t n e s s ; i t to taking the PSAT.
proposes that each
student “read the With a class
Board ofTrustees
words and listen to average that places
Mark A. Langley the music” of all Lyceum juniors
J. Gillian Graham
Dennis H. Rowinski those who were above 98% of all
Michael S. McMahon Esq. informed by nature, “college bound
Erin J. Furey, M.D.
and therefore were juniors,” we wonder
informed by the The Lyceum, February 2008 why anyone would
Divine Intelligence itself, and hence were choose a school that offers anything but a
wise. liberal arts education.
“To Form Liberally
Educated Catholic A classical curriculum does not With the school’s emphasis on Latin
Ladies and Gentlemen.”
propose that a student merely “shake hands” and Greek and the reading of the Great Books
and develop a passing acquaintance with the of The Western World, the Lyceum juniors—
greatest thinkers, the greatest artists, saints though they scored excellently on the math
(Continued on page2) (Continued on page 2)
(Continued from page 1)
portion of the exam— they scored
brilliantly on the reading and writing
portion with scores like 710, 790, and
even… an 800!
The school eschews the
importance of standardized tests, and
questions whether they have any
substantive bearing on the real quality
and college worthiness of a student.
Thus though The Lyceum specifically
does not design a curriculum to
produce students who can excel on
such tests– we will not hesitate to praise
the excellence of our curriculum and
even suggest that the other 97% who
took this exam and didn’t do quite as
well need to consider whether taking a
modern language and a non-classical
course of studies was really in their best
The Lyceum Choir and The Lyceum Children’s Choir gathered at St. Stanislaus
Church on November 30th to present their annual performance of Advent interest?
Lessons and Carols.
But what again is the purpose
and prophets, but rather that he What an inheritance! And how of secondary school education? Is it
becomes so wholly habituated to awesome is the responsibility and to achieve excellent scores on
their thoughts and words, their how culpable are we educators, who standardized tests? Is it to open the
prayers and psalms, their through negligence, or sloth, or doors to specific career paths for
masterpieces of art and music, that imprudence, cheat our students of each student? Is it mere entry into
he himself becomes like those great this inheritance. the college of each student’s
people. He becomes great himself, preference? Or is it to instill a
Even more, despite the desire
or at least great minded, or he habitual vision of greatness and a
that seems almost universal among
develops, if you will, a
love of truth goodness and beauty?
students to graduate and get on with
magnanimous soul.
real life, it often strikes me that
students at a genuinely classical
Education and becoming men...
school are in fact given the
opportunity to live a life that actually
Classical education is not
is the very goal of every other pursuit.
about dabbling in old writing and
They are given the opportunity to live
manuscripts, so as to become
the life that history itself testifies is
learned and glib about various
the mark of advanced civilizations,
philosophies and “isms” and
that is, a life that devotes its energies
movements in mathematics and
not solely at survival, but rather at the
metaphysics. It is about enabling
perfection of the interior life; the
students to take possession of the vast
perfection of thoughts, refinement of
inheritance that is theirs by virtue of their
feelings and aspirations, and the
belonging to the human race; to take
ordering of will and intellect.
possession of an inheritance that embraces
over 2,500 years of the works of those The classic idea of a liberal
who contributed to Western Civilization. education has always been precisely
It is about absorbing and assimilating and the kind of education that was
Members of the “Chorus of Old Theban
ultimately embodying that civilization, reserved as a pursuit belonging only Citizens” stand at grave attention behind
and therefore it is about becoming a man. Antigone’s sister Ismene From Left to Right:
Matthew McDonald, Terry Delabre, Catherine
Hogan, Anna Langley
2
(Continued from page 2) arch of a charming brick structure
to those who had the leisure to pursue A day in the life of a Lyceum that, once upon a time, was a
it. The word “liberal” stems from the student small city church.
Latin “liber” which means “free man,”
as opposed to “servus” denoting he who The Lyceum student My father-in-law, who
was bound to some service or labor. should ideally arrive at school no some 30 years ago founded a small
Students who are given a liberal later than 8:15am. This will allow classical school in Massachusetts
education are given a gift that, once five minutes for him to hang his (called Trivium School), first made
upon a time, was reserved only for the jacket and store his books, lunch, me aware of how the architecture
sons and daughters of the financially sports clothing and any additional of a school building contributes to
elite, or those who were free. But at the personal items in the simple the education of its students. He
same time it was reserved only for handcrafted wooden shelves would often say that “beauty is
those people who happened to belong provided for each student for that seldom efficient.” Efficiency
to a society that itself valued higher purpose. Lyceum students have no would seem to dictate smaller and
pursuits and was stable enough to more need to lock away their fewer windows and lower ceilings;
afford that luxury. A classical liberal belongings in ugly industrial Not so at The Lyceum! There, as
education was reserved for those who strength rectangular metal lockers the student enters, he can feel the
had the freedom to pursue it. than does a community of friends space of the central church hall
or the members of a family. with its thirty foot cathedral ceiling
Now, I don’t think that the and twelve foot arched stained
students at the Lyceum quite grasp that Instead of entering a glass windows. Beautiful, I say, but
they are the lucky sons and daughters forbidding institutional inefficient! Nonetheless, the beauty
(“liberi”) of free men. They do not rectangular concrete school of the space, the dark wooden
realize that, relatively speaking, very few building, built to a scale that is molding, and the other elements of
people throughout history have had the capable of holding, say, 1,500 charm, or even grandeur, are
privilege to pursue something as students, The Lyceum student suitable for one who is embarked
extravagant as a classical education; enters through the welcoming on an endeavor to construct a
very few people have had the luxury to
pursue an education which has as its
goal nothing more than the production
of excellent human beings.
Further, and to return to the
original theme, it occurs to me that a
special mark of “classic education,” as
distinct from the myriad and various
pursuits that nowadays is all lumped
together under the name “education,” is
that it admirably orders a student’s day.
Not surprisingly, a classical
education is obtained by none other
than, well, “living classically,” that is,
living a life that is ordered to the
pursuit of truth, practicing the good,
and developing an appreciation for, or
even participating in, the production of
that which is beautiful. To illustrate this
more vividly, allow me to trace at
length an ordinary day in the life of a
student that attends our small school,
The Lyceum.
Creon, (Brian Hawersaat) fumes at his niece Antigone with
clenched fists
3
If the pagan Greeks and News and Notes
Romans would never Seven Beautiful Events
undertake a work
without praying and Did The Lyceum schedule too many
sacrificing to their gods, dances? Our students danced on
should we not likewise October 12, November 9th,
begin every day asking December 14th and January 11th—
for The Father’s grace and there are still two more
to enlighten our minds scheduled before May. Perhaps a
and bless our efforts? future issue of The Lyceum Letter should
We extend the principle devote an “apologia pro” the benefits
even further; just as the of contra-dancing. In the mean time
day begins with a mark your calendars and join us for
communal school prayer, the next dance on April 11th!
so, too, does each
individual class begin On November 16th students in the
and end with a short seventh through ninth grades
prayer. performed Sophocles’ great tragedy
Antigone.We were especially proud of
The Glory of Euclid! this performance because it marked
the second time in five years that this
Lyceum Tutor Dr. Samuel Schmitt and Mrs. Schmitt
(Lyceum tutor emerita) with their new son, John Twenty minutes play was performed at The Lyceum–
Walter Schmitt, now six months old ! February 2008 after prayer begins, the therefore it is a Lyceum tradition. For
student is ready for his the next performance of Antigone
(Continued from page 3)
first class. His mind is now awake. please mark your calendars for
similar beauty within his own mind He is alert and ready. The moment November 2012 !
and heart. The space, with its high is just right for learning math and,
walls, is perfect for the original oils, even more, for engaging in the On November 30 The
watercolors and charcoal drawings beautiful logical demonstrations of Lyceum Choir and The Lyceum
painted by an artist who has the Geometer, Euclid! For the Children’s Chorale gathered for
dedicated himself to producing next 40 minutes, while some another Lyceum tradition: our Fifth
original works of beauty in the Lyceum students are otherwise Annual Advent Lessons and
classical tradition. It is a space very engaged in the sometimes sticky Carols at St. Stanislaus (see program
much like a beautiful home. and humdrum intricacies of on page 9)
Algebra, lucky students in the (Continued on page 5)
“Deus in adiutorium meum Euclid class will eagerly watch and
intende” observe a fortunate peer to whom
fate has allotted the joy of
A monastic brass bell demonstrating a proposition, an
inscribed in barely legible words “qui individual theorem in Euclid’s The
me tangit vocem meam audit” (he who Elements.
touches me hears my voice) rings, Having studied the logic
summoning faculty and students to and gotten the “gist of the proof”
Morning Prayer. Really a shortened the night before, the student
form of the Divine Office, Lyceum equipped with nothing more than
students recite the specific Psalms for a good piece of chalk, will
the day and chant the Pater Noster enunciate, construct the diagram, and
together in Latin. They sing an Ave demonstrate a mathematical
Maria and hear a reading from the theorem before the critical eyes of
Gospel. Predictable in its daily form, his peers. Through the course of
Morning Prayer provides the proper the year, the Euclid class not only
spiritual context for each school day. experiences Geometry as very few
Dr. and Mrs. Schmitt! October 2006
4
students are ever privileged to Iliad and the Odyssey was in fact all
experience it, namely from the very by itself a liberal education. After
words of the master Euclid himself, all, Homer is the teacher of all:
but the members of the class develop “Homerus docuit omnes” and we think
a relationship with one another that that one should not make the
is something akin to the friendship critical mistake of reading such
of those who have fought a battle, or seminal works too quickly. At The
climbed a high mountain. Students Lyceum we believe in slow and
now realize what a proof is and that thoughtful reading. Great books
every successive proposition in The must be savored like a good wine-
Elements is yet another stone in the not gulped. After finishing Homer,
great cathedral of knowledge that Classical Literature students then
they are building within their own proceed to tackle Aeschylus’ Orestia,
minds. Students of Euclid and even read Hesiod’s Theogony.
understand how Millay could have Again much of this literature is read
said, “Euclid alone hath looked upon out loud, reading, with our
beauty bare…” They understand why apologies, the works in translation,
Einstein held out no hope for those but by reputable translators.
who could not become excited about
the study of Euclid when he allegedly If our student is younger,
Mr. and Mrs. Sand, December 2006
said, “If Euclid fails to kindle your the bell might be a summons to a
youthful enthusiasm, you were not born to reading of the “Good Books”.
(Continued from page 4)
be a scientific thinker.” Following the advice of the late
On December 30 The Mignarda John Senior who said that before
Duo met once again at The Lyceum Literature– The Great and reading the Great Books of The
for a beautiful Concert celebrating the Good Books
release of their new Christmas CD
Duo Seraphim. The music on this CD The bell rings
stretches from the seasons of Advent signaling the end of the
to Epiphany. Please see first period, which, for
www.mignarda.com to learn more about the student we are
this excellent group and hear for following, might be
yourself their beautiful music. Classical Literature
wherein at least three
whole months are
Introducing… consumed in reading
Robert Fitzgerald’s
As you may know Mrs. Jana Schmitt translation of The
(nee Draeger) and Mrs. Mary Sand Odyssey. John Henry
(nee Bouchey) are no longer full time Cardinal Newman made
teachers at The Lyceum (nonetheless the assertion that
they appear to be doing very well as although a liberal
you might gather from the pictures education today
on these pages). consists in great part in
reading the rather
The Lyceum has been lengthy canon of
privileged to have the services of western literature which
three new members joining the staff we might simply call
in the second semester—Mrs. Susan (following Mortimer
Palmer, mother of Ben Palmer ‘11, Adler) The Great Books of
Miss Teresa Henderson, a recent The Western World, there Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Sand with their new baby
was a time when simply Anastasia Clare Sand — January 2008
(Continued on page 11)
hearing or reading the
5
minute “colloquium” period between
10:00 and 10:10. Theoretically, this
important 10 minute break allows
students to engage in a delightful back
and forth banter, continuing a
discussion from class. Perhaps a
student will sit down at the grand piano
and play a movement from a Mozart
sonata or some other notable
composer. Others might refresh
themselves with a light snack knowing
that rigorous Latin and Rhetoric
periods are imminent. Moments of
leisure throughout the day underscore
the atmosphere and the principle that
proper “leisure” really “is the basis of
culture.” We would prefer that they at
least refrain from sending paper
airplanes or other sorts of missiles
down from the choir loft!
Contradance at The Lyceum in October—live music by “Mud in Yer Eye! By mid-morning, students at
The Lyceum are ‘under full steam’ and
Western World, students should first don't know, but it is you who are on trial." the atmosphere is practically palpable
be thoroughly immersed in and with intellectual energy. Students are
acquainted with the “1,000 Good Colloquium– Leisure—Hand me ready to make a fresh foray into great
Books.” Students in the seventh and a cookie! authors and new fields of study
eighth grade, therefore, participate in (sometimes, though rarely, literally with
Intellectual labor, like
“The Lyceum Good Books a field trip). We do not follow those
physical labor, must be punctuated
Program.” They read Kipling's Just So who fashion an artificial barrier
with moments of rest and
Stories, The Jungle Books, Irving's Rip between the more literary subjects and
refreshment, and so we at The
Van Winkle and of course A.A. the mathematical subjects, creating
Lyceum have established a ten
Milne’s favorite, The Wind in The
Willows by Kenneth Grahame. One
does not argue about The Wind in the
Willows. We can’t help but cite Milne’s
famous encomium about this
remarkable work, noting that what he
says about it might just as well be said
about The Great Books as a whole.
Milne cautions the reader: “The young
man gives it to the girl with whom he is in
love, and, if she does not like it, asks her to
return his letters. The older man tries it on
his nephew, and alters his will accordingly.
The book is a test of character. We can't
criticize it, because it is criticizing us. But I
must give you one word of warning. When
you sit down to it, don't be so ridiculous as
to suppose that you are sitting in judgment
on my taste, or on the art of Kenneth
Grahame. You are merely sitting in
judgment on yourself. You may be worthy: I
Still dancing in November...and December… and January...and….
6
chasms in the mind of the student
between them. There seems to be a
tendency among many educators to
label some students as “science
minded” or “math minded” as opposed
to others who are “poets” or “history
buffs.” We would rather believe that
the classically educated mind applies
itself gladly with the same intellectual
force and zeal to every fascinating field
of study. The classically educated
student knows that different subjects
require different methods and can be
known with various degrees of
certainty. He does not demand the
same kind of knowledge, or certitude,
from various subjects, nor does he limit
himself only to the study of a particular
subject which pleases him best.
Megan Dougherty ‘08, Catherine Hogan ‘11,. Elizabeth McFadden ‘08
Science and The Circulation
of The Blood temptation is to speed-read a 750 gain an insight into nature and
page, 13 pound science text book natural causation. They gain a
Thus students proceed to the and try to memorize the profound knowledge and secondary
study of Science. If our student is conclusions, formulae and experience of the wisdom and
studying Biology, he will have the nomenclature that have been brilliant design and order that can be
pleasure of reading William Harvey’s De discovered over the course of found among living things. Above
Motu Cordis, the compelling first-hand history, all for any specific branch all, students who read such authors
a c c o u n t o f h i s d i s c o v e r y o f t h e o f s c i e n c e w i t h i n a s i n g l e y e a r ! m a i n t a i n a n d e v e n i n c r e a s e their
circulation of the blood. Harvey Eschewing such an approach, own natural wonder which is
embodies the scientist who, moved by The Lyceum student would prefer ultimately the beginning of wisdom.
wonder, enters the great conversation to know “why” rather than “that”
begun a thousand years before. He scientists hold a particular
addresses the work of his predecessors, hypothesis. The classically
deferring to the discoveries of some educated student develops a
and dismantling the theories of others taste for real knowledge, not
with Euclidean reasoning on premises the veneer of knowledge that is
derived from years of careful built from sheer memorization
observation and experimentation. that quickly fades after the
Harvey demonstrates not only that his exam.
discovery is true, but how to discover and The other danger that
prove that a thing is true. Such reading is classical education avoids in the
difficult. But it is rewarding, and instead teaching of science is the
of lulling the mind of each student into mistake that comes through
that scientific dogmatic slumber that is explaining everything in terms
prevalent among many an unfortunate of its material and agent causes
victim of conventional textbook without reference to the idea
science, reading original works of real that purpose or end also plays a
scientists has the opposite effect of role. Students who become
keeping natural wonder alive. habituated to reading the
excellent works of notable
Keeping wonder alive in science natural scientists such as Jean
is especially difficult. The overwhelming Henri Fabre or Konrad Lorenz,
Mr. Langley skillfully handles the fancy
new Lyceum popcorn machine.
7
“Cibus” or “Prandium”– food
helps one to go on learning. Its
delicious too!
Lunch time is of course a
sacred event at any school, whether in
the traditional school or perhaps even
more for those who home school. It
ought to be pointed out that a
classical school includes lunch as a
formal period because without it, no
further intellectual progress would be
possible. A Platonist might eat his
lunch with guilty pleasure because he
would prefer to be an angel, an
incorporeal intellectual substance. At
The Lyceum, however, which is in
fact, named after Aristotle’s ancient
school in Athens, students and faculty
Advent Lessons and Carols—members of the Lyceum Children’s Chorale joined eat their lunch with manful zeal and
The Lyceum chorale on November 30 at St. Stanislaus Church
even stretch lunch break to a full 40
history. Shouldn’t every American minutes- which by most school
Away with Social Studies... Let’s spend some time reading the actual standards, is a very generous time
study History! words of Columbus, John Dickinson, allowance.
Patrick Henry, Thomas Paine,
The bell rings, and though Jefferson, Franklin, Adams, Lunch time is also a time for
the schedule is demanding, students Hamilton, Madison, and Washington? stretching legs and if at all possible to
have built up the necessary stamina summon enough fellows for a quick
for handling a demanding course Granted that there is an soccer or basketball game. Perhaps
load. In addition, they all know that important place for the memorization taking a brisk walk with a friend,
lunch time is right around the of important dates, names, events and lunch period allows students just
corner! At 11:00 students proceed to places; there is an importance for enough unstructured time that they
their History classes. No “Social what Dorothy Sayers would call the might use for developing strong
Studies” at the Lyceum! What better “grammar of history,” we at The friendships; time to develop
way to study history than to read the Lyceum are especially interested in friendships that are bred in an
works of those historians known as the characters and ideas of those who atmosphere which fosters virtue and
the Fathers of History itself! made those dates and events wholesome pursuits. But alas tempus
Classical History students read important. We are especially fugit, the allotted time elapses all too
Herodotus’ Histories of the Persian interested in the study of history in so quickly and, the sound of the distant
Wars and some of Plutarch’s Lives. far as it supplies us with insight into bell summons students once again for
By the second semester they would civilization itself and offers examples their afternoon classes.
be well into Thucydides’ great work of the height to which human virtue
The Peloponnesian Wars. can be achieved. We want our Arma Virumque Cano...
students to fill their imaginations with
By second semester
memories and examples of great men If anyone is inclined to take
American History students will have
and women, great causes and the an after lunch siesta at The Lyceum,
read over forty original documents
notable high points in the history of that desire quickly succumbs to
from Mortimer Adler’s Annals of
civilization. An imagination filled with staccato chanting of Latin paradigms.
America. We don’t know of a better
such things provides an antidote to We believe in conjugating the various
way of teaching American History
that prevalent cynicism which denies forms of verbs in all of their tenses,
and the ideas that make America
that greatness can be achieved. persons, moods, voices, and number.
great than to read the words of those
We believe in declining the forms of
who shaped the course of that
8
(Continued from page 8) Latin! Speaking clearly and articulately
nouns, adjectives, and pronouns in Rhetoric– “could you please say before others is a wonderfully
their distinct cases, numbers and that louder...stop swaying back healthful practice for today’s
genders. If the windows are open, and forth... and try articulating “teenager.” Memorization and
chance passersby will be mystified by the vowels and consonants?” imitation of the words and styles of
the mysterious and sonorous the great speakers and thinkers
rhythm; they will stop and stand in Though some classes such as forms a good part of the “Rhetoric
admiration on the sidewalk listening Latin and Math meet every day, Practicum.” Students choose to
to that age old sound of students Lyceum students might attend a memorize a great deal from the
chanting voices filling the air. The “Rhetoric Practicum” or “Music Sonnets of Shakespeare, but they also
study of Latin is alive and well at Theory” class in the afternoon. The gravitate towards Hopkins,
The Lyceum. Students in Latin I, II, day is waning and it is a perfect time Tennyson and Longfellow,
III and IV are variously translating to get the students up on their feet Wordsworth and Keats, Chesterton
texts from the delightful pages of to recite the sonnet, speech, or poem and Belloc. Aside from learning the
Lingua Latina to the rather collegiate, they are memorizing that week. m e c h a n i c s o f e f f e c t i v e
yet respectable, Sententiae from
Frederick M. Wheelock’s revered
tome to, of course, that ancient
masterpiece written by the man who
some claim was the very “Father of
the West”- Virgil, and his immortal
work The Aeneid! Latin like
Mathematics, is ordered and
predictable. It is easy to discern and
assess each student’s progress and
grasp of the language. Younger
students love to recite their verb
paradigms “Amo, Amas, Amat” and
their five declensions. They enjoy
singing that old chestnut
“Gaudeamus Igitur” and the
beautiful and haunting round
“Pauper Sum Ego” He is a lucky
teacher who gets to teach Latin I
especially!
Of course the satisfaction
only increases when all those early
years of hard effort pay off and
students can tackle reading an entire
work in Latin. They are always
surprised to see how easily they can
read one of the gospels in Latin. It is
only after several years of study that
students can begin to fully appreciate
the impact that the study of Latin
has on them. It exerts an indelible
mark on their minds that will greatly
influence the rest of their intellectual
development. They will never
outgrow it and will bless and fondly
remember the day and the year that
they first encountered the study of
Advent lessons and Carols– November 2007
9
write, and prepare them for a leads it, so to speak, from
lifetime of effective communication. disproportion to proportion…”
This is also the case in (St. Athanasius)
Drama which, aside from its own
special merits, seems most apt in Soon students and faculty
teaching Rhetoric. In Drama, gather for the thrice weekly meetings
students not only must memorize of “schola”. The old term “schola
their individual parts but each cantorum,” (school of singers) aptly
student is taught to match their speech describes the Lyceum choir.
and thoughts with the appropriate actions Everyone sings at The Lyceum. There
and gestures. In Drama there is an are no exceptions, for singing is a
integration between action and word universal requirement of human
which indeed is most pleasing nature. Now and then we have a
communication. Additionally, there student who claims to be “tone deaf,”
is a special excellence in Drama class but this particular ailment (and indeed
that comes from the opportunity of all other impediments to singing)
not just reading but learning a play seems to be transitory, at least in our
so intimately that the actors are not experience. Singing music from The
_________
ashamed to stage a major production Renaissance, in four part harmony, is
The Lyceum Players
before parents and friends. Such an a blessing for any school and is, of
directed by Miss Caitlyn Murphy
endeavor takes a great deal of time, course, one of the advantages of
16November 2007 but every moment is worthwhile if having a coed high school. So
_______ students are learning a real naturally do their voices seem to
masterpiece. At The Lyceum we divide into the four parts- soprano,
traditionally put on one of the Greek alto, tenor, and bass- that it becomes
(Continued from page 9)
Tragedies in the Fall and one of clear to each that they were meant to
communication, Rhetoric class
Shakespeare’s comedies in the be in a choir. Singing together, they
affords ample opportunity for
Spring. The many practices and the are able to hear and produce the
students to fill their memory with
excitement of staging a major beautiful music that is impossible
some of the very “best that has been
performance adds an appropriate without a coordinated effort; they are
thought or said.” We hope that a
incentive to speak and act the parts able to enter into the tradition of
memory well stocked and brimming
with excellence. singing the music of Palestrina and
full with such things will enrich,
Bach and Mozart and Tallis.
enliven, and add clarity and
“...for thus beautifully singing ... Music, one of the seven
substance, grace and facility to all the
brings rhythm to his soul, and liberal arts, occupies a special spot in
things that our students will say or
(Continued on page 11)
The Chorus of old Theban citizens listening to the sentry as Creon looks on.
10