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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

Responsorial Psalms & Gospel Acclamations

Guest Author · June 12, 2013

The following is a guest article by Royce Nickel.

HEN I BECAME music director at my last parish, I was distressed by some of the liturgical music I found in use. The Responsorial Psalm settings provided jazz chords to accompany the cantor’s verses, and the Gospel Acclamation was a jaunty little 6/8 melody that bore the name “Celtic Alleluia,” though in what way it was “Celtic” I never discovered.

Out of my distress was born the project of composing Responsorial Psalms in a rather different style. These ended up being posted at CCW’s Chabanel website, and some time later Jeffrey Ostrowski invited me to begin composing settings of the Gospel Acclamation for the Garnier Alleluias site as well.

Y GOAL WITH THE RESPONSORIAL PSALMS was to provide a melodic setting of the psalm refrain simple enough that it could be used by a congregation of quite modest musical ability. But at the same time, it had to sound sacred. It had to use the melodic language and idiom of the Church’s own tradition of sacred liturgical music, and it had to do this, though very simply, as beautifully as possible. This meant, first, that the rhythm of the Psalm refrain’s melody was not metrical but, as in Gregorian chant, non-metrical, articulating and elaborating on the speech rhythm of the text being sung. Second, the melody itself, and the organ accompaniment, would use the Church’s modes, exemplifying in typical ways the contours and habits of modal melody in each of the modes.

For the Psalm verses to be sung by the cantor I chose to employ the Gregorian psalm tones. It is true that the use of the ancient psalm tones for texts in English has been a matter of recent debate, some asserting that it is not possible to fit the cadences of the Gregorian tones, originally for singing Latin texts, to the somewhat different stress and accent patterns of the English. To me the arguments against using the ancient tones in English have always seemed overstated and not sufficiently grave to justify depriving ourselves of their sacred beauty. Indeed, it seems remarkable to me that Catholic musicians should debate the possibility of a form of psalmody that has in fact been practiced day in and day out for the last four centuries by the Anglicans.

OR THE ENTIRE CYCLE of Gospel Acclamations I am providing seven different Alleluia melodies, each set in a different mode. These are distributed over the Church year to mark the seasons, for example, a Mode II Alleluia for the Advent season, a Mode VII Alleluia for Christmas and Epiphany, Mode III for Lent, and so on. Keeping the same Alleluia melody for the whole season allows the congregation to become familiar with it and, as the seasons change, serves to mark the times of the Church year.

Whereas with the Responsorial Psalm settings I used the simpler formula of the Gregorian psalm tones that comes from the Daily Office, for the verses of the Gospel Acclamations I chose the more elaborate formula of the mass psalm tones. This decision was motivated by the reflection that, as the reading of the Holy Gospel is the high point of the entire Liturgy of the Word, a greater solemnity of style is appropriate.

Also, the beauty and glory of the mass psalm tones needs to be heard again as a vehicle for sacred text. It is true that the mass tones are traditionally used for the verses attached to the Introit and Communion chants of the Roman Gradual. Many parishes, however, simply do not yet have the musical resources to make use of those chants. Using the mass tones instead for the verse at the Gospel Acclamation is an adaptation rather than a novelty, in that it provides a way to highlight an important moment in the mass using the traditional musical language of the Church.

As a sample, here are this coming Sunday’s settings of the Responsorial Psalm and the Gospel Acclamation:

      * *  Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday

      * *  Gospel Acclamation for this Sunday

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

    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) 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
    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
    “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

    “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
    Did they simplify these hymn harmonies?
    Choirs love to sing the famous & splendid tune called “INNSBRUCK.” Looking through a (Roman Catholic) German hymnal printed in 1952, I discovered what appears to be a simplified version of that hymn. In other words, their harmonization is much less complex than the version found in the Saint Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal (which is suitable for singing by SATB choir). Please download their 1952 harmonization (PDF) and let me know your thoughts. I really like the groovy Germanic INTRODUCTION they added.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“The chants of the Proper of the Mass—that is, the Introit, Gradual, Offertory, Communion—in sung Masses may be chanted in the vernacular to melodies legitimately approved.”

— Statement (20 April 1964) by the Consilium, the group Paul VI put in charge of inventing the New Mass

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  • New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”

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