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Views from the Choir Loft

How Many Syllables Does The Word “Catholic” Have?

Jeff Ostrowski · March 4, 2014

756 Hep HE ENGLISH LANGUAGE is pronounced differently in the various English-speaking countries: Ireland, South Africa, Singapore, New Zealand, and so forth. I have been receiving emails from my friends in England. They are unhappy with the way I set the word CATHOLIC.

I was taught by professors of Choral Methods a dictum similar to Franz Xavier Haberl’s famous one: Sing as you speak.

For example, when you sing ANGEL, don’t sing “ain-JELL.” Sing it how you say it: “AIN-juhll.”

I recently composed this setting of the Creed:

      * *  St. Felix Musical Creed — An easy setting for Choir & Congregation

To my ear, words like EVERY are only two syllables ( EV- ‘RY ) not three. The same holds true for “Catholic,” as you can see here:

WHILE WE’RE ON THIS SUBJECT, certain words in English cause problems when they come at the end of a Psalm tone because they have an accented syllable followed by three (or even four!) unaccented syllables. Here are some examples:

TABERNACLE

IMPERISHABLE

PERSECUTORS

TESTIMONIES

SANCTUARY

COVETOUSNESS

FIGURATIVELY

YOUR FLOCK SETTLED IN IT

WONDERFULLY

PERSECUTING

SACRIFICES

CIRCUMSTANCES

If you have a word like GLORIOUSLY you can “cheat” by making it three syllables instead of four. The same can be done with HEAVEN — it can be two syllables or one.

ADDENDUM:

I heard a professional group sing “See – lebrity” for Celebrity. Frightful!

I heard a professional singers sing “Cruella Dee – vill” for Cruella de Vil. Terrible!

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Musical Setting of the Creed, Roman Missal Third Edition Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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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

    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!
    A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Booklet of Eucharistic Hymns” (16 pages)
    I was asked to create a booklet for my parish to use during our CORPUS CHRISTI PROCESSION on 22 June 2025. Would you be willing to look over the DRAFT BOOKLET (16 pages) I came up with? I tried to include a variety of hymns: some have a refrain; some are in major, others in minor; some are metered, others are plainsong; some are in Spanish, some are in Latin, but most are in English. Normally, we’d use the Brébeuf Hymnal—but we can’t risk having our congregation carry those heavy books all over the city to various churches.
    —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

“What really matters in life is that we are loved by Christ and that we love Him in return. In comparison to the love of Jesus, everything else is secondary. And, without the love of Jesus, everything is useless.”

— Pope John Paul II (1979)

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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.

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