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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

PDF Download • “The Parish Hymnal” (1957)

Jeff Ostrowski · April 28, 2015

862 Parish Hymnal 1957 YMNALS MUST HAVE BEEN very popular in the century before Vatican II. So many were created! Some people believe there was just the Saint Gregory Hymnal by Nicola A. Montani, but that’s not true.

An extremely rare hymnal compiled by Sister Catherine Cecilia can be downloaded for the first time ever:

    * *  PDF Download • THE PARISH HYMNAL (1957)

If we were transported back to the 1950s, would our ears be shocked? Would the singing impress us? It’s impossible to know. Growing up, I studied pianism with great fervor. My brother and I devoured every video we could find and memorized all the Horowitz films. There’s a famous recording of Horowitz—along with conductor Carlo Maria Giulini and The Orchestra of La Scala—performing Mozart’s 23rd Piano Concerto; it can now be viewed on YouTube. In high school, I won a competition playing that same concerto (with the Busoni cadenza). My ears hear the Horowitz performance differently now than they did twenty years ago. Horowitz does certain things extremely well—there’s no question about that. On the other hand, he’s way off in some parts: wrong notes, poor choice of dynamics, and sloppy playing are evident. The same can be said 1 of Giulini, although he was a first-rate conductor in his day. This is why I say we cannot know what our “current” ears would think of music in the 1950s.

FROM THE FOREWORD :

The hymns contained in the following pages have been drawn from some of the best available sources. The origins of some of them are not known with any degree of exactitude due to the long and nearly untraceable popular usage to which they have been put. Their long establishment in the repertoire, however, is the best approbation they could have.

The viewpoint of the editors has been that this should be a fundamentally congregational collection in both style and scope. To this end the hymns have been placed in the most convenient voice ranges, and every factor which could enhance the value of the collection as an aid to good congregational hymn-singing has been emphasized.

The value of hymn singing is not to be underestimated. It is one of the most effective means for synthesizing the spirit of a parish or community in public worship. In the singing of a vernacular hymn, the individual and the group merge their intentions and both derive profound spiritual benefits therefrom. As was once said by Dom Columbo Marmion, OSB: “Lend your voice to the Word, that He may use it as His organ to praise the Father.” We are convinced that this is precisely the effect on the individual of a tradition of good hymn-singing.

These old hymnals are being uploaded to the internet in partial preparation for a new hymnal—and our readers will be invited to assist in its creation!



NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   When conductor & pianist are not together, that’s never right. It’s not an agogic thing. Nor is it some kind of effect. Nor is it artistic license. It’s always wrong: for beginners or masters.

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

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Tagged With: Affordable Hymnal for Catholic Parishes, Roman Catholic Hymnals 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

    Typo in the “Missale Romanum” (1962)
    The 1962 MISSALE ROMANUM was a transitional missal. It was on its way to becoming the 1970 version, but wasn’t there yet. It eliminated certain duplications, downplayed the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar, expanded the role of laymen, minimized the Last Gospel, made many items optional, and so forth. Father Valentine Young spotted many typos in the 1962 MISSALE ROMANUM, especially incorrect accents. The Offertory Antiphon for this coming Sunday (OF kalendar) contains an error, citing the wrong verse from Psalm 118. It should be 118:107b, not 118:154. If you read verse 154, you’ll understand how that error crept in. [In this particular case, the error pre-dates the 1962 Missal, since the 1940s hand-missal by Father Lasance also gets it wrong.]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 30th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 26 October 2025, which is the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the top-notch feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Little Encouragement?
    In the Gospel, our Savior tells about 10 lepers who were healed. Only one went back to give thanks. Precious few express gratitude, yet many have endless energy to complain. For that reason, I deeply appreciate receiving messages like the following, which arrived a few days ago (about the parish where I direct in Michigan): “Last Sunday, a couple I knew from Grand Rapids was at Mass at 10:00 a.m. I got a chance to talk to them after Mass. I wanted to let you know what they said about the choir. They were absolutely floored by our sound!!!!! They both said they could continuously listen to our choir and the beauty of it. They asked me: “Do you always sound like that?” And they were also very surprised at how packed the church was. They said it was nice for them to be in such a full church. I just thought you would be interested to know their thoughts about our choir.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “Our Father” • Musical Setting?
    Looking through a Roman Catholic Hymnal published in 1859 by Father Guido Maria Dreves (d. 1909), I stumbled upon this very beautiful tune (PDF file). I feel it would be absolutely perfect to set the “Our Father” in German to music. Thoughts?
    —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
    “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

Random Quote

“The priest coming nearer to the faithful; communicating with them; praying and singing with them and therefore standing at the pulpit; saying the COLLECT, the EPISTLE, and the GOSPEL in their language; the priest singing in the divine traditional melodies—the Kyrie, the Gloria, the Credo—with the faithful: these are so many good reforms that give back to that part of the Mass its true finality.”

— Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre (1965) praising vernacular readings at Mass

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  • “Our Father” • Musical Setting?

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