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Corpus Christi Watershed

“A much greater source of anxiety to Us is the style of action of those who maintain that liturgical worship should shed its sacred character, who foolishly say we should substitute for sacred items & furnishings ordinary common things in daily use.” —Pope Saint Paul VI (14 Oct 1968)

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Views from the Choir Loft

PDF Download • A Eucharistic Piece My Choir Loves

Jeff Ostrowski · November 8, 2019

80854 Brébeuf Hymnal ODAY, I am going to make news. For months, I have been assisting in proofreading the Choral Supplement to the Brébeuf Hymnal. Folks, a choirmaster’s life will never be the same once this book is released. It’s about 1,100 pages, and totally magnificent: unlike anything I’ve ever seen. We all know Catholic music is a mess right now, but this publication—in my humble opinion—will go a long way towards fixing things!

What Is The Purpose?

Put simply, the Choral Supplement provides SATB settings for the hymns in the Brébeuf Pew edition. For many reasons, we encourage choirmasters to emphasize “German style” in parishes: Unison + Organ. But there can be certain moments when SATB singing is desired, and that’s why this book was created. 1

Here is a sample score:

    * *  PDF Download • EARLY RELEASE SAMPLE (Choral Supplement)

My choirs love to sing “Sancti Venite” from the Brébeuf Hymnal. We usually sing Unison + Organ, alternating between ladies and men—and it works extremely well. But the 9:00am choir really wanted to try SATB. A member of the Tenor section sent me an iPhone recording:

When you listen, please remember that this choir is 100% volunteers, and very few members read music. The more we sing it, the better it will get.


You can rehearse each individual part at the Brébeuf website. I wish more people would go explore the rehearsal videos; but nobody ever does. I’m not sure why this is…they are so much fun!  Anyhow, the JP2 Institute has requested that no more rehearsal videos be posted until the Choral Supplement has been released—so be prepared for a whole bunch more videos soon!

When Is The Release Date?

The Choral Supplement is expected to be released on 8 December 2019, a date which had special meaning for Saint Jean de Brébeuf and his companions. One reason it took so long is the beautiful formatting. Do you see the difference between “standard” formatting by a program such as Sibelius?

80858-why-we-format-yellow-sm


This book is a supplement.

In other words, the Choral Supplement only makes sense used in conjunction with the Pew Edition. All the literal translations, color pages, footnotes, etc. are found in the Pew Edition.



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   To say nothing of descants, alternatim between genders, organ interludes, and so on.

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

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Tagged With: Oldest Latin Eucharistic Hymn, Sancti Venite Eucharistic Last Updated: May 3, 2021

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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

    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
    Simplest “Agnus Dei” Ever Published
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. I needed a relatively simple “Agnus Dei,” so I composed this setting for organ & voice in honor of Saint René Goupil. It has been called the simplest setting ever composed. I love CARMEN GREGORIANUM (“Gregorian Chant”), especially the ALLELUIAS, INTROITS, and COMMUNION ANTIPHONS. That being said, some have pointed out that certain sections of the Kyriale aren’t as strong as the Graduale or Vesperale. There’s a reason for this—but it would be too complicated to explain at this moment.
    —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

On October 14, 1968, our Holy Father, Pope Paul VI, in an address to the Roman liturgy Consilium, pointed out the abuse which wants to “remove the sacred from liturgical worship and replace the holy with the commonplace and the every-day.”

— Quoted by Roger Wagner in a 1970 article

Recent Posts

  • “How to Conduct 90 Vespers Services Each Year and Live to Tell the Tale.”
  • 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
  • The Tallis Scholars
  • Music Director Job • $80,000 per year
  • Pope Saint Paul VI to Consilium (14 October 1968)

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