Views from the Choir Loft

Catholic Artists Society 1

Fr. David Friel · October 25, 2015

HE THEME for this year’s “Art of the Beautiful” lecture series is “Spirit & Flesh: The Incarnation and Its Implications for Art.” The series is a project of the The Catholic Artists Society, which describes itself as an association of artists and media professionals. Presented in conjunction with the Thomistic Institute, the lectures are quite popular and would be of interest to anyone who appreciates the field of aesthetics.

This season’s lecture series addresses topics such as beauty, art, architecture, music, Scripture, and literature. Each in its own way, the talks look very appealing. Especially notable is the conclusion of the series, which directly addresses the relationship of faith and music. The speakers and topics will include:

It’s Complicated: Art, the Beautiful, and the True Good in Dante’s Purgatorio (Dr. Robert Royal, The Faith and Reason Institute)

”You Spoke in a Vision” (Ps 89:19): Iconoclasts, Exegetes, and God’s Word as an Image (Rev. Anthony Giambrone, O.P., Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception)

Incarnation and Transfiguration: Rediscovering the Iconic Nature of Church Buildings (Prof. Dennis McNamara, University of St. Mary of the Lake/Mundelein Seminary)

Beauty and the Spiritual Senses (Prof. Francesca Murphy, University of Notre Dame)

Faith in Music (Manfred Honeck, Music Director of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra)

The series will be held on Saturday nights at 7:30 PM in the Catholic Center at NYU, followed by a reception and sung Compline.

Again this year, these lectures look very worthwhile. They are sure to promote wonderful discussion of important topics related to the sacred liturgy.

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

About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel is a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and serves as Director of Liturgy at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary. —(Read full biography).

Simplest “Agnus Dei” Ever Published

Our choir is on break during the month of July. I needed a relatively simple “Agnus Dei,” so I composed this setting for organ & voice in honor of Saint René Goupil. It has been called the simplest setting ever composed. I love CARMEN GREGORIANUM (“Gregorian Chant”), especially the ALLELUIAS, INTROITS, and COMMUNION ANTIPHONS. That being said, some have pointed out that certain sections of the Kyriale aren’t as strong as the Graduale or Vesperale. There’s a reason for this—but it would be too complicated to explain at this moment.

—Jeff Ostrowski

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)

Our choir is on break during the month of July. However, on the feasts website, the chants have been posted for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C), which is this coming Sunday: 6 July 2025.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Bugnini’s Statement (6 November 1966)

With each passing day, more is revealed about how the enemies of the liturgy accomplished their goals. For instance, Hannibal Bugnini deeply resented the way Vatican II said Gregorian Chant “must be given first place in liturgical services.” On 6 November 1966, his cadre wrote a letter attempting to justify the elimination of Gregorian Chant with this brazen statement: “What really gives a Mass its tone is not so much the songs as it is the prayers and readings.” Bugnini’s cadre then attacked the very heart of Gregorian Chant (viz. the Proprium Missae), bemoaning how the Proprium Missae “is completely new each Sunday and feast day.” There is much more to be said about this topic. Stay tuned.

—Jeff Ostrowski

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

The representative Protestant collection, entitled “Hymns, Ancient and Modern”—in substance a compromise between the various sections of conflicting religious thought in the Establishment—is a typical instance. That collection is indebted to Catholic writers for a large fractional part of its contents. If the hymns be estimated which are taken from Catholic sources, directly or imitatively, the greater and more valuable part of its contents owes its origin to the Church.

— Orby Shipley (1884)