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Corpus Christi Watershed

Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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The Saint John de Brébeuf Hymnal

The Saint John de Brébeuf Hymnal

INE ASSOCIATES of Corpus Christi Watershed were chosen to help produce the Brébeuf Hymnal, which (according to one of the main authors for the CHURCH MUSIC ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA) “has no parallel and not even any close competitor.” A member of the CATHOLIC ORGANIST GROUP wrote: “I have never encountered such a prolific and astoundingly interesting hymnal; I just read it for an hour and I’ve barely scratched the surface. I’m hanging on every word. It could easily stand as a primary text to a course, and is almost overkill as a pew aid.” The Brébeuf Hymnal contains three times as many hymns as its competitors. The Brébeuf series—sold exclusively by SOPHIA INSTITUTE PRESS—was designed by and for priests and musicians serving in real parishes across the globe.

*  Pew Edition • Purchase the Pew Edition (932 pages)
—Contact SOPHIA INSTITUTE PRESS for bulk discount rates.
*  CHORAL SUPPLEMENT • Purchase Link (1,192 pages)
—Must be used in conjunction with the pew edition.
*  ORGAN ACCOMPANIMENT • Three Volumes (1,292 pages)
—Sold by SOPHIA INSTITUTE PRESS; Spiral-Bound; extremely opaque paper.

The Brébeuf Portal:

* SEARCH THE HYMN PORTAL

This powerful and innovative portal can be searched for numerous hymn items. For example, search the portal for “EUCHARIST” and tons of Eucharistic hymns come up—as this result shows. You can also search for all instances of a particular melody found in the Brébeuf Hymnal. For example, when you search for the melody called “MELCOMBE,” the portal instantly pulls up these results. For tunes used no more than once in the Brébeuf Hymnal, the results reflect that. For example, if you search for the beautiful tune called “WHITEHEAD,” you get just one result (because that melody is only used once in the Brébeuf Hymnal). If you search for the ancient Latin hymn “Ad Cenam Agni Providi,” the results are splendid. Searching by liturgical season is highly recommended. For example, if you search for “ADVENT,” you get excellent results.

Access any hymn with ease! Simply type digits into the URL address shown below. (For example, #802 would be: https://www.ccwatershed.org/brebeuf/page/802/.)

(Brébeuf Hymnal) • Sample Pages
You can immediately download fifty-seven sample pages completely free of charge. Included are pages from the choral supplement & organ accompaniment volumes. In some ways, viewing these sample pages is the quickest way to learn about this exciting new book.

(Brébeuf Hymnal) • Complete Indices
You can download the complete index for the Brébeuf Hymnal. Mrs. Veronica Moreno has also uploaded a handy “seasonal index” that can be downloaded here.

(Brébeuf Hymnal) • No More Stacked Lyrics!
Lyric “stacking” has a number of major disadvantages. (If you’re confused about what “lyric stacking” is click here.) For example, when the keyboard player simultaneously serves as CANTOR, it’s virtually impossible to play all the notes correctly while attempting to sing “stacked” lyrics—especially if the hymn is unfamiliar, once you get past the first few verses. The Brébeuf Hymnal has solved this problem once and for all as you can see.

(Brébeuf Hymnal) • Additional Questions?
We’ve compiled thirty-five articles about the Brébeuf Hymnal published in various media outlets to help answer all your questions. We have included third-party reviews.

“Are These Hymn Titles in Latin or English?”
A very important thing to grasp!
Natalia explains in this video:

Here’s the direct URL link.

Free Rehearsal Videos
More than 1,000 and counting!
Natalia describes them in this video:

Here’s the direct URL link.

Alphabetizing Hymnals
Does it make sense?
Natalia answers in this video:

Here’s the direct URL link.

Notating Every Verse?
The least we can do for singers!
Natalia explains in this video:

Here’s the direct URL link.

Why Name a Hymnal After Father Brébeuf?
Who Was This Saint?
Natalia explains in this video:

Here’s the direct URL link.

What Are Its Two Sections?
Truly crucial information!
Natalia explains in this video:

Here’s the direct URL link.

Stations of the Cross by Fulton J. Sheen?
Plus Cardinal Ratzinger & Saint Alphonsus Liguori.
Natalia explains in this video:

Here’s the direct URL link.

Common Hymn Melodies
(a.k.a. “Shared Tunes”)
Natalia explains in this video:

Here’s the direct URL link.

The Father Brébeuf Hymnal is distributed exclusively by SOPHIA INSTITUTE PRESS, and has been featured in their Annual Report. Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity. In the interest of full disclosure, any artists who contributed to the Brébeuf hymnal—texts, melodies, harmonizations, artwork, and so forth—receive standard royalties. Please contact Sophia Institute Press with questions about the Brébeuf Hymnal: liturgy.sophiainstitute.com. Beautiful and powerful images of Saint Jean de Brébeuf—one North America’s patron saints—can be downloaded by clicking here.

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President’s Corner

    Music List • (Palm Sunday, 2026)
    Readers have expressed interest in seeing the ORDER OF MUSIC I created for Palm Sunday—a.k.a. “Dominica in palmis de Passione Domini”—which is 29 March 2026. Please feel free to download it as a PDF file if such a thing interests you. The OFFERTORY (Impropérium exspectávit cor meum) is quite moving. Even though the COMMUNION ANTIPHON is relatively simple, the Fauxbourdon makes it sound outstanding.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Easter • Would You Sing This Hymn?
    He who examines Laudes Dei: a hymnal for Catholic congregations (St. Louis, 1894) will discover this pairing of a hymn for Easter. For the record, this isn’t the only Catholic hymn book to marry that text and melody; e.g. Saint Mark’s Hymnal for Use in the Roman Catholic Church in the United States (Peoria, 1910) does the same thing. Sometimes an unexpected pairing—chosen with sensitivity—can be superb, forcing singers to experience the text in a ‘fresh’ and wonderful way. On the other hand, we sometimes encounter something I’ve called “PERNICIOUS HYMN PAIRINGS.” If you find the subject in intriguing, feel free to peruse an article I published in May of 2023. As always, my email inbox is open if you have a bone to pick with my take.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Pipe Organ “Answers” in Plainsong?
    In 2003, I copied a book by Félix Bélédin (d. 1895), who was titular organist—from 1841 to 1874—at the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Lyon (France). In 2008, we scanned and uploaded the book to the Lalande Online Library. Nobody knows for sure when the book was published; some believe it first appeared in the 1840s. In any event, one who examines this excerpt, showing GLORIA IX might wonder why it says the organ answers in plainsong. However, the front of the book explains, telling the organist explicitly when to “respond in plainchant.” This is something called organ alternatim. Believe it or not, the pipe organ would take turns with the choir, playing certain texts instrumentally instead of having them sung. I’m not very well-versed in this—pardon the pun—but if memory serves, ORGAN ALTERNATIM was frowned upon by the time of Pope Saint Pius X. Nevertheless, French organists kept doing it, even after it was explicitly condemned as an abuse.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “Gregorian Chant Quiz” • 24 March 2026
    How well do you know your Gregorian hymns? Do you recognize the tune inserted into the bass line on this score? For many years, we sang the entire Mass in Gregorian chant—and I mean everything. As a result, it would be difficult to find a Gregorian hymn I don’t recognize instantly. Only decades later did I realize (with sadness) that this skill cannot be ‘monetized’… This particular melody is used for a very famous Gregorian hymn, printed in the LIBER USUALIS. Do you recognize it? Send me an email with the correct words, and I promise to tell everybody I meet about your prowess!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF Download • “Ubi Caritas” (SATB)
    I remember singing “Ubi Cáritas” by Maurice Duruflé at the conservatory. I was deeply moved by it. However, some feel Duruflé’s version isn’t suitable for small choirs since it’s written for 6 voices and the bass tessitura is quite low. That’s why I was absolutely thrilled to discover this “Ubi cáritas” (SATB) for smaller choirs by Énemond Moreau, who studied with OSCAR DEPUYDT (d. 1925), an orphan who became a towering figure of Catholic music. Depuydt’s students include: Flor Peeters (d. 1986); Monsignor Jules Van Nuffel (d. 1953); Arthur Meulemans (d. 1966); Monsignor Jules Vyverman (d. 1989); and Gustaaf Nees (d. 1965). Rehearsal videos for each individual voice await you at #19705. When I came across the astonishing English translation for “Ubi Cáritas” by Monsignor Ronald Knox—matching the Latin’s meter—I decided to add those lyrics as an option (for churches which have banned Latin). My wife and I made this recording to give you some idea how it sounds.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF Download • “Holy, Holy, Holy”
    For vigil Masses on Saturday (a.k.a. “anticipated” Masses) we use this simpler setting of the “Holy, Holy, Holy” by Monsignor Jules Vyverman (d. 1989), a Belgian priest, organist, composer, and music educator who ultimately succeeded another ‘Jules’ (CANON JULES VAN NUFFEL) as director of the Lemmensinstituut in Belgium. Although I could be wrong, my understanding is that the LEMMENSINSTITUUT eventually merged with “Catholic University of Leuven” (originally founded in 1425). That’s the university Fulton J. Sheen attended.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“We must say it plainly: the Roman rite as we knew it exists no more. It has gone. Some walls of the structure have fallen, others have been altered—we can look at it as a ruin or as the partial foundation of a new building. Think back, if you remember it, to the Latin sung High Mass with Gregorian chant. Compare it with the modern post-Vatican II Mass. It is not only the words, but also the tunes and even certain actions that are different. In fact it is a different liturgy of the Mass.”

— Fr. Joseph Gelineau (1978)

Recent Posts

  • Fulton J. Sheen • “24-Hour Catechism”
  • Music List • (Palm Sunday, 2026)
  • Easter • Would You Sing This Hymn?
  • “Priest Saying Mass” • Medieval Illumination
  • From Sentiment to Sacrament: Reclaiming Sacred Music for the Wedding Mass

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Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.