Views from the Choir Loft

Report • Hong Kong Summer Choral Workshops

Andrew Leung · September 7, 2017

HAVEN’T BEEN POSTING too much lately and I apologize for that. I have been very busy with the following workshops. In August, I conducted two Summer Choral Workshops for church singers in Hong Kong. The workshops were about six hours long and about fifty singers participated. Participants were introduced to traditional sacred music, both Gregorian chant and polyphony, of the Catholic Church. Both workshops were concluded with Sung Masses in the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite. Here are some pictures from the workshops and the Masses

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LEARNED A LOT in this workshop through teaching and it was amazing to be able to work with church singers in Hong Kong again (I did a similar workshop last summer). A lot of the participants come from regular parish choirs, and most of them don’t have the chance to sing chant and polyphony in a regular basis. It was definitely an unforgettable experience for many to be able to sing choral pieces by European masters like: Tallis, Byrd, Allegri, Rheinberger and Faure. We were also very grateful to Dr. Peter Kwasniewski for allowing us to use his setting of Tantum Ergo during one of the workshops.

Here is a recording of Gregorio Allegri’s Adoremus in Aeternum, which we sang during communion on the Feast of the Transfiguration of Our Lord. Keep in mind that participants rarely get the opportunity to sing pieces like this and the recordings never do justice to the actual sound. The piece is fairly simple, especially for small church choirs, and is suitable to be sung during communion and Eucharistic adoration. It is available for free download on Choral Public Domain Library.

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

About Andrew Leung

Andrew Leung currently serves the music director of Vox Antiqua, conductor of the Cecilian Singers, and music director at Our Lady of China Church.—(Read full biography).

Music List • (1st Sunday of Lent)

Readers have expressed interest in seeing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for this coming Sunday—22 February 2026—the 1st Sunday of Lent (Year A). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are available at the outstanding feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin. I spent an enormous amount of time preparing this ORDER OF MUSIC—because the children’s choir will join us—and some of its components came out great. For example, the COMMUNION ANTIPHON with Fauxbourdon is utterly resplendent, yet still ‘Lenten’.

—Jeff Ostrowski

2-Voice Arrangement for Lent

Those seeking a two-voice arrangement for LENT and PASSIONTIDE should click here and scroll down. It’s based on number 775 in the Brébeuf Hymnal, with an enchanting melody written by Kevin Allen (the legendary American composer of sacred music). That text—“Pendens In Crucis Cornibus”—is often used for the Feast of our Lady of Sorrows. That link is important because, in addition to the musical score, it provides free rehearsal videos for each individual voice: something volunteer choirs appreciate!

—Jeff Ostrowski

“Sanctus VIII” • Organ Accompaniment

A few days ago, I composed this organ harmonization for SANCTUS VIII. This Mass is traditionally called Missa de ángelis or “Mass of the angels.” In French, it is Messe de Anges. You can evaluate my attempt to simultaneously accompany myself on the pipe organ (click here) while singing the melody. My parish is currently singing this setting.

—Jeff Ostrowski

“Reminder” — Month of Febr. (2026)

On a daily basis, I speak to people who don’t realize we publish a free newsletter (although they’ve followed our blog for years). We have no endowment, no major donors, no savings, and refuse to run annoying ads. As a result, our mailing list is crucial to our survival. It couldn’t be easier to subscribe! Just scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.

—Jeff Ostrowski

PDF Chart • “Plainsong Rhythm”

I will go to my grave without understanding the lack of curiosity so many people have about the rhythmic modifications made by Dom André Mocquereau. For example, how can someone examine this single sheet comparison chart and at a minimum not be curious about the differences? Dom Mocquereau basically creates a LONG-SHORT LONG-SHORT rhythmic pattern—in spite of enormous and overwhelming manuscript evidence to the contrary. That’s why some scholars referred to his method as “Neo-Mensuralist” or “Neo-Mensuralism.”

—Jeff Ostrowski

PDF • “O Come All Ye Faithful” (Simplified)

I admire the harmonization of “Adeste Fideles” by David Willcocks (d. 2015), who served as director of the Royal College of Music (London, England). In 2025, I was challenged to create a simplified arrangement for organists incapable of playing the authentic version at tempo. The result was this simplified keyboard arrangement (PDF download) based on the David Willcocks version of “O Come All Ye Faithful.” Feel free to play through it and let me know what you think.

—Jeff Ostrowski