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Views from the Choir Loft

PDF Download • “Christ The King Hymnal” (1955)

Jeff Ostrowski · October 21, 2015

OME OF YOU KNOW I’m currently involved in serving on a committee to produce the Brébeuf hymnal. As part of our research, we peruse old hymn books searching for melodies and texts of a high quality. Whenever I find a particularly intriguing Catholic hymnal, I try to share it with our readers. This one is 232 pages:

*  PDF Download • “Christ the King Hymnal” (1954)
—232 pages • Scanned & uploaded by Corpus Christi Watershed in 2015.

The vast majority of these hymns will be unfamiliar to most USA Catholics since they come from the German tradition. The collection was produced by Rev. Aloysius Knauff in Saskatchewan (CANADA). However, the lion’s share of work was done by Sister Pauline of St. Clare Convent (CINCINNATI, OHIO), who translated tons of hymns from German into English. I’m afraid to admit that some of her renderings strike me as a bit forced. The back of the book has quite a nice section of indices.

The cover looks like this:

From the book’s PREFACE:

ROM THE RICH TREASURES of Catholic hymnody of several centuries I have endeavored to choose the best. To this precious legacy from our forefathers I have added many hymns from more recent composers. I have resisted the temptation of including certain hymns which, although very popular, have melodies or texts of inferior character, such as the hymns O du mein Heiland hoch und hehr, Es bluht der Blumen eine, Geleite durch die Wellen, etc. Wherever possible, I have added the Latin text to the English with the hope of extending the repertoire of hymns and motets which could be used at High Mass. Latin hymns for Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament commence with hymn No. 160 on page 172 and will no doubt be appreciated—particularly in convents, seminaries, and boarding schools, where Benediction is very frequent.

A word of sincere thanks is due here, first to my collaborator, Mr. Hubert Wachendorf of Aachen, Germany, who has succeeded in producing a fine accompaniment to most of these hymns; to Sister Pauline, S.P.S.F., of St. Clare Convent, Hartwell (Cincinnati, Ohio) who has made excellent translations for most of the German hymns; and to Dr. Eugene Lapierre of Montreal, Canada, for the accompaniments to the Gregorian chants…

To get an idea how these hymns actually sound, click on the video in this article and go to the last verse, which is sung in SATB harmony.

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

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Tagged With: Christ the King Last Updated: November 4, 2021

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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 Los Angeles.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

    Tempo?? • 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘎𝘰𝘥, 𝘞𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘺 𝘕𝘢𝘮𝘦
    Once, after Mass, my pastor said he really loved the hymn we did. I said: “Father, that's Holy God, We Praise Thy Name—you never heard it before?” He replied: “But the way you did it was terrific. For once, it didn't sound like a funeral dirge!” Last Sunday, our volunteer choir sang that hymn. I think the tempo was just about right … but what do you think?
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Don’t You Agree About These?
    If you want to make Jeff Ostrowski really happy, send him an email with effusive praise about the individual voice recordings for hymn #296. [Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass] They came out dazzlingly sensational, don't you agree?
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Choral Vowels? Yes? No?
    Here's a live recording of one of the choral “warm-up” exercises my choir enjoys. It was taken during our rehearsal on 27 January 2023. It’s good to make sure each chord is perfectly in tune and balanced before moving to the next one. That only happens when each singer has the correct vowel. If you like, you can freely download that vocal exercise.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

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