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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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Views from the Choir Loft

Sacred Choral Program (Living Water College)

Guest Author · March 29, 2013

The following is a guest article by Ms. Nicole Dunn, Assistant Director of Development for Living Water College of the Arts, Canada. They have a stupendous website, which everyone should visit. The link is given at the end of the article.

“Music, great music, stretches the spirit, arouses profound emotions and almost naturally invites us to raise our minds and hearts to God in all situations of human existence, the joyful and the sad. Music can become prayer.” — His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI


IVING WATER COLLEGE OF THE ARTS embodies the thoughts of Pope Benedict in this summer’s Sacred Choral Music Program. As the faithful learn how music can be beautiful, soul-lifting prayer, they naturally aspire to sing better music. Why be satisfied with the ordinary when, in fact, there is a wealth of beautiful church music readily accessible and very learnable? All that is needed is some education.

Living Water College offers this education through a 2 week program, where students immerse themselves in the quiet, pastoral setting of Living Water College, enjoying a significant break from the normal pace of life. “Try something this Summer that will change your life;” says Dcn. Kenneth Noster, President of the college, “it’s comprehensive; a great opportunity to develop skills, while refreshing your mind and spirit amidst some of Alberta’s most beautiful countryside. No matter where you are in your faith, you will grow here.”

One of Canada’s pre-eminent choral directors will provide the training in sacred choral music, using motets, gregorian chant, and the works of great classical composers. Maestro Uwe Leiflander, head of the music department at Our Lady Seat of Wisdom Academy, returns to Living Water with over 3 decades of experience in musical pedagogy and performance as an instrumentalist and choral conductor. Professional musicians and beginners alike can expect to benefit from the course as they immerse themselves in Schubert, Mozart and Bach. Unique to Living Water, the choral program contains an academic component which complements the practical training and informs each singer’s understanding of music. Classes in the liberal arts emphasize both the power and the objective beauty of music.

Participants will find themselves truly engaged in the study of fine art, perhaps reading the ground-breaking works of Aristotle, suggesting that the measure of fine art is in the eye of the beholder. They might then discuss the more cautious Plato, who insisted art couldn’t be judged by just any old “beholder”, but rather only by the one who was eminently refined in his tastes. No doubt they will ultimately discuss the long-held Christian view, affirming that artistic expression becomes “fine art” when it speaks to something quite different in man, not limited to cultural refinement, but found as frequently in the poor, even the illiterate. It is not cultural refinement that makes fine art powerful, but rather moral character. The person who is morally vigilant, striving daily to become holy, will be truly elevated by fine music. It will not only be an aid to personal growth but a source of true joy. Why? Simply because the soul is open to truth and beauty.

Open your soul to truth and beauty this Summer. Expand your mind, build your repertoire of church music, and enter into Mass more profoundly than you may have thought possible.

Alumni relish the friendships they have formed in this peaceful place among the rolling hills of Alberta’s Lakeland, while they grow personally and artistically. They also treasure daily Mass, Liturgy of the Hours, opportunity for spiritual direction, and the opportunity to form a network of like-minded artists.

For more details, please visit:

      * *  LIVINGWATERCOLLEGE.COM [url]      E-mail: admin@livingwatercollege.com

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

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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President’s Corner

    PDF Download • “Offertory” for this Sunday
    This coming Sunday, 12 October 2025, is the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). Its OFFERTORY ANTIPHON (PDF) is gorgeous, and comes from the book of Esther, as did the ENTRANCE CHANT last Sunday. Depending on a variety of factors, various hand-missals (all with Imprimatur) translate this passage differently. For instance, “príncipis” can be rendered: King; Prince; Lion; or Fierce lord. None is “more correct” than another. It depends on what each translator wants to emphasize and which source text is chosen. All these pieces of plainsong are conveniently stored at the blue-ribbon feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Why A “Fugue” Here?
    I believe I know why this plainsong harmonizer created a tiny fugue as the INTRODUCTION to his accompaniment. Take a look (PDF example) and tell me your thoughts about what he did on the feast of the Flight of Our Lord Jesus Christ into Egypt (17 February). And now I must go because “tempus fugit” as they say!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
    Those who don’t sign up for our free EMAIL NEWSLETTER miss important notifications. Last week, for example, I sent a message about this job opening for a music director paying $65,000 per year plus benefits (plus weddings & funerals). Notice the job description says: “our vision for sacred music is to move from singing at Mass to truly singing the Mass wherein … especially the propers, ordinaries, and dialogues are given their proper place.” Signing up couldn’t be easier: simply scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”
    My pastor requested that I write short articles each week for our parish bulletin. Those responsible for preparing similar write-ups may find a bit of inspiration in these brief columns. The latest article (dated 12 October 2025) talks about an ‘irony’ or ‘paradox’ regarding the 1960s switch to a wider use (amplior locus) of vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
    The American Catholic Hymnal, with IMPRIMATUR granted (25 April 1991) by the Archdiocese of Chicago, is like a compendium of every horrible idea from the 1980s. Imagine being forced to stand all through Communion (even afterwards) when those self-same ‘enlightened’ liturgists moved the SEQUENCE before the Alleluia to make sure congregations wouldn’t have to stand during it. (Even worse, everything about the SEQUENCE—including its name—means it should follow the Alleluia.) And imagine endlessly repeating “Alleluia” during Holy Communion at every single Mass. It was all part of an effort to convince people that Holy Communion was historically a procession (which it wasn’t).
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Canonic” • Ralph Vaughan Williams
    Fifty years ago, Dr. Theodore Marier made available this clever arrangement (PDF) of “Come down, O love divine” by P. R. Dietterich. The melody was composed in 1906 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (d. 1958) and named in honor of of his birthplace: DOWN AMPNEY. The arrangement isn’t a strict canon, but it does remind one of a canon since the pipe organ employs “points of imitation.” The melody and text are #709 in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“Many other things most justly keep me in the bosom [of the Catholic Church]. The consent of peoples and nations keeps me in the Church; so does her authority, inaugurated by miracles, nourished by hope, enlarged by love, established by age. The succession of priests keeps me, beginning from the very seat of the Apostle Peter, to whom the Lord, after His resurrection, gave it in charge to feed His sheep, down to the present episcopate.”

— Saint Augustine (Epistle against Manichaeus)

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