The 2009 Southeastern Liturgical Music Symposium will be held at Our Lady of the Assumption Church on Saturday, Aug. 22. The Saturday symposium consists of Mass, workshop sessions given by nationally known speakers, and sung vespers. Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory will give this year’s keynote address.

The symposium is sponsored by the Archdiocese of Atlanta as a gathering for liturgical musicians who share an interest in advancing the quality of Catholic liturgical music in Southern parishes.

Registration on the day of the symposium will be held at 8:30 a.m. and will cost $75 per person. Preregistration by Aug. 1 is $55 per person and group discounts are available.

Following registration, Mass will be celebrated at 9 a.m. with Father Ricardo Bailey as the homilist.

Throughout the rest of the day, a variety of sessions will be presented on topics such as “Contemporary Music and the Liturgical Year,” “African-American Sacred Music and the Catholic Liturgy,” “Developing Children’s Musical Programs” and “Sing Like a Catholic.”

Speakers include Grammy-nominated musician David Haas, regarded as one of the pre-eminent liturgical composers in the English-speaking world. He plans to speak about processes for making choices of liturgical music and the upcoming liturgical year and he will demonstrate many examples of ritual music, psalmody, hymns and songs. Dr. Kevin Johnson, chairman of the music department at Spelman College in Atlanta and director of the Spelman Glee Club, as well as a music consultant for Catholic dioceses and parish music director, will facilitate a workshop designed for a universal Catholic audience and will elaborate on musical approaches and techniques that will enhance the worship experience.

Lee Gwozdz, director of music for Corpus Christi Cathedral, Corpus Christi, Texas, and a prominent leader in children’s choirs, will talk about developing children’s music programs. Jeffrey Tucker, a Catholic columnist and managing editor of “Sacred Music,” a journal of Catholic music in its 135th year of publication, will speak on the music intrinsic to the Roman Rite and will also present perspectives on how it can be embraced as the most authentic and spiritually inspiring people’s music for Mass.

At 3 p.m. Archbishop Gregory will give the keynote address. The archbishop holds a doctorate in sacred liturgy from the Pontifical Liturgical Institute in Rome and serves on the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship.

To preregister, visit www.archatl.com/slms for forms. The fee of $55 per person before Aug. 1 includes lunch. A group discount is available to parishes and other groups when all of the registration forms and payments are submitted together. The group rate is: $55 per person for 1-4 participants; $50 per person for 5-9 participants; $40 per person for 10-19 participants; and $30 per person for groups with 20 or more participants.

A special room rate of $59 a night has been arranged at the Courtyard Atlanta Glenridge/Perimeter. Reservations should be made directly with the hotel. Mention the Southeastern Liturgical Music Symposium when registering.

Our Lady of the Assumption Church is located at 1350 Hearst Drive, NE, Atlanta.