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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

Twelve (12) PDF Guides To Pronouncing Latin

Jeff Ostrowski · May 1, 2015

ULTON J. SHEEN read every word St. Thomas Aquinas ever wrote, at least once. He often repeated the Latin phrase «TIMEO VIRUM UNIUS LIBRI» (a phrase attributed to the Angelic Doctor) and I encourage you to look it up when you get a chance—it will become obvious why I mention it here.

Most Catholic priests pronounce Latin as follows:

(PDF) Guide No. 1   * * Very Good
Proper of the Mass (Carlo Rossini, 1933)

(PDF) Guide No. 2
Parish Book of Chant (CMAA, 2008)

(PDF) Guide No. 3
Mass & Vespers (Solesmes, 1957)

(PDF) Guide No. 4
Complete Proper of the Mass (Green & Koch, 1946)

(PDF) Guide No. 5
the Liber Usualis (Solesmes, 1961)

(PDF) Guide No. 6
A Textbook of Gregorian Chant (Dom Gregory Suñol, 1929)

(PDF) Guide No. 7
Basic Gregorian Chant (Sister Demetria, 1960)

(PDF) Guide No. 8
Chants of the Church (Solesmes, 1953)

(PDF) Guide No. 9
Gregorian Chants for Church and School (Goodchild, 1944)

(PDF) Guide No. 10
A New School of Gregorian Chant (Johner, 1925)

(PDF) Guide No. 11
Fundamentals of Gregorian chant (Heckenlively, 1950)

(PDF) Guide No. 12 • 47-Page Book
Correct Latin Pronunciation acc. to Roman Usage (De Angelis, 1937)

Fr. Carlo Rossini’s version is probably the best.

PAY CAREFUL ATTENTION to the “common pitfalls” Americans fall into, like saying “ihn” instead of “een” for the Latin word in. Or saying, “ih-mack-yoo-lah-tuh” instead of “ee-mah-coo-lah-tah” for the Latin word immaculáta. Or saying “Doe-mee-nay” instead of “Doh-mee-neh” for the Latin word Dómine. That being said, these rules can be taken too far. I’ve served the Latin Mass for priests from all over the world: Australia, Austria, Germany, France, England, America, Mexico, China, Puerto Rico, and so on. It is rare to hear a priest say “CHEH-lee” for the Latin word cæli. Most say “chay-lee,” and there’s no use losing sleep over this!



Keywords: “Latin Pronunciation Guide”

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

Filed Under: Articles, Featured Tagged With: PDF Guide to pronouncing Latin, Proper Pronunciation of Lingua Latina Last Updated: December 5, 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

    “Music List” • 17th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (27 July 2025). 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 the feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Communion • “Ask & You Shall Receive”
    All of the chants for 27 July 2025 have been added to the feasts website, as usual under a convenient “drop down” menu. The COMMUNION ANTIPHON (both text and melody) are exceedingly beautiful and ancient.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Jeff’s Mother Joins Our Fundraiser
    To assist our fundraiser, Mrs. Kathleen Ostrowski has drawn several beautiful sketches which she offers to all our readers free of charge. If you have a moment, I invite you download them at this link.
    —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

[Speaking of those who wish to eliminate Latin from the liturgy.] “One may well wonder what the origin is of this new way of thinking and this sudden dislike for the past; one may well wonder why these things have been fostered.”

— Pope Saint Paul VI (15 August 1966)

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