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Views from the Choir Loft

Tutorial For Priests: Singing The Prayers After The “Asperges Me”

Jeff Ostrowski · November 29, 2014

625 Oration Demonstration 1513 AD F THE QUESTION asks for the capital of Tennessee, “Nashville” would be CORRECT, but if the question asks for Nebraska’s capital, “Nashville” would be INCORRECT. In other words, the question determines whether a particular answer is correct. Pretty obvious, right?

Wrong. Many priests ask me, “Am I singing this Collect correctly?” Others ask, “Am I singing this Gospel correctly?” It depends on which tone they’re trying to sing.

Here are the texts 1 :

Osténde nobis, Dómine, misericórdiam tuam.
R. Et salutáre tuum da nobis.
Dómine, exáudi oratiónem meam.
R. Et clamor meus ad te véniat.
Dóminus vobíscum.
R. Et cum spíritu tuo.
    Orémus.  Exáudi nos, Dómine sancte, Pater omnípotens, ætérne Deus, et míttere dignéris sanctum Angelum tuum de cælis, qui custódiat, fóveat, prótegat, vísitet, atque deféndat omnes habitántes in hoc habitáculo. Per Christum Dóminum nostrum.  R. Amen.

Show us, O Lord, Thy mercy.
R. And grant us Thy salvation.
O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.
The Lord be with you.
R. And with thy spirit.
    Let us pray.  Graciously hear us, O Holy Lord, Father Almighty, Eternal God; and vouchsafe to send down from heaven Thy holy Angel, to guard, cherish, protect, visit and defend all who dwell in this house. Through Christ our Lord.  R. Amen.

They’re supposed to be sung like this (pay special attention to the “Dominus Vobiscum” section):

      * *  PDF Download: “Simple Tone”

      * *  Mp3 Recording: “Simple Tone”

Yet many priests sing these prayers incorrectly. To understand how such a mistake is possible, one must realize that several tones can lawfully be chosen. Priests often mix the various tones unknowingly, which is not allowed. Even popular reference books get this wrong! For example, the CMAA’s Psallite Sapienter (2008) and Nicola Montani’s St. Gregory Hymnal (1920) give erroneous information about this tone. 2

If you don’t believe me, download the official rubrics from 1961. Or, you can consult the official rubrics from 1908, which reproduce my version exactly. 3 These same rubrics can also be found in the 1912 Antiphonale Romanum (Editio Vaticana). Their technical name is “Toni Communes” and I could easily include many more versions. 4

WITH REGARD TO the “erroneous version” sung by most priests, they confuse the “Simple Tone” (given above) with this one:

      * *  PDF Download: “Ferial Tone B” • This tone may also be used.

To discover the origin of “Ferial Tone B,” one must carefully examine Page 99 in the Liber Usualis. Even though these words have remained unchanged for 109 years, few people are aware of their existence.

In the famous 1941 Mass, 5 the priest correctly sings “Ferial Tone B,” but the choir sings the “Amen” incorrectly. For proof, you can watch the video excerpt, but you have to listen carefully because Msgr. Sheen speaks during some of it. The SSPX priest shown in this video excerpt from 2006 almost sings the tone correctly, but turns the “Oremus” upside down (and the congregation fails to sing “Et cum spiritu tuo” properly).

By the way, here is how the “Vidi Aquam” and “Asperges Me” appear in the St. Edmund Campion Hymnal, which is the only congregational hymnal for the Extraordinary Form.



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   The word Alleluia is added to several of these prayers during Eastertide, when the Vidi Aquam is sung.

2   Both books assume only one tone can be chosen, which is false. By the way, the St. Gregory Hymnal contains a surprising rubric about when the choir sings the Gradual.

3   The only difference is that I took advantage of the “descending fifth option” on the word «HABITACULO» which is specifically allowed by the 1961 rubrics for a Full Stop.

4   If you visit the Lalande Library, you’ll discover that most versions of the Kyriale contain the “Toni Communes.” The 1905 version from Styria is notable, since its font sizes are gargantuan. However, before the Vatican Edition appeared in 1905, there was great melodic variation. For example, the 1895 Liber Usualis of Abbot Pothier only includes one version of the Collect Tone, called the “Monastic Tone.” Notice, too, the interesting melodic variant chosen for the Pater Noster (people’s response) in that 1895 book.

5   A Traditional Latin Mass filmed in Our Lady of Sorrows Church (Chicago) and narrated by Msgr. Fulton J. Sheen.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Asperges Me PDF Score Audio Recording Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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About Jeff Ostrowski

Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004). He resides with his wife and children in Michigan. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    “Music List” • 15th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (13 July 2025). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and propers for this Sunday are also provided at the the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    This coming Sunday—13 July 2025—is the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). All the chants have been conveniently assembled and posted at the feasts website. The OFFERTORY, Ad Te Levávi, is particularly beautiful.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Music Director Job • $80,000 per year
    Our readers will be interested in this job offering for Music Director at Saint Adalbert’s Basilica, located 40 minutes from where I live. My pastor was recently elevated to this basilica. He is offering $80,000 per year, plus benefits. I’m told Saint Adalbert’s Basilica is utterly gorgeous and contains one of America’s most magnificent pipe organs. It would be fantastic to have a colleague nearby!
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

“The Night Office—Nocturns or Matins—except for Holy Week, Easter Octave, and Christmas, has never appeared in the Vatican edition. The larger part of the mediaeval repertory for the Office thus remains still unpublished in the Vatican edition, and is likely to remain so, for the obvious reason that almost no cathedral chapters or monastic choirs sing the Night Office regularly today.”

— John Merle Boe (1968)

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